- Zulu Cannibal Giants
The Zulu Cannibal Giants were an
African American baseball team (they referred to themselves as a Baseball "Zulu Tribe ", based on a concept inspired by the war inEthiopia ) formed in1938 byCharlie Henry inLouisville, Kentucky .The
Zulu Cannibal Giants gained notoriety for their propensity to turn a baseball game into a comedy performance, much in the same way that theHarlem Globetrotters did with basketball many years later. The Zulu Cannibal Giants decorated their faces and bodies withAfrica n tribal paint, went shirtless, wore only grass skirts, used special custom-made baseball bats crafted to supposedly resembleEthiopia n war clubs, and always playedbarefoot .Although the team was extremely popular with the public, some black athletes disapproved of the Cannibals because of the stereotype. [http://www.charliethejugglingclown.com/baseball.htm]
At some point in their career they were managed by
New York promoterSyd Pollock , who also managed a similar novelty team called theIndianapolis Clowns (also known as the Cincinnati Clowns, and the Ethiopian Clowns). [http://www.charliethejugglingclown.com/baseball.htm]Popularly regarded as a
Negro League team, they technically were not accepted members of the formal league.External links
* [http://www.charliethejugglingclown.com/baseball.htm Charlie the Juggling Clown]
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