Martin first appeared in the United States in 1921 though he had performed in Europe previously. Initially, he was tied to Dreamland circus but he also did stints with Barnum & Bailey, Ringling Bros. and, perhaps most notably, with Ripley’s Odditorium. His last recorded appearance was in 1945, with Ripley.
It was rumored that Martin was a Nazi sympathizer. His attitude did little to endear him to his fellow performers. It is likely that Martin burnt too many bridges in the sideshow community and opted to retire. No one knows what became of him, but it is rumored that he passed away in the 1950’s.
image: I have no idea. All over the Internet.
Edit: I've been informed that the above image is from Sideshow World.
All told, before 1900, there were over one hundred confirmed cases of horned human beings. A correlation between ages and gender became apparent with elderly female cases being more common. Surprisingly, the horns would often begin growing back after being removed, this occurred in the Vidal patent, and there is one case in which the condition seemed genetic, with both a father and son displaying the condition.
Perhaps the most famous of all the horned marvels was Ripley’s ‘Human Unicorn’. In 1930, a Chinese farmer from Manchukuo was discovered by an expat Russian banker. The Russian was able to take a picture of the man and he sent the snapshot off to Robert Ripley of ‘Believe It Or Not!’ fame. Known only as Wang, or sometimes referred to as Weng, the farmer was normal in every respect except fot the fact that he possessed a fourteen-inch spire-like horn growing from the back of his head.
Ripley offered a huge cash reward to anyone who could produce Wang for an appearance in his Odditorium. However Wang disappeared from the public eye in the early 1930's and was never heard from again.
The causes for human horns are varied. Most often it is attributed to benign calvarial tumours, such as osteomas, and an aggressive variant of a condition known as cornu cutaneum. It is important to note that ‘horns’ can grow anywhere on the human body but that the condition manifesting on the head only is a rarity. Today, horned human beings are practically non existent. There have been very few cases in the last one hundred years with modern medicine likely diagnosing and eliminating the situation before it grows into a real problem. Still, the occasional case does crop up.
On August 27, 1911 Amelia and John Eckhardt welcomed the birth of twin sons. The two would have been nearly identical if little John Jr. had been born with legs. While Robert was completely formed John Jr. was a perfectly healthy half boy, seemingly ‘snapped off at the waist’.The brothers grew up in Baltimore and John proved to be incredibly self sufficient. By the age of one he was walking around on his hands, before his brother was even standing. As Johnny grew older, his agility and independence amazed family and friends. In 1923, while attending a magic show at their local church, Johnny shocked the performing conjuror John McAslan by nimbly scampering onstage when a volunteer was requested. McAslan saw great profit in the half-boy and he managed to convince the Eckhardt family into signing both Robert and Johnny to a one year contract. The cheating McAslan later changed the terms of the contract by adding a zero to the duration.
Despite that bit of dishonestly, the brothers enjoyed their time in the magic game. The boys were later even a part of what was likely the most shocking illusion ever. Illusionist and hypnotist Raja Raboid developed a show in which he would recruit Robert from the audience for a hypnosis stunt. During the illusion, Robert would be placed in a box and be discreetly switched with Johnny and a dwarf wearing trousers hiked over his head. Raboid would then perform a variation of the old ‘sawing a man in half’ routine and, when the box was opened, Johnny would commence chasing his ‘legs’ around the stage. Stage hands would round them up and Raboid would reconstitute the body. Robert would then threaten to sue before storming off the stage. While the illusion was intended to be lighthearted and humorous, the site was often horrific to members of the audience. Fainting was common.
Johnny was a true entertainer who loved everything about show business. While in the circus he was often entertaining enough to be a single featured attraction. He was known for his impressive acrobatics, including his famous one-armed handstand, but he also juggled and trained animals. He was also an accomplished runner and was sometimes even called 'The Legless Runner'. Ripley called Johnny 'The Most Remarkable Man in the World'. While Robert was incorporated into almost every appearance to better enhance the unusual physique of his brother Johnny, he was a talented performer as well. When not performing, the brothers conducted their own orchestra in Baltimore and were heavily involved in the arts. Johnny developed into quite a talented painter.
In 1932 Johnny appeared in the movie Freaks. He impressed many with his performance and went on to appear in three Tarzan movies. However, following these films, Johnny decided to retire from show business. He and his brother opened a little amusement park featuring a tiny train, on which Johnny acted as conductor. Johnny was also able to make a comfortable living with his screen painting artwork.
Johnny was an outstanding human being who defined the term ‘human marvel’. He was never ashamed by his appearance and overcame the handicapped label that was pinned on him at birth. Johnny loved his interactions with the average person and delighted in illustrating how one should not judge character based on appearance alone.
