1 00:00:06,880 --> 00:00:10,719 Speaker 1: Todd was nervous. He hadn't been enthusiastic about the project 2 00:00:10,720 --> 00:00:14,480 Speaker 1: that Universal Studios had handed him, but it paid the bills. 3 00:00:14,840 --> 00:00:17,680 Speaker 1: Truth be told, he was just glad to have a job. 4 00:00:18,520 --> 00:00:21,480 Speaker 1: The nineteen thirties might have been the golden age of Hollywood, 5 00:00:21,680 --> 00:00:24,200 Speaker 1: but that was partly because America was in the throes 6 00:00:24,239 --> 00:00:28,800 Speaker 1: of the Great Depression. Escapism was becoming a favorite American pastime. 7 00:00:29,160 --> 00:00:33,199 Speaker 1: Theaters opened across the country, and the film industry thrived 8 00:00:33,320 --> 00:00:37,760 Speaker 1: during the economic collapse. But Todd was also a superstitious man, 9 00:00:38,080 --> 00:00:40,599 Speaker 1: so when he learned that the Roxy Theater in New 10 00:00:40,680 --> 00:00:45,040 Speaker 1: York City wanted to release his film on Friday, he 11 00:00:45,200 --> 00:00:48,199 Speaker 1: urged them to change the date. In the end, the 12 00:00:48,320 --> 00:00:52,920 Speaker 1: Roxy granted Todd his wish. On Thursday, February twelfth of 13 00:00:53,000 --> 00:00:57,240 Speaker 1: nineteen thirty one, movie goers packed sidewalks outside of the theater, 14 00:00:57,480 --> 00:01:01,000 Speaker 1: hoping to snag tickets to his latest creation. For eighty 15 00:01:01,120 --> 00:01:04,480 Speaker 1: five minutes that night, the audience found themselves transported to 16 00:01:04,560 --> 00:01:07,880 Speaker 1: a mountaintop in Europe. They were immersed in a powerful 17 00:01:08,040 --> 00:01:14,160 Speaker 1: visual spectacle, complete with clever cinematography, haunting soundscapes, and Bella 18 00:01:14,240 --> 00:01:19,160 Speaker 1: Lagosi's legendary method acting how legendary you ask, Well, when 19 00:01:19,160 --> 00:01:22,000 Speaker 1: he died, he was buried in a black silk cape, 20 00:01:22,520 --> 00:01:25,880 Speaker 1: just like his character in the film. And of course, 21 00:01:26,040 --> 00:01:30,200 Speaker 1: Dracula was a smashing success. The film forever changed the 22 00:01:30,280 --> 00:01:33,920 Speaker 1: movies and the monsters we see there. It's reported, in fact, 23 00:01:34,000 --> 00:01:38,040 Speaker 1: that numerous people in the opening night audience fainted from fright. 24 00:01:39,160 --> 00:01:42,080 Speaker 1: While it's hard to imagine now, scary movies were major 25 00:01:42,200 --> 00:01:45,360 Speaker 1: risks for studios back then, but in large part due 26 00:01:45,440 --> 00:01:51,000 Speaker 1: to dracula success, movie makers realized something important. Fear makes money. 27 00:01:51,440 --> 00:01:55,440 Speaker 1: It was true then and it's still true today. The 28 00:01:55,480 --> 00:01:59,840 Speaker 1: psychological effects of fight or flights can be intoxicating, after all, 29 00:02:00,040 --> 00:02:03,560 Speaker 1: and who doesn't love a good adrenaline and dopamine brain cocktail, right, 30 00:02:04,080 --> 00:02:07,040 Speaker 1: It's a trick of evolution. We like to be scared 31 00:02:07,440 --> 00:02:12,160 Speaker 1: in tightly controlled settings. That is. In two thousand, Dracula 32 00:02:12,240 --> 00:02:15,560 Speaker 1: was inducted into the National Film Registry by the Library 33 00:02:15,600 --> 00:02:19,840 Speaker 1: of Congress. This was not, however, Todd Browning's first film 34 00:02:19,880 --> 00:02:24,760 Speaker 1: to be given that honor. A much more controversial flick 35 00:02:24,800 --> 00:02:27,480 Speaker 1: of his was given the same treatment, a movie that 36 00:02:27,560 --> 00:02:32,000 Speaker 1: featured a very special individual, a crossover actor who bridged 37 00:02:32,040 --> 00:02:34,760 Speaker 1: both the world of the side Show and the world 38 00:02:35,280 --> 00:02:39,040 Speaker 1: of the silver screen. A much beloved man who went 39 00:02:39,080 --> 00:02:46,280 Speaker 1: by a single name, Schlitze. I'm Aaron Manky, and welcome 40 00:02:46,919 --> 00:02:59,680 Speaker 1: to this side show. Everyone has gaps in their history, 41 00:03:00,040 --> 00:03:02,800 Speaker 1: moments they can't recall, or other pieces of time that 42 00:03:02,840 --> 00:03:06,320 Speaker 1: they've chosen to forget. I do, and you do, whether 43 00:03:06,360 --> 00:03:08,920 Speaker 1: you are consciously aware of it or not. These have 44 00:03:09,000 --> 00:03:12,200 Speaker 1: been left on the cutting room floor of our lives. 