The 'Three-Legged Man' Frank Lentini Facts and Stories

Fortunately, the old obsession with American "freak exhibitions" has been left in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Carnival goers were astounded by the odd outcomes of procreation in bearded ladies, strongmen, sword swallowers, and diminutive people like Tom Thumb. But how these artists fared as morbid attractions for paying customers is difficult to grasp, especially given the scarcity of honest information on them.

This was the case with Franceso "Frank" Lentini, the so-called "Three-Legged Man," who earned a fortune off his unusual condition of being born with a parasitic twin.

Frank Lentini’s Childhood

Frank Lentini was born in Sicily, Italy, in May 1889, as either an only child or the fifth of twelve children. He had three legs, four feet, 16 fingers, and two sets of genitalia.

His extra leg grew out of the side of his right hip, and a fourth foot protruded from his knee. His problem was caused by a second embryo that began to develop in the womb but was unable to separate from its sibling. As a result, one twin came to dominate the other.

Lentini was sent to a specialist at four months old to discuss the option of amputating his extra leg, but the doctor refused due to the risk of paralysis or possibly death.

He became known as “little monster” around his hometown. Lentini’s family consequently sent him to live with an aunt to avoid further disgrace.

• The Extra Limb Came From His Absorbed His Third Limb Was Actually A Partially Absorbed Conjoined Twin.

Lentini was born with heteropagus (parasitic) twinning, a congenital condition that occurs in as few as one in a million births.

This medical occurrence occurs in utero when one twin stops developing while the other - in this example, Lentini - fully develops throughout gestation. Lentini was born with an extra pelvis bone, rudimentary genitalia, and a third fully formed leg after the incomplete twin's bodily parts joined.

Lentini's additional leg was 36" long and included a fourth foot linked to the knee. Lentini had 16 toes and two working penises in total.

• Frank Wanted to amputate his third leg, it was deemed too dangerous.

Because photos from the era belonging to a Maltese Professor of Medicine show a youngster between the ages of 7 and 9 with Lentini's exact condition, it is assumed that Lentini was examined at an institution for defective children on the island of Malta.

However, because the third leg was so close to Lentini's spine, physicians were concerned that removing it would paralyze the boy.

Lentini loathed his third limb as a child and was said to be embarrassed by it. He felt constrained by its presence because he believed he couldn't participate in sports or do activities that other boys his age could. Given the risk of removing it, Lentini had no choice except to accept his predicament.

• A traveling puppeteer discovered him and brought him to America.

In 1890, a man named Vincenzo Magnano was traveling Italy with a puppet show when he came upon Francesco, who was 6 years old, in the village of Rosolini, Sicily.

Magnano thought the youngster would be a great addition to the Barnum and Bailey Circus, so he asked Francesco's parents whether they would agree to their son traveling to America. They consented on the condition that they accompany Frank to the United States.

After accumulating funds for their travel, the three Lentinis, along with Magnano and his pregnant wife, set sail for Bridgeport, CT in 1892.

Frank rode bicycles, swam, and did everything other kids did since he had control of his third leg.

Lentini visited an institution in Italy as a child and saw deaf, blind, and seriously crippled children living happy lives. This was a watershed moment for Lentini, who realized he could live a full life even with a third limb.

Though he couldn't walk with his third leg because it was too short, he learned to run and jump, as well as ride a bicycle, horse, swim, ice skate, roller skate, and drive a car. He was also able to manage his extra appendage. In fact, he said in a biography that the additional limb helped him swim: "One advantage I have over the other fellow when I swim is that I utilize the extra arm as a rudder."