Ripley's Believe It or Not! Sideshow and Other Carnival Curiosities

by Ripley Entertainment Inc. (Compilation)

From displays of the human form—both beautiful and grotesque—to tricks of illusion, and wonders from the far-off world, the sideshow has captivated audiences since its popularity arose in the Victorian Era. It was those featured on the side stages of circuses, fairground midways, and halls of exhibition that still captivate our curiosities today. Ripley's Believe It or Not! Presents Sideshow and Other Carnival Curiosities brings those performers to life.

Beyond the oohs and ahhs, readers will learn the true stories behind some of the most fascinating acts in both sideshow history and modern times. Readers will take a deep dive into the Fiji mermaid, one of the most famous sideshow artifacts of all time—an ingenious hoax made from several apes and a fish, cleverly sewn together. They will meet Avelino Perez Matos, one of the earliest known “eye poppers” that could bulge his eyes more than a centimeter out of their sockets at will, and the Seven Sutherland Sisters, who shared 37 ft of hair between them—a length exaggerated later in their career by the famed P.T. Barnum. Stepping into the sideshows of the 21st-century, readers will also be introduced to a new cast of characters, including “half-man” Aaron Wollin aka Short E. Dangerously. Rich in history and full of photography, Ripley's Believe It or Not! Presents Sideshow and Other Carnival Curiosities is a compendium of curiosities not to be missed!

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Biography

192 pages, Hardcover

Published April 7, 2020

About the author

The Official Goodreads page of Ripley’s Believe It or Not!—where seeing is believing and it’s rude not to stare!

Reviews

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was a fan of the Ripley's Believe it or Not series starring Jack Palance in the 1980s so this looked interesting. My in-laws bought it for me for Christmas.

This is a coffee table book about sideshow performers from the 19th century through today. It's loaded with photos and reproductions of old sideshow posters. Each performer is given a page or three of text and a couple photos.

Some of the entries, like Robert Wadlow, Jo-Jo the Dogfaced Boy, and Joseph Merrick, are fairly well known. However, there were a host of thin men, conjoined twins, and sword swallowers I'd never heard of. It's an entertaining book but it's also a little sad that some of the people's only livelihood was in exploiting their conditions.

Ripley's Believe It or Not! Sideshow and Other Carnival Curiosities is an interesting look at sideshow performers from the last 200 years. 3 out of 5 conjoined twins.

[Carolyn Walsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book contains photos of people with startling body deformities and disfigurements who were once exhibited by Barnum and travelling sideshows, with modern notes about their lives as medical conditions. Public outrage in the mid-50s stopped this practice of displaying such unfortunate people for public entertainment. Some were financially exploited by their managers, but many earned a great deal of money, retiring comfortably and buying fine homes for themselves and their families. They preferred the sideshow life to being exposed to cruelty in the outside world. Some had been sold by impoverished parents and others were stolen from their families by unscrupulous circus managers.

I remember my grandfather taking me to similar sideshows and being amazed but upset at some of the exhibitions. The book also contains photos of flea circuses which I remember well and enjoyed. These were stopped by campaigns against animal cruelty and concern for hygiene.


Some sideshows still exist in an altered form. These display people with unusual talents, such as knife throwing, sword swallowing, stunts of strength, and performing with fire. These include several who have been on the TV show, America’s Got Talent and also people who have gone to extremes in disfiguring their bodies for fame and attention.

This book contains the grotesque from the time of Barnum, with his hoaxes and exaggerations to modern-day people who have deliberately developed unusual talents.

[Genevieve Paquette · Rating 5 out of 5]

A gorgeous book. Yes, it is sensationalized, but it is also surprisingly sensitive and honest. It's a coffee table book, for sure, and not an academic tome, but I think the subject was handled carefully.

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although Ripley books were interesting and fun to read when I was younger they always seemed to be really brief about the most interesting topics. As such I can say that with the last two books now that I have read from Ripley I am really enjoying their deeper exploration of curiously interesting topics and that it allows the reader to get to know these aspects of our past just a bit more.

