Tattoo History - The Great Omi

The british tattoo-exhibit The Great Omi was born in 1892 and died in 1969. Horace Ridler was his real name and he was not only considered one of the head strongest people of the circus scene, which reached worldwide attention in the beginning of the 20th century, but also the most famous tattooed person of the 20th century.

Ridler was the son of a wealthy family and even had private teachers. In the first world war he was awarded with the silver star and left the british army with the rank of a major. Afterwards he didn't know what to do so he roamed the countries until he realized his future lays in the circus. He convinced George Burchett, the most famous british tattoo artist at this time, to cover his whole body including his head with black zebra like stripes. From 1927 to 1934, for over seven years, Burchett tattooed Ridler three times a week with an estimated 15 million pricks in his face and head and about another 500 millions on different body parts. After that Ridler filed off his teeth, got his nose pierced to wear a tusk, pierced his ears and stretched his earlobes and called himself The Great Omi from there on as a dependence on Omai, the famous Polynesian.

Horace' wife Gladys always stood on his side as he remembered years later: "Of course we always knew we would loose any social status what so ever and realized we would also be proscribed by our friends and even by our families. I explained to my wife that they will probably hat my appearance and might be disgusted of touching me or even being in my company." But exactly the opposite happened and his wife became a successful artist herself and called herself Omette. Horace said: "My wife is wonderful. Some people might say I look horrible and would just frighten every woman. But my wife ensured me it is just a matter of attitude and I believe she loves me even more today as if I would look normal."

Burchett had barely finished his work on Horace, The Great Omi already had a well paid engagement at the London Olympia. He toured through Great Britons concert halls and vaudevilles where thousands of people gazed at him as the most tattooed man in the world. In 1938 he emigrated to the USA with his wife Omette and performed on Broadway for half a year followed by a tour through the United States with the Ringling Brothers as well as Phineas T. Barnum.

With the beginning of the second world war he returned to London and wanted to support England by joining the army but they only granted him performances in front of the soldiers not beside them.

back to tattoo history