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Female Circus Performers: Overcoming The Odds And Redefining Beauty
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Happy International Women’s Day! Celebrated each March, this holiday honors women’s contributions across various fields, from economics to politics and more. But it also challenges society to continue working toward greater gender parity. So, there’s no better time to reflect on some of the early female pioneers of performance. These women not only defied the odds but helped redefine the way we see beauty.
From a nation’s beloved bearded lady to conjoined twins who took vaudeville by storm, find out about some of the most inspiring women to ever grace circus and sideshow stages.
Annie Jones: The Bearded LadyAudiences flocked to Annie Jones’s exhibitions to see firsthand the so-called “Esau Woman.” (Esau referred to the iconic, hairy character of the Bible.) But musical talent and a charming personality cinched her reputation as the most celebrated bearded lady of her day. From infancy, she sported a slight beard that thickened as she grew. Her developing facial hair soon caught the attention of P.T. Barnum.
Barnum negotiated a deal with Jones’s parents to showcase the toddler for $150 per week in the late 1860s. Unfortunately, the attention garnered by her sideshow career inspired a phrenologist to kidnap her. The pseudoscience of phrenology involved “predicting” mental traits by studying and measuring the bumps on the human skull. Luckily, the kidnapping plot was foiled, and Jones returned to the circus, her devoted mother a constant presence.
The Hilton Sisters: Conjoined TwinsAlthough other bearded ladies were exhibited at circuses worldwide, none achieved the success of Annie Jones. The same can be said of the Hilton sisters, Daisy and Violet. Although conjoined twins were a staple of sideshows and carnival acts, none eclipsed the Hilton sisters’ fame (except, perhaps, Chang and Eng Bunker).
CC: Progress StudioNew York via Wikimedia Commons
Born to an unmarried barmaid in 1908, the English twins were adopted by Mary Hilton, the midwife who attended their birth. Mary taught them to play musical instruments and sing, putting them on their first circus stage at the tender age of three. The education paid off, and by the time the twins reached adulthood, they ranked among the highest-paid talents in vaudeville, pulling in thousands per week. They would even go on to grace the silver screen, most notably in Tod Browning’s cult classic Freaks (1932).
Kittie Smith: The Armless DynamoUnlike the other performers on this list, Kittie Smith’s unique feature wasn’t congenital. Instead, it resulted from a savage, heartless episode of child abuse. At the age of nine or ten, she refused to make dinner for her drunken father. In retaliation, he held her arms over the lit stove until they sustained such severe burns, they required amputation. The cruelty of his act went unpunished because of “lack of evidence,” and Smith became a ward of the state.
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Her story came to Dr. F. M. Gregg’s attention, who decided to help the abuse survivor by taking up an educational fund in her name. The fund paid for specialized staff who taught her how to lead a rich and full life without arms. Using only her feet, she learned how to write, embroider, paint, and even play piano with her toes. After catching the interest of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, she joined the crew, regaling audiences with her impressive bipedal talents.
Betty Lou Williams: The Girl With Three Arms and Four LegsBorn in 1932 to a large family of sharecroppers, Betty Lou Williams (a.k.a. Lillie B. Williams) rose from obscurity to great wealth as the highest-paid human oddity in history. The youngest of 12 children, Williams gained fame for the parasitic twin whose two legs and arm hung suspended from her abdomen. By the age of two, she earned $250 per week on exhibition at the Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Odditorium at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1934.
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As she grew, her earnings ballooned, hitting as much as $1,000 per week by her early 20s. She often dressed her twin’s limbs in custom-sewn clothing, and audiences flocked to see her. Known for a kind and generous nature, she used her earnings to purchase a 260-acre farm for her parents. She also supported all 11 of her siblings through college.
Which of these amazing ladies do you find most inspiring on this International Women’s Day? Let us know in the comments below.
By Engrid Barnett, contributor for Ripleys.com
Source: Female Circus Performers: Overcoming The Odds And Redefining Beauty
March 7, 2021
March 6, 2021
March 5, 2021
From Military Tactic To 90s Bedroom Staple: The History Of Inflatable Furniture
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
All of you Spice Girl era babies, listen up! We’re about to revive an absolute staple of your childhood. Two words: inflatable furniture. If your room didn’t have at least one blow-up couch or chair, can you even consider yourself a 90s kid? Millennials out there probably remember hanging out in blow-up chairs with some S Club 7 on the boombox. But before this generation got their hands on a chair or two, the impracticable inflatables actually had one very practical purpose.