In this particular book the reader is taken into the world of carnival curiosities whether they are older more well-known members of the side show or part of a newer generation. As such the reader gets a taste of what life was like for these performers whether it was for the good or the bad as well as even what may have caused the conditions that plagued their life. As such the book is not only a record of these people but also an informative guide.

The entries are anywhere from one page to about four pages depending upon the amount of information that is included for that particular individual or individuals. Each section not only contains this information but also has plenty of photographs with captions to further give the reader understanding of what they are reading about.

The writing itself is simplified and easy-to-follow so interested younger readers should not have a problem in doing so. The only suggestion, though, on this point is that some of the information itself may be a bit on the sensitive side dealing with this particular subject matter and that the book is following all aspects of their lives including their romantic side. As such some parental guidance may be needed, especially if you don't want children to read into all of that.

For me the only main change I would have loved to have seen would have been a currency conversion chart given the fact that some of these wages presented seems small change according to our own finances today. And for those of us who don't follow such changes or understand them it would most definitely seem like these performers were being taken advantage of when the side show was an actual viable means of work.

In the end it is one of the better books I have seen on the subject and one that should be allowed as open reading for all people. I think it wonderfully encapsulates how society changes, how entertainment changes and furthermore how those same changes may be a death knell in some cases. Definitely a captivating read....

[Emmy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The history of the sideshow or "freak show" is not quite as black and white as we tend to think. It wasn't just pure, unsullied entertainment, nor was it pure exploitation, but each case had to be addressed in and of itself. This was a fascinating, entertaining, and often sad book that manages to bridge the divide, showing the readers both the good and the bad. Full of photographs and illustrations of both historical and contemporary performers, this was an excellent read and a fascinating dive into history.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this odd book, we meet a variety of people who performed in sideshow. Many of them had some birth defects that were exploited by circuses. I thought this part was very troublesome. I guess these people were not accepted by normal society but I found this to be very very sad and upsetting to read about. Most of these people led very interesting lives and it was enjoyable to read about but I still felt bad.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was an interesting look at former and current freak shows and humans with odd and fantastic abilities and physical features. I've always been fascinated by freak shows and wondered if the people in them were happy. From reading this book it appears most were and enjoyed fortunes they would not have found otherwise and a family of their own making.

[Ville Verkkapuro · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was great.
Being a giant fan of the "odd" side of the world I felt this was made especially for me.
To me it's all the same; being a punk, a freak, a rebel, an outlaw...
Being something else than being the default.
While it's impossible to determine a "normal", I feel this is a good meter; somebody will tell you, one way or another.
These extraordinary people and their unique lives give birth to ambivalent vibes; you feel really happy for them, being rich and famous and getting recognition and being able to tour. And yet there's an obvious vibe that they are definitely STILL being exploited, one way or another. I'm not actually sure. Maybe there's no easy answers. And obviously different sideshows feel differently about this; the poor, blind "161-year old lady" getting her tooth pulled by P.T. Barnum might feel a bit differently than Johnny Eck, being rich and famous and a star.
But that aside, it's extremely interesting to read about these persons. Tells tons about the times they lived in, display interesting medical abnormalities, tells a million things about humanity. And what was the most beautiful thing to me was that many of these persons got families and a normal life. Or... I'm not sure how "normal" you could call siamese twins having two farms and two wives, other being an alcoholic and other don't.
And yes; there's horrible histories, too, that broke my heart. From the elephants to the "savages".
Also; curiosity, showmanship, hints of mystery and horror and "something" still to be explored.
This is extremely appealing to me. Very highly recommended! And go watch the masterpiece "Freaks" now, I bet you can just google it and find it in good quality.

[Tabi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well balanced presentation of circus performers mostly during the heyday of sideshows, but also some current performers. Short biographies made me want more information, but great for kids who have a general interest in facts, and ready for a nuanced conversation about history and how we treat people today.

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

I will never like P.T. Barnum but I did enjoy getting to know a little bit about the people.