Saturday, March 05, 2011
Friday, March 04, 2011
Thursday, March 03, 2011
Wednesday, March 02, 2011
Tuesday, March 01, 2011
Monday, February 28, 2011
GROUCHO MARX: I'm Against it!
It's amazing how the sight of 100,000+ people protesting in support of the rights of American workers, news the Koch brothers have their websites hacked by Anonymous and word that Fox News' Roger Ailes may be indicted any minute now can warm a man's heart and bring a smile back to his face...
And for those of you still walking around with your comically oversized pantaloons in a bunch, I promise to refund each and every one of you the entire cost of your February subscription to clownalley.net.
Fight the power.
Friday, February 25, 2011
NO CLOWN ALLEY.NET TODAY. NONE FOR THE FORSEEABLE FUTURE. TOO DISGUSTED...
WI Assembly GOP Passes Walker Budget In Surprise Vote -- Dems Chant "Shame!"
MADISON, WI -- The Wisconsin State Assembly has just passed Gov. Scott Walker's budget repair bill, including its controversial provisions to eliminate almost all collective bargaining rights for public employee unions as well as many other provisions to weaken union organizing.
After much buildup in the 61-hour debate -- of Republicans wanting things to be over, and Democrats railing against Republicans who they said would cut off debate -- at about 1 AM Speaker Pro Tempore Bill Kramer (R) announced that he would hear a voice vote for a roll call on final passage. Immediately, the majority Republicans shouted their ayes, and the Democrats were booing, as they tried to be recognized to demand a separate motion to cut off debate.
Then Kramer called the vote. Within seconds, the digital vote system on the wall announced 51 ayes and 17 nays, and voting was suddenly closed. With a total of 96 members, that got to a majority for the bill but left 28 members who hadn't had a chance yet to vote.
At that point, the Democrats got up, chanting "Shame! Shame! Shame!" and similar exclamations, as the Republicans filed out of the room.
There were many Democrats I spoke to and overheard in the chamber, who said they didn't get a chance to vote, or that they were pushing the "No" button at their desks as hard as they could -- keep in mind that a majority of their 38-member caucus was recorded as casting no votes at all. (Interesting to note there were also four Republicans who voted no -- after having joined every party-line vote against Democratic amendments. Some Dems speculated that the GOP leadership had allowed some Assembly Republicans in marginal districts to skip the vote or vote 'no' on the final tally.)
Some of the Democrats I spoke to, such as state Rep. Kelda Roys, maintained that the vote was illegal. Let's see whether they pursue such avenues in court.
Soon after the vote, as local CBS affiliate reporter Jessica Arp showed me in a video replay in the press room, an unidentified Democratic legislator could be seen throwing his papers and a beverage of some kind into the air in the heat of passion, as the booing broke out after final passage.
Afterwards, the Dems filed out into the rotunda, to cheers of "Thank you! Thank you!" from the protesters who have filled the halls of the Capitol for over a week. An interesting question has been whether the day and night Capitol building protests would end after this vote. But as I write this in the Capitol's press room, it's up in the air to me whether the protesters will even clear out at all. I can still hear them chanting and singing songs out in the halls -- including at least one round of "Hell no, we won't go!"
Keep in mind that this is not the end of the issue -- far from it. The 14 state Senate Democrats remain in exile in Illinois, preventing the state Senate from having the three-fifths quorum required to take a vote on the budget. For now, Wisconsin has become ground zero in an unexpected but pitched battle over the political future of the labor movement and the question of whether the Tea Party-fueled GOP resurgence of 2010 will trigger a backlash all its own.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Monday, February 21, 2011
Sunday, February 20, 2011
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GREG DESANTO!
