Big Life Of A Little Man: The Story Of The Real Tom Thumb
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 26 พ.ย. 2016
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The extraordinary story of General Tom Thumb, the world’s first global show business celebrity. Just 31 inches tall, he went from humble beginnings in America to international superstardom, eventually performing on stage to over 50 million people, including President Lincoln and Queen Victoria.
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Produced by Wingspan Productions
What a magnificent life. Mr. and Mrs. Stratton, hope you are united living the next life. Blessings to you and all you love.
I must say, I believe just one of many of Mr. Barnum’s gifts was that he must have been a very fair businessman. No person with a disability ever accused him of cheating them, and he must have given them their fair share because no one quit due to being treated badly, and they soon made so much money the disabled person could retire. Mr. Barnum seemed to consider them as equals, and didn’t talk to them in a condescending way. We don’t have any proof of this, other than the fact that the actors seem very happy and respected. No one stays happy when constantly talked down to.
He was even buried next to Tom Thumb at the cemetery he discovered himself I’m from the same city as Tom thumb and went to go visit his grave it was really nice with new flowers one of the grave keepers told me that in 1959 people vandalized Tom thumbs gravestone and the vault and Barnum society raised money to restore it
@@yungog2o3 people are sick!.....I would say that this man basicallly adopted him and raised him as his own child. Its better than what these pagent mothers do.
Hello 😊
For all my fellow TH-camr's who hate loads of ads, simply swipe the time bar right to the end of the video then press the replay symbol! Adds are all gone! Works on any you tube video 😊
Awesome! Thank you!
U my friend r frickin awesome..with luv from the windy City😘
Aah didn't work for me but thanx anyway.
where's the replay button?there's no ads
@@jenmb2679 maybe you have you tube red?
We should all be so lucky to live as rich a life. Real Stories, I think you've out done yourself with this one. Thank You for all your hard work and inspiration.
What a lovely comment 🤗
Awesome story of no matter how small you can achieve anything. Shows too how friends really take care of friends.
"It would have been a lightbulb moment, had they been invented".
Haha I love it
I chuckled
I love that, unless he is referring to the stage character "General Tom Thumb", the presenter always refers to Charles Stratton by his given name.
Mandu mika I hadn't noticed that until you said so. But you're right that is neat that they make that distinction.
I wonder what I. Would do if I were 25 inches tall
There were many "fake" Tom Thumbs popping up throughout the world. In fact, Barnum hired a full time private investigator and lawyer whose job it was to seek out infringements on his sideshows.
Omg he does look like Jerry Springer without glasses 🤣🤣🤣
The incident that probably best encapsulates Barnum's relationship with Stratton was his wedding. Barnum insisted on paying for the whole thing, booked the biggest Episcopal Church in New York and made it an incredible spectacle; Barnum also sold tickets to New Yorks high society to witness the "world's smallest wedding".
I grew up in Sarasota, Florida. Sarasota is the home of John Ringling. There was a time when I thought that EVERYONE knew about General Tom Thumb. Much to my surprise, I learned that General Thumb isn’t a staple in history classes, haha. Sarasota is a very unique place to grow up. Among other things, it was the winter home of circus performers. I have stories. Thank you for sharing this one!
Although the boy's "extraordinary" act was rooted in deceit, it was his age that (paradoxically) made him truly extraordinary; he possessed the talent of a fully grown adult.
He started as a child, but remained small all his life xx
semi-colons make the value of any comment go up ten fold
What a wonderfully told story! I'm not sure what I expected, maybe something more lurid or at least kind of banal or silly or even tragic. It was not at all. I ended up touched by the characters and kind of surprised and admiring of their grace and perseverance. They lived unusual, and you would think stressful, lives with a lot of class, sort of not what I was expecting from a guy named Barnum and people who were literally hired as "freaks" for public entertainment. I was impressed by them and their integrity and work ethic, even despite Barnum, whose very name seems to invite mockery, somewhat undeserved I think after seeing this. It was also interesting to hear that in those days people like these were not called "disabled" and people did not use the term "disability" in connection with them, and rightly so I think. Thanks for uploading, I enjoyed this a lot.
