Memoirs of a Sword Swallower (Paperback)

~ Daniel P. Mannix (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

A grotesque gallery of portraits of amazing human beings and a fascinating behind-the-scenes revelation of carnival life. -- New York Times

Product Description

Memoirs of a Sword Swallower is Daniel P. Mannix's autobiography as a sword-swallower with a traveling sideshow, illustrated with photos from the 30s and 40s taken by the author. An example of Classic Americana, this book offers a portrayal of a vanished world of working-class performance artists who earned a living by their unique bodies and imaginations. Stars include the Fat Lady, the human beanpole, the Ostrich man who ate broken glass, and many more. The "tricks" behind eating fire and swallowing swords are explicated with clarity and candor. This book will appeal to all who speculate about the outer limits of pain, pleasure, and revulsion. Mannix went on to become the supreme noir historian of the 20th century, penning Those About to Die (about the Roman games in the Colosseum), a biography of Aleister Crowley called The Beast, The Hellfire Club (about an upper-class British secret society), and many more. Mannix was sent a membership card from Anton LaVey's Church of Satan, although like Marcel Duchamp and Groucho Marx he was not a joiner, preferring to remain staunchly independent.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Re/Search Publications (May 8, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0965046958
• ISBN-13: 978-0965046954
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #742,705 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mannix's readers get the point!, June 3, 2001

By	Christine Whittington (Winston-Salem, NC United States) - See all my reviews

Mannix, who came to carnival life via the U.S. Naval Academy ("I didn't want to be a naval officer; I wanted to be a witch doctor!") and the Ivy League, brings his sideshow cohorts to life with this lively, witty, and sharp (sorry!) account that exudes a warmth as only a book written by an insider can. Mannix has always wanted to be a magician, and "runs away to the carnival" as an adult, first learning fire-eating when stepping in for fire-eater Flamo the Great who "exploded that night in front of Krinko's Great Combined Carnival Side Shows." He goes on to learn sword swallowing, sharing some of his insider's techniques (don't let the sharp tip touch the pit of your stomach; make sure the hilt doesn't come off and let the blade slide down your gullet.) If you are interested in the body on display, go ahead and read all the excellent academic pomo books about freaks and the "body as discourse," but be sure to read this one, too. It's an absolute gem. You will enjoy it to the hilt!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Side Show Secrets Revealed, November 2, 1999

By	Eugene Cindrich (Bradford, MA) - See all my reviews

The sideshow was once a time honored tradition in the american heartland. Today the idea of the sideshow is old fashioned, boring nonsense because we've seen it all before on TV or in the movies. Mannix's book is so well written our minds are transformed to see the world as he did -- skeptical as heck but, with a mind open to learn the secrets required to make the impossible, possible. A terrific read.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars It's a good read., March 13, 2001

By	Tony Wolf (Chicago, U.S.A.) - See all my reviews

Memoirs of a Sword Swallower is something of an underground classic, providing an introduction to the U.S travelling carnival scene during the '40s and '50s. Interested readers might also want to track down "Bed of Nails" by Michael Blondini and Gordon Thomas, which was published in London a few years after "Memoirs" and seems to be heavily cribbed from it.