45 00:03:12,240 --> 00:03:15,880 Speaker 1: So resurrecting other people's stories, especially when they're long gone, 46 00:03:16,200 --> 00:03:19,679 Speaker 1: creates a very particular kind of challenge. Sometimes all that's 47 00:03:19,720 --> 00:03:22,120 Speaker 1: left of them is a fragment of a diary or 48 00:03:22,160 --> 00:03:25,040 Speaker 1: an unset letter. Other times we can trace their names 49 00:03:25,080 --> 00:03:28,080 Speaker 1: to a passenger list or a guest book at a hotel, 50 00:03:28,840 --> 00:03:31,359 Speaker 1: or maybe we have an old photo album with missing 51 00:03:31,400 --> 00:03:35,000 Speaker 1: images or a few stray pieces of celluloid. And we 52 00:03:35,080 --> 00:03:38,000 Speaker 1: never know the complete story of what was happening outside 53 00:03:38,040 --> 00:03:41,640 Speaker 1: of this frame, but we can guess. What we do 54 00:03:41,720 --> 00:03:44,960 Speaker 1: know is this, Like many of the performers who fell 55 00:03:45,000 --> 00:03:48,120 Speaker 1: into the gravitational pull of the American Side Show, a 56 00:03:48,200 --> 00:03:52,320 Speaker 1: great deal of Schlitze's life is undocumented. Those early years, 57 00:03:52,440 --> 00:03:57,160 Speaker 1: it seems, have held tightly to their secrets. One theory 58 00:03:57,200 --> 00:03:59,400 Speaker 1: tells us that he was born to a prominent Texan 59 00:03:59,520 --> 00:04:03,240 Speaker 1: family and then kept in their attic for twenty five years. 60 00:04:03,280 --> 00:04:06,680 Speaker 1: Another says he hailed from New Mexico. More than likely, though, 61 00:04:06,720 --> 00:04:08,800 Speaker 1: he was born in the Bronx in New York in 62 00:04:08,920 --> 00:04:11,960 Speaker 1: nineteen o one, and if the sleuths are correct, he 63 00:04:12,080 --> 00:04:17,359 Speaker 1: had another name first, Simon Metz. We also know something else. 64 00:04:17,760 --> 00:04:20,599 Speaker 1: He was born with a severe case of microcephaly, a 65 00:04:20,640 --> 00:04:24,800 Speaker 1: neurodevelopmental disorder that gave his skull a pointed shape. He 66 00:04:24,880 --> 00:04:29,359 Speaker 1: had a limited cognitive capacity and a sunny nature. We 67 00:04:29,520 --> 00:04:32,479 Speaker 1: like to think that his first few years were relatively happy, 68 00:04:32,520 --> 00:04:35,280 Speaker 1: and we'd hope for this for any kid, but it's 69 00:04:35,279 --> 00:04:38,880 Speaker 1: in his childhood. Historians believe that he was sold to 70 00:04:38,960 --> 00:04:41,840 Speaker 1: the side show. It seems the old joke of selling 71 00:04:41,880 --> 00:04:44,760 Speaker 1: your little brother to the circus has very deep and 72 00:04:44,920 --> 00:04:49,159 Speaker 1: very dark real life roots, but it wasn't uncommon. In fact, 73 00:04:49,160 --> 00:04:53,520 Speaker 1: sideshow managers often recruited new acts from vulnerable families. They 74 00:04:53,520 --> 00:04:55,280 Speaker 1: made it seem like they were doing the family a 75 00:04:55,279 --> 00:04:58,120 Speaker 1: favor or acting in their best interest, and there may 76 00:04:58,160 --> 00:05:01,240 Speaker 1: have been some truth to this. At a time when 77 00:05:01,279 --> 00:05:04,440 Speaker 1: social services to poor families were limited, and those with 78 00:05:04,560 --> 00:05:09,440 Speaker 1: a typical neurological functions had fewer resources. Living was hard. 79 00:05:09,880 --> 00:05:12,400 Speaker 1: There's an argument to be made that for some the 80 00:05:12,480 --> 00:05:16,680 Speaker 1: side show was a saving grace. Simon began his life 81 00:05:16,720 --> 00:05:19,440 Speaker 1: on the road with Stephen and Augusta Mills in nineteen 82 00:05:19,480 --> 00:05:22,960 Speaker 1: o nine. It's here that he became someone totally new. 83 00:05:23,360 --> 00:05:28,400 Speaker 1: His first incarnation would be Schlitzy the Aztec. Sometimes he 84 00:05:28,480 --> 00:05:30,880 Speaker 1: was dressed as a girl. At other times he wore 85 00:05:30,960 --> 00:05:35,040 Speaker 1: a fur body suit posed as a half human half monkey, 86 00:05:35,160 --> 00:05:39,600 Speaker 1: one of nature's honest experiments with the brain the size 87 00:05:39,600 --> 00:05:42,719 Speaker 1: of a golf ball. He was marketed as savage and 88 00:05:42,760 --> 00:05:47,159 Speaker 1: would sometimes be displayed behind bars. Part of Schlitze's act 89 00:05:47,279 --> 00:05:50,680 Speaker 1: was answering questions posed by the showman. He did simple 90 00:05:50,760 --> 00:05:53,720 Speaker 1: math and card tricks. He was billed as wild so 91 00:05:53,760 --> 00:05:57,000 Speaker 1: that those feats would seem even more impressive. At the time, 92 00:05:57,040 --> 00:06:00,800 Speaker 1: America was still fascinated by ideas of evolution and the 93 00:06:00,839 --> 00:06:04,240 Speaker 1: search for the missing link, a favorite trope of Barnum's, 94 00:06:04,279 --> 00:06:07,919 Speaker 1: and the legacy that he left behind, Let's See quickly 95 00:06:07,960 --> 00:06:11,440 Speaker 1: gained the adoration of his fellow performers. While his work 96 00:06:11,560 --> 00:06:14,680 Speaker 1: largely consisted of him being jeered at. It was also 97 00:06:14,760 --> 00:06:17,560 Speaker 1: on the side show circuit that he found his chosen family, 