However in 1987, after being assaulted in his own home by a group of thieves, the aged Johnny became disgruntled with society and lost his faith in man. Following the incident Johnny spent his remaining years in total seclusion stating that 'the real freaks were outside his home'.
On January 5, 1991, after years in seclusion, Johnny suffered a fatal heart attack and died. His brother Robert followed him in 1995, aged 83.
Johnny’s former home on North Milton Avenue still stands and its current owners curate the Johnny Eck Museum. Intent on sharing the incredible story of Johnny and his brother, the Johnny Eck Museum is an incredible treasure trove of information. Visit it now, online.
Image: Johnny and his brother Robert for the mid 1920's courtesy of the Johnny Eck Museum
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Betty Lou Williams was born Lillie B Williams in
She was originally discovered at the age of one by a professional showman named Dick Best. Best changed the name of the little girl to Betty Lou – perhaps in an attempt to promote the parasite as a male, a lie that was popular in parasitic twin displays – and he began to display the infant in his
Working for Ripley, at the age of two, Betty Lou made an astounding $250 a week. As she grew into adulthood, she made over $1000 a week. With her earnings she purchased a 260 acre ranch for her parents and sent all eleven of her siblings to college.
The jump in Betty Lou’s earnings was due in part to the fact that, as she matured, she developed into quite an attractive woman. Her beauty and generosity drew many male suitors and, at the age of twenty-three, she became engaged to one of her admirers. However the husband-to-be was little more than a heartbreaking thief. He left Betty Lou taking a great deal of money with him and, distraught over the breakup, Betty suffered a severe asthma attack at her home in
Betty Lou suffocated to death at the age of twenty-three.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
So, what exactly is a pinhead?A pinhead is a person born with a condition known as microcephaly. It is a neurological disorder and is characterized by a smaller than average head. Biologically, during conception the head fails to grow in time with the face - which continues to develop at a normal rate; this produces a person with a small head and a receding forehead. As the individual grows older, the smallness of the skull becomes more obvious, although the entire body also is often underweight and dwarfed. It is very common that the development of motor functions and speech are also usually delayed and mental retardation is common in persons with microcephaly. The term Microcephaly is really a blanket term for many similar disorders. It may be congenital or the result of various syndromes associated with chromosomal abnormalities. What is known is that pinheads have always been a very popular draw.
Most pinheads are shorter than average and have a very distinct appearance thus, during the early years of sideshow, many pinheads were exhibited as a variant species – The Missing Link or ‘The Last of the Aztecs’ were common monikers. There was one individual during the Golden Age of sideshow who was simply considered indescribable. Those who looked upon Zip the Pinhead simply had to exclaim, ‘What is it?’
Born in 1842 as William Henry Johnson, Zip was technically a pinhead - however his condition was not nearly as pronounced as many of the other pinhead performers. However he enjoyed an incredibly long and profitable career and over those many years he was known by many names. At various stages in his career he was ‘The Monkey Man’ or ‘The Man-Monkey’. He was also known as ‘The Missing Link’, the ‘What is it?’ and Zip the Pinhead.
While William was actually born in
Zip dove into his character. He would never speak during a performance and would only grunt when addressed or questioned. Legend actually has it that Barnum paid Zip a dollar every day to keep quiet and in character. By all accounts Zip earned that dollar by acting like a complete and total madman.
Charles Dickens visited and attended a performance by Zip in 1867 as a personal guest of P. T. Barnum. As he watched Zip on stage behaving like a lunatic – with his pointed head a hair suit – Charles learned into Barnum and asked quite seriously, ‘Barnum, what is it?’. Barnum was ecstatic at this reaction and repeated the ‘What is it’ phrase on posters, pamphlets and billboards so extensively that for a time many people thought the character William portrayed was actually named ‘What is it’, and not Zip at all. Regardless of the confusion, Zip became Barnum’s most consistent draw and due to that position Zip became one of the better paid performers - $100 a week in addition to that $1 a day ‘hush money’.
Zip outlasted Barnum's solo ventures and continued to work with Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey shows. He was often featured at
As he became older and a senior member of the sideshow community Zip became known as the ‘Dean of Freaks’ and he continued to perform into his 80’s until he passed on April 24, 1926 of bronchitis. His funeral was attended by hundreds of fellow performers as he was loved and respected by his peers. The funeral home on that day was filled to capacity with his fellow freak performers - all paying their last respects to the greatest marvel of the era. The funeral must have been quite the sight as mourners included giants like Jim Tarver, the Texas Giant and Jack Earle, the Tallest Man in the World and Fat Lady’s, like Jolly Irene, who required entire pews just to be seated. Other marvelous mourners were not as easily identifiable as Frank Graf, The Tattooed Man wore a modest suit and Joe Kramer, the man with the rubber neck, stood facing forward for a change. Many other human marvels attended the service – from swordswallowers to midgets- and all of them had known Zip for many years.
