Freaks Trivia

1. The film 'Freaks' (1932) was heavily influenced by the director's background in the circus industry. What was the name of the director of this classic horror film?

From Quiz 'Freaks': A Controversy

Answer: Tod Browning

Tod Browning, born into a relatively wealthy Louisville family in 1880, joined the circus at the age of sixteen. Browning was an outsider and so the circus industry, at the time still using sideshow "freaks", was a rather fitting environment for the future director. His time as a circus performer influenced most of his later directorial work and this influence is most clearly seen in 'Freaks', a film that caused much controversy in the 1930s. Other films were influenced in a much less explicit way, with recurring themes which championed the outsider, promoted the underdog and sympathised with the ostracised. Prior to the release of 'Freaks', Browning directed the original film version of 'Dracula', released in 1931, which starred Bela Lugosi, Edward Van Sloan and Dwight Frye.

From Quiz Tod Browning's "Freaks"

Answer: Venus the Seal Trainer

Venus (Leila Hyams) later develops a romance with Phroso the Clown (Wallace Ford). Daisy (Daisy Hilton) is married to Roscoe (Roscoe Ates). Martha (Martha Morris) is married to Angelino (Angelo Rossitto). Frieda (Daisy Earles) is engaged to Hans (Harry Earles).

From Quiz Freaks

Answer: Dancing in a forest clearing

The freaks are taking a break from the circus under the care of Madame Tetrallini, who speaks up for them when the owner of the land tries to shoo them away.

From Quiz 'Freaks': A Controversy

Answer: Cleopatra

Cleopatra is one of the characters who would be considered "normal" when compared, as is expected, to the titular freaks. Hans, one of the many dwarfs featured in the film, was smitten with Cleopatra, an infatuation that would lead to him being taken advantage of. Cleopatra was one half of a secret romance, the other half being the strong man of the circus, Hercules. Knowing that Hans was interested in Cleopatra, the clandestine couple decided to play a cruel prank on the sideshow dwarf; Cleopatra was to pretend that she was romantically interested in Hans!

From Quiz Tod Browning's "Freaks"

Answer: He flirts with Jenny Lee and Elvira.

Schlitze was actually a man; his managers dressed and promoted him as a woman because a dress made it easier to attend to hygiene needs. Venus is the one who gets ticked off at Phroso for standing her up and refining his tricks instead of paying attention to her.

From Quiz Freaks

Answer: Trapeze artist

Screen siren Olga Baclanova plays "Cleopatra, Queen of the Air."

From Quiz 'Freaks': A Controversy

Answer: She discovered Hans was due to inherit a large estate.

Olga Baclanova's character, Cleopatra, was only ever interested in one thing and that was herself. Hans was due to inherit quite a substantial amount of money and Cleopatra had come to know about this; her thoughts instantly turning to how much better her life could be if only she had wealth. Looking for her ticket out of the freak show she decided that she had to immerse herself in its culture more deeply, expressing her love for Hans. It was of course just a mean-spirited ploy to extract money from a very vulnerable individual, but what Cleopatra didn't count on was the strength of the bond between the freaks at the circus.

From Quiz Tod Browning's "Freaks"

Answer: Pete the Skeleton Dude.

After the birth, the proud papa passes out cigars.

From Quiz Freaks

Answer: She confronts Cleopatra.

Frieda was played by Daisy Earles, sister of actor Harry Earles who played Hans. She was a bareback rider in the film. Hans was the ringmaster.

From Quiz Tod Browning's "Freaks"

Answer: They play saxophones.

Daisy and Violet Hilton also played saxophones in their vaudeville act.

From Quiz Freaks

Answer: He had no body from the waist down.

Johnny was Johnny Eck, "The Half Boy." Johnny's real name was John Eckhart, Jr., and he had a normal twin brother.

From Quiz 'Freaks': A Controversy

Answer: That she had an affair with another circus performer.

Cleopatra starts to get so uncomfortable that she deems it necessary to admit that she is having an affair with the strong man of the circus, Hercules. Announcing to the circus her infidelity seems far preferable to her than getting any closer to these people she so despises. The saddest part about the whole thing is that Hans is so hopelessly infatuated by Cleopatra that he is willing to forgive her, despite it being apparent that this relationship, which remained without sincere affection and certainly without a sexual component, wasn't a loving and compassionate one.

From Quiz Tod Browning's "Freaks"

Answer: He lights a cigarette.

Randion could also roll his own cigarettes, using only his mouth.

From Quiz Freaks

Answer: The Bearded Lady

The father, The Skeleton Dude, passed out cigars while his wife showed off their new daughter.

From Quiz 'Freaks': A Controversy

Answer: Poison

As is expected, Cleopatra is not very happy being married to Hans but can't divorce him because she would lose her entitlement to his imminent inheritance. She is thus forced to the extreme; she would try to end his life and she chooses poison as the method to effect that outcome. In fact she has already started the poisoning process by the end of the wedding reception; the wine that Hans has been drinking on what is supposed to be one of the happiest nights of his life is continually being spiked with poison. Hans eventually falls ill due to sustained consumption of poison, though his ailing could symbolically be taken to represent the effect of Cleopatra's toxic nature.