Before animals and money took over the circus was really just people who had something that people would pay to see. Many of the circus performers from the early days were people who wouldn't have been able to earn a living otherwise
Charles had a stunning level of intelligence and sophistication for a 4 year old thrust into show business.
Being from Bridgeport, CT, I have heard about PT Barnum and Tom Thumb for most of my life. The Barnum museum in downtown Bridgeport is a wonderful place to visit if you're interested in these individuals.
how much does it cost to go to the museum ?
Tori Matos I'm not sure what it is now. Growing up it was free but they remodeled in the 90's and started charging for entrance.
Im very interested in individuals like these, but I don’t have time to go to Bridgeport. I asked my dad to buy the Very Special People book, which is about those same people.
Regardless of their ups and downs they had quite a life. More than capable people ever accomplished. Hats off to them all. Disabled people were allowed to florish and become useful to themselves and others. Not a burden. Loved the documentary. Was done showing dignity and respect for all involved. It was the Greatest Show on Earth. Thanks. Great video. ❤️❤️
Tom Thumb is buried a few blocks away from me in Bridgeport, CT!
Connor McGrath, Did your families grow up together? Grand friends and Great Grandfriends?
What a wonderful documentary.
What a beautiful and interesting documentary. Worth watching.
Celebrating the lies and life of a con man. Don't give ideas to Trump, pls
Sadly they don't have videos of their performance...so we can only imagine.
I have watched you documtries know four 4 years ,it's my favorite out of all them .you show the way other live what others are like ,the differences between us all the good ,the bad ,the ugly and THOW some history, and sycophaths and there you have it your hard work ,is loved by a lot of people! Love in Canada .
Great documentary, enjoyed it thoroughly
Is it just me.....or does this guy look like Jerry Springer without glasses??!!!👓👓👓👓👓
I found the clothes and shoes of Charles Stratton so interesting. So small, so beautiful!
Couldnt agree more! Wonderful example of master craftsmanship!
Lavinia is an ancestor in my mother's family line. I believe that she had a sister that was about the same size as Lavinia. It was wonderful to learn more about Tom and Lavinia from this documentary and to see their house and graves.
True. The sister married Commidor Nut. Another Barnum act
Minnie was her sister. She looks gorgeous.
That's crazy because I was told I was related to Lavinia Warren by blood! Also have some stuff of Tom Thumb. Not sure where they are.
@@kim621100 The sister was named Minnie Warren. She married Edmund Newell, not Commodore Nutt.
I can totally respect anyone's right to make a spectacle of themselves. It's totally human.
What an amazing documentary well done so interesting wow from Bath England I really appreciate this one
Tom Thumb was brilliant. At a time when disabled children and adults were shunned by society and left impoverished, Tom Thumb used his height to become very wealthy and even loaned his former employer P.T. Barnum (whom he remained loyal to) money.
So what we see today as exploitation, saved Tom Thumb from a life of impoverished misery.
ok
you guys are the best, just what i needed
Nice story, yet sad. He was SOOOO sweet. And his wife. At least they lived decently. But how sad to be soooo tiny. Wonderful couple. Walken in heaven now and in peace n happiness. 😇😇🙏💕
"And when he saw her face, he was a believer" I hope that was a coincidence
The narrator looks like an English Jerry Springer. Does anyone else see it?
Omg yes he does!! lmfao he looks just like him now in my head I just keep saying Jerry! Jerry! Jerry!
damn you're right he does.
KERIN GORDON Yes he does look like Jerry Springer, lol!
and Anthony Hopkins, too!
Strange you say that, Jerry Springer was born in Britain the son of Jewish refugees.
This was high quality. Absolutely loved it
This film was made with the highest standards: Great presenter and great presentation, very good music, fascinating artifacts related to the subject, authentic photographs and the atmospheric paper theatre. They've treated their subject with care, respect and genuine fascination. I think all who watched this became a fan of General Tom Thumb🙂
It feels good to know that Tom Thumb was treated well by the public and by Barnum himself unlike some of the other "freaks".