Happy Birthday today to International Clown Hall of Fame and Research Center Executive Director Greg DeSanto, someone who has done more to preserve the legacy of American circus clowning than just about anyone in history.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Friday, February 18, 2011
Thursday, February 17, 2011
CLOWN ALLEY: RBB&B 1969 by Mark Solomon
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| Michael Karp, Billy Ward and others in Clown Alley |
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| Michael Karp, Reggie Montgomery and Dougie Ashton. The Barry Sloan parade heads behind them are still on tour with the Cole Bros. Circus. |
I took these in Oakland, California in Feb 1969. The negatives were then stored and long forgotten in my dad's attic since the late 60s. After he passed, they were discovered about five years ago along with hundreds of prints, negatives and other memorabilia.
The digital prints were scanned from a Nikon film scanner.
Enjoy.
Yours, Mark Solomon
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Monday, February 14, 2011
Sunday, February 13, 2011
PAYASOS DE MADERA
Featuring recreations of Albert Fratellini, Antonet, Grock, Charlie Rivel and Oleg Popov.
QUOTE
"People who don't like their beliefs being laughed at shouldn't have such funny beliefs."
- Anonymous
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Friday, February 11, 2011
MUBAREK RESIGNS! Sic Semper Tyrannis!
CAIRO – Egypt's Hosni Mubarak resigned as president and handed control to the military on Friday, bowing down after a historic 18-day wave of pro-democracy demonstrations by hundreds of thousands.
A massive crowd in Cairo's central Tahrir Square exploded into joy, waving Egyptian flags, and car horns and celebratory shots in the air were heard around the city of 18 million in joy after Vice President Omar Suleiman made the announcement on national TV just after nightfall.
"In these grave circumstances that the country is passing through, President Hosni Mubarak has decided to leave his position as president of the republic," a grim-looking Suleiman said. "He has mandated the Armed Forces Supreme Council to run the state. God is our protector and succor."
Nobel Peace laureate Mohammed ElBaradei, whose young suporters were among the organizers of the protest movement, told The Associated Press, "This is the greatest day of my life."
"The country has been liberated after decades of repression," he said adding that he expects a "beautiful" transition of power.
CHARACTER DESIGN: Salon Article
From Cartoon Brew...
Salon just published an excellent piece about animation character design. They interviewed designer Shannon Tindle (Coraline, Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends, and some as-yet-to-be-released DreamWorks films) about why films like Gnomeo and Juliet and Bob Zemeckis’s mo-cap efforts have such poor character design and asked him to explain which mainstream features work and which don’t from a design perspective.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
FUNNYMEN: Life and Times on the Greatest Show on Earth by Joe Wood
Click here to order now. Right now. I'm not kidding, you HAVE to buy this book right this very second!!!
Wednesday, February 09, 2011
MICHAEL "COCO" POLAKOVS: Sailor Circus and Pat Valdo
Newspaper clipping from the personal collection of Levoi Hipps
Michael and Hazel Polakovs had told me the story of how, after leaving the Mills Bros. Circus, Coco had come back to America in the late fifties and was working at the Circus Hall of Fame in Sarasota.
His son Graham was a student at the Sailor Circus and Coco had taught Graham and some of his friends an entree that his father, Nicolai, had performed at the Bertram Mills Circus. After much rehearsal over at the Circus Hall of Fame they presented their gag in the show. The act was a sensation.
No less than the legendary Pat Valdo attended the performance, seated in the very first row, and when he heard the audience's reaction he stood and turned to watch the audience's laughter. They were in hysterics. He hired Michael "Coco" Polakovs on the spot.
This newspaper photo proves Mike's story to be true. Upon offering Mike the job Pat Valdo asked the photographer from the local newspaper to get a photo of him shaking hands with his newest clown.
Graham is there in the photo (next to Mr. Valdo) as well as Mr. Levoi Hipps, graduate of the very first class of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College and first Boss Clown of the Blue Unit.
Tuesday, February 08, 2011
Monday, February 07, 2011
Sunday, February 06, 2011
Saturday, February 05, 2011
Friday, February 04, 2011
Thursday, February 03, 2011
Wednesday, February 02, 2011
Tuesday, February 01, 2011
TUMBLING PIERROTS
Does anyone know who this is or when it is from? All that I can tell is that it is English and from about the turn of the last century.