98 00:06:18,000 --> 00:06:20,520 Speaker 1: and even though his speech was limited, he gave that 99 00:06:20,680 --> 00:06:25,440 Speaker 1: love back in kind. In schlets was sold to a 100 00:06:25,440 --> 00:06:28,560 Speaker 1: man named Ted Metz no relation that we know of, 101 00:06:28,760 --> 00:06:32,760 Speaker 1: who operated the Frequatorium at the Dreamland side show at 102 00:06:32,760 --> 00:06:36,040 Speaker 1: Coney Island. There, he and a fellow performer who had 103 00:06:36,080 --> 00:06:38,920 Speaker 1: also been born with microcephaly, a fellow by the name 104 00:06:38,920 --> 00:06:43,080 Speaker 1: of Zip, performed a musical duet together. But schlet See 105 00:06:43,120 --> 00:06:45,560 Speaker 1: wouldn't stay on the East Coast for long. You see, 106 00:06:45,600 --> 00:06:48,880 Speaker 1: his manager was based in California and soon decided that 107 00:06:48,920 --> 00:06:51,000 Speaker 1: they were going to take their show to that side 108 00:06:51,000 --> 00:06:54,640 Speaker 1: of the country. It seems the Coney Island boardwalks weren't 109 00:06:54,640 --> 00:06:57,760 Speaker 1: big enough for him. No, he was going to go 110 00:06:57,839 --> 00:07:03,280 Speaker 1: west to Hollywood, in fact, because Schlitze wanted to become 111 00:07:03,880 --> 00:07:16,200 Speaker 1: a star. Todd Browning had once been a living corpse. 112 00:07:16,960 --> 00:07:19,480 Speaker 1: When he was sixteen, he fell in love and joined 113 00:07:19,520 --> 00:07:23,000 Speaker 1: the Manhattan Fair and Carnival Company. He worked as a 114 00:07:23,040 --> 00:07:27,000 Speaker 1: snake eater and escape artist, a clown, and even a contortionist. 115 00:07:27,480 --> 00:07:30,680 Speaker 1: His famous corpse act, though involved him being buried alive, 116 00:07:30,880 --> 00:07:33,800 Speaker 1: for up to forty eight hours at a time. It's 117 00:07:33,800 --> 00:07:35,760 Speaker 1: fair to say that he had done it all. So 118 00:07:35,800 --> 00:07:40,640 Speaker 1: after Dracula's commercial success and critical acclaim, Todd Browning decided 119 00:07:40,640 --> 00:07:43,000 Speaker 1: that he would work on something a bit closer to home. 120 00:07:43,360 --> 00:07:45,240 Speaker 1: He had an idea that he'd been thinking about for 121 00:07:45,280 --> 00:07:48,240 Speaker 1: a long time, and when he pitched it to MGM, 122 00:07:48,280 --> 00:07:50,880 Speaker 1: they gave him their blessing. But they wanted him to 123 00:07:50,920 --> 00:07:54,600 Speaker 1: film his concept as a horror movie, so that's what 124 00:07:54,640 --> 00:07:57,440 Speaker 1: they were going to get. It would be a movie 125 00:07:57,520 --> 00:08:02,000 Speaker 1: about seduction, murder, and revenge, all set upon the backdrop 126 00:08:02,600 --> 00:08:06,040 Speaker 1: of the side show, and Todd wanted real performers in 127 00:08:06,080 --> 00:08:08,480 Speaker 1: his cast. I think it's safe to say that he 128 00:08:08,520 --> 00:08:12,000 Speaker 1: had good intentions, but that, as they say, is what 129 00:08:12,080 --> 00:08:14,800 Speaker 1: the road to Hell is paved with. It was through 130 00:08:14,800 --> 00:08:18,120 Speaker 1: Hollywood Small Network that Todd met Schlitze and they took 131 00:08:18,120 --> 00:08:21,480 Speaker 1: a liking to each other immediately. He was cast alongside 132 00:08:21,600 --> 00:08:26,120 Speaker 1: sideshow performers from across the country, Johnny Eck the Half Boy, 133 00:08:26,280 --> 00:08:30,840 Speaker 1: Prince Randy and the Human Caterpillar, Pete Robinson the Living Skeleton, 134 00:08:31,240 --> 00:08:35,880 Speaker 1: Olga the Bearded Woman, and Cuckoo the bird Girl. The 135 00:08:35,960 --> 00:08:39,079 Speaker 1: movie was named Freaks and it was the first Hollywood 136 00:08:39,080 --> 00:08:42,559 Speaker 1: production for many of the performers involved. Now, of course, 137 00:08:42,679 --> 00:08:45,000 Speaker 1: that title is a word that has certainly fallen out 138 00:08:45,000 --> 00:08:47,800 Speaker 1: of fashion since then. Scholars believe that it comes from 139 00:08:47,800 --> 00:08:52,440 Speaker 1: an old English word meaning something unusual or fancy. But 140 00:08:52,640 --> 00:08:55,760 Speaker 1: by the mid eighteen hundreds, the phrase freak of nature 141 00:08:55,840 --> 00:08:59,880 Speaker 1: had become a popular advertising slogan within side shows. In fact, 142 00:09:00,080 --> 00:09:02,800 Speaker 1: many in the community at the time, the term freak 143 00:09:02,960 --> 00:09:05,360 Speaker 1: was worn as a badge of honor. For a lot 144 00:09:05,400 --> 00:09:08,439 Speaker 1: of these performers. Their shows allowed them to make an 145 00:09:08,440 --> 00:09:11,160 Speaker 1: honorable living. It gave them a chance to travel, to 146 00:09:11,200 --> 00:09:14,760 Speaker 1: be employed, and to find family. But as we'll see, 147 00:09:14,960 --> 00:09:18,240 