Download Secrets of the Sideshows AudioBook Free
The carnival sideshows of days gone by have gone behind a fascinating legacy of mystery and intrigue. The secrets behind such daring feats as fire-eating and sword swallowing and bizarre exhibitions of individual oddities as "Alligator Kids" and "Gorilla Young girls" still continue to be, only grudgingly if given up by performers and carnival experts. Working alongside the performers, Joe Nickell blows the lid off these mysteries of the midway. The writer reveals the structure of the shows, specific methods behind the performances, and the showmen's techniques for recruiting performers and getting crowds. He also traces the history of such spectacles, from ancient Egyptian powerful and streets fairs to the gold get older of P.T. Barnum's sideshows. With revealing information in to the personal lives of the women and men billed as freaks, Nickell unfolds the captivating storyline of the midway show.
