Barnum & Bailey / Exhibition d'Hommes & Femme Phenomenes. . That is not Chewbacca at left. That’s Jo-Jo, the Russian Poodle Man, and this is Barnum & Bailey’s Sideshow arriving in France. This original Strobridge design was translated and printed in Paris (a French tax stamp is at upper left), delivering une piquant je ne sais quoi to Little Peter the Great; John MacDonald, the Human Mastodon; Koguri, the Japanese Artist Without Arms; miniature Queen Mab; and some 30 other prodigies of nature. Magnifique!
Beginning in 1880, and continuing until World War II, Coney Island was the single biggest amusement area in the United States. For more than a century it’s been adored for the pure carnival fantasy of it, the mass congregation of its sideshow characters, and an atmosphere of devil-may-care lunacy. This classic poster was used by Barnum & Bailey for their British tour of 1898-1899, and served to enhance the reputation of this freewheeling national treasure in New York City. A visual delight as well as a historic document of great interest, this image was also published in the more common horizontal format. Bottom text reads: “Remarkable head-foremost dives from enormous heights into shallow depths of water, together with thrilling & daring aquatic & sub-aqueous feats of every description.”