I think its better to be staired at and financially stable than to be broke starving & alone .???
Stared at...
Wow! That was a beautiful story! I was expecting abuse and neglect. Besides his tiny stature, Charles must have been a genius! What four year old could handle that pressure and learn the act?? Incredible! This was fascinating! He and Barnum must have been extremely close. What an amazing life he led! He wasn’t taken advantage of. Charles obviously loved the stage. He was able to care for his parents, sisters, wife, and bail out Barnum! He traveled the world and was able to retire in a lovely home with his beautiful wife.
Barnum’s name has become synonymous with circus animal abuse, so it was interesting to see he had another side to him. Animal cruelty wasn’t thought about back then. 15 years ago the LA Zoo had an elephant in a super small enclosure, chained to a tree stump! We live and learn.
They did that to an elephant only 15 years ago? That is so sad. Since the 1960s there has been so much awareness raised about animal awareness and animal cruelty and the proper environments for animals to live in. And yet, animal abuse still goes on, in public, in the developed world and in the 21st century. ;(
thanks for tha rambling manifesto hun
thank you for this upload
what an awesome documentary.. Thank u
This is a beautiful story! It is the most extraordinary story I've ever heard! It sounds like Charles Stratton was raised by Barnum to become exactly what he became, a gentleman. This is extraordinary considering what he would have probably accomplished without Barnum. It's pretty safe to say that he would have lived in something much less than he achieved with Barnum by his side.
To me it is extraordinary that Barnum did not take advantage of this brilliant man. Their partnership gave him many more opportunities than Charles would have had without him, up to and including meeting the woman who became the love of his life. To me this entire story is what is extraordinary. This is because an extraordinary man met an extraordinary little boy who became an extraordinary man. His intelligence is another example of how he became that man at only 9 years old! EXTRAORDINARY!
Can you use extraordinary one more time!
@@judymccoy5204
I possibly could have added it a couple of more times. I didn't even realize I had added it an extraordinarily amount of times. I guess I was just pointing out how much I was inspired. REALLY! I promise!
(Please don't think I was offended! You really made me giggle at myself this morning!) I enjoy being able to laugh at myself! I sounded like an idjit in this post! 🤭🤗🤭🤗🤭🤪👸😎
This was sooo good!
Thank you for such beatiful journalism.
Such a compelling story!
Amazing story!
What a great docu and great story teller!
Wow great documentary
Interesting, but why does i have to be broken into pieces by so many adds. STOP THAT, TH-cam!
This is an interesting documentary !
Think you guys can manage to squeeze any more adds in there...
Michael Wizouski I have TH-cam Premium; no ads...
there's no ads
If you're watching on a desktop, you can load free adblockers or popup blockers and you won't get any ads.
Rochelle Esser Me too.So, worth the money.
I hate that people seem to think that the uploaders have any say in the number ads. They don’t.
Oh my God he is so adorable look at those eyes
true
he looked so cute when he was a little boy !!!! :3
Sorry, too many commercials.
What a perfect ending, a song from Bobby Dylan ❤️
An extraordinary life of a real man.
Why so many commercials? Do you get more money for putting loads of them in these videos?! This is so over the top and there should be a limit on them, ruins a wonderful story.....
yes i do beleave they get money for each ad and agree it ruins it
activate adblock, i get no ads
SpiritGirlSF That's how they are paid by TH-cam.and for views.
lin reynolds TH-camrs don't make any money if you use an adblocker, and some of them do this as a full-time job. On videos where there are an unreasonable number of ads though, I turn it on
How to do it? I'm sick and tired of commercials...Like every 2 min.
There are over 200 kinds of dwarfism
THIS would have been a better storyline than the crap in The Greatest Showman.
The Greatest Showman is a romanticized version of the con man's life. I feel like they really tried to make him look like a good guy,even though he was nothing but a con man. But,I will say that he was genius in his marketing skills.
I loved that movie.
Amazing story indeed!
You have as many commercials as prime time tv had in the 1970's. It wouldn't even be so bad if it wasn't the same damn one every 7 minutes or if they didn't play at twice the volume of the show leaving you scrambling for the mute button or if they were at least in the same language as the show.
