Agree. Too many folks on the autism spectrum were thrown in them as well. Some might have been marketed as the "Fairy Changeling".

I’m sad, as a person with cerebral palsy, that the narrator chose to use the term ‘differently abled’ most of us DESPISE this term. I prefer the term disabled.

@@TiggiTheWillful thank you for sharing

@@TiggiTheWillful I imagine that it must be terribly frustrating when outsiders, in an effort to use language sensitively, end up using language that antagonizes you and most other people with cerebral palsy. Although I've my own opinions about which terms sound kind or unkind, I can't help feeling that they really don't matter very much: after all, I'm not the one with cerebral palsy. If I've misunderstood the situation, or if I've spoken to you in a way that you find objectionable, please let me know. Thank you.

​@TiggiTheWillful As a typical, non-handicapped person, I, too, hate these woke attempts to change the language.

I'M IN LOVE WITH THESE PEOPLE WITH HAIRS ❤🤩🥰😍😍😍😍😍🥰🥰🥰❤❤❤❤ I LOVE YOU SO MUCH WOLLY GIRLL AND RUSSIAN HAIRED BOY !!!@@@@!!!!!❤❤❤❤❤

Many of them weren't born this way, some babies grew up in jars to get their freakish looks by monsters...the you know whose.

And yet; we call them freaks... "I am not an animal; I am a human being!" -Elephant Man

It still has good and bad sides

very rational, objective, unlefted perception... Only if th whole world be objective as you are

I Think The 2 That Only Appeared Twice Were Fake

Yes, I think they were accepted there and able to live as normal as others. It was their refuge especially back in a time when different got people killed or locked away easily.

Agreed

Every job exploits you only difference is how replaceable you are to how much you make.

I'm Gen X, all my grandparents have passed. One thing all my grandparents had in common was saving everything. That which could be used again.. bread ties, jelly jars, old screws and nails. Sometimes the zip lock bags .. the Great Depression was a hard time for them.

@@vannjunkin8041 "Waste not, want not!"

Well said...

I was just about to say something similar but you beat me to it

So true. Harry and the Doll factory come to mind. Their time at the circus left them very rich in their retirement.

Truly stated. This is such a foreign concept to today's youth where science works miracles.

@@OriginalContent89 😁

If people with special needs really need help let them get help by any platform.

Yes..showing their stillborn babies..deformed children with hydrocephaly and Trisomy 13 and 18..they disgust me.

​@@wolfan9263 They DON'T get help. Their parents take all the money and the children get nothing.

The tiktok For you page becomes a freaking Jump scare machine because of that

Yeah, isn't that the truth!

Those 'institutions' no longer exist because these days parents willingly care for their disabled children themselves. Most of the children you talk of will not outlive their parents.

Right?!? That story broke my heart. I could never imagine doing such a thing.

Ask a Mortician did a full Iconic Corpse episode about the sad tale of Julia Pastrana. You should check it out if you would like to know more.

What do you think about the people's whose remains are on display at the Mutter Museum?

​@catherineskis my understanding is many of them donated their bodies

@@karenlloyd945 Some did, some...not so much. The Iconic Corpse episodes I recommended cover the colorful life after death of a lot of interesting people.

@@SkyForce6700 Sources please.....sounds like an interesting point of view.

@@SkyForce6700 Exactly. I'm tired of seeing channels like these. Lazy people trying to get paid for doing nothing.

​@@scotttillman01seems like a lot of effort went into this video though... Even with an AI voice

@@MotoRidesVietnam You've obviously never made an AI video. It's extremely simple.

@@scotttillman01 well this one looks like it took a bit of effort 🤷‍♂️ are you saying the AI did the whole thing?

Elephants are smart and gentle too..

@@flonkplonk1649 yeah but that's not what they meant by calling him that.

@@danielleeveritt9323 so because of his skin was rough like Elephant skin? Similarities seem to be there..

@@flonkplonk1649 yes that was the main reason. During that time anyone in a supposed "freak" show was given a stage name. They were usually cruel and demeaning. They couldn't say no to the names cuz they often had no other way to make a living.

