The sounds of a 1941 carnival

The World Renowned Strates Shows, 
with a Mile of Midway Mirth,
have America's Finest Midway. 
A poster for the James E. Strates Carnival.

Listen to sounds of the 1941 James E. Strates Carnival. (It's a short ride, less than 5 minutes long.) Sideshow talkers exhort you to see the two-headed baby, a fortune teller reads your life, a human cannonball and then a "moto-maniac" motorcycle rider catalog past injuries, a man wants to guess your weight, and a barker entices you to see the "...red-hot, spicy, saucy, sizzling, burlesque entertainment."

The Cavalcade of Thrills
"Moto-maniacs, upside-down riders, crazy riders, crazy 

drivers on the walls of death. Passing and re-passing, 

crossing and re-crossing. Where they race, where 

they ride, where they race, ride, and drive. 

High-powered motorcycles on a straight-

up-and-down perpendicular wall."

Listen to sounds of the Strates Carnival at NPR's Morning Edition>>

• The recording was found at the Library of Congress and had excerpts plucked out and created into a montage by David Isay from Sound Portraits Productions.
  
• Read a complete transcript>>
• Their carnival is still alive - James E Strates Shows (Warning, automatic music)>>
• Carnival motorcycle photo is from The Selvedge Yard>>