Bird girl Ku-Ku (6 photos)

Usually, being compared to a bird for girls is a compliment and indicates fragility, grace or a bewitching voice. But in her case everything was completely different...





There have been several unique people throughout history who seem to transcend time, culture, and societal norms. These truly unique characters have forever become recognizable and iconic to the general public.



However, one strange character who managed to achieve this "celebrity of strangeness" was actually not that strange at all. At least not in comparison to other, more impressive freaks with physical or social features.



Minnie Woolsey

Minnie Woolsey was born in Georgia in 1880, and there are many stories about her physical condition. It is generally accepted that Minnie was born with Seckel syndrome, a condition also known as bird-headed dwarfism. This syndrome is quite rare and is characterized by a small head, slow growth, a beak-shaped nose, a sloping jaw, and some mental limitations.

Because of this syndrome, Minnie was almost completely bald and blind. Toothless, strange, and wearing glasses as thick as her thumb, Minnie spent most of her life in a Georgia orphanage until, as one version goes, she was rescued by a showman. The man considered the pupil’s appearance strange enough to make money from her.



Minnie began her career on the show dressed as an American Indian and under the name Minnie-Ha-Ha. The name was an obvious play on words and referred to Minnehaha Falls in North Carolina. And the performance was probably a reference to the Aztec Children show of yesteryear. Minnie was reserved and shy at first. But she soon fell in love with the attention she received as an artist. She was known to dance and shake with delight, and also speak in gibberish, delighting the audience.

In 1932, Minnie was cast as the bird girl Koo Koo in the movie Freaks, and a movie legend was born. The image of Minnie, dressed in a feather costume, with a tiny plumed cap and chicken-foot-like legs, fluttering around the table during the wedding feast has forever become synonymous with the painting itself. Once you see Minnie perform, you will never forget it. There was actually another bird girl in Freaks, but few people remember poor Betty Green, as she was completely overshadowed by Minnie.



After her film debut, Minnie continued to perform under the name "Koo-Koo Bird Girl" and continued to wear her strange costume for several years. Eventually, she began performing at Coney Island, where she was called the “blind girl from Mars.” By then age, or perhaps boredom, had taken its toll and the dancing stopped. Minnie's performance as the "blind girl" consisted of her standing or sitting in an almost comatose state, oblivious to ridicule and unwilling to communicate or interact with the audience.



How long Minnie participated in shows and performances, and how she passed away, remains a mystery. Some claim that she performed until she was 80 years old. There are also reports that Minnie was hit by a car in the 1960s. Regardless of how the life of the strange artist ended, her unusual appearance provided Minnie with undying public interest and a kind of immortality.