Download or read book Secrets of the Sideshows written by Joe Nickell and published by University Press of Kentucky. This book was released on 2005-09-09 with total page 434 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Joe Nickell - once a carnival pitchman, then a magician, private detective, and investigative writer - has pursued sideshow secrets for years and has worked the famous carnival midway at the Canadian National Exhibition. For this book, he interviewed showmen and performers, collected carnival memorabilia, researched published accounts of sideshows and their lore, and even performed some classic sideshow feats, such as eating fire and lying on a bed of nails as a cinderblock was broken on his chest. The result of these varied efforts, Secrets of the Sideshows tells the captivating story of the magic, tricks - real or illusory - and performers of the world's midway shows."--BOOK JACKET.
Download or read book Carny Sideshows written by Tony Gangi and published by Kensington Publishing Corp.. This book was released on 2012-03-01 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Step right up, Ladies and Germs, and feast your eyes on the incomparable wonders of a hidden world! Be astonished! amazed! disgusted! by brazen acts of self-destruction that no natural human body should be able to withstand! Tony Gangi, professional magician, lifelong sideshow devotee, and card-carrying graduate of Coney Island's famed Sideshow School, guides you through the stupendous techniques and proud traditions of this shocking and fascinating realm of entertainment. • Learn the secrets behind Breathing Fire! Sword Swallowing! The Bed of Nails! Pounding Spikes into the Head! • Enter the mysterious worlds of the Snake Lady, the Human Blockhead, and more! • Meet sideshow greats like Melvin Burkhart and Ward Hall. • Discover today's dedicated entertainers, like Todd Robbins, Harley Newman, Tyler Fyre, Thrill Kill Jill, Donny Vomit, The Black Scorpion, and more! • See what it takes to enter this underground yet welcoming world as a performer. Features interviews with Penn Jillette and Todd Robbins and Penn Jillette's ode to the sideshow, the "10 in 1" monologue as performed by Penn & Teller Editors's Note: Not for the faint of heart, weak of stomach or easily grossed out. So go ahead, how can you resist?! Tony Gangi, a Philadelphia native, never actually intended to make his living by shoving nails up his nose. He left the corporate world to become a professional magician and proprietor of one of the few flea circuses remaining in the world ("Live fleas do, in fact, perform circus tricks," he says. They just need to be "trained the right way and treated with kindness.") He's now mastered straightjacket escapes, fire-eating, and napping on a bed of nails. He is currently working on his presentation for walking barefoot on broken glass. This is his first book. He hopes it is not his last.
Download or read book American Sideshow written by Marc Hartzman and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2006-09-21 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A fascinating look into the history of the American sideshow and its performers. Learn what's real, what's fake, and what's just downright bizarre. You've probably heard of Tom Thumb. The Elephant Man. Perhaps even Chang and Eng, the original Siamese twins. But what about Eli Bowen, the legless acrobat? Or Prince Randian, the human torso? These were just a few of the many stars that shone during the heyday of the American sideshow, from 1840 to 1950. American Sideshow chronicles the lives of truly amazing performers, examining these brave and extraordinary curiosities not just as sideshow performers but as people, delving into the lives they led and the ways they were able to triumph over and even benefit from their abnormalities. American Sideshow discusses the rise and fall of the original sideshows and their subsequent replacement by today's self-made freaks. With the progress of modern medicine, technological advancements, and the wonderful world of body modification, abnormalities are being overcome, treated and even prevented: Siamese twins can now be separated, and in addition to this, tongues can be forked, horns surgically implanted, and earlobes removed. There are also, of course, modern-day giants, fire eaters, sword swallowers, glass eaters, human blockheads, and oh, so much more. These fascinating personalities are celebrated through intimate biographies paired with stunning photographs. Approximately two hundred performers from the past one hundred and sixty years are featured, giving readers a comprehensive and sometimes astonishing look into the history of the American sideshow
Download or read book Sideshow U S A written by Rachel Adams and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2001-12 with total page 302 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A staple of American popular culture during the 19th and early 20th centuries, the freak show seemed to vanish after World War II. This book reveals the image of the freak show, with its combination of the grotesque, horrific and amusing specimens.
