Vidbel: Scott O'Donnell and Mike Snider

 

Photo by Paul Gutheil.

Scott "Dusty" O'Donnell and Mike Snider ready for the washerwoman gag on Vidbel's Olde Tyme Circus in the 1990s.

Davis Vassallo: Bounding Rope

Press release from the Festival: 

Guest Star: Davis Vassallo, Italy - Clown

Representing: RINGLING AND BROS. CIRCUS - BARNUM & BAILEY SPECIAL PRIZE "GIULIO MONTICO" 2013 Davis Vassallo has already appeared at Latina as a "Special Guest" during the 12th edition of the "International Circus Festival -- City of Latina", and returns this year in honour of the "Special Anniversary Edition". Davis comes from a long pedigree of Circus performers: his grandfather and father were both clowns and he decided as a child to follow in the family tradition. With his father's help, Davis learnt to play a number of musical instruments, learnt the importance of long hours of rehearsal, and learnt the art of being funny: he became a clown. His long-awaited début was at the age of 15, and since then Davis has never looked back, performing in Belgium and Germany as well as in Italy. Audiences of all ages have appreciated his dynamic and witty performances, watching his antics with great attention and enthusiasm. His love for his art can be evinced from his own words: "to be a clown is to dream, and dreaming is the most wonderful thing in the world!" His appearance at the Festival at Latina is rather special, because it is also his last performance before his official début in America with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, one of the greatest Circuses in the world; a début that has all the signs of a new and brilliant phase in the career of this young Italian clown, who, we can safely say, is destined to be one of the brightest new lights to sparkle on the international Clown scene.

Ringling: Closing of Clown College 1998

An interesting read from 1998 talking about the future of Ringling clowning after it was announced that Clown College would be closing.

Seinfeldian skits, eh?

Clowns, then and now Circus: In the future, these well-trained performers will be more contemporary, just as they used to be.

Tamara IkenbergTHE BALTIMORE SUN

If circus clown Bryan Fulton had to change the image of his Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey colleagues, he'd inject a little testosterone.

"I'd kinda like to be a superhero, all suave out of makeup," says Fulton, a 19-year-old Baltimore native wearing knee socks, shorts, checked blue and red vest and oversized red tie. "Then, I'd go into a phone booth and come out as Super Clown."

Fulton, in Baltimore for performances through Sunday, may have his chance, because the 127-year-old circus is changing the way it approaches clown training.

The Ringling Brothers Clown College, which was established in 1968 in Florida, is closed, and the circus is developing a Clown College Graduate Program. The program is still in the planning stages, but representatives of Feld Entertainment, which owns Ringling Bros., say it will include more specialized, theatrically oriented Masters of Comedy Workshops. The workshops will be tailored to the interests of performers looking to expand on basic clowning skills, including the approximately 1,500 graduates of Clown College.

The number of college programs and workshops nationwide that teach clowning basics have rendered the original Clown College unnecessary, according to spokesman Rodney Huey.

"There's no need to get those kids right out of high school," Huey says. "It's a different world."

The new workshops will also make clowning more contemporary, since other elements of the circus have become increasingly modern. Acts now involve basketball players unicycling to techno music, professional daredevil in-line skaters and an audience-participation "Macarena."

In the future, clowns may appear in Seinfeldian skits satirizing everyday life and doing contemporary gags centered on computers and the tribulations of today.

Throughout their history, clowns have been relating to contemporary events, according to LaVahn Hoh, a drama professor at the University of Virginia at Charlottesville who teaches the class "The Circus in America."

In the American one-ring circuses of the late 18th century, talking was common for clowns, says Hoh, who also taught at Clown College. In the late 18th century, a clown named Dan Rice appeared with his pig Lord Byron and mused on politics, and the pig would snort.

Rice, who wore a red and white suit and top hat, was the model for Uncle Sam. But as circuses evolved into three rings in the 19th century, gags had to become broader to work in the larger setting, and the talking clown became extinct. Still, Hoh says, clown acts remain relevant.

"There are a lot of stock bits that clowns do that poke fun at society," Hoh says. He said the pie-throwing routines have always been a vicarious outlet for aggression toward society.

