Coney Island freak show may get a competitor

[March 13, 2009]  NEW YORK (AP) -- It's two-headed cow versus the lizard man as dueling freak shows are set to battle it out on Brooklyn's famed Coney Island Boardwalk.

A West Coast sideshow act wants to set up shop just two blocks away from Coney Island's reigning oddball act, famous for its army of fire eaters and sword swallowers.

John Strong, whose Hollywood-based circus act bears his name, boasts a collection of 250 oddities, including a two-headed cow and a 19-inch horse.

Though Strong said he plans to open in April at the former site of Astroland Park, a a spokesman for the park's owners said the company hasn't yet made a decision.

Even so, Dick Zigun, founder of the long-running Coney Island Circus Sideshow, said he's ready to protect his turf.

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Information from: Daily News, http://www.nydailynews.com/

[Associated Press]

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