Speaker 1: Todd's film in many ways helped us cement the word 148 00:09:18,320 --> 00:09:23,560 Speaker 1: as something a bit more sinister in mainstream America. As 149 00:09:23,559 --> 00:09:27,520 Speaker 1: filming began in November of nine, the side show performers 150 00:09:27,559 --> 00:09:31,280 Speaker 1: came to the set. Several MGM employees and actors, having 151 00:09:31,360 --> 00:09:34,680 Speaker 1: never seen folks with such a spectrum of physical conditions, 152 00:09:35,040 --> 00:09:40,000 Speaker 1: were overwhelmed nauseated. Even among this weak, stomached group was 153 00:09:40,040 --> 00:09:43,840 Speaker 1: none other than f Scott Fitzgerald, who, while also drinking heavily, 154 00:09:44,120 --> 00:09:48,200 Speaker 1: apparently vomited after seeing conjoined twins Daisy and Violet Hilton 155 00:09:48,559 --> 00:09:51,760 Speaker 1: in the studios dining hall. After this, the side show 156 00:09:51,840 --> 00:09:55,679 Speaker 1: performers were banished to an outside table. The film had 157 00:09:55,720 --> 00:09:58,960 Speaker 1: a remarkably quick production schedule. It wrapped in just a 158 00:09:59,040 --> 00:10:01,560 Speaker 1: month and prom mirrored a little over a month after 159 00:10:01,640 --> 00:10:04,680 Speaker 1: that to a tittering crowd in San Diego. But just 160 00:10:04,760 --> 00:10:08,440 Speaker 1: halfway through the preview people got up and ran out. 161 00:10:09,520 --> 00:10:13,280 Speaker 1: You might be asking why, Well, one newspaper wrote, and 162 00:10:13,480 --> 00:10:19,160 Speaker 1: I quote for pure sensationalism, freaks tops any picture yet produced. 163 00:10:19,480 --> 00:10:23,640 Speaker 1: It's more fantastic and grotesque than any shocker ever written. 164 00:10:24,520 --> 00:10:26,720 Speaker 1: One woman in the audience, who had been pregnant at 165 00:10:26,720 --> 00:10:30,600 Speaker 1: the time, apparently threatened to sue MGM, claiming the film 166 00:10:30,720 --> 00:10:34,600 Speaker 1: had induced a miscarriage and the film was indeed violent. 167 00:10:35,000 --> 00:10:37,840 Speaker 1: So the studio decided to recut it as an attempt 168 00:10:37,840 --> 00:10:41,200 Speaker 1: to salvage it. But these new editorial decisions meant to 169 00:10:41,240 --> 00:10:45,040 Speaker 1: rectify the problem, ended up creating a new monster because 170 00:10:45,080 --> 00:10:49,439 Speaker 1: it fundamentally changed the story and the message. You see, 171 00:10:49,520 --> 00:10:53,080 Speaker 1: Todd's goal had been to critique social intolerance, the exact 172 00:10:53,200 --> 00:10:56,000 Speaker 1: kind of social intolerance that had played out on his set. 173 00:10:56,520 --> 00:10:59,560 Speaker 1: That in the widely distributed recut. Moments that let the 174 00:10:59,600 --> 00:11:03,720 Speaker 1: freaks shine and showcase their humanity were lost, and scenes 175 00:11:03,760 --> 00:11:07,559 Speaker 1: where the quote normal humans revealed themselves to be disgusting 176 00:11:07,559 --> 00:11:11,760 Speaker 1: creatures were similarly removed. The studio even tried to counter 177 00:11:11,880 --> 00:11:15,360 Speaker 1: the revulsion felt by the public with a new advertising blitz, 178 00:11:16,000 --> 00:11:20,199 Speaker 1: What about abnormal people? Their posters asked, they have lives too. 179 00:11:20,880 --> 00:11:23,640 Speaker 1: In the end, MGM resorted the old tricks of the 180 00:11:23,640 --> 00:11:27,559 Speaker 1: side show trade. They published new show bills that emphasized 181 00:11:27,600 --> 00:11:31,079 Speaker 1: the incredible strangeness of the characters, and even included some 182 00:11:31,160 --> 00:11:34,360 Speaker 1: of the same warnings that Barnum and his contemporaries had used. 183 00:11:34,960 --> 00:11:39,520 Speaker 1: Warning the ad said children positively not admitted adults not 184 00:11:39,640 --> 00:11:42,720 Speaker 1: in normal health are advised not to see this picture. 185 00:11:43,600 --> 00:11:48,000 Speaker 1: Offended reviewers responded by voicing their complaints. Major outlets called 186 00:11:48,000 --> 00:11:53,200 Speaker 1: the film unkind and brutal, loathsome obscene, grotesque, and bizarre. 187 00:11:53,720 --> 00:11:57,280 Speaker 1: One review even said that anyone who considers this entertainment 188 00:11:57,280 --> 00:12:00,600 Speaker 1: should be placed in the pathological ward in some hospital. 189 00:12:00,920 --> 00:12:04,680 Speaker 1: It is not fit to be shown anywhere. In the end, 190 00:12:05,120 --> 00:12:08,360 Speaker 1: the film was a complete and total flop. It recorded 191 00:12:08,400 --> 00:12:11,960 Speaker 1: a loss that would amount to almost three million dollars today. 