Lionel the Liion-Faced Man , born Stephan Bibrowsky in Wilezagora, Poland, 1890. A great growth of shaggy hair six inches long almost blanketed his head. His nose, forehead, cheeks, and ears were all covered. His grey-green eyes peered out with seeming ferocity through the bewildering matting of hair. He possessed a considerable mane, so that the comparison to a lion was inevitable. Bibrowsky was the fourth of six children, and his parents were normal. His mother hadn't been frightened by a lion before he was born, nor, for that matter, had she ever left her native village. But circus publicity was later to declare the opposite- that she had seen his father torn to pieces by a lion, and the sight marked the unborn child in her womb. A German impresario named Meyer discovered Lionel when he was four and took him to Germany. He was soon a celebrity throughout Europe. Brought to America in 1901, for five years Lionel was a featured attraction with Barnum and Bailey. Then he returned to Germany
-Lionel had only two teeth at the time, one in the upper jaw and one in the lower. Earlier he had possessed two more, but these he had lost.
Lionel continued to exhibit himself extensively in Europe. He came back to the U.S. in 1923, appearing at Coney Island. Millions saw him there. He had mastered a wide variety of gymnastic skills and developed his physique to a remarkable degree. He weighed 156lbs. and stood at 5ft. 7in. He had become fluent in five languages. A favorite question of any audience was "Couldn't you shave the hair off your face and look like the rest of us?" Lionel's reply, in good colloquial english, was fairly predictable. "Of course- but why should I punch a meal ticket full of holes?" It is reported that he earned five hundred dollars a week. He never married and died in Berlin in 1931.
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Lionel the Liion-Faced Man , born Stephan Bibrowsky in Wilezagora, Poland, 1890.
A great growth of shaggy hair six inches long almost blanketed his head. His nose, forehead, cheeks, and ears were all covered. His grey-green eyes peered out with seeming ferocity through the bewildering matting of hair. He possessed a considerable mane, so that the comparison to a lion was inevitable.
Bibrowsky was the fourth of six children, and his parents were normal. His mother hadn't been frightened by a lion before he was born, nor, for that matter, had she ever left her native village. But circus publicity was later to declare the opposite- that she had seen his father torn to pieces by a lion, and the sight marked the unborn child in her womb.
A German impresario named Meyer discovered Lionel when he was four and took him to Germany. He was soon a celebrity throughout Europe. Brought to America in 1901, for five years Lionel was a featured attraction with Barnum and Bailey. Then he returned to Germany
-Lionel had only two teeth at the time, one in the upper jaw and one in the lower. Earlier he had possessed two more, but these he had lost.
Lionel continued to exhibit himself extensively in Europe. He came back to the U.S. in 1923, appearing at Coney Island. Millions saw him there. He had mastered a wide variety of gymnastic skills and developed his physique to a remarkable degree. He weighed 156lbs. and stood at 5ft. 7in. He had become fluent in five languages.
A favorite question of any audience was "Couldn't you shave the hair off your face and look like the rest of us?"
Lionel's reply, in good colloquial english, was fairly predictable. "Of course- but why should I punch a meal ticket full of holes?"
It is reported that he earned five hundred dollars a week. He never married and died in Berlin in 1931.
-from Fredrick Drimmer's 'Very Special People'
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