Prop Manipulation and Fire Arts
A recent article by CNN documents 15 of the world’s weirdest museums and, not surprisingly, there’s quite a bit of interesting material for sideshow lovers. Consider the excerpts below your official CliffsNotes:
Kunstkamera
Russia’s first museum might seem an odd selection for a “weird museum,” but even a casual glance at Peter the Great’s cabinet of curiosities reveals some bizarre items.
The massive collection of more than 200,000 natural and human oddities was originally assembled to dispel the Russian people’s belief in monsters, though it’s difficult to see how the strange exhibits might have accomplished that.
The czar put together a ghastly personal collection of curiosities including deformed fetuses, creatures with extra heads or limbs, even a decapitated human head preserved in vinegar. The building is now home to the modern Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography, with many remnants of Czar Peter’s collection of medical freaks hidden behind mannequins of local tribes and rather uninteresting presentations.
Don’t miss: Hundreds of preserved human fetuses, every one of them with an odd anatomical mutation from flippers to deformed heads.
The Kunstkamera, 3 University Emb., St. Petersburg, Russia
International Cryptozoology Museum
Cryptozoology is the study of unverified animals, mystical creatures only rumored to exist by legend or belief, such as the Yeti or Loch Ness Monster.
For Loren Coleman, who has become one of the world’s leading experts on creatures that may not exist, “belief” is purely within the realm of religion.
Coleman has created a museum amassing a collection of purported specimens, relics and artifacts dealing with mythical creatures, including a life-size coelacanth and P.T. Barnum’s Feejee Mermaid, as well as a wealth of hair samples, fecal matter and footcasts of animals that probably have never walked the face of the earth.
Don’t Miss: A 2.5-meter, 130-kilo “Crookston Bigfoot,” probably your only chance to see the legendary creature with your own eyes.
International Cryptozoology Museum, 11 Avon St., Portland, Maine
Clown Hall of Fame and Research Center
Look out for the hand buzzer and seltzer bottle, but this clown museum is more than a barrel of laughs.
The clowns who joked (and sometimes terrified) America are honored inside, with every one of the fascinating stories behind the inch-thick layer of makeup featured in the world’s largest archive of clown artifacts.
Don’t Miss: The scrapbooks of legendary circus clowns, allowing you to finally discover what exactly it is that makes a clown cry.
International Clown Hall of Fame and Research Center, 102 4th Ave., Baraboo, Wisconsin
To read the article in full and check out the 12 other museums, click here. (Trust me, it’s worth it if you have a minute to spare!)
It’s that time of year again! In just two days, Coney Island’s Congress of Curious Peoples will commence, with a full line-up of lectures, live entertainment, parties and more, all of which will be, “celebrating Coney Island’s subversive and exciting power and exploring its political, artistic, and spectacular possibilities through performances, exhibitions, and films by important artists in the world of the 21st century sideshows” (Coney Island USA).
The festivities are abundant and there’s a variety of passes available to accomodate any budget. Rather than copy the extensive schedule and pricing info, I will kindly direct you to the official site for details.
For those of you in the NYC area, enjoy! (I am thoroughly jealous.)
A vintage cartoon, lathered in political incorrectness, that takes place at the circus… Does it get any better than that?
Krazy Kat, and his sidekick Ignatz Mouse, were notable American comic strip characters, heavily published between 1913 and 1944. They were animated several times, as the above 1916 clip demonstrates. They garnered a good deal of controversy due to their ambiguous gender despite the fact that the comic strip regularly dove into topics of love and jealousy. Allegedly when creator George Herriman was asked to define Krazy’s sex, the cartoonist admitted that Krazy was “something like a sprite, an elf. They have no sex. So that Kat can’t be a he or a she. The Kat’s a spirit—a pixie—free to butt into anything” (Wikipedia).
To read more about the history of these characters, click here.
Today’s post goes out to the kids of the 80s:
The Garbage Pail Kids was a series of comical cartoon trading cards, first released in 1985. The aesthetic for entire line was intended to parody the Cabbage Patch Kids and they became so popular that they have been regularly banned from schools over the past two decades. While digging through a good friend’s assortment of odd collectibles, I stumbled across this sideshow-themed card and thought you all would enjoy.
*To view larger images, click twice on the picture.
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Scientists have successfully categorized the five different types of jugglers. Which juggling personality type best describes you?
Annoying juggler
Annoying Juggler: Every juggling club has one. That annoying juggler who’s always borrowing your props, scuffing them up, standing too close to you while you’re practicing, asking you questions when you’re trying to focus. Don’t be that guy.
Back in my day juggler
“Back in my day” Juggler: The “back in my day” juggler remembers the good old days. Plastic juggling clubs? Pshh, kids today. The “back in my day” juggler has been to every juggling festival ever and actually taught W.C. Fields his cigar box routine.
Arrogant juggler
Arrogant Juggler: The arrogant juggler makes some good points, but his know-it-all attitude alienates a lot of people. He’s never wrong, and mocks everything you say with a tinge of sarcasm.
Most interesting juggler
Most Interesting Juggler: He’s done a 5-up pirouette on Mount Everest. He can do a wheelie on his unicycle. He’s the most interesting juggler in the world. Stay juggling, my friends.
Internet juggler
Internet Juggler: The internet juggler doesn’t juggle much. He spends most of his time watching juggling videos online. He’s watched Gatto’s Cirque routines over 700 times and can name every one of Wes Peden’s moves. He has little human contact and panics in social situations.
Released in 1946, Children of Paradise is a classic French film that takes place in the seedy underground of the old theatre and street performance circles of Paris. It is a saga (running nearly 3 hours) that involves timeless elements of love and betrayal, all told through beautiful cinematography, with a healthy abundance of vintage circus imagery. The opening scene is enough to captivate any sideshow lover, featuring strong men, tightrope walking and a monkey on stilts. It has remained a renowned classic over the decades and has been digitally remastered (and added to the Netflix library). Here’s the US re-release trailer:
I cannot sing enough praises for this movie, but don’t take my word for it. Watch it and let me know what you think!