Download or read book Sideshow Go written by S Scott and published by Bysscott . This book was released on 2024-07-17 with total page 113 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Sideshow on Go!" takes readers on a thrilling journey through the heart of Bay Area car culture, exploring the controversial and captivating world of sideshows. Born on the streets of Oakland in the 1980s, this unique form of automotive performance art has evolved from impromptu gatherings to a cultural phenomenon that has left an indelible mark on the region's identity. This book traces the history, artistry, and impact of sideshows, from their humble beginnings to their current status as a complex, often misunderstood subculture that continues to adapt and thrive in the face of technological change and legal challenges. Through seven comprehensive chapters, we delve into the origins of sideshow culture, its spread across the Bay Area, the intricate techniques and customizations that define it, and the ongoing debates surrounding its legitimacy and safety. We explore how digital technology has transformed the organization and documentation of sideshows, examine their influence on broader car enthusiast communities, and look ahead to the future of this uniquely Bay Area phenomenon. "Sideshow on Go!" offers an unparalleled look at a subculture that embodies the spirit of urban creativity, resistance, and community, inviting readers to understand the complex interplay of art, technology, and society that sideshows represent.
Download or read book Sideshow written by William Shawcross and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2023-12-21 with total page 542 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Although there are many books and films dealing with the Vietnam War, Sideshow tells the truth about America's secret and illegal war with Cambodia from 1969 to 1973. William Shawcross interviewed hundreds of people of all nationalities, including cabinet ministers, military men, and civil servants, and extensively researched U.S. Government documents. This full-scale investigation—with material new to this edition—exposes how Kissinger and Nixon treated Cambodia as a sideshow. Although the president and his assistant claimed that a secret bombing campaign in Cambodia was necessary to eliminate North Vietnamese soldiers who were attacking American troops across the border, Shawcross maintains that the bombings only spread the conflict, but led to the rise of the Khmer Rouge and the subsequent massacre of a third of Cambodia's population.
Download or read book Nobody s Fool written by Bill Griffith and published by Abrams. This book was released on 2019-03-19 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A graphic biography of the real-life sideshow performer who inspired Zippy the Pinhead: “An uplifting, wonderfully humane book.” —The New York Times From Coney Island and the Ringling Bros. Circus to small-town carnivals and big-city sideshows, Nobody’s Fool follows the long, legendary career of Schlitzie, today best known for his appearance in the cult classic film Freaks, the making of which is a centerpiece of the story. In researching Schlitzie’s life, Griffith has tracked down primary sources and archives throughout the country, conducting interviews with those who worked with him and had intimate knowledge of his personality, his likes and dislikes, how he responded to being a sideshow “freak,” and much more. This graphic biography provides never-before-revealed details of his life, offering a unique look into his world and contributions to popular culture, including the immortal phrase “Are we having fun yet?” “Virtuoso comic-strip artist Bill Griffith gives voice to a true outcast—the sideshow attraction born Simon Metz (probably) in the Bronx (probably) in 1901.” —The New York Times “The underlying message of Nobody’s Fool? I get it—underneath our grandiose opinions of ourselves we’re all pinheads and freaks . . . The best graphic novel of the year.” —R. Crumb “A captivating labor of love that integrates American sideshow history and autobiographical segments . . . an astonishing life, beautifully told. Or, as Schlitzie would say, it’s boffo!” —Booklist (starred review) “A masterpiece of absurdity and humanity. After all these years Schlitzie still triggers laughter and tears.” —Steve Heller, Print
Download or read book Rock and Hard Places written by Andrew Mueller and published by Catapult. This book was released on 2010-02-10 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Andrew Mueller is Australian by birth, a Londoner by choice, a wanderer by nature, and a journalist by profession. Unable to decide between being a rock critic, travel writer, or foreign correspondent, he hit upon the novel, if time-consuming, solution of trying to be all three at once. In Rock and Hard Places, published originally in the U.K. in 1999, now re-envisioned and updated and available for the first time in the United States, he travels to Lebanon with the Prodigy, comes to America with Radiohead, and goes all over the place with U2. He ventures to Bosnia Herzegovina with an aid convoy in the middle of the war, sees Def Leppard play in a cave in Morocco, and attempts to ask the Taliban not only what they think they’re up to, but who they fancy for the World Cup. He flings himself head first down the Cresta Run, sits in Stalin’s armchair, chases ambulances through Moscow, chases some kind of lost tribe in India, wakes up at least once in a park in Reykjavik, and strongly advises avoiding the seafood salad in Sapporo Airport. He’s funny. Occasionally he makes a point.
