I wondered if this is what it was like in the 1940’s as the man before me calls out in a booming voice “Come one come all to the most amazing show on the west coast…” The young boy next to him takes the five dollars from my hand without give me a glance and nodes me toward the door.
Museum: Half of the small room was set up like a museum with glass cases displaying various weird and freaky things. Most of the things were dead animals on display that had been stuffed and lots where so called two headed creatures, some stuffed while others where just the skeleton’s. Though most of the displays seemed to be legit a few made me skeptical. My favorites where the live exhibits, one of a five legged iguana, a two headed snake (I think was dead) and my favorite the two headed turtle.
Show:
The show is the real reason to pay $5. It starts off with two surprising young people; the girl couldn’t have been more then 20-25 and the young man not much older. The woman was a double jointed contortionist who was able to make to her arms and legs bend in such ways as to leave your own limbs with imaginary pain. The man, who they saved for the end of the show, was as he claimed, the youngest ‘sword swallow’ in the world and after watching him stick a blade of I would guess about 18 inches down his throat I have no reason to doubt him.
Conclusion:
So if you ever find yourself hanging around the board walk at Venice Beach in a questionable state of mind. May I recommend The Freak Show, for $5 and 15 minutes of your time it’s well worth it.
