Devil City Press

Hubert's Freaks

Written by Michelle
Wednesday, 23 July 2008

I've heard it said you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover. Yet when I spotted this book at the Strand with a picture on the front from an old sideshow and the word freak in the title I couldn't resist and decided to throw caution to the wind grabbing my own copy.

I love learning about old carnie stuff, seedy New York history, and of course anything tattoo. All happen to be included in Hubert's Freaks by Gregory Gibson. There's nothing I like better than to come accross bits of tattoo information from outside sources because you can gleam details that may not have turned up in the more familiar histories. This book tells the story of a rare-book dealer who comes across a trunk of unseen photos by renowned photographer Diane Arbus. These photos and documents are from a midcentury Times Square freakshow called Hubert's that Arbus frequented. That was how she met Jack Dracula the tattooed man.

Jack tattooed in Coney Island but perhaps is best known for the tattoos across his face that earned him a spot as the tattooed man at Hubert's Musem.

Hubert's Museum had been in business since 1927, it was a Roaring Twenties institution. Jack Johnson the prize fighter had an act there from 1933 until his death in 1948. Bob Dylan wrote about his visits when he first moved to New York. Lenny Bruce had a routine about going to Hubert's as a boy. Charlie Lucas (the manager) arranged access to the freaks of Hubert's for Diane and her camera. This is when she met Jack Dracula but soon after Jack quit Hubert's and moved to New London where Diane took the famous picture.

The picture of Jack was published in Harper's Bazaar in November 1961 with text by Arbus.

"Jack Dracula, The Marked Man, is embellished with 306 tattoos (estimated value: $6,000) and although this work-in-progress conspicuously distiguishes him, he is living in seclusion and I have solemly sworn not to reveal his wherabouts......He is an authority on Necromancy and he thinks some vampires may still exist. When I asked him if he believes in the devil he said, 'lets put it this way: I wish he'd come up just long enough for me to sell my sould to him in exchange for a few powers like being able to fly and blast some people out of existence'.....His pet bird is called MURDERER because of what it did to his other bird.....He told me he is not afraid of anything and I believe him."

In Hubert's Freaks, the rare book dealer, Bob Langmuir, coincidentaly knows Jack from his bookstore and comes across him after finding the photos. Bob asks Jack about Diane Arbus and the photo with the text about him.

"It was all fiction. In the article she claimed Jack was "living in seclusion," and that she had sworn not to reveal his whereabouts. To which Jack replied, "I was operating a tattoo parlor in New London. I needed the publicity. Why would I want to keep my whereabouts secret?"....Arbus's claim that "his pet bird is called Murderer" -"I never owned a pet bird." In regard to that nonsense..about his wish to sell his soul to the devil Jack replied, simply, "Why would I say that? I've been a Christian since I was born." It was all hot air, fabricated by Arbus to enhance her photo. Or, thought Bob, it might have been a biography of the character in the photo who, by virtue of her art, had ceased to be Jack."

Hubert's Freaks provides some good insight into a tattoo legend and tons of other historical anecdotes near and dear to my sideshow freak loving heart. I learned a little about Arbus and developed an appreciation for her strange haunting photos. Yes it's a worthwhile read and I polished it off in two days so it's not a big commitment for those less enthusiastic about the whole reading thing.

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