Inside Mystery - Shocking Vintage Circus Photos From The 20th Century

Frank ‘Cannonball’ Richards (1887 – 1969)

Frank Richards was best known for exploding cannonballs into his stomach and survive. Constantly. In fact, his act was known as the Human Punching Bag. He even let his friends punch him in the gut, just like Houdini. Sometimes, audience members were allowed to jump into the ring and try their best to beat him up!

The Human Caterpillar (1871 – 1934)

Prince Radian spent most of his life in the sideshow career due to his tetra-amelia syndrome. He was very popular in the business and was known to attract large crowds. A big part of his act was wrapping himself up in fabric and crawling around like a caterpillar. He could even roll a cigarette with just his lips.