I remember reading the book on Joseph Merrick & it was so sad but inspiring. He was a real gentleman.

I agree.

There is a huge difference between being bullied for being different. And using one's differences to make money from by exhibiting one's self in say a circus. Especially if you are not being scammed by your employer the circus.

@@SuzetteKath As a disabled person, I can tell you that you are exactly right. Its all the difference in the world.

@@tarayarbrough4640 I'm also disabled as well as being on the spectrum. I became disabled during a charity event that had us planting trees.

@@SuzetteKath Stay strong sister. We all need each other so badly. Much love to you!

no you dont. Stop lying.

@@CaptainSpalding72yknow people can actually mean things they say right?

​@@CaptainSpalding72Just cause you are bitter and wouldn't, doesn't mean that other people are lying about wanting to. These "freaks" are human beings, at the end of the day.

@@CaptainSpalding72 CRABBY SPALDING72.... 😜YOU HAVE ISSUES

I only disliked due to what your calling them!

Yes! It may be billed as a horror film, but it's actually a great movie!

@@morticiaaddams7866 Right you are! Browning knew many of the cast from earlier silent work. It's admirable that he humanizes and dignifies them. Kind of ruined his career. Say hi to Gomez for me.

It's a master peace..♥️

I urge you to find "Terror of Tiny town" it's an old 1938 B&W western with an all "midget" cast . Jed Buell directed it, and he cast 60 little people. (they even ride ponies) It's a cult classic right up there with the movie "Freaks"! ❤😂

@@kimberlyharshfield8629 Oh, boy. One of the worst movies ever made (or, so bad it was good) and it sure wasn't the fault of the cast. Wasn't Buell a 'fertilizer' salesman? Because it sure looks like he put his product on film.

yeah, it is a quite challenge for those siamese twins, such a big family they had...and two wifes...yeah

Some of them. Most had handlers that profited from them and just gave them the bare basics.

200 quid a week wow that's good now lol

@@paulhodgson-gv2ew huh?

Just about to leave a comment about some of the commentators demeaning wording in this video. Calling them pitiful and not normal this is when I stop watching .

There has actually long been a dialogue amongst disabled people about the value of these so-called “freak shows”, as with the closure of these shows came a lack of job opportunities for disabled people - leaving many to live in abject poverty and hoping to be granted some sort of government funding. Even today, there remains a push in certain corners of disability dialogue to allow disabled people these types of opportunities again, and many support it. I have a disability which is incredibly interesting to doctors, and I’m often viewed by every single damn student, fellow, doctor, and nurse in the hospital every time I’m admitted to a new one; this isn’t to help me, it’s to help train and educate the clinicians. Should I not be permitted to charge for this? I’m not so interesting to lay people, but if I were a conjoined twin, for example, I wonder if I would rather live on state benefits and have no real say in my life - or would i want the option to work with my twin for us to make some serious cointhottas and live in luxury? I don’t know… but I feel as though I would want to have the option.

Fortunately the focus has shifted from exploiting these individuals to finding surgical means for correcting their defects

Exactly

Who would want to be in the arms of a god who created you with a body like that? If a god existed, he'd be a monster.

Souls are set free from cumbersome human bodies.

@@deliawright8626 "Souls" are only a fairy tale.

I've heard that Merrick said that it was the Doctor who exploited him, and the circus that cared for him. We'll never know.

His name was Joseph Carey Merrick, not John!

I think they are

​@@geoffhoutman1557I was going to say this too. You're right

There’s plenty of books about it🤷‍♀️

As a special education teacher who works with this population, you are dead wrong. Simon would have been much better off had he been born in 2001. It's a far different country, and much more inclusive now.

Beetlejuice. He was essentially a modern day sideshow freak who was ridiculed for amusement.

@@SilktheAbsent1. I live in a town with a large live-in care home for people with developmental disabilities. There are several with microcephaly. They are well cared for and treated with respect. Some, if they want, have jobs in the community (a local grocery store employs them to go up and down aisles turning items so labels face forward, as well as several other businesses). Those physically capable attend local functions/celebrations and are functioning members of the community. The caretakers are there to assist them with whatever they need. It is indeed a much better life than being on exhibition.

