Were Animals Used in the Greatest Showman

Why Celebrate 'Terrible' PT Barnum at All in 'The Greatest Showman'? (Guest Blog)

He launched a century and a half of cruelty to animals in circuses, writes PETA senior VP Lisa Lange

Fox

P.T. Barnum built a career out of telling people what they wanted to hear, and he's commonly credited with having boasted that there's a sucker born every minute. But beneath his carefully constructed gregarious façade, he was a truly terrible human being.

"The Greatest Showman" tells a highly sanitized version of Barnum's days of duping the public and his contemptible exploitation of anyone he could use to make a buck. He not only launched what would become a century and a half of cruelty to animals in circuses but also began his career by exploiting African-Americans and people with disabilities.

In one egregious example, he bought a blind, severely debilitated African-American woman named Joice Heth and advertised her as "the Greatest Natural and National Curiosity in the World." He described himself as the "proprietor of the negress" even though slavery had been abolished in New York seven years earlier. He reportedly made up to $1,500 a week displaying her. Heth received not a cent.

Also Read: Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron and Zendaya Join James Corden for Broadway Edition of 'Crosswalk Musical' (Video)

But Barnum's deplorable abuse of humans was second only to his mercenary and merciless treatment of animals. After he chartered a vessel to capture elephants from their homes and families in Sri Lanka, nine elephants, including one calf, were confined to a cramped compartment on a ship — without any fresh air — for four months. One reportedly died on board.

Barnum also introduced the cruel bullhook — a heavy baton with a sharp steel hook on the end, which handlers use to keep elephants compliant and fearful. This painful weapon is still being used to hurt and terrorize elephants in circuses today. As if that weren't despicable enough, he also jammed hot pokers up elephants' trunks in a control technique called the "burning method."

At one point, Barnum somehow acquired two beluga whales and imprisoned them in a tank in the basement of his New York museum. Both were dead within two days.

Also Read: Watch Zendaya, Zac Efron Accidentally Collide During 'Greatest Showman' Outtake (Video)

PETA met with the production team of "The Greatest Showman" before filming began to stress the concerns regarding Barnum's sordid history — urging it to use alternatives to live animals and not to gloss over important facts about the movie's subject. Producers deserve credit for using computer-generated imagery instead of captive, abused wild animals. But romanticizing a man who caused so much pain and suffering is irresponsible and normalizes animal abuse.

Barnum's ugly legacy continued until just this past May, when Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus shut down. Now, even this consummate huckster couldn't convince today's informed public that beating animals and keeping them in cages and chains is acceptable.

Hugh Jackman's Top Hat Obsession: It's a Thing, People (Photos)

• 

  Is Hugh Jackman the secret love child of Fred Astaire? How else can you explain the Australian star's long-standing obsession with top hats over the years?

• 

  "The Boy From Oz" (2003):
  Hugh Jackman made his Broadway debut in a jukebox musical about fellow Australian song-and-dance man Peter Allen.

• 

  "The Prestige" (2006):
  Jackman played a top hat-sporting magician in Christopher Nolan's twisty thriller opposite Christian Bale as his arch-rival.

• 

  Oscars (2009):
  Hosting the 2009 Academy Awards, Jackman showed some old-fashioned razzle-dazzle in a Beyonce-boosted opening number.

• 

  Halloween Family Outing (2010):
  Jackman brought a formal look when he took his wife and kids trick-or-treating in New York City's West Village.

• 

  "Les Misérables" (2012):
  As a good man named Jean Valjean on the run from the law, Jackman once again sported a hat, this time through the streets of Paris in the Oscar-winning "Les Misérables."

• 

  "Late Show With David Letterman" (2013):
  Appearing on the "Late Show With David Letterman" after picking up an Oscar nod for "Les Miz," Jackman donned a beard and stovepipe to tweak fellow nominee and "Lincoln" star Daniel Day-Lewis.

• 

  "The Greatest Showman" (2017):
  The actor again donned a tall chapeau to play circus impresario P.T. Barnum in the musical biopic "The Greatest Showman."

"The Greatest Showman" is the latest sign of the Aussie star's long-standing addiction

Is Hugh Jackman the secret love child of Fred Astaire? How else can you explain the Australian star's long-standing obsession with top hats over the years?

Lisa Lange is a senior vice president of communications for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), the largest animal rights organization in the world. She works in the L.A. office where she devises eye-catching ways to get out the animal-rights message.

Were Animals Used in the Greatest Showman

Source: https://www.thewrap.com/celebrate-terrible-pt-barnum-greatest-showman-guest-blog/

Share this post