192 00:12:12,120 --> 00:12:14,840 Speaker 1: But looking back, we can glimpse the canary in the 193 00:12:14,840 --> 00:12:19,000 Speaker 1: coal mine. It seems that maybe, just maybe, the times 194 00:12:19,080 --> 00:12:23,520 Speaker 1: were changing, and Schlitze was that the center of it all. 195 00:12:34,360 --> 00:12:37,600 Speaker 1: Freaks had failed in the theaters, but it succeeded in 196 00:12:37,640 --> 00:12:41,240 Speaker 1: getting people talking. Schlitz thankfully had the benefit of a 197 00:12:41,280 --> 00:12:44,160 Speaker 1: career beyond Hollywood. He took to the road once more, 198 00:12:44,400 --> 00:12:48,640 Speaker 1: covering territory that certainly makes me envious, criss crossing North America, 199 00:12:48,760 --> 00:12:51,959 Speaker 1: writing the rails and finding friends and good fortune along 200 00:12:51,960 --> 00:12:55,240 Speaker 1: the way. He had witnessed the popularity of sideshows peak 201 00:12:55,320 --> 00:12:57,840 Speaker 1: in his lifetime, but he would also get mixed up 202 00:12:57,840 --> 00:13:02,120 Speaker 1: in the institution's demise. In nineteen thirty six, Schlitze's manager, 203 00:13:02,240 --> 00:13:05,040 Speaker 1: Ted Mets, took over management for the side show of 204 00:13:05,040 --> 00:13:07,560 Speaker 1: a New Circus, and it was during his year's touring 205 00:13:07,600 --> 00:13:10,760 Speaker 1: with them that Schlitze men a man named George Surtees. 206 00:13:11,640 --> 00:13:14,640 Speaker 1: That same year, George and his wife Dottie became Schlitze's 207 00:13:14,720 --> 00:13:19,000 Speaker 1: legal guardians, becoming in effect both Schlitze's parents and managers, 208 00:13:19,400 --> 00:13:21,520 Speaker 1: and he continued to tour with them well into the 209 00:13:21,600 --> 00:13:25,280 Speaker 1: nineteen forties, joining a group of performers that included the 210 00:13:25,320 --> 00:13:29,719 Speaker 1: Three Legged Frank Lentini and Grady Styles the Lobster Boy. 211 00:13:30,280 --> 00:13:33,679 Speaker 1: By the mid nineteen fifties, other carnival companies began exhibiting 212 00:13:33,679 --> 00:13:37,559 Speaker 1: Schlitzi lookalikes, at times even giving their knockoffs the exact 213 00:13:37,640 --> 00:13:41,719 Speaker 1: same name. Honestly, the practice was true side show energy. 214 00:13:41,840 --> 00:13:45,359 Speaker 1: If ever, there was some elements were added to Schlitze's 215 00:13:45,360 --> 00:13:47,679 Speaker 1: act along the way, because, as you know by now, 216 00:13:47,800 --> 00:13:50,040 Speaker 1: part of the side show game was to stay relevant. 217 00:13:50,480 --> 00:13:54,440 Speaker 1: In one advertisement from July of nineteen sixty two, Schlitze 218 00:13:54,440 --> 00:13:58,439 Speaker 1: was billed as the oldest human side show attraction in America. 219 00:13:58,760 --> 00:14:01,680 Speaker 1: The article even claimed that he was first exhibited at 220 00:14:01,720 --> 00:14:05,120 Speaker 1: the Buffalo World's Fair in nineteen o one, when President 221 00:14:05,200 --> 00:14:10,160 Speaker 1: McKinley was assassinated. By this time, though, attitudes towards sideshow 222 00:14:10,160 --> 00:14:14,600 Speaker 1: acts and human oddities in particular, we're changing. In March 223 00:14:14,600 --> 00:14:18,359 Speaker 1: of nineteen sixty two, officials in San Bernardino County, California, 224 00:14:18,640 --> 00:14:21,600 Speaker 1: closed down two different side show exhibits at the National 225 00:14:21,640 --> 00:14:24,920 Speaker 1: Orange Show. Police cited a law from the eighteen hundreds 226 00:14:24,960 --> 00:14:30,000 Speaker 1: that prohibited exhibiting deformed persons for profits, and Schlitze's act 227 00:14:30,200 --> 00:14:34,680 Speaker 1: became collateral damage during that same decade, Schlitze was exhibited 228 00:14:34,720 --> 00:14:38,040 Speaker 1: as the last of the Aztecs. The problem, of course, 229 00:14:38,160 --> 00:14:41,480 Speaker 1: was that the Bakersfield area of California, where Schlitzy was 230 00:14:41,520 --> 00:14:44,200 Speaker 1: spending time on the carnival circuit, was home to a 231 00:14:44,280 --> 00:14:49,040 Speaker 1: significant population of Mexican Americans who strongly objected to Schlitze's 232 00:14:49,080 --> 00:14:53,000 Speaker 1: as tech title. More and more, it was becoming increasingly 233 00:14:53,040 --> 00:14:56,600 Speaker 1: difficult for human oddity acts to get permission to perform, 234 00:14:56,960 --> 00:14:59,720 Speaker 1: and there was a general growing distaste for such shows 235 00:14:59,720 --> 00:15:03,280 Speaker 1: even when they were permitted. Some side shows eliminated these 236 00:15:03,320 --> 00:15:07,120 Speaker 1: acts altogether and focused instead on the self made freaks, 237 00:15:07,480 --> 00:15:10,480 Speaker 1: the snake charmers, the knife throwers, and the flame eaters. 