Uh don't pity them, they took advantage of their disability and succeeded way better than most folks back then and they were treated good by most accounts

@realherbalism1017 "They took advantage of their disability"? No SSI or SSD available, means few to no options or choices in life. I pity them for that.

@@realherbalism1017 When you do the cost of living calculations and figure some made 7 to 9K a week. They would have been stuck with a painful condition that people would have mocked them for regardless of the shows. Instead they laughed themselves to the bank. Good for them.

It would have been a difficult life, however one's that were part of the more popular circuses like Ringling Brothers, they made a very good wage, the Asian twin's were payed $500per week, today that would be like 5k or more

@@realherbalism1017 No, the vast majority of them we taken advantage OF and treated like garbage. This isn't something to be proud of, and the fact that some people are still saying "Oh but at least they made some money and had friends" is akin to saying "Well, at least the slaves weren't KILLED instead." Neither one is a good option and it's horrific that anyone thinks this was okay, in any way, shape or form these days. Also, have you never heard of Stockholm syndrome? Trauma bonding? Anything like that? JFC.

@@Davidmatthet_you might be better off on a dating site, bro. This not it,ijs.✊🏿☀️🌟🛸🔥💯

Yeah I noticed that too

Interesting. Thank you for sharing that.

K lol ok I'll look l look l lo ok llml lol l look lookl Lol l look polp l Look kn lol l lo LL LL LL ll

😞 How sad. Sweet innocent little one..❤

You did the best thing for the goal. You were responsible and shepherded it both in and out of life humanely. Bravo. Are there pictures?

😢😢😢 that baby is in a better place now I promise you

Yeah wow I NEVER thought of that but I think your on to something🙂

Believe it if it makes you feel better

@@SHEEPSUK it's not what makes me feel better ,get your head sorted first then reply!

If you see children with progeria they look almost exactly like the classic descriptions of 'goblins'. In the old superstitious days people feared diseases and birth defects, and explained them away as signs of evil or the supernatural. They believed such children were fairy changelings.

As well as the folks born on the Autism Spectrum were very likely the ones that folks were claimed to have been exchanged for fae changelings.

Your correct. Most these people tragically had to subject themselves to this life because nobody else would hire them and most were so disabled they couldn't work. Its still heart breaking

A lot of cultures still aren't. Many born with deformations are killed at birth. And many others just for being born the "wrong" (undesired) sex.

Say what people will, these "freaks" were a tight knit family group, and knew they could never have made a living with their disabilities outside of the circus..

A lot of cultures still aren’t accepting of people who are different.

@@marybethsmith-hynes2749 Who's really the freaks?

He was a real monster. Evil and extremely abusive. He had that coming, sad to say. He had EVERYONE afraid of him.

Those dudes are a local friends of my crew.

Yes, contrary to the currently accepted PC wisdom (or stupidity, depending on your POV), not all people with disabilities and/or minority status for whatever reason, are morally superior to the rest of us.

Maybe he had a pinching fetish

Maybe that whole lobster boy thing stuck in his craw......dad

Dignity is self realized. No person or agency can insure it.

@@asuperstraightpureblood It may be self realized. But i can be taken away by many.

@@user-vc4zi9mc5s that's weakness

​@@user-vc4zi9mc5s• Exactly. Well said.

Wow/I grew at that time, and I thought that freak shows had ended already.

Nope, I grew up in Dallas an all the way into the mid 80’s there we’re still side shows.

Some of the old vendors still talk about it.

@@milascave2I was born in 1985 and have seen 2 real “ freak show/sideshows. Both had people and animals- that was like around 2007 ish maybe.. they r still around

The 999 eyes freak show.... I saw their performance several years ago... some performers have changed since then.