Download or read book Seurat s Circus Sideshow written by Richard Thomson and published by Metropolitan Museum of Art. This book was released on 2017-02-15 with total page 146 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Georges Seurat (1859–1891) created just six major figure paintings during his lifetime, one of which, the alluring Circus Sideshow (Parade de cirque), has remained the most challenging to interpret since it first intrigued viewers at the 1888 Salon des Indépendants in Paris. Unlike Seurat’s earlier sunlit scenes, Circus Sideshow presents a nighttime tableau depicting a parade—a street show enticing passersby to purchase tickets. With its geometrically precise composition, muted colors, and elements of abstraction, the painting stands apart as a masterpiece of Neo-Impressionism and heralds Seurat’s subsequent depictions of popular entertainments. This book, the first comprehensive study of Circus Sideshow, situates the painting in the context of nineteenth-century Paris and of the many social changes France was undergoing. Renowned art historian Richard Thomson illuminates the roles of caricature, naturalist and avant-garde painting, and circus advertising; examines Seurat’s use of contemporary aesthetic theory; and discusses how artists ranging from Rouault to Picasso mined the sideshow theme into the twentieth century. Illustrated with Seurat’s related drawings, works by other artists, and period posters and broadsides, Seurat’s Circus Sideshow delves into the history of traveling circuses and seasonal fairs in France, exploring the ongoing appeal of this traditional form of popular entertainment through the fin de siècle. Two additional essays describe the painting’s enthusiastic reception in New York upon its 1929 debut and present the results of a fresh technical examination of the canvas, making this volume the definitive resource on one of Seurat’s most captivating works.
Download or read book Star Wars Collecting A Galaxy written by Sideshow Collectibles and published by Insight Editions. This book was released on 2019-12-31 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Experience Sideshow Collectibles’ astonishing collection of Star Wars sculptures in a whole new way with this deluxe book that explores the incredible artistry behind their creation. Sideshow Collectibles has been immortalizing fan-favorite Star Wars characters for over a decade with their extraordinary, one-of-a-kind sculptures. This deluxe book celebrates the artistry that goes into capturing the true essence of these iconic characters and the passion and devotion that brings them to life. Featuring never-before-seen pre-production artwork and exclusive insights from the sculpting and design teams on the creation of each piece as well as dynamic photography that illuminates the power of their work, this book is the ultimate celebration of Sideshow’s ongoing journey into the Star Wars galaxy.
Download or read book Social TV written by Cory Barker and published by Univ. Press of Mississippi. This book was released on 2022-06-27 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner of the 2023 SCMS Media Industries Scholarly Interest Group Outstanding Book Award sponsored by the Center for Entertainment & Media Industries On March 15, 2011, Donald Trump changed television forever. The Comedy Central Roast of Trump was the first major live broadcast to place a hashtag in the corner of the screen to encourage real-time reactions on Twitter, generating more than 25,000 tweets and making the broadcast the most-watched Roast in Comedy Central history. The #trumproast initiative personified the media and tech industries’ utopian vision for a multi-screen and communal live TV experience. In Social TV: Multi-Screen Content and Ephemeral Culture, author Cory Barker reveals how the US television industry promised—but failed to deliver—a social media revolution in the 2010s to combat the imminent threat of on-demand streaming video. Barker examines the rise and fall of Social TV across press coverage, corporate documents, and an array of digital ephemera. He demonstrates that, despite the talk of disruption, the movement merely aimed to exploit social media to reinforce the value of live TV in the modern attention economy. Case studies from broadcast networks to tech start-ups uncover a persistent focus on community that aimed to monetize consumer behavior in a transitionary industry period. To trace these unfulfilled promises and flopped ideas, Barker draws upon a unique mix of personal Social TV experiences and curated archives of material that were intentionally marginalized amid pivots to the next big thing. Yet in placing this now-forgotten material in recent historical context, Social TV shows how the era altered how the industry pursues audiences. Multi-screen campaigns have shifted away from a focus on live TV and toward all-day “content” streams. The legacy of Social TV, then, is the further embedding of media and promotional material onto every screen and into every moment of life.
Download or read book Weekly World News written by and published by . This book was released on 2004-04-05 with total page 44 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Rooted in the creative success of over 30 years of supermarket tabloid publishing, the Weekly World News has been the world's only reliable news source since 1979. The online hub www.weeklyworldnews.com is a leading entertainment news site.