From The Battlefield…In the 1940s, the first iterations of “inflatable structures,” were actually used on the battlefield during World War II! Specially hired artists and designers created air-filled rubber tanks in order to deceive enemies.
Appearing as though there were hundreds of tanks lining the battlegrounds, in reality, these inflatable transports and weapon dummies could fit inside of a duffel bag, and be pumped up with air in just 20 minutes. An army could look twice as large, leading the troops to believe they were in some serious trouble.
Aside from tanks and transportation, another WWII moment consisted of architectural advances using inflatable materials. Engineer, Walter Bird, went on to create inflatable domes and air-supported structures whose primary purpose was to protect sensitive military equipment. But it’s no surprise that by the mid-50s, Bird would switch gears and create a line of air-supported structures for recreational use: tennis, soccer, golf, football, you name it! So, how did we go from inflatable shelters and decoys to inflatable decor?
To Our Bedrooms!Fast forward a few years to the ‘60s when inflatable chairs made their official entrance. Created by four young designers within the Italian Anti-Design movement, the Blow chair quickly became the symbol of the new free and light style. Made by Italian manufacturer Zanotta, it was marketed as the perfect furniture for transients or city dwellers. Nowadays we hear plenty about space-saving furniture in small spaces—and how much smaller can you get? The Blow was easy to inflate, easy to transport, and easy to store since it took up practically no space at all in its flattest form.
Many other designers of this time followed suit, and variations of the neon inflatable seating came close behind. In 1967, Quasar Kahnh set out to develop an inflatable furniture line called, “AEROSPACE,” inspired by a major theme of the 60s—space travel! This line instantly became an icon of pop culture, as we know it today!
Once Limited Too got its hands on this product, there was no stopping Britney Spears and Lizzie McGuire fans alike from snagging a heavily branded inflatable chair from the racks. Every color, design, size, and shape was readily available to any trendy teen at this time.
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Like any pool raft or air mattress, these products had one major flaw: their deflation rate. Aside from the uncomfortable sound these chairs made when you sat down, they didn’t keep their shape very well. Following their 90s heyday, many companies tried to revive these interior design icons, but practicality certainly outweighs nostalgia.
Ripley’s RewindHosted by yours truly, this series, Ripley’s Rewind, will highlight the strange in an age of boomers, millennials, and beyond! With throwbacks, pop culture, television, and trends that totally swept the nation, we’ll answer questions like: who in the world was Carmen Sandiego? Why did everyone and their mother have a family of sea monkeys? And, what was the deal with Princess Leia’s iconic buns? Let’s back it up to your favorite childhood moments—and, of course, add in a little Ripley’s spin.
Source: From Military Tactic To 90s Bedroom Staple: The History Of Inflatable Furniture
Cuttlefish Crush Self-Control Test
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
[March 1–March 7, 2021] A mysterious sea creature, space hurricanes, and a virtual peek into history—all round-up in this week’s weird news from Ripley’s Believe It or Not!
Four-Ton Mystery Creature Makes Its Way to WalesA headless mystery creature has been found decomposing on the shores of Wales, leaving behind nothing but a 23-foot spine as a clue to its identity.
Last week, the U.K. Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme (CSIP) received a call about a gigantic blob washing up on Broad Haven South Beach in Pembrokeshire, Wales.
The woman who reported the sighting stated that she had done some research and believed it to be a basking shark. Investigators were skeptical of the claim, as the species is extremely rare in the area, and assumed they would find a whale instead.
Upon arrival, it quickly became clear that this was no whale, as evidenced by the pungent smell of decaying fish permeating from the four-ton husk.
According to the CSIP stranding coordinator for Wales, Matthew Westfield, the team now agrees that it may be a basking shark but cannot be 100% certain until further testing is complete.
Samples are currently being studied at both the Natural History Museum and the London Zoo.
In the meantime, the options for what to do with the rest of the massive beast are limited: bury it right where it is, remove it from the beach in pieces, or leave it be and let nature do its thing.
First-Ever “Space Hurricane” Spotted Swirling Above North Pole
Just another story to add to the mystery thread this morning – a huge headless creature washed up on a beach from Wales Onlinehttps://t.co/WXqqLTFw3w
— Zara Whelan (@DPWZaraWhelan) March 4, 2021
The existence of hurricanes in space was confirmed this week when a new study revealed satellite images depicting a 600-mile-wide storm swirling above the North Pole!