This is so ridiculous I suspect 90% of the views this got were from people who loaded the video and immediately closed it upon seeing the number of ads. Fifteen minutes is more than enough time to waste when there are so many other videos available without such nonsense.
Samantha Grace so pay the ten bucks and you won’t have to see any advertisements! I got frustrated with all the ads over a year ago and have paid $9.99 a month ever since for no ads.
I get ZERO commercials on my Kindle. Is it a tablet vs. PC thing?
I get no adds on my iPhone.
Samantha Grace
Can you explain to me why you're upset for commercials? But you realize that that helps pay to have these videos produced? Would you take the time to produce all these and put them on TH-cam and do it for free? I'm just wondering cuz I keep hearing these complaints it doesn't make sense. Thank you. PS I'm just asking you this question cuz you have such a long comment on how you don't like the commercials.
+Lorrie Smith, same. Sometimes I get a short one before a video but not very often. I have often wondered what everyone is griping about.
wow awesome
I really wouldn't say that they're freaks they're interesting and unique
right, the term "freak" sounds like some sort of unholy abomination. They are just people with unusual and interesting appearances, as you say.
That's literally the definition the word.🤦
@@Saffron-sugar get out of your feels and learn the language. Words have literal definitions and they're easily accessed.
Love that final quote....
It’s amazing that in the mid-19th century a character could become world renown. Tiny Tim was a beautiful baby, were doctors able to determine if Tim had a non-functioning pituitary gland or some other hormonal issue? Terrific video, excellent narration
I'm not sure if they knew about the pituitary gland being responsible for growth at the time, but they were able to tell about pituitary dwarfism because of the lack of growth within the first year of life. With disproportionate types of dwarfism it's presented at birth.
@@DaJesster0405 It wasn't determined until 1915 that the pituitary gland is definitely a cause of dwarfism or human growth and not until many years later were they able to do anything about it. Had he been born 100 or 150 years later he very likely would have been near normal height but then nobody would have heard of or about him.
The music is too loud to hear the voice well. Please adjust it.
If you get chrome cast, you can play it on your tv, I don’t get any ads!
Wish they were here now to see how some of us make ourselves into freaks: from extreme bubble shaped lips to gargantuan butts and people who deliberately make themselves look like dolls. The real freak show is the 21st century. They were totally normal.
No, they weren’t. They were anything but normal, hence the word ‘freaks’. You can’t do a lot of what most of the actors had, like having a third leg like Frank Lentini or sticking things through you no problem like Mirin Dajo.
He’s no more a fraud than David Copperfield or Chris Angel. Entertainers who deceived perception
The art of entertainment. Definitely not a bad thing.
Why not add a few more commercials ?
Does anyone else think the painting at 40:30 looks like Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones)?
Destry Brown, You're right! I love Peter Dinklage.
Yes! I thought exactly that! I was thinking maybe a past relative? And the acting bug was passed down to Peter. Tyrion Lanister is my favorite GOT character!
Would have really enjoyed this documentary if you hadn't put SOOOOO MANY commercials in it.
Wow! Narrator is Jerry Springer's doppleganger!
Good story, but lots of commercials
great show
My home town,,, so much I never knew,,, very cool,,
Mine as well.
That baby looked just like both of them!! I think!! Nice video!!
Before anyone mentions AdBlocker or otherwise...WHY are there so many commercials? It's incredibly offputting and makes me want to un-subscribe. I know that won't matter to you, but please know it's hugely irritating and spoils any viewing enjoyment.
Oh!
Charles Sherwood Stratton!
He is awesome!
Jade Chen
56:39 he does have some resemblance to Brad Pitt . Very talented , awesome attitude and great personality . That's what's really important in life the love u take with u and the love u put out there in the world everyday❤
I have to say I Love that the first international American star/s had a disability. It's just sad that was his life from from the age of 4.