Download or read book Sideshow written by Various and published by National Geographic Books. This book was released on 2009-07-14 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Freaks, magicians, psychics, and the passing strange take center stage in ten original tales by top YA authors and graphic novelists. Molly is a bearded girl who joins the circus, only to find that her former tormentor faces a far hairier plight. Tia claims that her lamented mom is a three-thousand-year-old mummy, but is it really an act? Cody sets out to foil a pop psychic, but the shocking result is not what he planned for. And Tiffany’s grandma sees something wild in her future, but is the girl prepared for the powerful shape it will take? Whether the sideshow touts a two-headed rat or a turn-of-the-century American jargo, whether the subject discovers an odd kind of miracle or learns that the real freaks are outside the tent, these stories and graphic tales are by turns humorous and insightful, edgy and eerie, but always compulsively entertaining.
Download or read book Hip Hop in America A Regional Guide 2 volumes written by Mickey Hess and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2009-11-25 with total page 817 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An insightful new resource that looks at the rise of American hip hop as a series of distinct regional events, with essays covering the growth of hip hop culture in specific cities across the nation. Thoroughly researched, thoroughly in tune with the culture, Hip Hop in America: A Regional Guide profiles two dozen specific hip hop scenes across the United States, showing how each place shaped a singular identity. Through its unique geographic perspective, it captures the astonishing diversity of a genre that has captivated the nation and the world. In two volumes organized by broad regions (East Coast, West Coast and Midwest and the Dirty South), Hip Hop in America spans the complete history of rap—from its 1970s origins to the rap battles between Queens and the Bronx in the 1980s, from the well-publicized East Coast vs. West Coast conflicts in the 1990s to the rise of the Midwest and South over the past ten years. Each essay showcases the history of the local scene, including the MCs, DJs, b-boys and b-girls, label owners, hip hop clubs, and radio shows that have created distinct styles of hip hop culture.
Download or read book Freak Show written by Carl Hammer and published by Chronicle Books (CA). This book was released on 1996 with total page 100 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Step right up! The show's about to begin with this mesmerizing collection of outrageous banners from the heydey of traveling circus sideshows. From the turn of the century through the 1950s, circus sideshows boasted unbelievable "freaks of nature", incredible transformations and death-defying acts. For collectors and nostalgia buffs, Freak Show celebrates this unique American commercial folk art. 90 full-color photos.
Download or read book Truevine written by Beth Macy and published by Little, Brown. This book was released on 2016-10-18 with total page 496 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The true story of two African-American brothers who were kidnapped and displayed as circus freaks, and whose mother endured a 28-year struggle to get them back. The year was 1899 and the place a sweltering tobacco farm in the Jim Crow South town of Truevine, Virginia. George and Willie Muse were two little boys born to a sharecropper family. One day a white man offered them a piece of candy, setting off events that would take them around the world and change their lives forever. Captured into the circus, the Muse brothers performed for royalty at Buckingham Palace and headlined over a dozen sold-out shows at New York's Madison Square Garden. They were global superstars in a pre-broadcast era. But the very root of their success was in the color of their skin and in the outrageous caricatures they were forced to assume: supposed cannibals, sheep-headed freaks, even "Ambassadors from Mars." Back home, their mother never accepted that they were "gone" and spent 28 years trying to get them back. Through hundreds of interviews and decades of research, Beth Macy expertly explores a central and difficult question: Where were the brothers better off? On the world stage as stars or in poverty at home? Truevine is a compelling narrative rich in historical detail and rife with implications to race relations today.
Download or read book The Routledge Circus Studies Reader written by Peta Tait and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2020-09-10 with total page 618 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Routledge Circus Studies Reader offers an absorbing critical introduction to this diverse and emerging field. It brings together the work of over 30 scholars in this discipline, including Janet Davis, Helen Stoddart and Peta Tait, to highlight and address the field’s key historical, critical and theoretical issues. It is organised into three accessible sections, Perspectives, Precedents and Presents, which approach historical aspects, current issues, and the future of circus performance. The chapters, grouped together into 13 theme-based sub-sections, provide a clear entry point into the field and emphasise the diversity of approaches available to students and scholars of circus studies. Classic accounts of performance, including pieces by Philippe Petit and Friedrich Nietzsche, are included alongside more recent scholarship in the field. Edited by two scholars whose work is strongly connected to the dynamic world of performance, The Routledge Circus Studies Reader is an essential teaching and study resource for the emerging discipline of circus studies. It also provides a stimulating introduction to the field for lovers of circus.