Co-written by scientists from China’s Shandong University and the University of Reading in the U.K., the study details a retrospective analysis of satellite observations from August 2014, which show a spinning mass of plasma—or “space hurricane”—raining electrons hundreds of miles above the North Pole.
The massive storm spun above Santa’s headquarters for about eight hours before dying out, only going unseen from Earth because of its location over the pole.
Prior to this revelation, scientists could only speculate about the existence of such storms, as one had never been sighted. The new findings suggest that space hurricanes could be an intergalactic phenomenon.
According to study co-author and University of Reading space scientist Professor Mike Lockwood, “to prove this with such a striking observation is incredible.”
Hacking Into History with Virtual Reality
Scientists spotted a ‘space hurricane’ swirling above the magnetic north pole. It was raining charged solar particles. https://t.co/BYAutP6U59
— Science Insider (@SciInsider) March 3, 2021
Centuries of secrets are set to be revealed using a virtual reality technique developed by scientists and scholars hoping to sneak a peek into history through stories written in encrypted letters.
Before sealed envelopes and Direct Messages, letter-writers kept their secrets guarded using a security system called “letterlocking,” which consisted of folding, cutting, and tucking the paper into a sort of puzzle in hopes of deterring prying eyes.
On Tuesday, a group of researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and other institutions, shared their discovery of digitally scanning these letters using an X-ray to hack their way into history while keeping the delicate artifacts intact.
The team has already successfully “opened” four letters written between 1680 and 1706 found in the Brienne Collection, a wooden trunk containing 3,148 historical items—including 577 locked letters.
While not all of the concealed pages will expose juicy 17th-century gossip, even the most mundane exchanges will help historians construct accurate narratives about European politics, culture, religion, migration patterns, and more.
Indonesian Bird Ends 170-Year Game of Hide-and-Seek
Announcing a world first! Our amazing interdisciplinary team has virtually unfolded and read an unopened letter from 1697 without breaking its seal, and officially launched #letterlocking as a field of study in Nature Communications. https://t.co/LWUqQhVXvq #OA [going live today] pic.twitter.com/jZc9rJaKoy
— Letterlocking (@letterlocking) March 2, 2021
Borneo, Indonesia, locals Muhammad Suranto and Muhammad Rizky Fauzan solved one of the country’s greatest ornithological enigmas with the first sighting of a black-browed babbler in 170 years.
After being recruited to give birdwatching group BW Galeatus insight into their province’s avian populations, Suranto and Fauzan sent group member Joko Said Trisiyanto an image of a bird they weren’t familiar with but sometimes saw in a South Kalimantan forest.
The bird in question matched the description of the black-browed babbler, which was listed as extinct in Trisiyanto’s birdwatching guidebook. Trisiyanto passed the image along to ornithologist Panji Gusti Akbar for confirmation, beginning a chain of forwarding to other experts, all of whom were in shock to see Asia’s longest-lost species captured through the lens.
“When we actually got confirmation of the identification, I did a little prayer and bowed down to celebrate,” said Akbar.
A truly rare bird, the black-browed babbler was first described around 1850, after ornithologists collected the species’ only known specimen. After clearing up a mislabeling situation in which the species was noted to have come from Java rather than Borneo, scientists still could not find another bird of its type.
With the rediscovery comes a bit of explanation to the mystery of where it’s been hiding, as the species appears to have evolved from having glassy yellow eyes and pale brown legs to scarlet eyes and gray legs.
Cuttlefish Crush Self-Control TestView this post on Instagram
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Cuttlefish may be known for their impressive disguise skills, hunting prowess, and remarkable memory, but how do they fare when facing the “marshmallow test”—a psychological test to determine self-control? It turns out, pretty well!
Researchers at the University of Cambridge presented the cephalopods with a challenge of delayed gratification, in this case, giving them a choice to skip a meal in exchange for the potential of a much more delicious one later on. The decision was a no-brainer for the cuttles, making them the first invertebrates ever to demonstrate self-control.
Animals that typically exhibit this trait are social creatures that tend to live long lives, like great apes and parrots, making cuttlefish an unlikely member of the self-control squad since they are known for being short-lived loners.
According to the study, the self-control exhibited by cuttlefish may be directly related to how they camouflage themselves from predators—by hiding for days at a time, only showing themselves when they need to eat.
A European Cuttlefish from Ripley’s Aquarium of Myrtle Beach
By Megan Yani, contributor for Ripleys.com
EXPLORE THE ODD IN PERSON! Discover hundreds of strange and unusual artifacts and get hands-on with unbelievable interactives when you visit a Ripley’s Odditorium!
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