But there is a lot of speculation as to how well anyone knew Zip. There are a number of questions in regards to the true level of intelligence. Most pinheads suffer from serious mental retardation. However, many of the things Zip did during his lifetime hints that he was highly intelligent. First, and perhaps most convincingly, he maintained his public character 24 hours a day for 66 years. In 1925, Zip became a real hero as he saved the life of a drowning woman during a break from a
His manager through much of his career, Captain O. K. White, helped him save money and Zip died a wealthy man. He owned several houses –one bought and paid for as a gift from Barnum. He left his fortune to his beloved sister and died a famous icon that continues to live on. His manager Captain White claimed he never saw Zip unhappy except when he wasn’t on tour. ‘He amuses the crowd and the crowd amuses him,’ White once said.
Finally, rumor has it that on his deathbed, his final words to his sister were, ‘Well, we fooled ‘em for a long time’.
image: Zip, from the author's collection.
To learn more about Zip and other Human Marvels purchase American Sideshow by Mark Hartzman.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The tallest man in recorded history, Robert Wadlow, spent less than a year in the circus – and none of it officially in the sideshow. Wadlow, and those who today watch over his legacy, are adamantly against associating Robert with the sideshow or the word freak.While Wadlow was a giant, he was far from being a freak. In fact aside from his remarkable height he was beyond normal. He was a kind, intelligent man who is still remembered as a gentleman some 60 years after his passing.
He was the first born of a normal sized couple and was born on Feb. 22, 1918. By all accounts, Robert was a normal sized baby at eight pounds and six ounces but he quickly began to grow – within twelve months he ballooned to just over forty-four pounds. At the age of five he was five and a half feet tall and at the age of 9 he stood six feet, two inches.
His family was constantly hounded by showmen begging for a chance to display the human marvel. However the Wadlow family insisted that Robert experience as average an upbringing as possible – given the circumstances. Wadlow even joined the Boy Scouts when he was thirteen and became the largest Boy Scout in history – he was seven feet, one inch and weighed 340 pounds.
In high school Robert was popular and active in many extracurricular activities, even serving as the advertising manager for the yearbook. He was completely accepted by his peers. However, when he attended college he lost that acceptance and struggled with the stares. It bothered him so much that he dropped out and returned to his parents quite penniless.
That is when his brief stint with Ringling Bros. began. His 1937 contract was brief and had strict conditions and terms. First, Robert would only attend shows at Madison Square Garden and the Boston Garden. He would display himself only two times a day for three minutes. He refused to allow any exaggeration of his height via media releases or standard height enhancing sideshow trickery like platform shoes, top hats and trick photography. Furthermore, Robert would only display himself in the centre ring and refused any association with the sideshow. Despite all of these restrictions, Robert proved to be incredibly popular.
Robert was so popular that following his time with Ringling Bros. he signed a fabulous contract with The International Shoe Company. The deal included quite a bit of travel and personal appearances and in just under a year Robert had made over 800 appearances and traveled over 300,000 miles. Perhaps most importantly, the company provided Robert with free shoes - a big deal when you are a size 37 and your shoes cost over $100 a piece.
Robert’s feet always gave him a lot of trouble and due to the weight they had to support, they formed blisters often. Believe it or not, it was a blister that killed the gentle giant.
On July 4th, 1940 – after appearing in a Forth of July – Robert developed a blister. That blister became infected and Robert was unable to check into a hospital as they could not accommodate a man of his size. The infection progressed as Robert was attended to in a makeshift medical facility based in Robert’s hotel room. Surgery, antibiotics and blood transfusions were not enough and Robert passed away on July 15th, 1940 at 1:30am. He was only twenty-two and stood eight feet, eleven inches.
His funeral was attended by 40,000 mourners. It took twelve pallbearers to hoist his thousand pound casket. A life sized statue of Robert Wadlow still stands in his hometown of Alton, Illinois.
It is a testament to a man who was the very definition of a Human Marvel.
Watch a short documentary on Robert Wadlow here.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The Hungarian Sisters - The Scottish Brothers - The Biddenden Maids
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.5 Canada License.
Dedicated to vindicating those people who were once labeled as freaks. Within this page 'Human Marvel' replaces the terms freak and human oddity.The Human Marvels Website is Licensed.
Please credit any reproductions to J. Tithonus Pednaud, cited sources or www.thehumanmarvels.com.