no such things as freaks - or queers...

4 hours ago
8 min read

Could there be a human with three legs?

This is Frank Lentini. He had 3 legs, 4 feet, 16 toes and two sets of genitals.

Frank was born in Sicily in 1889. His parents refused to raise him, so he was eventually placed in an orphanage. There he learned to use his third leg. He was eventually able to run, jump, ride a bicycle, and ice skate.

At the age of 8 or 9, he left Italy for the USA to perform in the circus. Freak shows were common entertainment at the time, and Frank was certainly a star. He performed in various sideshows and sold autobiographies. At 30, he became an American citizen. He married and had four children.

The reason for his excessive number of body parts is likely that Frank is a conjoined twin whose brother is only partially developed and lives as a "parasite." This explains why he has almost everything duplicated from the hips down. At the time, medicine was unable to surgically correct this malformation without killing or at least paralyzing Frank.

I'm not sure if such an operation would be possible today, and it would probably take place shortly after birth.

P.T. Barnum

Popularized the modern "freak show" in the 19th century by exhibiting people with unusual physical traits, medical conditions, or ethnic differences, often paired with exaggerated or completely fabricated backstories.

Origins and the American Museum

Phineas Taylor Barnum launched his career as a major showman when he opened the P.T. Barnum's American Museum in New York City in 1840.
He displayed a mix of genuine biological rarities, manufactured hoaxes, and human curiosities, operating on the principle that drawing a crowd mattered more than absolute truth.
His very first major human exhibit was an enslaved Black woman named Joyce Heth, whom he falsely advertised as the 161-year-old nurse of George Washington.

Famous Attractions

General Tom Thumb: Charles Stratton, a performer with dwarfism, was hired by Barnum at a young age and became an international celebrity through heavily promoted tours and performances.

Chang and Ang Bunker: Famous conjoined twins from Thailand (historically referred to as Siamese twins) who later managed their own careers and lives.

Annie Jones: The famous bearded lady who worked for Barnum and later advocated for the dignity and respect of sideshow performers.
The "Wild Men of Borneo": Two mentally disabled brothers named Herman and Barney Davis, whom Barnum marketed as captured wild natives with fictitious backstories.

Legacy and Controversy

While some performers achieved financial independence and found a form of community, the industry was fundamentally built on the exploitation, commodification, and public mockery of non-normative and disabled bodies.

Modern historians and critics note that popular media—such as the film The Greatest Showman—heavily sanitized Barnum's legacy, masking a history of severe labor exploitation and racial prejudice.

Freak shows eventually declined in the mid-20th century due to shifting public ethics, the rise of modern cinema, disability rights movements, and medical science demystifying rare physical conditions.

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JB ADDS :- At school back in the early 1960's we had several children with Club Feet - where one leg is considerably shorter than the other and they wore special built up shoes so they could be - even - on both sides - and naturally, they had the other children take the piss which I always thought unfair. I also had a cousin who had what is now called Down Syndrome and we understood early that not everyone is equal and I NEVER understood why so many in the LGBT community like to use the phrase about themselves as 'QUEER' - when there is nothing queer about them, they are as intended so why claim to be queer unless you like the attention that label is associated with and how it is NOT LIKED EVEN WITHIN THE OLDER LGBT COMMUNITY - those of us who fought to get you the rights so many take for grated and ignore the battles fought to get us here.

WE ARE NOT QUEER. We may be gay, bi, lesbian or whatever but we are NOT QUEER.

QUEER:-

What is "Queer"? Definition: Queer is an inclusive word for anyone whose sexual orientation or gender identity falls outside traditional norms.

Umbrella Term: It covers lesbians, gay men, bisexual people, transgender individuals, and more.

History: People used queer as an insulting slur in the past. Many in the community have since reclaimed the word with pride, though some people still find it offensive especially to -

The mass of gay men who DO NOT CONSIDER THEMSELVES TO BE QUEER SO DISLIKE HOW THE WORD HAS BEEN ADDED TO THE LGBTQ TITLE WHEN MANY GAY MEN ARE OPPOSED TO IT. WE ARE NOT QUEER.

Fluidity: People often choose the label queer to show that their identity is flexible, complex, or does not fit into strict boxes.

GAY:-

The word simply means HAPPY - and a Bachelor Gay was a single man happy not to be married. That's it. That's an old expression that had absolutely nothing to do with homosexuality at all, but was an expression long used to mean a happy single man. Period. Nothng at all to do with sex between men. It was adapted over time as single men - after a few decades, became known as gay - homosexual.

