Craniofacial Anomalies

If one's face is one's "calling card," then those performers who made a living by displaying an unusually strange countenance had by definition the toughest job in the business.

Craniofacial anomalies are a diverse group of deformities in the growth of the head and facial bones. These abnormalities are congenital (present at birth), as well as acquired through disease and trauma. Performers like William Durks, Grace McDaniel, Sam Alexander, and Bob Melvin were prime examples of this extreme category of freakshow entertainer.