Where Are All The Great Daredevils Today...?

Back in the "old days", certain folks would gladly risk life and limb, mere to please an audience. You might not remember them by name, and some of the acts they did were nothing short of amazing! Most would not be allowed today for reasons of safety, but you can certainly bet they were popular in their time. Here is one of those acts from back then.

Aloys Peters, the Man with the Iron Neck

In the 1930s, the Great Peters, as he was billed, thrilled and terrified audiences with his dangerous “hangman’s act,” during which he climbed seventy-five feet to a rigging suspended in the air, put an elasticized rope with a noose around his neck, and swan-dived to the ground.

Like a modern bungee, the rope would snap back before he struck, sending him flying upward, and he’d make a controlled descent. He died at the age of 45 in 1943 when something went wrong during the stunt and his neck broke. His body dangled high in the air for 20 minutes in front of a crowd of 5,500 horrified spectators while the St. Louis fire department struggled to reach him and cut him down.

Like I said...safety concerns would not let these acts be performed in this day and age. Shame really! You can read about more of these acts at Listverse.

Let's have our coffee in the kitchen this morning. I have some peach cobbler ready!