Hope both Mr & Mrs Stratton are living life to the fullest in the afterlife as they had done whilst they were a live
I really wanted to watch you this but there was more commercials on this and there would have been the TV program TH-cam needs to take a chill nobody's going broke their selling plenty of advertisement I think what's happening with TH-cam is there making it so people are getting tired I was watching it and somebody else is going to come out with a better site without all the commercials I can't wait for that to happen this one has a commercial literally almost every 6 minutes
Try ad blocker for Chrome!
Does anyone know what you would call the type of music that plays in the background throughout the beginning part before they get to London? I need it for inspiration reasons
Kiki Yuyu naj
I think the one song was also featured in the movie Edward scissor hands. I know this was 10 months ago, but maybe you still need the music. :-)
Kaelah M. Big band
whoever did the audio should of had the music a little lower then the narration you just barely hear what he's saying and you can't increase the volume because it just makes the music louder
Cheryl Berg
There used to be some of his gloves in a museum in Canterbury kent
🇺🇸 Very interesting Story.! 👍🏼
I remember when I was a teenager, my parents told me that there was a ring given to Tom Thumb by the Queen of England somewhere in our family lineage. I've never seen that ring! Probably a hoax!
I love the pic at like 7:20 he's like yes I am a distinguished gentleman and I would like a picture with my boy child lol
They had live whales but light bulbs weren't invented yet??
What's with you people that you can't dispense with the noise when you are talking? It is not only rude but gives real head aches.
Thanks anyway, I might check in again another day to see if I can hear it better.
Wonderful documentary!! Loved it!!
Please EXPLOIT me if it means millions of $$$$$$$$. Tom Thumb was unique, with a body that was perfectly proportioned like any average men. He wasn’t a dwarf or a midget, yes I know that those terms are no longer being used, today all are classed inoffensively as “Little People”. Some had large heads, some short legs with average trunks , rather than the average proportion of a normal human being in Tom’s case. It seems as if the most popular show place, in that time, was the New York City Hippodrome, in London, the Palladium. I know that the Hippodrome is gone, can the London Palladium still be found?
RIP Tom and parents, I hope you had happy lives away from the stage lights.
Fun fact I’m related to him :)
Riigghhtt....
Yea? Great!
Fun Fact we must be cousin's 😯
ÕNNISTUS☺.Eesti.
Sam from the greatest showman playing Tom Thumb actually looks similar to him
Tom Or Charles is still well known today long after he’s gone and he was portrayed in the greatest showman He’s pretty cool also he was in England around the time of Joseph Merrick also known as the Elephant man but they never met
They should make a dna test of Minnie Warren Stratton.
Nilly Minnie was stunning!
Not enough adds for me to watch. I remember hearing about this dude and the one thing I remember beside him being a little dude was the other dude who picked him up and put him under his arm under jacket and tried walking out with him,happened another time also.
I'm thinking they had a chromosomal abnormality as both a young Charles, and Lavinia have a similar facial look about them. The other old time little people featured also looked the same as them (except Commodore Nutt). They don't look as though they have primordial dwarfism, and not like the 'dwarves' we see today who seem ill proportioned. Charles and Lavinia were both in proportion. The reason I say a chromosomal abnormality is because someone I know has two of her four children with a very rare defect and they have a very specific look about them as other sufferers do. Also Downs Syndrome has its own particular appearance. As there are so many chromosomal abnormalities, they all have their own physical outward appearance and I'm sure these people were affected. Obviously tests weren't available for such things back then. Loved this film.
Gena F there are over 200 kinds of dwarfism so the people showed here likely have the same variety.
You're right, at least about Lavinia and her sister who descended from a very small gene pool. I don't know about Charles.
AMAZING MAN TRULY a global STAR
I don’t think unique people like them will get proper jobs in that era. Entertaining people actually feeds them
Nobody noticed "Seal Boy" off of American Horror Story "Freak-show"in the beginning of the video?
excessive adds
I agree, least they can be skipped after five seconds
swipe the time bar right to the end of the video then press the replay symbol! Adds are all gone! Works on any you tube video
Slightly sick of the amount of ruddy adds
apparently, if you drag the film to the end and then select "rewatch" or "replay", it plays without adds
I came for the ads but got too much of the video