10. The Tocci Twins Got Rich Touring in the United States
Giacomo and Giovanni were exhibited all across Europe from the time that they were born, with their father acting as their manager; he apparently recovered at least somewhat from his nervous breakdown. In 1891, when they were about 14 years old, the twins embarked on what was supposed to be a one-year tour of the United States. P.T. Barnum had founded the Barnum and Bailey circus – “The Greatest Show on Earth” – 20 years prior, and the American public couldn’t get enough of marveling at so-called “freaks.”
The Tocci twins may not have actually been featured as one of P.T. Barnum’s acts, but they were indeed successful in the circuit that he had helped to establish. They visited dime stores across the country and were featured in sideshows. They received the moniker “the blended twins,” and ads for them labelled them “the two-headed boy” and “the greatest human phenomenon ever seen.” They were so successful that their one-year tour turned into five years, and they pocketed as much as $1000 a week. Some commentators have eloquently said that they exploited their condition and became freaks on their own terms. However, their level of willingness or the manipulation or coercion that they may have been subjected to has not been ascertained.