From Quiz Tod Browning's "Freaks"

Answer: She walks out after Cleopatra humiliates Hans.

Frieda sits silently and endures Cleopatra's abuse of her beloved Hans as long as she can, then makes a dignified exit, noted only by Madame Tetrallini.

From Quiz Freaks

Answer: Frieda lets it slip when she pleads with Cleopatra to stay away from Hans.

Cleopatra was just toying with Hans for entertainment until Frieda accused her of just wanting Hans' money.

From Quiz 'Freaks': A Controversy

Answer: Venus

Leila Hyams from New York City, who at the time of filming was in her late 20s, played Venus, a character who was presented to the audience as the moral alternative to the devious Cleopatra. Venus overheard Cleopatra and Hercules discussing their plans to poison Hans and steal his fortune. Being a friend of the freaks, Venus decided to notify them about Cleopatra's intentions. With the freaks informed of Hans' situation, they decide to do something to rectify it and this leads the viewer into the final few scenes of the film; for the audience of the 1930s, the "worst" part of the film had yet to arrive.

From Quiz Tod Browning's "Freaks"

Answer: Smoking a big cigar before a performance.

Frieda thinks smoking such a big cigar before a performance ruins his voice.

From Quiz Freaks

Answer: Hercules

Hercules was played by Henry Victor.

From Quiz 'Freaks': A Controversy

Answer: She gets turned into a freak.

For Cleopatra, her fate is to be one worse than death; she is turned into a freak! The audiences at the time objected to pretty much all of the film and the ending was considered one of the most objectionable parts in the minds of those who actually stayed to catch the finale. After the freaks are informed of the murderous scheme devised by Cleopatra, they decide to confront her; the warm inclusiveness that was once offered to Cleopatra, and which she so rudely refused to embrace, turns into a distant memory; anger its replacement. The freaks deformed her limbs, tarred her and feathered her; Cleopatra, now the "human duck", does become "one of us" after all.

From Quiz Tod Browning's "Freaks"

Answer: Violet's drinking.

Roscoe doesn't want Daisy in bed all day with Violet's hangover!

From Quiz Freaks

Answer: They initiate a ceremony to make Cleopatra one of them.

Angeleno (Angelo Rossitto) brings a chalice around the table for everyone to drink from as the freaks chant, "One of us! One of us! We accept her! We accept her!"

From Quiz Tod Browning's "Freaks"

Answer: A gun.

Legend has it that it was Johnny Eck's own Luger that he pulled from his pocket and started polishing.

From Quiz Freaks

Answer: She poisons him.

She poisons his wine at the wedding feast, which makes him ill. She then gives him poison instead of medicine while supposedly nursing him back to health.

From Quiz 'Freaks': A Controversy

Answer: Nobody, the physical conditions of the freaks were real.

This is the source of the controversy; Tod Browning would not use prosthetics to manufacture the appearance of the sideshow performers in 'Freaks', preferring instead to use real people with real conditions. The audiences of the 1930s were simply not ready for such performers to be shown on the big screen. This is a great example of how a film's reception gives an insight into social history. By using performers such as Violet Hilton and her sister Daisy (conjoined twins), Tod Browning alienated his audience and his career as a top Hollywood director was to come to an end, partly because of this. Jack Pierce, who wasn't involved in 'Freaks', was one of the early greats in the field of makeup artistry. Pierce is perhaps best known for his work on the appearance of Frankenstein's monster played by Boris Karloff. His career in the film industry came to an end in 1962, which was more than a decade before the introduction of the Oscar for Best Makeup.

From Quiz Tod Browning's "Freaks"

Answer: He retires to his mansion and refuses all visitors.

Hans (Harry Earles) is gripped with remorse for what the freaks did to Cleopatra (Olga Baclanova). Phroso (Wallace Ford) and Venus (Leila Hyams) break his seclusion when they barge in with Frieda (Daisy Earles), who comforts Hans in the closing scene.

From Quiz Freaks

Answer: We don't know. The movie focuses on the freaks' revenge on Cleopatra.

The original ending, which has been lost, has Hercules singing soprano in a freak show, indicating that the freaks had castrated him. But the test audience response to that scene was so overwhelmingly negative that the scene was cut. We see the freaks approaching him in a threatening manner, but we never see what they do to him.

This is category 14486

= Top 5% Rated Quiz, Top 10% Rated Quiz, Top 20% Rated Quiz, A Well Rated Quiz
= added recently, = Editor's Pick = FunTrivia Editor = Gold Member
Teachers / educators: FunTrivia welcomes the use of our website and quizzes in the classroom as a teaching aid or for preparing and testing students. See our education section. Our quizzes are printable and may be used as question sheets by k-12 teachers, parents, and home schoolers.

 ·  All questions, answers, and quiz content on this website is copyright FunTrivia, Inc and may not be reproduced without permission. Any images from TV shows and movies are copyright their studios, and are being used under "fair use" for commentary and education.