Dominique Jando, associate artistic director at the one-ring Big Apple Circus in New York City, disagrees, saying clowns in the three-ring format can't relate to the audience. He sees Ringling's new clown training as an opportunity to instill the skills that were developed in the more intimate one-ring format.

Jando says the three-ring circus developed because entrepreneur-owned circuses were very popular in America in the late 1800s, and the owners thought that by adding more rings they could attract bigger audiences.

"That's an American accident," Jando says of the three-ring circus. "That killed clowning in this country."

Clowns shouldn't be the broadly humorous, exaggeratedly made-up characters in today's circuses, Jando says. Instead, he thinks they should be witty commentators on the human condition with whom audiences can identify.

Rice and the clowns of his age satirized society, and so did the bald-headed buffoons of ancient Greece who are considered the earliest ancestors of the clown. They were secondary characters who mocked the more serious actors in farces and mime acts. The look evolved in the acts of medieval minstrels and jugglers. In the late Middle Ages, the Italian commedia dell'arte's Harlequin introduced acrobatics into the clown repertoire.

The first professional stage clowns came from the Elizabethan theater. Shakespeare has been credited with coining the word "clown." During this time in Germany, the clown costume we've come to know -- floppy shoes, waistcoats and hats -- developed. But the makeup wasn't grotesque, Jando says. American clowns are the only ones with cartoonish makeup designed for recognition from a distance, Jando says.

The circus clown as we know it today appeared in 1805 in England. The late 19th century saw the birth of the American circus clown.

In the '60s, former Ringling Bros. owner and producer Irvin Feld noticed that the clowns in his circus, most of whom learned their skills through apprenticeships, were getting old. So he created the now-defunct Clown College, an eight-week program that accepted only about 30 of nearly 2,000 applicants annually.

The curriculum of clown college included such basic skills as unicycling, juggling and stilt-walking. Clowns also learned how to apply makeup, develop characters and write bits for the circus. In Clown College, a.k.a. clown boot camp, students worked six ** days a week for nearly 12 hours a day, says John Lynch, a Ringling clown who was trained at Clown College along with Fulton and Alan Rios.

Fulton has a bit of the surfer-clown look about him with his flat shock of orange- and yellow-streaked hair. He's an Auguste clown, meaning he uses a flesh-colored paint base with red and black features.

Rios, 28, has Jackie Gleason mannerisms and wears flannel pajamas and wins the lovable cornball award. He's also an Auguste.

Lynch is the sweetly goofy one in paint-splattered denim with three sprouts of hair and a trout in his back pocket. He's a whiteface clown.

"I'm not the traditional whiteface clown. I have Auguste tendencies," says Lynch, 32, who's been with the circus since 1995.

"Clowns with split personalities, next 'Oprah,' " says Fulton, who's been with the circus since 1997.

Lynch, Rios and Fulton do pseudo stomps and slaps, break into spastic dances and revel in cornball jokes with Three Stooges style.

Aside from learning skills and developing characters, at Clown College they were also instilled with the clown's code of honor.

They must always be in full costume in a professional setting and cannot engage in any un-clownlike behavior.

"We follow unwritten rules. You never see or hear a clown curse; no smoking," says Rios, a New York native. "It's like seeing Mickey Mouse without his head on. That can damage a kid."

However, pop culture representations of clowns, which are another facet of American clown history, can be equally damaging, Hoh says.

"We can take something as harmless as a clown and turn it into an ax murderer," he says. Or a strangler like the clown doll in "Poltergeist." Or a bawdy idiot, as in the movie "Shakes The Clown." Or washed-up sellout Krusty on "The Simpsons." Or the evil Pennywise of Stephen King's "It."

"They're very damaging to what clowns should portray," Hoh says.

If Americans understood the clowning tradition and considered the circus an art form, they might not produce such distorted images in the media, according to Hoh.

But Rios, Lynch and Fulton aren't too threatened by their creepy counterparts.

"It's funny. We can laugh at it," Rios says. "We all have a sense of humor."

And that will never change.

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus

Where: Baltimore Arena, 201 W. Baltimore St.

When: Through Sunday, with performances tonight and

tomorrow at 7 p.m.; Saturday at 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.; Sunday at 1: 30 p.m. and 5: 30 p.m.

