Ringling: Bike Display

 

Another great photo from Brandon Bolden's collection. This is the Blue Unit Clown Alley for the 130th Edition of Ringling in 2000. 

The second half opened with a bike display with all of the clowns wearing fun costumes to make it look like they were kids dressing up and playing pretend. 

Each clown had a bike that fit in with their character: the cowboy had a unicycle with a saddle that looked like a hobby horse, the scientist had a bicycle with an extendable and retractable magnet on the front, the doctor clown had a.... mini bicycle.....yep! It all checks out! 

Top row left to right: Leo Acton, Marni Sussman Zalban, Todd Zimmerman, Pat Acton

Middle row left to right: Melanie Covello, Cherie Gregg, Cezary Skarzynski, David Gregg, Thom Wheaton, Steve Lough, Gabor Hrisafis, Brandon Bolden, Lance Brown, Josh Zehner, Elizabeth Sekine Lough

Bottom row left to right: Christy McDonald Atkinson, David Solove, David Hennessy 

Ringling: Chinese Bike Parody

 

Photo courtesy of Brandon Bolden

The casts of the Chinese bicycle act and the Chinese bicycle parody (I'm not sure which is which) on the Ringling Blue Unit in 2000. The clowns are Brandon Bolden (top left), Josh Zehner (white sweatband), Lance Brown (top right), Gabor Hrisafis (center), Cherie Gregg (whiteface), Christy McDonald Atkinson (bottom center) and Thom Wheaton (bottom left).

It was a pretty funny idea for a gag. After the act where the Chinese women would form pyramids on a moving bicycle the lights would come up on Josh in a sweatsuit working out on a stationary exercise bike. The other clowns would enter dressed as the Chinese women and try to perform different stunts and formations on top of him and his bike. Lance's costume had a giant inner tube tire inside so he could backflip off the back of the bike and then bounce on his "fat stomach". At the end the bike would become overloaded by all the added weight and an explosion would cause it to come unattached so Josh could ride off with the other clowns in hot pursuit. Thought not as hot as the actual Chinese women. 

This was all followed by ANOTHER comedy bicycle act featuring a bike with huge tractor tires and a troupe of Eastern Europeans dressed as clowns. I believe the theme that tour was Redundancy.....featuring Sara and the Tigers!

R.I.P Angelo Muñoz

Sorry for the delay in updating. My old laptop had a busted screen (thank you very much to my dear son), but now I have a new one again and I will try and keep up regular posting.

                                         

Bill Ballantine Art 1987

 

Potential artwork for the Ringling Clown College 20th Anniversary done by former dean and fantastic artist/writer Bill Ballantine.

Really cool to find these. I've never seen them before. God bless Mark Renfro for being such an archivist. 

Ringling: Moroccan Tumbling Parody

This footage is taken from a television special that was done when the 125th Edition of Ringling played Mexico City in 1996. 

The Red Unit clowns featured in this video are Darren Cooper (purple hair and hat), Max Richardson (red mohawk), Brad Aldous (curly brown hair), Edzui Szumowski or Edge (gray wig), Jonathan Taylor (whiteface), Gina Alayne (pink wig), Steven Hogue (parted red wig), and Troy Wunderle (blue wig). 

Almost all of them are still performing. Darren Cooper is famous on social media as The Gooch, where he has a huge following, Edge is currently touring with Venardos Circus, which he has done for years now, Brad has had a career as an actor, Jonathan and his wife, Anne, are currently performing comedy on Mr. Swindle's Traveling Peculiarium (which Brad also performed in playing the part of Doctor Elixir), Gina performs at events all over the Tampa area, and Troy Wunderle still performs and was an integral part of Circus Smirkus for years. I know Max performed on cruise ships for years, but not sure about now, only that he's in Vegas. Steve Hogue has a career in the pharmaceutical industry and a beautiful family with his wife, Sandra, also a former clown.  

Tell me what I forgot or got wrong. The great and all knowing Copeland is middle aged and starting to forget.....

Gardi Hutter and Ueli Bichsel Circus Knie 2000

A segment on the German program Next talking with Gardi Hutter and Ueli Bichsel about their upcoming debut with Circus Knie for the 2000 season.

Trio Juanito Moreno

Thanks to Chase Culp for turning me onto these guys. No, not like that you sickos...

Here's some info I found about these three: 

"Hey, watch out!" became a catchphrase in Switzerland; 
father Juanito Moreno [56] with son Luis [25] as a whiteface clown and Luisito, a former circus musician; 
Juanito and his brother Uge, also a whiteface clown, worked as Hermanos Moreno in the 1940s and 50s, first in Spanish and Portuguese circuses, then from 1946 in Cuba, Mexico, the USA, Chile, Bolivia, Argentina, and gained a foothold in Venezuela – Juanito became a restaurateur for six years and a children's TV favorite! 
The trio was rediscovered (facilitated by the juggler and agent Edoardo Raspini!) in March 1968 at the Circus Krone Building in Munich with August Luisito and (at that time) the whiteface clown Kike. 
Juanito Moreno died in 1986.

A list of their engagements:

1968 • March • KRONE Building Munich • German debut, discovered by impresario Edoardo Raspini (juggler with KNIE in 1964) 
1969 • March • KRONE Building Munich • Circus KRONE • Director Frieda Sembach-Krone • Summer season Germany/Austria 
1970 • Circus KRONE • Director Frieda Sembach-Krone • Summer season 
1971 • Circus KNIE • Summer season 
1972 • Circus BOLTINI • Director Tony Boltini • Netherlands 
1973 … 
1974 … 
1975 • Circus SARRASANI • Director Fritz Mey • Summer season • Germany 
1976 • Antwerp Circus Festival • Binnendijk/Edoardo Raspini • February 24 – March 7 • Teller entrance 
1976 • Circus SARRASANI • Director Fritz Mey • Summer Season • Germany 
1977 • March 1 – April 3 at the KRONE Building, Munich • Sembach-Krone Management 
1977 • BENNEWEIS • Schumann Building, Copenhagen • Summer Season 
1978 • CENTER CIRCUS • Brighton, UK • Summer Season 
1978 • December • HANSA Theater, Hamburg (Performance in Tuxedo!) 
1979 • January • HANSA Theater, Hamburg (Performance in Tuxedo!) 
1980 … 
1981 • Circus SARRASANI • Director: Fritz Mey • Summer Season 
1982 • October • Double Circus CORTY & GIOVANNI ALTHOFF in Düsseldorf 
1983 • GRAN CIRCO MUNDIAL • Director: José Maria González Villa • Summer Season in Spain (Operating as LOS HERMANOS MORENO) 
1984/85 • Circo RUSO • Director: Angel Christo • Valencia, Spain • December 22 1984 – January 6, 1985 • (named LOS HERMANOS MORENO)