238 00:15:10,880 --> 00:15:15,040 Speaker 1: Others made the switch to pictures of human oddities, including Schlitze, 239 00:15:15,080 --> 00:15:18,920 Speaker 1: instead of the real thing. The tectonic plates of culture 240 00:15:18,960 --> 00:15:21,920 Speaker 1: were shifting. The only world Schlitze had ever known was 241 00:15:21,960 --> 00:15:26,000 Speaker 1: slowly being taken away from him, his friends, his chosen family, 242 00:15:26,280 --> 00:15:28,920 Speaker 1: even his ability to make a living. He was in 243 00:15:29,000 --> 00:15:31,760 Speaker 1: his sixties at this point, but he wasn't ready to quit, 244 00:15:32,080 --> 00:15:37,520 Speaker 1: at least not willingly. In April of nineteen sixty, George died, 245 00:15:37,680 --> 00:15:40,880 Speaker 1: leaving his daughter legally in charge of Schlitze. She had 246 00:15:40,880 --> 00:15:43,960 Speaker 1: always disliked him, maybe the only person who had, it seems, 247 00:15:44,200 --> 00:15:46,000 Speaker 1: and she didn't know how to care for someone with 248 00:15:46,080 --> 00:15:49,000 Speaker 1: his special needs, so she decided to put him away, 249 00:15:49,240 --> 00:15:53,760 Speaker 1: having him institutionalized at the Los Angeles County Hospital. And 250 00:15:53,840 --> 00:15:56,960 Speaker 1: I can't imagine how hard this must have been for him. 251 00:15:56,960 --> 00:15:59,920 Speaker 1: Schlitze was a deeply social person who had spent his 252 00:16:00,080 --> 00:16:03,880 Speaker 1: life around other people on stage and among friends, and 253 00:16:03,920 --> 00:16:07,160 Speaker 1: now he was all alone. But in a small world 254 00:16:07,160 --> 00:16:09,920 Speaker 1: twist of fate, it just so happened that Bill Unk's 255 00:16:10,360 --> 00:16:13,560 Speaker 1: sword swallower worked as an orderly at the very same 256 00:16:13,640 --> 00:16:16,520 Speaker 1: hospital during the off season, and one day, as Unks 257 00:16:16,600 --> 00:16:20,240 Speaker 1: was cleaning a hallway, he heard a familiar catchphrase, someone 258 00:16:20,280 --> 00:16:24,280 Speaker 1: repeating over and over you see, you see, and he 259 00:16:24,320 --> 00:16:28,560 Speaker 1: recognized the voice and the phrase immediately as Schlitze, and 260 00:16:28,600 --> 00:16:32,160 Speaker 1: when Unks found him, he was nearly catatonic. Unks quickly 261 00:16:32,200 --> 00:16:34,880 Speaker 1: discovered that his friend had been there for seven months. 262 00:16:36,040 --> 00:16:38,360 Speaker 1: He wanted to help, and figured the only way to 263 00:16:38,400 --> 00:16:40,640 Speaker 1: do so was to get Schlitze out of the hospital 264 00:16:40,680 --> 00:16:43,360 Speaker 1: and back onto the circuit. With Unk's help, he was 265 00:16:43,440 --> 00:16:45,880 Speaker 1: able to leave and returned to the side show in 266 00:16:45,960 --> 00:16:50,880 Speaker 1: late nineteen sixty and with that, finally he was back 267 00:16:50,960 --> 00:16:55,920 Speaker 1: among family, which brings us full circle. I think you see. 268 00:16:55,920 --> 00:16:58,000 Speaker 1: While there are valid critiques to be made about the 269 00:16:58,040 --> 00:17:02,720 Speaker 1: inherent dehumanization of the formers in quote Freak Shows, there 270 00:17:02,800 --> 00:17:05,840 Speaker 1: is also a complicated tension in Schlitzey's life story that 271 00:17:05,920 --> 00:17:09,399 Speaker 1: calls for a closer, more nuanced look, because when his 272 00:17:09,480 --> 00:17:12,520 Speaker 1: parents sold him to the side show, they quite possibly 273 00:17:12,560 --> 00:17:16,280 Speaker 1: provided him with the happiest and most independent life possible 274 00:17:16,440 --> 00:17:19,560 Speaker 1: for someone like him at the time. It was that 275 00:17:19,640 --> 00:17:24,280 Speaker 1: same lack of options that led George's daughter to institutionalize Schlitze, 276 00:17:24,280 --> 00:17:27,480 Speaker 1: an option that ended up making him deeply unhappy. Even 277 00:17:27,560 --> 00:17:29,640 Speaker 1: the doctors of the hospital knew that if he stayed 278 00:17:29,680 --> 00:17:32,720 Speaker 1: there rather than being released, it's possible that he would 279 00:17:32,760 --> 00:17:36,480 Speaker 1: have died from heartbreak. But thankfully that's not where we're 280 00:17:36,480 --> 00:17:40,080 Speaker 1: going to leave him today. Picture this. We're in MacArthur 281 00:17:40,160 --> 00:17:42,879 Speaker 1: Park in Los Angeles, sitting on a bench in the 282 00:17:42,920 --> 00:17:46,720 Speaker 1: setting sun. The sky has that golden pink glow broken 283 00:17:46,800 --> 00:17:49,880 Speaker 1: up by rows of palm trees, and the air is warm. 284 00:17:49,920 --> 00:17:53,159 Speaker 1: It's nineteen seventy and schlitze now lives close by with 285 00:17:53,320 --> 00:17:57,159 Speaker 1: his caretaker. As the sun sets on his life, and 286 00:17:57,200 --> 00:17:59,360 Speaker 1: it's there that he could be found feeding the animals 287 00:17:59,359 --> 00:18:02,920 Speaker 1: with handful of sunflower seeds. All of the ducks, according 288 00:18:02,960 --> 00:18:06,720 Speaker 1: to him, were