Tickets: $10.50 to $35

Call: 410-347-2010

Pub Date: 3/19/98

Aga-Boom: Airplane

Dimitri Bogatirev (Aga) and Iryna Ivanytska (Boom) perform at Moisture Fest in 2017. At the beginning you can see Stephanie Monseau and Keith Nelson of the Bindlestiff Family Cirkus. 

Aga-Boom

Hilary Chaplain

From Hilary's website:

Since 2005, Hilary Chaplain has been touring internationally with her award winning solo show A LIFE IN HER DAY, directed by Avner Eisenberg, and in variety shows worldwide with her short comic numbers. In 2018 she created a show in collaboration with other artists called THE LAST RAT OF THERESIENSTADT which won the top four awards when it premiered at the Lalka Tez Cztowiek Puppet Festival in Warsaw, Poland. Drawing inspiration from clown theatre, movement, objects and puppetry, Hilary has been creating solo and ensemble work for the past 40 years. She was an original cast member in Bill Irwin’s LARGELY/NEW YORK and appeared on Broadway in the Public Theatre production of THE TEMPEST directed by George C. Wolfe. She played a featured role in Forrest Gump, and a lawyer on LAW AND ORDER CRIMINAL INTENT. Hilary entertained children in NYC hospitals as “Nurse Nice” of the renowned Big Apple Circus Hospital Clown Program® (since 1987) and is a founding member of the New York Goofs, a clown ensemble created in 1996. She has performed and taught worldwide in over 20 countries and 5 continents. She is currently in development with a new show called BITE ME! with CB Goodman and Aitor Basauri.

Clown College: Act I Finale

A bike, unicycle and car display performed by the Ringling Clown College class of 1990. 

Les Francescos

 

Enrico, Ernesto and Francois Caroli

Enrico and a young friend

Ernesto 

Nuts & Bolts 1985

Descended from Sid Millward's Nitwits, Nuts & Bolts appearing here at the Tyne Theatre, Newcastle perform some of their crazy musical routines. Band members are (l to r) Tony Traverci (Professor Nuts), Tom Shand (Dr. Bolts), Cyril Lagey (consultant), and Ron Regan (special assistant). The act toured UK, Europe, USA for 30 years.

Hamid Morton Clown Alley 1950s: Army Gag

Photo shared on Facebook by Joanne Wilson.

Slim Collins, Saso, Ray Cosmo

Bumpsy Anthony, Shorty Sylvester, and Dime and Connie Wilson

Would love to hear more info on Slim, Saso, Ray, and Shorty.

PS- Sorry about the text layout; I'm not sure what happened. I blame Gremlins.

Le Retraite du Clown I Pio Nock [1964]

Roughly translated, "The Retirement of the Clown".

"Soon the last lap for the clown Pio Nock who will be retiring. In 1964, his talent won the laughter of the big top and, even if it is foreseeable that his plate will break at the end of the number, how not to fall under the spell of his performance? As for the images at the time of make-up removal, they are very sensitive."

Ringling: Schoolhouse Gag

The last Duane "Uncle Soapy" Thorpe produced ring gag on the Ringling show, the Schoolhouse, here performed by several members of the Red Unit Clown Alley and host, Ben Vereen, on the 115th Edition TV special aired in 1985.

Clowns featured are Jim Arneberg, Paul Wood, Barbara Pike, Kip Reynolds, Jim Vogelgesang, Greg Mooney, Colleen Linnehan, John O'Donnell, Peggy King, and Frankie Theriault. 

Major props to Ben Vereen for performing with a broken shoulder (?) from a botched teeterboard segment AND getting firecrackers set off on his butt. Not too many stars of stage and screen would be that game!

Rone & Gigi: Big Ears Show

The Art of Tommy Cooper

A documentary about the life of Tommy Cooper.

From Wikipedia: 

Thomas Frederick Cooper (19 March 1921 – 15 April 1984) was a British prop comedian and magician. As an entertainer, his appearance was large and lumbering at 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m),^[1] and he habitually wore a red fez when performing. He initially served in the British Army for seven years, before eventually developing his conjuring skills and becoming a member of the The Magic Circle. Although he spent time on tour performing his magical act, which specialised on magic tricks that appeared to "fail", he rose to international prominence when his career moved into television, with programmes for London Weekend Television and Thames Television.

