Horace Ridler (1892–1969) was a
professional freak and sideshow performer, a tattooed man exhibiting himself as
The Great Omi or The Zebra Man.
Though there is some uncertainty due to the
characteristic embroidering of sideshow performers' stories, by his own account
Horace Ridler was born into an upper-class family living outside London , and enjoyed a
relatively privileged childhood, marked by travel, private schooling and
comfort. There are two competing theories about his young life. In one version
he is said to have gone on to Oxford or Cambridge , graduating
with honours. In the second version, he instead pursued a career in the army
and was commissioned as a second lieutenant. Soon after receiving his
commission, his father died, leaving him a substantial inheritance. But (again
according to the second version) he rapidly frittered his inheritance away on
parties, gambling, entertainment and poor investments; and these and other
circumstances led to his resigning his commission.
When World War I began, Ridler, now 22,
enlisted and was decorated for his outstanding conduct and gallantry when
serving in Mesopotamia . Demobilized at the end
of the war with the rank of major, with a small pension and few prospects, but
willing to take chances, he decided to become an act at the Odditorium. In 1922
he received his first few pictorial tattoos, and began exhibiting himself in
small sideshows. This afforded him a meager living, but was not the success he had
hoped for.
At some point between 1927 and 1934, while
living in Mitcham, a few miles south of London ,
Ridler took steps to improve his career as a sideshow act. Contacting tattooist
George Burchett, he inquired about having himself "tattooed all
over". Burchett performed more than 150 hours of tattooing on Ridler with
a pattern of curved black stripes, often described as zebra-like, masking the
earlier tattoos. He later claimed he spent $10,000 for the procedure, although
Burchett said it was only $3,000 and that he was never paid in full.
The extent of tattooing on his lower body
is a matter of some debate, but viewers who saw him perform in 1941 have
reported that much of his lower body was tattooed with more conventional designs.
His body and face thus transformed, he began exhibiting himself at the London
Olympia and toured England
and France ,
under the name The Great Omi.
Upon his return to England, aware that his
act was not interesting enough to provide steady work, he decided to take his
transformation a step further, having his ears pierced and stretched to accept
large-gauge jewelry, and acquiring a large septum piercing from a veterinarian.
He hired a dentist to file his teeth and began to wear elaborate costumes, completing
his physical transformation.
Like many sideshow performers, his act
consisted of telling tall tales about his body modification. After being
introduced by his colorfully dressed wife, Gladys Ridler, performing under the
name Omette, he would appear on stage and tell his story. A common monologue
claimed that he had been captured and tortured via tattooing in New Guinea , and
is similar to tales told by other tattooed sideshow performers. While today
this story seems completely implausible, at the time a general lack of
knowledge about many areas of the globe provided an opportunity for performers
to play on the audience's ignorance and fantasies. Later in life, during his
retirement, his stories became even more fanciful, less believable, but no less
colorful.
On June 6, 1939, Ridler, now The Great Omi,
and his wife Omette arrived at the World's Fair in Queens ,
New York , having crossed the Atlantic on the
ship Laconia and taken up residence at the Hotel
Claridge in Times Square . Twenty-two million
people attended the fair, where Omi was appearing at John Hix's Odditorium,
alongside Betty Broadbent nicknamed the Tattooed Venus, Iron Eyelids, the
Anatomical Wonder, and Marvello the Fingerless Pianist, all for an entry price
of 40 cents.
Just a few days after arriving in New York , the couple
reported being attacked with a knife, claiming that Omi's cheek was slashed by
an unknown assailant. No photos of the injury were taken, and the
"attack" may have been a publicity stunt, as the New York police records department has no
record of the incident. The New York Times News, New York Daily Mirror and New
York Herald Tribune all reported the story on June 10, however.
Immediately following the fair, Omi
appeared at Ripley's Odditorium Theater as the star attraction. Ripley retained
Omi for six months, the longest time Ripley ever showcased a single performer.
During that period he appeared more than 1,600 times, often doing nine or ten
shows daily.
In 1940, Omi toured with the Ringling
Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus, appearing as Omi the Zebra Man. He was
billed as the star attraction in the sideshow, but left the circus after only
one season.
In early 1941, Omi toured both Australia and New
Zealand , and spent much of the latter part of the year
performing at the beach sideshow Happyland and Bert Lorous Jr.'s "World
Fair Freaks" show in Vancouver ,
Canada . He
finished 1941 with appearances with the Rubin-Cherry show in San Diego , California .
The Ruben-Cherry show next traveled to Phoenix , Arizona , closing their season in early 1942, and Omi and
his wife then criss-crossed America
before returning to England .
Before leaving America ,
with World War II underway, Omi tried to re-enlist with the British army, but
was not considered acceptable for active service by the British Consul.
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