Monday, January 31, 2011
LES CHABRI: Ballerina Entree (1976)
From circopedia
Les Chabri, clowns, with Nora (née Dedessus le Moutier) and Victor "Toto" Chabri, in The Ballerina at Brussel's Cirque Royal during Les Olympiades du Cirque, a Jean-Pierre Richard production, in 1976. The voice over is that of Jean Richard.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Saturday, January 29, 2011
HORACE WEBB
Some of you might know Mr. Horace Webb. Some of you may even have sat for his wife, Aerial.
Friday, January 28, 2011
PIE ROUTINE
A variation on the one done by Monty Python at the Hollywood Bowl and at the Secret Policeman's Ball.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
ICHOF: Sarasota Update
We are having an AMAZING time in Sarasota, seeing friends, meeting heroes and getting oral histories.
We visiting the archives of the Ringling Museum, had lunch with Levoi Hipps, visited with Penny and Donna Geneva (Otto Griebling's step daughters) and held a meeting at Showfolks of Sarasota.
The meeting was an incredible gathering of American clowns (and their families) stretching all the way back to the 1920s and the room's support for the Hall of Fame was wonderful. We get the feeling that we are on the right track...
Today: a visit to Palmetto, FL...
BELLO NOCK: CONGRATULATIONS!!!
Congratulations go out to Mr. Bello Nock on his winning the Gold Clown at the 35 International Circus Festival in Monte Carlo. Local boy makes good indeed!
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
ICHOF: Sarasota Trip, Day One
Today we are off to visit Levoi Hipps, Penny Griebling (Otto's daughter), some time at the Ringling Museum and a presentational meeting tonight at Showfolks of Sarasota.
Anyone in the Sarasota area interested in joining us tonight, the meeting starts at 7:00.
Monday, January 24, 2011
ICHOF: Heading Down to Sarasota!
Fellow International Clown Hall of Fame and Research Center board members Greg DeSanto, Sandy Weber and myself are off to Sarasota, FL today for the most exciting project in the hall's history.
We are beginning an oral history project, meeting with several performers and their families over the next four days and recording their memories for posterity.
It's a project that is long overdue and one that I wish the hall had begun at its inception. Circus clowning is a rapidly changing American folk art, the history and culture of which has sadly gone without being properly preserved.
Bright and early tomorrow morning we go about correcting that!
If you are in the Sarasota area, PLEASE join us on Wednesday night for a meeting discussing the ICHOF's past, present and future at the Showfolks of Sarasota club.
We'd love to see you there!
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Saturday, January 22, 2011
IN MEMORIAM: Fred Collins
I'm deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Mr. Fred Collins. Anyone who ever worked in the variety arts in the NJ area knew Fred and his shop, Mecca Magic.
I've known Fred Collins since I was 13 years old and walked into a real magic shop for the first time. Mecca Magic was everything a real magic shop ought to be and Fred was everything you could ask for in a magic shop owner. A very talented, very generous man, he will be very sorely missed.
FREDDIE FISCHER & THE SCHNICKLEFRITZ BAND: Tiger Rag (1938)
From the film GOLD DIGGERS IN PARIS. George Rock, soon to leave for Spike Jones and the City Slickers, is on trumpet.
Friday, January 21, 2011
CLOWN ALLEY: RBB&B "Adam Smasher" (Late 1940s)
Paul Jung's classic "Adam Smasher" with Paul Jung out in front, Ernie "Blinko" Burch assisting on the left and it looks like Frank Luley on the right. I'm not sure who is playing "Adam" but I'll bet dollars to donuts that Prince Paul is one of the dwarves stuffed inside, ready to run out when that weight falls.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
ICHOF: CANDY BARS!!!
Gem City Amusements of Baraboo, Wisconsin has created these special edition candy bars just for the International Clown Hall of Fame and Research Center!
Help support the Hall of Fame. Proceeds from these candy bars goes directly to help with our projects and preservation.