In more recent times - Gay has come to specifically describe same-sex attraction, while queer is a broader umbrella term for anyone who is not heterosexual or cisgender.

What is "Gay"? Definition: Gay describes a person who feels physical, romantic, or emotional attraction to people of the same sex or gender. It does not come from the Stonewall riots shouting back at the police how we were ; JUST AS GOOD AS YOU - GOOD AS YOU - GAY.'

Usage: While it can apply to anyone of any gender, people often use it specifically to talk about men who love men. Women who love women often prefer the term lesbian, though some use gay.

Community: People also use gay informally as a broad label for the entire LGBTQ+ people community.

JB AGAIN: - Did you think I wasn't going to have something to say- ??? )

The LGB and the T community are going through a period of utter and complete self destruction and denial in the UK and the COMMUNITY has not been a community for a very long time... Too many ME ME ME ATTITUDES and a complete lack of appreciation and acknowledgement towards those who fought for the rights these young fools take for granted with such Almighty Arrogance and that ENTITLED attitude that one day will come and kick them in the ass and when they wake to the realities of life as a gay man on a planet where you can be butchered just for looking at another man with interest, and it appears to be shooting itself in the foot so much of the time and it seems to forget - 'where is the community' everyone talks about ;- as for me - being an out gay an since 1970 - so alost 60 fucking years, OUT AND PROUD AND NEVER HAD ANY PROBLEMS - EVER - and I have seen many aspects of the gay world change and adapt to media - laws - public perceptions - AIDS - lies and bullshit again through the media, marches and demands for equal rights - Brutal queer bashing by 12 year old kids who beat a man to death in a London park JUST BECAUSE OF WHAT THEY THOUGHT OF GAY MEN PORTRAYED THROUGH HOMOPHOBIC MEDIA RHETORIC and these kids with blood on their hands will one day grow to be adults and the chances are - at least 10 - 15% of them will end up gay or lesbian.

IF STRAIGHT MEN HAD THE EASY AND AVAILABILITY TO GET SEX - FROM WOMEN - THEN WE WOULD HAVE HALF THE WARS - HALF THE DOMECTIC ABUSE CASES - A LOT LESS RAPE ESPECIALLY OF CHILDREN AND A LOT LESS HATE IN THE WORLD.

I KNOW AS A FACT - that a lot of the hate mail I received the first few years here at Hamilton Hall was from vile attitude faggots who resented a former sex worker charging for sex and doing well and buyng his own hotel for cash - no mortgage - and the bitterness, the bile, the vomit spewed in my direction for many years - I saw as a HUGE COMPLIMENT TO ME - as jealousy and envy are such ugly emotions and they were having these negative emotions because of their absolute resentent that I was doing something they soooo resented - and the fact I made my money through sex, just pisses some small minded bigots right off - and I LOVE IT -

I LOVE IT - and now after I have proven myself over more than a quarter of a century - WHERE ARE THE COMPLAINERS NOW - WHILE I AM STILL HERE.

WHERE ARE THE PEOPLE WHO TRIED TO DESTROY A THING OF BEAUTY AND NEED ? WHERE ARE THESE PEOPLE NOW ?

OH - I REMEMBER - NOWHERE TO BE SEEN = AND WHY - Because they had nothing to offer. Nothing of any depth or meaning. Nothing that would help or would assist another unless they claimed praise from it. Or were hansomely paid for it. Or received praise and glory, and that is so not how I work. It is the work, not the teacher, that is importat - THE WORK - NOT THE TEACHER - and many get caught up in admiring and following the teacher - the Guru - rather than concentrate on the message and not the man.

So the next time you think about the LGBT - Q world - just remember to delete the Q bit - unless you really consider yourself queer and abnormal, as, while I believe we are all on a spectrum of sorts, that does not mean we are queer.

You make, and take, from the news that which you wish to see and hear. You observe what you want and comment of things that affect you personally. If you don't like something, do not read it and move on but do not shy away from what IS going on in the world of which - you are a part. World news is so easy to find these days and differing opinions not hard to find. Having an opinion is vital and being a ' don't care' person helps no one. So open your mind - open your heart - open your awareness and ALWAYS be open to new ideas.

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You make, and take, from the news that which you wish to see and hear. You observe what you want and comment of things that affect you personally. If you don't like something, do not read it and move on but do not shy away from what IS going on in the world of which - you are a part. World news is so easy to find these days and differing opinions not hard to find. Having an opinion is vital and being a ' don't care' person helps no one. So open your mind - open your heart - open your awareness and ALWAYS be open to new ideas.