Erik Sprague (born June 12, 1972), known professionally as the Lizardman, is an American freak show and sideshow performer. He is best known for his body modification, including his sharpened teeth, full-body tattoo of green scales, bifurcated tongue, subdermal implants and green-inked lips.
Early life
Sprague was born in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, and was a Ph.D. candidate at the University at Albany before beginning his transformation. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy from Hartwick College in Oneonta, New York.
Career
As a professional freak, Sprague became famous for his heavy body modifications, including tongue bifurcation and tattooing. He regularly performs many classic sideshow acts such as the human blockhead, fire eating and breathing, gavage, sword swallowing, the bed of nails, the Human Dartboard, the cranial corkscrew, and the insectivore.
Sprague participates in many public and private flesh hook suspension groups and events, and is highly involved in the body modification community. He also writes articles on the Body Modification E-zine. His rock band, LIZARD SKYNYRD, released an album in late 2010 and performed in many tours around the world.
Sprague gained the official Guinness World Record for 'heaviest weight lifted and spun with pierced ears' on the set of Lo Show dei Record in Milan, Italy on 19 Jun 2014. He also regularly performs with other sideshow celebrities and world record holders such as The Space Cowboy.
He is featured in many of the Ripley's Believe It Or Not books and TV shows. As part of his work with the company, there is a life size statue of him in many of the company's museums.
Sprague has toured with The Jim Rose Circus and hosted the Jägermeister Music Tour, with bands including Disturbed, Slayer, and Slipknot.
Personal life
Sprague resides in Austin, Texas, with his wife Meghan and their pet ferrets.
Filmography
Film Year Title Role Notes 2005 Modify Himself Documentary about body modification 2007 Boxboarders! Himself 2008 Sideshow Still Alive Himself 2017 Song to Song Travel Agent Credited as Erik Sprague
Television Year Title Role Notes 2000 Ripley's Believe It Or Not! Himself Appeared in S1 Ep2 2004Taboo Himself TV series documentary 2008 Weird, True & Freaky Himself One episode 2010 50 Greatest Plastic Surgery Shockers Himself TV movie documentary
See also Jim Rose Circus Katzen Lucky Diamond Rich The Enigma Tom Leppard Chayne Hultgren
References
External links
Interviewed by Jessica Hopsicker in the College Crier