So the business is going out in style, staging a Farewell Party and Protest, featuring performances, stunts, music -- and even the wedding of Jessa the Bearded Lady. A family drama that centers on former music producer Todd Ray as he pursues his dream to own and operate his own Freakshow on the famed boardwalk in Venice Beach, CA. Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Something about this brand felt different, said Bobby Olson, 39, a lawyer and nine-year resident of Venice. [5] This was after eight months of dispute with the building's new owners, Snapshot Partners, rumored to be associated with the Snapchat brand as part of the company's buy-up of Venice Beach property. In order to up their game, Asia begins to work on a stunt involving a ladder of machetes and Morgue crafts a device to enhance his water regurgitation act. In 1999, T-Ray did production for Santana (which led to a Grammy Award in 2000 for Album of the Year) and a Latin group named Ozomatli who he won two other Grammys with, including a Latin Grammy- it was during this time that his life came full circle: "It was sort of like destiny in a way, for me to move from the woods to New York City," explains Todd Ray. The Freakshow takes a trip to the carnival town of Gibsonton, Florida to learn about its rich history and tries to revive the town with a performance. I run into a group called Ozomatli who I wanted to do 'Incredible Bongo Beats' with. We depend on ad revenue to craft and curate stories about the worlds hidden wonders. The collection also includes shrunken heads, Rocky The Five-Legged Dog (Seen on the Dog Whisperer), Tony The Two Tailed Iguana, a giant Alaskan king crab and a genuine chupacabra. Puffing away, he told Ray, Remember son, you can do anything in life.. Long line to get in, but plenty of freaks outside to satisfy one's curiosity. Todd Ray has recently expanded his Venice Beach Freakshow and holds open auditions to find new talent. Todd Ray, known professionally as T-Ray, is an American record producer and mixing engineer, known for producing Cypress Hill 1993 single "I Ain't Goin' Out Like That" and having founded the Venice Beach Freakshow in 2006, as well as creating and executive producing the TV Series Freakshow for AMC . But, as we're finishing the record he tells me this fucking story of how he was inspired by this fucking tape that he got from down South, and that tape was my fucking tape. An unusual library of dead things at the Rhode Island School of Design. An increasingly eccentric apartment building, topped with winged beasties. You can also see some of the Strangest Performers on The Planet.Sword Swallowers, Fire Eaters, Electra The Electric Lady, Lady Twisto The Rubber Girl, The Creature, Sangora The Snake Lady, The Indestructible Woman, and more. Todd played a tape of his beats for Craig Kallman and informed him "All I have is music". While Ray is hopeful that the Venice Beach Freakshow will continue on in a new location, he acknowledges that finding affordable retail space in Venice will be extremely difficult. On Facebook, Ray promises that the final show, which hes calling a Farewell Party and Protest, will include performers, stunts, music and the wedding of Jessa the Bearded Lady. Since then, Ray says, hes been paying rent to Snapshot Partners LLC, an investment group that, according to a report last year in the L.A. Business Journal, was hired by Snapchat to acquire the leasehold interest in the building. Follow us on Twitter to get the latest on the world's hidden wonders. On a recent Friday, Mr. Rago sat at a beachfront table there, sipping the ends of a lager with a reluctant expression on his face. At the event, Morgue wants to perform a new stunt involving a bed of razor blades. In 1986, he landed a record contract which led him to New York where he met his future wife, Danielle. Todd unites tattooed people from all over the world for a tattoo event. Dragon Boat Festival 2023: Marina Del Rey. Others, however, see the gentrification of Venice Beach as simply the normal flow of the property market and the Freakshow as being a part of Venice's past. A Grammy-winning producer he earned the award in 2000 for his work on the Santana album Supernatural he says he spent decades in the music industry working with everyone from Mick Jagger and Jack Johnson to Nas and Beastie Boys. Offer subject to change without notice. Activists mapped Snaps properties and said the company took up 41 addresses in total, but the company said that it held roughly 30 leases in the area. We all live in Venice, and it doesnt have to be Snapchat, or this new gentrified version of the world, or stuck in the past, Mr. Mathews said. But he told The Argonaut newspaper he is trying not to be bitter. Phoenix wants to prove that he's a vital member of the Freakshow and decides to learn how to "talk" (a term used to describe the act of luring audience members into a sideshow). I walked down there the other night, its like Mad-Max Thunderdome, said Mr. Hawkins, the former neighborhood council member. You can also meet Rocky the five-legged dog and . But the freak show itself seemed to embody all that was still wacky and unusual about the neighborhood. Asia looks for an apartment, and Todd learns a dark secret about a performer named Lobster Boy. The expansion