
American Humbug - samclemens
https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2020/04/23/pt-barnum-american-humbug/
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jihadjihad
Interesting read. Barnum was quite a character, and might even be seen as a
prototype of L. Frank Baum's _The Wizard of Oz_ :

"'Barnum was right when he declared that the American people love to be
deceived,' Baum once wrote of one of his heroes. Strikingly, even after the
Wizard reveals his con, the Lion, the Tin Man, and the Scarecrow _still_ ask
for his aid. Like the quack he is, he obliges, stuffing the Scarecrow’s head
with pins. The Wizard, you might say, is America’s first celebrity guru: an
ur-Dr. Phil, using charisma and a screen to project authority and wisdom he
doesn’t truly have." [0]

[0]: [https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2009/09/dissecting-
the-r...](https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2009/09/dissecting-the-real-
wizard-of-oz.html)

