The Rise and Fall of the Sideshow Geek (Paperback)

Outside Talker Press, in Cooperation with Shocked and Amazed, is proud to present:
THE RISE AND FALL OF THE SIDESHOW GEEK

It was one of the darkest spectacles in carnival history—an act so grotesque and steeped in controversy that it has all but vanished. This was the geek act. At its peak, it was disturbingly common, yet its story remains murky. Sensationalized retellings and spotty documentation have blurred fact and fiction, leaving us with more myth than memory.

This book sets out to cut through the haze. It offers a clear-eyed, unflinching history of the sideshow geek—placing it in context with other strange and bygone entertainments: wild men, stone eaters, human ostriches, competitive goldfish swallowers, and more. Together, these chapters trace the rise, notoriety, and eventual collapse of one of the most infamous acts ever to step under the carnival lights.

 

QUOTES

"An impressive survey drawing back the curtains on one of the most strange and macabre corners of the history of popular entertainment and a must read for sideshow fans and performers. Nathan Wakefield digs into the meat of the geek act with intellectual dexterity and humble curiosity, offering us a chance to revisit an act that will forever remain locked away on the stages of yesteryear. Step right up and peak inside (if you dare)."

~ Mistress Kali, Founder of The Southern Sideshow Hootenanny

“The evolution of the geek and how the public reacted to this spectacle in different eras says so much about who we are.”

~ Keith Nelson, Co-founder, Bindlestiff Family Cirkus

"Nathan Wakefield has produced a well-researched and documented history of a wild niche in show business: that of the sideshow geek and related curiosities. As alluded to in this oddly fascinating book, geek acts were akin to passing a car wreck, where even though you might see something horrible, you find it hard to look away."

~ Alan Howard, performer, author, editor and aficionado of variety acts.

 

PLEASE SEE SPECIAL SHIPPING NOTICE!

 

This book is a cooperative project of Outside Talker Press and Shocked and Amazed Publishing.

 

 

 

What's a "geek" you ask? Nathan Wakefield's book answers that question with a depth that will make this book the go-to volume for a very long time.

Nathan Wakefield set himself a goal most humans would not: To write a definitive account of the history of the sideshow geek. He has accomplished his task masterfully; this book will be the go-to account for many years. 


~ Matt "The Tube" Crowley, sideshow performer

"I have heard the term "geek" all my life and thought it was just a carnival wild man show. Later I learned it was a wild man biting the heads off chickens and that was all there was to it and I love the whole sideshow scene read a lot of books; even Nightmare Alley and Monster Midway. Boy, did I have a lot to learn!

Nathan Wakefield's The Rise and Fall of the Sideshow Geek starts at the very beginning some 2500 years BCE, with the magician Didi who cut the heads off birds and restored them to life, and continues to this day with the magicians David Blaine and Fielding West. Not just magicians, Wakefield interviews sideshow preformers and owners from bygone days like Ward Hall, Bobby Reynolds and Red Stuart as well as academic scholars. Included in the book are several appendices of old sideshow pitch books and short reports and interviews. This is a well-researched study of all things Geek, from chickens and snakes to stone and nail eaters to the eating of Gold Fish on college campuses to the modern-day computer geeks!

Not since Houdini's book Miracle Mongers and Their Methods and Joe Nickels, Secrets of the Sideshow has there been a book of this historical importance presented to students and lovers of sideshow history. So, get "With It" and "Step right up" and get yourself a copy. You will not be disappointed!"

~ Review from Presale Reader

" I wholeheartedly concur that this book is a MUST-HAVE for anyone with an interest in sideshows. Tons and tons of rare illustrations that you will see nowhere else. Bravo, and thank you to the author, Nathan Wakefield! We are all sincerely in your debt."

~ Review from Presale Reader