Yeah I saw it a few times. Definitely was a shocking movie for it’s time. But I think it really showed the humanity and just how much of a community those traveling circuses were. And just how intelligent and talented they all were. In my opinion the movie AND the circuses educated people to not discriminate against them. These people were gainfully employed during The Great Depression and supporting entire families when most were utterly destitute. That was an impressive thing back then. There wasn’t SSI, Disability or food stamps back then. People literally we’re starving. But not the “Freaks”. Stopping those actually hurt their communities more than it helped. Thankfully things have progressed in the world.

Just because that happened doesn't mean that racism, sexism aren't real. . .

It sounds like you didnt listen to anything that was said in these documentaries. Oppression exists all over today and throughout American history. These people were terrified constantly. No one wants to die on the streets with nothing, and that is exactly what happened to millions of disabled people in this world. Americans regularly put their disabled children in institutions and abandoned them there because they were ashamed they existed. Even the extremely wealthy and popular Kennedy family was doing it in the 1960s. "Normal" people do not like to look at disabilities. I look perfectly average, but I have to use a wheelchair due to Charcot Marie Tooth disease and people, right now, have told me they do not like being around disabled people because it makes them uncomfortable. Today....right now.... These people were abused and in constant pain and terror. You have no idea.

He was nobility! He also was married and had a kid

​@@cynthiaholland13wtf are you talking about?

What makes them freaks? It wasn't about safety it was about finding the only way to make a living they could. I'm sure your a better person then actually believing these people were less then us. Ill give you the benefit of the doubt because I wouldn't want to believe anyone could pass that type of judgement on people you didn't know

@@jefffernen5155 they were at the “freak shows “…?

They may have felt safer, and made deep friendships, but most were still exploited. They simply had few to no choices and were at other's mercy ... some being treated much better than others.

Nope, you are making a false assumption. They were exploited for financial gain and that stands whether or not they received a portion of the gain, or whether or not they felt safer or happier in a sideshow.

They got paid well too.

For many, it was the only way that they at the time could put food on their table. There was no govt help for those born differently at those times.

Thank you for having empathy. It matters more than you could possibly imagine to us.

A great outcome following that distressing insight into human abuse of humans, Larry, A lot of people here are justifying the historic employment of people called "freaks" in self-exposure because of skeletal genetic or congenital disorders. At least, it is argued, they had an income. At what price? By exposing a pathology for peoples' amusement? But how can a career which is based on derogating an individual into the role of an alienated other be justified? I am able to see this from the perspective of the person with a congenital deformity to a certain extent, but was privileged by the British NHS (free) treatment to have had the condition successfully treated. The experience of the "freak" - and isn't that an offensive term - has perhaps had a similar effect for both of us, although from different perspectives. I also worked in universities and now in a school to facilitate the best resources for students with physical difficulties and learning differences,

Thanks for the life story....you should write a book 😂

@@jaredchandler8962 Why do you automatically assume it is for peoples amusement? Did it ever occur to you that someone sitting on a platform or stage discussing their deformity, and demonstrating what they can do in spite of it, would be educational? I read the book about Chang and Eng the Siamese twins, and they promoted themselves. They would book a theater and take questions from people all about their condition. This is educational, and they got paid for it. Now the freak shows are on the internet but the people with the unusual condition get nothing! Strange logic from you. There will always be some who find it funny and want to bully or make fun, but there will always be people like that to deal with whether the human oddities exhibit or not! Like they used to say, THERE GOING TO STARE ANYWAY, THEY MIGHT AS WELL HAVE TO PAY FOR IT!!!!! Another thing you fail to consider is the comradery that was there among show people and many "freaks" together. This has got to mean a lot to people who are outside of normalcy. But this is only going to be found with exhibiting.

Yes you're right. Greetings from Mexico, I love what I am seeing on your profile. And i apologize for jumping into your comment in such a way. I'm really looking forward to get to know you better. If you're comfortable with it, I'd love to talk somewhere outside the KZfaq comment section. and get to know each other a bit more intimately. What do you think?😊

It hurt the "freaks" as well when it was stopped

Looking back throughout history, the world has always been a freak show! Since caveman days, the strong have, and always will, bully and victimize the weaker. As a species, we've learned almost nothing about being human.