named tam Robert, and all of the pigeons, 289 00:18:06,760 --> 00:18:10,719 Speaker 1: he said, were called Alan bar Allen. The Spanish speaking 290 00:18:10,760 --> 00:18:13,920 Speaker 1: locals of the park called him raton Cito, a pet 291 00:18:14,000 --> 00:18:17,200 Speaker 1: name meaning little mouse. Sometimes they would even buy him 292 00:18:17,240 --> 00:18:20,280 Speaker 1: a treat. And it's there, in a place where he 293 00:18:20,359 --> 00:18:23,199 Speaker 1: was loved and happy, that he would live out the 294 00:18:23,280 --> 00:18:36,359 Speaker 1: rest of his days. Schlitzi passed away quietly in his 295 00:18:36,440 --> 00:18:40,760 Speaker 1: old age, but today he lives on in Hollywood. As 296 00:18:40,760 --> 00:18:43,600 Speaker 1: the decades ticked by the same impulse that brought folks 297 00:18:43,600 --> 00:18:46,080 Speaker 1: to the side show was now driving them to the theater. 298 00:18:46,480 --> 00:18:50,160 Speaker 1: Movie attendants increased with every passing decade, and it's easy 299 00:18:50,160 --> 00:18:52,720 Speaker 1: to see why people didn't have to wait for circus 300 00:18:52,720 --> 00:18:55,640 Speaker 1: trains to roll through town anymore. In the same way 301 00:18:55,640 --> 00:18:58,960 Speaker 1: that Barnum and his cronies had constantly reinvented their acts, 302 00:18:59,000 --> 00:19:02,200 Speaker 1: Hollywood had begun making money by churning out news stories 303 00:19:02,200 --> 00:19:06,879 Speaker 1: with the same actors again and again and again. In 304 00:19:06,960 --> 00:19:10,800 Speaker 1: nineteen sixty two, Freaks was screened at the Venice Film Festival, 305 00:19:10,960 --> 00:19:14,560 Speaker 1: but this time to highly critical reviews. Enough had changed 306 00:19:14,600 --> 00:19:18,199 Speaker 1: culturally in those thirty intervening years that new audiences were 307 00:19:18,240 --> 00:19:20,680 Speaker 1: able to see the film in a fresh light. As 308 00:19:20,720 --> 00:19:24,040 Speaker 1: the kids say these days, it hit just a bit differently. 309 00:19:25,480 --> 00:19:28,240 Speaker 1: Looking back, critics now recognized the film and its early 310 00:19:28,280 --> 00:19:31,919 Speaker 1: reception as a cultural touchstone, a snapshot of a moment 311 00:19:32,000 --> 00:19:35,600 Speaker 1: in time, and freaks reappearance also meant a resurgence of 312 00:19:35,680 --> 00:19:40,560 Speaker 1: interest in and appreciation for Schltzie and cemented him within 313 00:19:40,600 --> 00:19:45,800 Speaker 1: the broader consciousness of pop culture. In Freaks was selected 314 00:19:45,840 --> 00:19:48,400 Speaker 1: by the National Film Registry as one of the most 315 00:19:48,480 --> 00:19:52,760 Speaker 1: influential films of all time, six years before Dracula was 316 00:19:52,800 --> 00:19:56,439 Speaker 1: given the same honor, which is somewhat ironic, and that 317 00:19:56,520 --> 00:19:59,240 Speaker 1: it was the success of Dracula that made it possible 318 00:19:59,280 --> 00:20:01,760 Speaker 1: for Todd Brown to make Freaks in the first place. 319 00:20:02,240 --> 00:20:06,719 Speaker 1: In return, Freaks had more or less ruined his career, 320 00:20:07,680 --> 00:20:20,080 Speaker 1: but thankfully notch Letsie's. We hope you've enjoyed this little 321 00:20:20,080 --> 00:20:23,400 Speaker 1: bit of movie history so far. It's fascinating just how 322 00:20:23,440 --> 00:20:26,679 Speaker 1: connected today's world of entertainment is to the side shows 323 00:20:26,720 --> 00:20:30,640 Speaker 1: of the past, for better or for worse. But we're 324 00:20:30,640 --> 00:20:33,520 Speaker 1: not done just yet. Stick around through this brief sponsor 325 00:20:33,560 --> 00:20:36,480 Speaker 1: break to hear one more tale of the side show. 326 00:20:45,359 --> 00:20:49,359 Speaker 1: It was their smallest Sunday crowd yet, roughly a quarter 327 00:20:49,440 --> 00:20:52,639 Speaker 1: of a million people. Coney Island had opened to the 328 00:20:52,680 --> 00:20:57,280 Speaker 1: public just two years before in and the subway line 329 00:20:57,320 --> 00:21:00,680 Speaker 1: had finally extended far enough to bring the Maths out 330 00:21:00,680 --> 00:21:04,360 Speaker 1: of the city. Sometimes more than a million people might 331 00:21:04,359 --> 00:21:08,680 Speaker 1: show up to lounge in the sun. Seven year old 332 00:21:08,720 --> 00:21:12,520 Speaker 1: Irene Reynolds was one of those people. She and her 333 00:21:12,520 --> 00:21:16,040 Speaker 1: family had planned to take full advantage of their beach day. 334 00:21:16,080 --> 00:21:19,480 Speaker 1: Even though the skies above were gray. It was going 335 00:21:19,520 --> 00:21:21,840 Speaker 1: to be a chance for everyone to kick their feet up, 336 00:21:21,920 --> 00:21:29,520 Speaker 1: to relax, to play. Irene never intended to drown. According 337 00:21:29,560 --> 00:21:32,840 