TATTOO HISTORY | CAPTAIN DON LESLIE
When it comes to sideshow performers, few shine as brightly or as sharply as Captain Don Leslie. He was an icon of the traveling circus and sideshows. Leslie wasn't just a performer; he was a spectacle, and he carved out a legacy that to this day still inspires performers and artists of all kinds.
Born in Boston on December 26, 1937, Don Leslie’s early life was filled with hardship. At only fourteen, he ran away from home and found solace in the circus. His journey led him to Ringling Bros. and later Christiani Brothers Circus. He started off selling hot dogs and managing the pony rides, but it was the sideshow that captivated him. After moving up to shoveling the manure from the performing elephants, Leslie in 1954 joined the Christian Brothers Circus as a fire-eater. It was here where he met and became an apprentice to Carlos Leal, who not only was a fire-eater but a sword-swallower as well. It has been said that if Leslie had continued on with Leal, then he most surely would have died because he was learning an unsafe way to swallow swords.
Harry Doll; A member of the famous Doll family of midget sideshow performers. Doll essentially saved Leslie’s life by introducing him to a legendary sword swallower by the name of Alex Linton. At the time, Linton held the world record for sword-swallowing. It was four swords until 1981; when Leslie broke his record by simultaneously swallowing five 30-inch swords.
Doll is also credited with giving Leslie the name “Captain” Don Leslie. Claiming he needed a catchy stage name.
When Captain turned 18, he hung up his swords and joined the Marines for a small stint. When he returned to the circus, it was as an escape artist. He learned to stick needles through his cheeks, walk on broken glass, and stand on a bed of nails.
In the off-season of 1955, Lee Roy Minugh and Lyle Tuttle helped him fill his body with tattoos. Captain himself bounced around shops tattooing for years when he wasn’t performing. During the season he would tattoo circus and sideshow workers.
When the circus and sideshow packed up, Captain would spend his time performing on the streets of Boston and was even a regular on Fisherman’s Wharf for the better part of the 80s. By then he had quit drinking and was slowing down despite still traveling and performing.
In Seattle in 1989, during this finale, he almost died during his show. The house was packed, and he had done the trick thousands of times, but this time it was different. Something had slipped, and he tore his esophagus. That's when Captain called it quits.
Beyond his gift of the sideshow, Captain Don Leslie was a talented songwriter and musician. His most notable work was “Wagner’s Tattooed Lady” about the famous tattoo artist Charlie Wagner. This song is off his album Captain Don Leslie Presents Tattoo Songs, which was released by Fowl Records and the cover art was done by tattoo artist Henry Goldfield. Captain was a natural performer.
Performing was part of who he was, and he started sword-swallowing at tattoo conventions near the end of his life. When he was finally diagnosed with cancer he was given four months to live. Captain held on for six. The cancer ended up wreaking havoc on his throat and jaw. He passed away at the age of 69 in his home in Chico.
According to his son, David, “he had one hell of a rollercoaster ride of a life.”
Written by: Chuck Graves