Two-faced thespian Sam Alexander (4 photos)

Life circumstances sometimes turn out to be so serious that it is easier to break with life itself rather than fight them.





But this man managed to hold on, balancing on the edge. Although this decision turned out to be very, very difficult.



Most unusual people are born unique. Others create themselves through years of perseverance and training. Some are born out of misfortune, and Sam Alexander, in the latter category, turned his misfortune into a lucrative career.

Sam Alexander was born quite an ordinary person. In the early 1920s he was actively pursuing a theatrical career and had recently received a promotion to a theater in Chicago when misfortune befell him. While the details are a bit sketchy, overall Sam suffered from a gasoline fire that was his own fault.

Although he managed to instinctively cover his face and save his eyes, he suffered deep burns to his lips, cheeks and chin. To even greater misfortune, the wounds festered. Doctors were forced to remove most of the lower part of his face and lips, almost down to the bone. As a result, Sam Alexander was left with a constant and alarming grimace, a bar of clenched teeth and a creepy expression on his face.



Sam spent thirteen months physically recovering from his wounds in a Chicago hospital. They more or less dragged on. But the soul... His mental wounds were much deeper than the physical ones, as the man was forced to endure the whispers and cries of horror from the staff.

After recovery, Sam Alexander was placed in a rehabilitation center, where people who have little hope of returning to society are kept. However, his fate changed somewhat: the doctor referred him to a prosthetics specialist. A realistic mask was cast and created for Sam to mimic his normal appearance. The façade was convincing in a way, but extremely limited in terms of expression, and Sam Alexander was still disheartened because he saw little chance of making a living in a society that focused on appearances.

Sam was a goal-oriented and ambitious person. His promising theatrical past also affected him, which made his imprisonment even more unbearable. One morning, while reading the newspaper, Sam saw an ad for Pete Cortez's Sideshow. The show was traveling and located near the center. Sam visited him, introduced himself to Cortez and took off his mask to show himself to the manager. Cortez was horrified and immediately hired Sam. The new artist began touring almost immediately and instantly created a stir.

Called "The Man with Two Faces," Sam's performance consisted of a stage monologue that told his story. Sam was a gentle man with graceful manners and a deep, pleasant voice. He so captivated the crowd with his tale of heartbreak that when he suddenly revealed his face, the audience screamed and the women cried and fainted.

His performance was so exciting that Cortez made Sam a special part of the show, for which he had to pay extra. And quite rightly he called it “not for the faint of heart.”

Sam Alexander soon became in demand. During his career, he appeared on Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey, in the Clyde Beatty Circus and worked for the venerable showman Ward Hall from 1960 to 1967. After all, Sam Alexander even created and led his own.



Despite the fact that Sam was able to pull himself out of the quagmire, improve his life and achieve success, he tried until the last to correct the situation with his face.

In total, Alexander underwent 72 operations during his life. Although the interventions were not entirely successful, Sam eventually removed the mask. Although his face resembled the head of a doll sewn from scraps. Sam was a man without prejudice or bitterness at heart and was determined to live the last years of his life as himself - without hiding behind a mask.

Sam Alexander died in 1997. Everyone who knew him remembered him with tenderness and spoke of him as a man with a kind heart.