Speaker 1: to eyewitness accounts, The wave that came for her was 338 00:21:33,000 --> 00:21:37,360 Speaker 1: huge and quick. It crested and slammed, sweeping her off 339 00:21:37,359 --> 00:21:41,000 Speaker 1: her feet and dragging her under, allowing only a moment 340 00:21:41,119 --> 00:21:45,160 Speaker 1: for her screams to escape, and when Zip heard them, 341 00:21:45,160 --> 00:21:50,600 Speaker 1: he turned and he began to run. Zip, who was 342 00:21:50,640 --> 00:21:55,119 Speaker 1: born William Henry Johnson, was a local celebrity. He was 343 00:21:55,160 --> 00:21:58,240 Speaker 1: a fixture at Coney Island's Dreamland side Show that year, 344 00:21:59,280 --> 00:22:02,600 Speaker 1: and just like let's see, he had been born with microcephaly. 345 00:22:03,680 --> 00:22:07,280 Speaker 1: He was a small man. During his time with P. T. Barnum, 346 00:22:07,440 --> 00:22:11,520 Speaker 1: he was often marketed as the missing Link. He later 347 00:22:11,600 --> 00:22:14,560 Speaker 1: made his way to Coney Island and his character evolved 348 00:22:14,560 --> 00:22:18,159 Speaker 1: there Over the years. It's been said that he never spoke, 349 00:22:18,440 --> 00:22:20,920 Speaker 1: and that his careful adherence to his vow of silence 350 00:22:21,160 --> 00:22:26,760 Speaker 1: helped prolong his career. But on this day, words didn't matter, 351 00:22:27,480 --> 00:22:31,560 Speaker 1: only speed. He quickly made it to the shoreline and 352 00:22:31,640 --> 00:22:35,040 Speaker 1: into the water, diving through the waves to reach Irene. 353 00:22:35,480 --> 00:22:38,200 Speaker 1: He grabbed her and he pulled her back onto the sand. 354 00:22:39,119 --> 00:22:42,000 Speaker 1: Within a few moments she had come to coughing and 355 00:22:42,080 --> 00:22:46,800 Speaker 1: sputtering and convulsive, back to life. If Zip hadn't already 356 00:22:46,840 --> 00:22:52,399 Speaker 1: been a local hero, he sure was now. Zip, the 357 00:22:52,400 --> 00:22:56,479 Speaker 1: newspapers reported, almost wilted under the cheers of the crowd, 358 00:22:57,280 --> 00:23:01,840 Speaker 1: and honestly, I can't blame him. Years later, it would 359 00:23:01,880 --> 00:23:04,600 Speaker 1: be estimated that he had been seen in person by 360 00:23:04,640 --> 00:23:08,280 Speaker 1: more people than anyone else who would ever lived, close 361 00:23:08,359 --> 00:23:12,959 Speaker 1: to one hundred million folks. By some accounts, his career 362 00:23:13,080 --> 00:23:18,320 Speaker 1: was long and illustrious and highly successful. In fact, Zip 363 00:23:18,320 --> 00:23:22,720 Speaker 1: will go on to perform well into his sixties, his 364 00:23:22,800 --> 00:23:25,280 Speaker 1: hallmark silence was one of the things that set him 365 00:23:25,320 --> 00:23:29,440 Speaker 1: apart from everyone else. But some Starcus veterans believe that 366 00:23:29,520 --> 00:23:33,040 Speaker 1: this was a creation of Barnum's, but one that Zip 367 00:23:33,160 --> 00:23:39,240 Speaker 1: stuck to for his whole life. So who was he really? 368 00:23:40,320 --> 00:23:42,800 Speaker 1: Was he a man who had been exploited for six 369 00:23:42,920 --> 00:23:46,679 Speaker 1: decades or was he a true method actor, committed to 370 00:23:46,760 --> 00:23:51,119 Speaker 1: his form and to always staying in character. Did he 371 00:23:51,200 --> 00:23:54,480 Speaker 1: have a deep understanding of how to market himself and 372 00:23:54,520 --> 00:23:56,560 Speaker 1: what it would take for him to be a rousing 373 00:23:56,720 --> 00:24:03,000 Speaker 1: success us. A year after Irene's rescue, Zip died at 374 00:24:03,080 --> 00:24:07,720 Speaker 1: New York's Bellevue Hospital. As a story goes, his sister 375 00:24:07,840 --> 00:24:10,800 Speaker 1: was at his bedside as he lay dying, and in 376 00:24:10,840 --> 00:24:15,240 Speaker 1: his final moments he turned to her. He had something 377 00:24:15,280 --> 00:24:19,919 Speaker 1: to say. Well, he told her, we fooled them for 378 00:24:19,960 --> 00:24:31,480 Speaker 1: a long time. Huh. Side Show was written by Robin 379 00:24:31,560 --> 00:24:35,240 Speaker 1: Minat with narration by me Aaron Mankey research for the 380 00:24:35,280 --> 00:24:39,000 Speaker 1: series was by Robin Minator, Taylor Haggard Dorn, and Sam Alberty, 381 00:24:39,280 --> 00:24:43,600 Speaker 1: with production assistants from Josh Thayne, Jesse Funk, Alex Williams 382 00:24:43,600 --> 00:24:46,600 Speaker 1: and Matt Frederick Grim and Mile Presents was created in 383 00:24:46,680 --> 00:24:49,560 Speaker 1: partnership with I Heart Radio. You can learn more about 384 00:24:49,600 --> 00:24:52,200 Speaker 1: this show and everything else from Grim and mild Over 385 00:24:52,320 --> 00:24:56,320 Speaker 1: at Grim and mild dot com, and, as always, thanks 386 00:24:56,320 --> 00:25:23,240 Speaker 1: for listening. Boo old old