Barnum

Barnum
Character Information
Species	Human
Gender	Male
Relatives	Uncle Phineas
Enemies	Dash Reaver
First Appearance	Fable II Childhood
Last Appearance	Fable II
Status	Dead

Barnum is a keen entrepreneur, always with a money-spinning scheme, who makes several appearances during Fable II. He has an unusual vocabulary, which he attributes to his purchase of a thesaurus from Mystical Murgo; he frequently uses ridiculous or made-up words in conversation.

He is first met during your childhood, in which he pays Rose and The Hero of Bowerstone a gold piece to pose for his photography demonstration. The picture can be ruined by making a rude gesture.

Following the death of Rose and Sparrow's subsequent ascension to Hero status, he is met in Oakfield, where he purchased the Rookridge bridge, and planned to set up a toll. The bridge is destroyed by a gang of bandits, led by Dash, who intend to take over Rookridge. After the bandits are dispatched, he gives the player his thesaurus as a reward, and explains that his deeds were revealed to be invalid; negating the toll scheme, but freeing him from the responsibility of rebuilding the bridge.

He is met again in Westcliff for the Westcliff Development Quest, in which he seeks a 5,000 gold investment in order to transform the camp into a family-friendly tourist attraction. If the player pays the investment before leaving for the Spire, it will be repaid following their return, plus interest, for a total of 15,000 gold; the region itself will have been turned into a successful tourist trap. During this time, it seems he starts up the picture box business again, and works with Farmer Giles and takes a picture of his son.

Barnum's final appearance is in Bloodstone Manor, where he is shot by Reaver when the latter discovers it will take three months to "developify" a photograph.

Death

In Fable III, there is a pistol called The Barnumificator. In the description, it mentions that this gun was invented by Barnum but he never lived to see it's success. This confirms that Barnum is dead.

Trivia

• Barnum is probably named for Phineas Taylor Barnum, a renowned entrepreneur and scam artist who had a famous circus. He also mentions an uncle Phineas in game.
• After receiving payment from "The Westcliff Development", Barnum will mention having been to the "Temple of Business and Yodelling". This is a reference to T.O.B.Y
• It is possible that the shady character who sold Barnum the fake deed to the bridge was the bandit Dash himself.
• In Barnum's information box, he is listed as an "entreprenator", and enjoys the Sock Puppet expression, and dislikes being pointed and laughed at.
• In the description for The Barnumificator, it only mentions that Barnum didn't live to see the gun's success. It says nothing of how he died. This leads to the small possibility that he may of survived the confrontation with Reaver, although it is unlikely.