By the end of the 1970s, Cooper slipped into heavy smoking and drinking, which affected his career and his health, effectively ending offers to front new programmes and relegating him to performing as a guest star on other entertainment shows. Ill health eventually claimed his life when, on 15 April 1984, Cooper died of a heart attack live on television.

James "Tiny" Lambros

Photos courtesy of David Powell.

Tiny has had a life full of varied jobs, including circus clown. He performed with Culpepper Merriweather for the 2003 season and Kelly Miller for the 2004 season. 

Ringling: Charivari 1980

Members of the 1980 Blue Unit Clown Alley perform an Olympics themed charivari for the 110th Edition's television special, hosted by Michael Landon.

I see Michael Goudeau, Andrea Waller, "Tuba" Heatherton, Tom and Tammy Parish, Lenny Ciaccio Dennis Struve, Gary Peare, Skip Lackey, Bob Kramer, Tom Dougherty, Joe Wesson, Jeff Darnell, and Peter Pitofsky.

There are two I'm not certain of. One might be Ron Quagiliata or Kelly Tansey, and the other is possibly Tommy Sheeter. 

Joe Dieffenbacher-The Trap

http://joedieffenbacher.com

Obituary of Glenna "Polly" Chase

Thanks to Andrea Lynne Emeigh for the heads up. 

Glenna “Polly” Chase, passed away peacefully Sunday morning, Jan 31, 2021.

In a September 2020 interview with the Daily Sun, Chase said she had seen much in her 95 years, but she never expected to be counted as one of the world’s oldest living little people.

Growing up, Polly said she had wonderful parents, four brothers and two sisters, all of average height and all of whom she outlived.

She said she was never bullied or picked on but admitted having four brothers may have had something to do with it.

She graduated from Corsicana High School in 1944 and worked various jobs around town, as a secretary at Northside Baptist Church, in the offices at Sears, Roebuck and Collin Street Bakery and as a manicurist in a beauty salon.

She did not know any other little people until one fateful day when the circus came to town.

She met her future husband Clayton when he was working as a clown for Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.

“It was love at first sight,” she said.

The couple married in 1948 and there was a story and photo of the front page of the Corsicana Daily Sun.

Clayton got a job at Chance Vought Aircraft and they moved to Dallas for about five years until heart trouble forced him to retire.

They moved back to Corsicana and started Clayton Chase Grocery and Market at 403 S. 20th St.

Polly was a resident at Legacy Rehabilitation and Healthcare and said she enjoyed it there, but could have used a little more room.

She considered her former caregiver and CNA Shawnda Witherspoon as one of her best friends.

Polly and Clayton

Clayton Chase on Ringling 

The Acromaniacs

The comedy acrobatics of the Acromaniacs featured on the very strangely conceptual television show The Slammer in 2006.

Grock: Circus Performance

An excerpt from the film Au Revoir Monsiuer Grock, made in 1950, showing him performing his entreé with his partner, Maïss, in a circus setting.

Kelly Miller: Dead and Alive

Ted "Zippo" Tutwiler and.....maybe "Skippy" (?) performing that old circus clown chestnut, Dead and Alive, in the 1985 Kelly Miller Circus program.

Clown Karandash

Yes, I know this is in Russian......there's plenty of great footage to enjoy.

Clown Karandash, a documentary by Victor Golyvinov is a film dedicated to the outstanding Russian clown Rumyantsev Mikhail Nikolaevich - Karandash. When Karnadash was asked if he was happy with his fate on the arena, he smiled: "Never ask such a question to a man who for forty years I joked at the arena.  Every art form, every artist has his own way of knowing the truth. I chose the funny way."

Ringling: Tooth Fairy Gag

Danise Payne and Gregory Parks rehearsing their Tooth Fairy gag in Winter Quarters for the Blue Unit's 132nd Edition.

Bill Irwin: Tony Awards 1989

Bill Irwin and the cast of Largely New York (which included fellow clown Jeff "Gordoon" Gordon; however, I did not spot him in this video) performing an excerpt on the 1989 Tony Awards broadcast.

The show was nominated for several Tonys, including Best Play and Best Actor for Bill Irwin, and the show won a Drama Desk Award for Unique Theatrical Experience. 