Agree 💯

Best comment

19kg = 19 kg!

I came here to comment the same thing… gross channel I will never subscribe to

In the science of physics, humans are things.

Amen !! We are all God's Children indeed ❤ !

"Freaks" in today's Freak Shows are mostly man-made, whether hanging from giant hooks to tatoos, piercings, and surgical procedures, etc. They CHOOSE to enter that life style, for want of attention. People in this video had few to no choices. HUGE difference!

@@joijuaire-darfler4614 Not a huge difference at all!!! If you knew about entertainment and marketing, you would know a gimmick is a gimmick. Not everybody has the tallents, or imagination to get and keep attention. Just look here on KZfaq, you have some people with millions of followers, and some who struggle to get a thousand.

Thank you!! I was googling a TWI farm wondering what the heck it was.

He definitely didn't have Proteus. Your obviously more knowledgeable then me so I can buy your assessment but I've seen many Proteus cases and Merrick I agree didn't suffer from it. I've heard a lot of people label him as having it but all the evidence strongly suggests otherwise for sure

Actually it still hasn't been proven definitively either way. See below. His bones cannot be extracted for useable DNA because they have been bleached so many times, and an attempt to trace surviving relatives failed to yield any genetic mutations. "In 1909, dermatologist Frederick Parkes Weber wrote an article in the British Journal of Dermatology,[107] incorrectly citing Merrick as an example of von Recklinghausen Disease (neurofibromatosis), which German pathologist Friedrich Daniel von Recklinghausen had described in 1882.[108] This conjecture has since been proved wrong; in fact, symptoms that are always present in this genetic disorder include tumours of the nervous tissue and bones, small warty growths on the skin,[109] and the presence of light brown pigmentation on the skin called café au lait spots, which are of particular importance in diagnosing von Recklinghausen Disease,[110] but which were never observed on Merrick's body.[111] For this reason, although the diagnosis was quite popular through most of the 20th century, other conjectural diagnoses were advanced, such as Maffucci syndrome and polyostotic fibrous dysplasia (Albright's disease).[111] In a 1986 article in the British Medical Journal, Michael Cohen and J. A. R. Tibbles put forward the hypothesis that Merrick had had Proteus syndrome, a very rare congenital disorder identified by Cohen in 1979, citing Merrick's lack of reported café au lait spots and the absence of any histological proof of his having had the previously conjectured syndrome.[112] In fact, Proteus syndrome affects tissue other than nerves, and is a sporadic disorder rather than a genetically transmitted disease.[113] Cohen and Tibbles said Merrick showed the following signs of Proteus syndrome: "macrocephaly; hyperostosis of the large skull; hypertrophy of long bones; and thickened skin and subcutaneous tissues, particularly of the hands and feet, including plantar hyperplasia, lipomas, and other unspecified subcutaneous masses".[112] In a letter to The Biologist in June 2001, British teacher and Chartered Biologist Paul Spiring[114] speculated that Merrick might have had a combination of Proteus syndrome and neurofibromatosis. This hypothesis was reported by Robert Matthews, a correspondent for The Sunday Telegraph.[115] The possibility that Merrick may have had both conditions formed the basis for a 2003 documentary film entitled The Curse of The Elephant Man, which was produced for the Discovery Health Channel by Natural History New Zealand.[116][117] During 2002, genealogical research for the film led to a BBC appeal to trace Merrick's maternal family line. In response to the appeal, a Leicester resident named Pat Selby was discovered to be the granddaughter of Merrick's uncle, George Potterton. A research team took DNA samples from Selby in an unsuccessful attempt to diagnose Merrick's condition.[118] During 2003, the filmmakers commissioned further diagnostic tests using DNA from Merrick's hair and bone, but the results of these tests proved inconclusive; therefore, the precise cause of Merrick's medical condition remains uncertain.[116][117][119]" "In recent decades, the diagnosis of Proteus syndrome and NF-1 have struggled to coexist: the possibility that Merrick suffered from both diseases was explored by the documentary The Curse of the Elephant Man, produced in 2003 by Natural History New Zealand. The research managed to locate a current relative of Merrick, the granddaughter of a maternal uncle, in order to analyse her genes. At the same time, the producers brought together three teams of geneticists to extract DNA from Merrick’s hair and bones. However, the results were inconclusive. On the other hand, experts in NF-1 have categorically ruled out that the Elephant Man suffered from this disorder. A decade later, in 2013, new research was undertaken aimed at trying to sequence the Merrick genome. Geneticist Richard Trembath, custodian of the skeleton at the Royal London Hospital and Deputy Director of Health at Queen Mary University in London (today at King’s College London), explained to the BBC that the big obstacle was the preservation of the bones, since they had been bleached several times with substances that degrade the genetic material. The scientists wanted to compare samples of the normal and abnormal parts of the skeleton to test the hypothesis that Merrick suffered from mosaicism, that is, a genetic alteration that arose after conception and that did not affect all his cells. “This project has and continues to face technical challenges, in particular obtaining sufficient sample material (from both the normal appearance skeleton and the abnormal skeleton) from which to undertake DNA sequencing,” Trembath tells OpenMind. However, the geneticist has a preferred hypothesis: “In the absence of DNA based confirmation, the clinical diagnosis of a severe form of Proteus syndrome remains the most plausible.” If the project is successful, the last chapter of Joseph Merrick’s story could be written, since today there is a known genetic defect related to the disease: “Many but not all cases of Proteus syndrome have been explained by the detection of a change in the DNA sequence of a gene known as AKT1,” adds Trembath."

