Clarence Chesterfield Howerton AKA Major Mite

Clarence Chesterfield Howerton AKA Major Mite

Clarence Chesterfield Howerton (February 9, 1913 - November 18, 1975), AKA Major Mite, was an American circus performer. His career began at a young age, when his father entered him into a local vaudeville show. In 1923, he joined the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus, where he starred as a major attraction. He was 2 feet 4 inches tall and billed as the smallest man in the world. His small physique was often contrasted alongside larger circus sideshow acts, such as the juvenile obese and the excessively tall. In 1922, he received national press coverage when he visited President Harding at the White House. During the 1930s, he was used as a mascot for the recruitment side of the US Marine Corps. His biggest role in acting was with 1939's The Wizard of Oz, in which he played the part of a trumpet-playing Munchkin, who announced the arrival of the mayor. In contrast to his public persona, Howerton reportedly enjoyed cigars and beer, "often yelled obscenities" and was known to "run the length of a bar, kicking anything in his way". He retired from the entertainment industry in 1949. In 1975, at the age of 62, Howerton died of pneumonia. No photographer credited, 1922.

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3158 x 4350 px | 39.3 MB

26.7 x 36.8 cm | 10.5 x 14.5 in (300 dpi)