THE JERRY BANGS STORY: From Dusty Dillion

Here are the last promotional pictures put together by Jerry. He was producing clown on RB B&B from 1928 to 1948.

He told me the picture of him in makeup was taken the first month he was with the show and it was so horrible that they put him to producing. His closest friend on the show was Lou Jacobs.

While I worked with Jerry we were on Hubert Castle show, Hamid -Morton show, Tom Packs show, Polack Bros. show and the Atterbury show. All these shows played Shrine dates, but not exclusively, we also were regulars at the Texas Shrine dates in San Antonio, Austin, Houston and Dallas/Ft. Worth.

We worked such greats as Gene Randow and Harold Simmons, Carl Marx, Al Ross, Johnny Cherilino, Lawrence Cross, Pat Kelly, Al Ackermann, the Wilsons: Dime Penny Nickel and Dime Jr. and so many more.

While with the Pollack show we were booked into old vaudeville houses as the final show before the wreaking ball. We were also the first show in many new coliseums that were being built all across the country. Jerry said that were there to test the plumbing and the lights! R B B&B paid for and owned the floors in these buildings, they had the unique bolt pattern used in their rigging assemblies and no show could play on these floors 6 months prior or 3 months after the Ringling date. Many of these buildings were built on acreage originally purchased by PT Barnum for his show lots, these were acquired when RB took over B&B.

Much is the myth and lore of Clown Alley and I would not trade the experience of meeting these remarkable men that walked elephants from town to town and rode atop box cars and survived the fire. Dusty "Rhodes" Dillion

Paul Jung with a Jerry Bangs prop

OH MY GOSH!

THANK YOU DUSTY!!! THESE ARE AMAZING!