There's a short movie that came out only this century called "The Butterfly Circus" (with Doug Jones) that you would probably like. Doug plays a contortionist; the movie also stars another "human torso". It's a very sweet film.

There's a video here on youtube about a guy with no arms who does everything with his feet. He's a musician - plays guitar. They even show him driving! kzfaq.info/get/bejne/oq2dbJmnq9zRqJ8.htmlsi=HGyBSKd9gbX3BDhy

Yeah he was a pretty incredible guy. He had 4 kids and took care of his family... Kudos to him. I know of 50-year-old men with no disabilities that still live at home now. They would have never made it back then.

We're all exploited at lower rung jobs. Most at that time we're lucky to have work at ALL.

I saw freaks in the fifties and it was haunting."freaks" have hard lives but so do millions of intelligent and beautiful people. Many people who have it all are very unhappy and commit suicide

What has changed? now the same peoples live isolated on measly benefits, condemned to loneliness and poverty.

That was my thought too. The elephant one looked fake right away, but maybe it wasn’t.

Yeah, they both looked completely fake to me too. Pretty sure one must have been a costume and the other a mask. No way they wouldn't have kept on with it otherwise, given the kind of moneyThey could have been making!

My thoughts as well.

Those were AI generated images, and the narration is AI generated too.

I think they were fake also. The elephant one looked like he was wearing a burlap sack that was stuffed with some sort of material. I have no opinion about the other one.

Only some. A lot were used and abused.

​@@We_Are_All_Vultures A lot of everybody was abused and it's up to this generation to do better. Which they are.

@@laurahall3094 sorry I should have clarified "more than the average"

The word "freak" isn't autmatically negative, and is, by definition, correct for these people. Your're adding your own emotional response to the word without understanding its base meaning.

The vernacular of the era.

But now dwarfs are out of the acting business thanks to Peter Dinklage who thinks he should be the only one making money. The Snow White movie, not released yet and a total disaster, erased the dwarfs and changed them to "magical creatures" after Dinklage complained. Outrageous.

Even pantos dont employ dwarfs as the dwarfs, usually use children. The roloffs and johnsons who appear on their reality series show little people with normal lives and jobs.

Great lead, never seen him before. He actually bears a slight facial resemblance to Ben Whishaw from Skyfall. He is otherwise complete Slenderman.

The circus gave them opportunity, but sadly, they never really had much of a choice in life.

Respect bless you for this.