You get six (6) Handmade Gourmet Milk Chocolate Bars produced by Gem City Candy Company right next door to the Clown Hall of Fame in Baraboo. You will receive three (3) Solid Gourmet Milk Chocolate Bars and three (3) Gourmet Milk Chocolate Bars sprinkled inside and out with candy confetti "balloons". These Bars are specially labeled with the Clown Hall of Fame logo and inductees to the Hall of Fame. These special Candy Bars are available directly from us to benefit the Clown Hall of Fame.
Please lend a hand and assist the efforts of the International Clown Hall of Fame and have fun doing it.
Anyone who has ever stopped by Ralph Pierce's shop knows that these are the finest quality chocolate bars you are ever going to taste.
Anyone who has ever stopped by Ralph Pierce's shop knows that these are the finest quality chocolate bars you are ever going to taste.
CLOWN ALLEY: Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros. Circus; The Changing of the Guard (1992)
From Elmo Gibb...
"I put this gag (a variation of Paul Jung's military gag) together to parody the human cannonball on Beatty-Cole. Fortunately we got the spot directly following the human cannonball and it went over well. This was the first public performance. We had to stall forever, as the prop crew managed to bury the cannon prop behind a trampoline Look for knock-off head (behind pole) and trick cannon flipping over. Explosion and smoke as well."
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
LOU JACOBS: Family Portrait
Photo courtesy of the International Clown Hall of Fame
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| Lou Jacobs, his wife Jean and daughters Dolly and Lou Ann. |
Lou is wearing what might be the single greatest pair of clown pants in the history of the circus and I believe that if you look closely you'll see Dolly is holding a pet guinea pig.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
GEORGE CARL: The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson
George Carl's first Carson appearance, including the introduction and the snub by Carson at the end.
THE JACKSON 5: With Dom Deluise
Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park, The Star Wars Holiday Special, Legends of the Super Heroes and now this.
The 70s were indeed a shameful time in our nation's history.
Monday, January 17, 2011
ICHOF: Typography Art
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| Typography art created using the names of Inductees to the International Clown Hall of Fame |
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Saturday, January 15, 2011
JONATHAN "MITCH" FREDDES AND EUGENE "PIDGE" PIDGEON" NPR Interview (2010)
Mitch and Pidge cutting jackpots.
Friday, January 14, 2011
Thursday, January 13, 2011
REMEMBERING CESLEE
2 Performers Die as Ringling Circus Train Derails
The New York Times
By GLENN COLLINS
Published: January 14, 1994
A Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus train derailed yesterday on a foggy stretch of track a mile east of Lakeland, Fla., killing a nationally known elephant trainer and a clown and injuring 15 people.
The Polk County Sheriff's Department said the cause of the derailment was unknown and is under investigation. The 53-car train, which derailed at 9:15 A.M., carried 200 performers and circus workers as well as 60 animals in the circus's Blue Unit, one of two Ringling shows that travel across the country in circus trains.
"It's Ringling's most serious train accident in more than 100 years," said a circus spokeswoman, Laura FitzGerald. The train was traveling 35 miles an hour, she said, adding that she did not know if fog had contributed to the accident. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating.
Ms. FitzGerald identified the dead trainer as Theodore Svertesky, 39, of Bridgeport, Conn. A leading elephant trainer who headed the Ringling Elephant Farm, a research and breeding facility in Williston, Fla., Mr. Svertesky also performed in the center ring. He presented the Blue Show's headline attractions, Romeo and Juliet, 1-year-old Asian elephants who were making their debut with the show.
Officials said Ceslee Conkling, 28, of Fort Worth, Tex., a clown who performed in the show, was also killed. Animals Are Unharmed
Among the performers injured were a clown, a member of the band, two dancers and four members of a Chinese acrobatic troupe. All were treated for minor injuries at Lakeland Regional Medical Center and released.
No animals were in the 17 cars that derailed, and none was injured. After the accident, two members of a television news crew from Orlando were injured when their helicopter crashed behind a nearby high school.
The derailment occurred at a crossing at the intersection of State Route 92 and Fish Hatchery Road as the train traveled from St. Petersburg to an engagement in Orlando on Friday.