of Snapchat -- and a general movement of gentrification in the historically off- beat Venice community -- has been a point of contention in recent months among longtime residents fearing a "Silicon Beach" takeover. Between 2012 and 2017, Snap Inc. came, saw and conquered Venices commercial real estate market. Todd arranges a Strongman Competition at the Freakshow involving guests with unusual strengths. Extreme stunt artist who captured the spotlight through his role on AMC's Venice Beach Freakshow. CONGRATULATIONS to Jessa, our Beautiful Bearded Lady, and her husband Paul. Asia wants to expand her electric act by a deadly Tesla coil stunt. In preparation for the week's big show, Short E. begins working on his upper body so that he can pull off the notorious stunt. Regardless of any relocation, Ray thinks the spirit of the Freakshow will remain in Venice Beach where it started. Soon, Snap took up at the Gingerbread Court, a brick-structure courtyard on the beach with small storefronts. Street performers have had a big role in shaping Venices creative ethos. Wedding bells are ringing when Digger, the Sadu Hobo, invites the Freakshow group to his campsite nuptials under the stars. Freakshow backers say Snapchat claims to have no affiliation with Snapshot Partners, but the Los Angeles Business Journal reported that Snapchat has the right of first refusal on space in the building. No one really understood what it was for, or what the tech was about, but they would always just throw parties, Mr. Olson said. I have these displays and some delicate pieces that are all packed up for storage, he said. On Sunday, April 30, from noon until 6 p.m., Ray and his performers are hosting a farewell party they hope will also serve as a de facto protest against Venice gentrification. LOS ANGELES For a lot of Venice die-hards, the thing that irked them most about Snapchat was the security guards. Murrugun defies the limits of the human body with his human pin cushion stunt. He prefers to think of it as a celebration, rather than a funeral. At this time, their group did not have a name and people would simply refer to them as 'those white boys'. [3][4] It was announced in April 2013 that the series had been renewed for a second season, which premiered on May 6, 2014. In May 2017, after an 11-year run, the Venice Beach Freakshow was forced out under pressure from its building's new owners: A holding company called Snapshot bought the place, and then. This week, Todd and the Freakshow gang are looking to break some new world records. It quickly became known for its unique performers, as well as its large collection of oddity specimens. morgue and miss sunshine were impressive. Regarding Snaps legacy, he said: It was just a matter of time before gentrification started reaching Venice, and Im kind of shocked it didnt happen faster.. Next is Matt Gone, a man who has tattoos covering 99% of his body, including his tongue and For the Freakshow's first nighttime show, Todd asks the performers to come up with new stunts that they normally wouldn't do during the day. Can Todd pull off a surprise 21st birthday party for Asia? And the new owner of the building is ironically named Snapshot Partners. Meanwhile, Ray has to pack up a lot of weird stuff, including a jar that holds the corpse of a two-headed baby. It definitely needed a remodeling, but its not the core local spot it used to be, Mr. Rago said with a frown. "If everyone would just hold that idea in their heart, then in fact the Freakshow will still be alive. Along the way, Google, BuzzFeed, Vice and other tech and media companies planted flags in Venice. They just had an arrogance about them, said Mr. Rago, 47, who lives a few paces away from the beach. By then, Snap was well into its plans to leave. People began paying handsomely for his chairs and he was able to save enough money to make the trip back to New York. They were not particularly good neighbors, said Fran Solomon, a raspy-voiced four-decade resident of Venice who was a member of the original Venice community council. No purchase necessary. Ray helped his family build furniture out of wood, which he dubbed 'folk art' furniture, with the tree bark still attached. Creature tries to reunite with his estranged five-year-old daughter. He and his friends began performing locally. While headquartered now in Santa Monica, we continue to work closely with Venice schools and local nonprofits to support this community that helped inspire and shape our company., In many respects, the damage, as the Venice Dogz saw it, was already done. T-Ray was the producer of Big Beat Records' first hip-hop 12-inch, 'Supa Cat' (1991- Todd is credited on the album as 'The Mad Racket'). Todd brings in people from around the world for a tattoo event; Creature considers a place to live. In the meantime, the local commercial real estate market is holding its breath, expecting, at some point, for other start-ups to snatch up the post-Snap spaces. StarringTodd Ray Danielle Ray Asia Ray Season 1 S01:E01 - Two-Headed Bearded Dragon Birthday Todd tries to convince a bearded lady and a living giant to join the show. The company has funded a computer science program at a Venice elementary school, and tech training for women at St. Joseph Center, a longstanding homeless services organization.