Ms. FitzGerald said it had not yet been decided whether the Friday performance in Orlando would be held. The show is scheduled to work its way north, traveling from city to city until its official world premiere in Madison Square Garden on March 24.
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| Ms. Ceslee Conkling December 6, 1965 - January 13, 1994 (Photo courtesy of The International Clown Hall of Fame) |
Fourteen years have passed.
I get busy with life and stuff and only when I take the moment to stop and look do I see it. I dig through albums of photo's, looking for publicity pictures for the next gig. And then I see her. The memories are still very fresh, the pain just under the surface. We took everything for granted. Never think the end is near. The last thing I remember her saying to me in St. Pete on load out before the train run was to make me promise to watch her track gag in Orlando. Give her some new bits.
Then its over...
It was the defining moment for me...the one thing that changed everything forever. Nothing would ever be the same. The show, the clowns, my life. The whole thing about 'never growing up"...changed. We lost something. The show continued but it never quite felt the same. People were very kind, the show opened a day late in Orlando, and the routine began again. Props to be set, clown alley to be spotted. The dry cleaning came back and costumes were collected.
All but one.
That was the saddest moment out of ten years of touring.
To see her costume hanging by itself on a rack backstage... knowing.
The physical hurts healed, but the emotional ones linger. What happened that January morning made me a different person, I pray a better person.
I remember with a smile a pretty clown who loved to fall...
Greg DeSanto
January 13, 2008
-------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Ceslee,
I am not sure if you will receive this, as it is uncertain whether or not e-mail can reach all the way to heaven. But I'll try.
Things have changed, but probably not as much as you would think. Many of your friends are still on the Show, many have left, and many have decided that they didn't get quite enough of the life that we all so passionately love and have returned for more.
The Clowns on both shows are doing well. The Red Unit is hard at work in Winter Quarters on yet another incredible show, and the Blue Show Clowns are enjoying a rest before heading back out onto the Road. I assure you that they are up to the same old buffoonery in the Alley, and the No-Talent Talent Show and the Hot Dog Eating Contest continue to be highlights of both routes.
Technology has changed the Circus quite a bit. Most of the Clowns now have cellular phones, and I have to tell you, it is kind of strange to be in Clown Alley and hear a phone ringing! Also, Circus Management is on this computer network called the Internet, so any information regarding the Show is e-mailed to the Corporate Offices daily. Not a good idea to be late for the Show.
As you can imagine, most of the familiar things have not changed at all. Clowns still put off that makeup order, then scramble trying to find clown white. Early PR appointments still abound, and it is harder than ever to squeeze a few comps out of the Promoter. The frantic pace backstage minutes before opening night remains, and, of course, audiences around the country continue to be mesmerized by the splendor of The Greatest Show on Earth. That, dear friend, will never change.
My, how we miss you. I have seen your parents several times, and I know that they miss you more than you can possibly imagine. You name is spoken fondly, with laughter and tears, every single day. That as well, dear friend, will never change.
A few years ago I rode the Circus Train through that area of immense suffering in Lakeland. I wanted to avoid the trip altogether and drive, but I decided to take the train and find what I was seeking. Standing on the vestibule in the early morning fog, I recognized the location and returned to my room. Clutching the Bible that I have had for more than twenty years, I sat alone, overcome with emotion, in the privacy of my room as the train crawled through Lakeland. Then I found what I had so desperately needed for a long time; peace.
Gone, but not forgotten, you are loved. Rest well.
Your friend,
Joel HeidtmanDecember 6, 2000
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| (Photo courtesy of The International Clown Hall of Fame) |
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
PAYASO BIRIBA
When performing Jerry Lewis' material it might be useful to remember that most children nowadays have never seen a typewriter.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
CLOWN ALLEY: Ringling Blue Unit Alley at the Sons of the Desert Convention (1992)
Steve Smith, David Kiser, Sean Conklin, Dan Rooney and Greg DeSanto presenting the "Otto" to Hal Roach.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Sunday, January 09, 2011
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