At the end of the video Bill Irwin has a brief exchange with Steve Martin, who he worked with in the film My Blue Heaven, and in a production of Waiting For Godot also starring Robin Williams. 

Ringling Red Unit Girl Clowns 1990

 

The Girl Clown Alley of the second year of Gunther Gebel-Williams' Farewell Tour. Pam Leonard Ramirez, Julia Thudium, Lara Heidtman Smith, Peggy Pozdol Hudert, Sara Lehman Laskey, and Nicole Marsh Portwood.

Foottit et Chocolat: Six Short Films

Six silent short films of the famous French clowning duo, Foottit et Chocolat filmed by the Lumiere brothers. 

Charlie Cairoli Appreciation Society

A BBC interview from 1994 with Charlie's wife, son, and renowned ringmaster, Norman Barrett, discuss the launch of the Charlie Cairoli Appreciation Society. 

Clyde Beatty Clown Alley

 

From the collection of Ralph Pierce. I'm gonna guess this is from the 1970s. Please correct me if I am wrong.

Would love to hear more about John Block and Larry Lawrence, as I haven't heard of them before. 

Tina Aguirre-Groff

 

Tina Aguirre-Groff, photographed by long time Ringling Blue Unit Clown Alley Wardrobe man, Bill Swift.

Tina graduated from Ringling's Clown College in 1995 and toured with both the Red and Blue Units from 1996-1999. This photo was most likely taken in 1997.

After Ringling Tina continued clowning, notably with the Kinoshita Circus in Japan and with a troupe of theater clowns from L.A. who called themselves The Funky Punks. 

Dick Monday and Tiffany Riley: The Laughter League

From the Laughter League Website:

Dick Monday and Tiffany Riley have been life partners and performing partners for the past twenty years, during which time they have headlined at circuses and festivals worldwide including Circus Sarasota, The Big Apple Circus, The Lone Star Circus, Hanneford Circus, Circo Atayde and Ringling Bros., and Barnum & Bailey.

They created the clown troupe, The New York Goofs, Slappy’s Puppet Playhouse, and the Funnyatrics Clown Program. They have now brought all endeavors under the label, Laughter League, which is a non-profit organization. You can currently see Laughter League clowns at Boston Children’s Hospital, Hasbro Children’s Hospital, Cook Children’s Medical Center, Texas Scottish Rite Hospital, and at public schools and libraries across Texas.

They most recently co-produced The Petite Palace, Big Fun in a Tiny Tent on the banks of White Rock Lake in collaboration with the Bath House Cultural Center in Dallas. You can often find them performing Goofballs Cabaret at the Pocket Sandwich Theatre, or you can listen to their podcast, This American Goofball on iTunes. Monday and Riley’s mission is to prove that not only is laughter the best medicine, but that clowns are one of the best ways to inspire laughter and help people’s health improve. 

The Piccolini Trio: Circus in a Trunk

Highlights of the Piccolini Trio's show, Circus In A Trunk, performed by Josh Shack, Joy Powers, and John Stork at the Canal Park Playhouse in New York City in the winter of 2012.

Karen Bell: The Red Skelton Follies

Karen Bell performing at the 2010 Red Skelton Clown School Follies in Vincennes, IN, the birthplace of Red. 

Karen graduated from Ringling Clown College in 1985 and performed for many years with the Ringling Red Unit, as well as a year with the Gold Unit in Japan.

In addition to being a wonderful prop builder, she is also currently the Outreach Education Manager for the Circus Arts Conservatory in Sarasota, FL.

Annie Fratellini: Cirque Medrano

 

Annie Fratellini sitting among the ruins of the Cirque Medrano building in Paris, France in 1972. Both the building (before demolition) and Annie (in a segment about her family) can be seen in the Fellini film, I Clowns, just a couple of years before this photo was taken.

Clown College: The Pigeon

Josh Zehner and Todd Obuchowski perform "The Pigeon" during the graduation performance of the 1997 class of Ringling's Clown College.

Tommy Fossett: Great Yarmouth Hippodrome

I don't have much information on this video aside from it is Tommy Fossett as Professor Grimble. One of my guesses for the location is Blackpool Tower Circus since it is in a building, but I am open to the correct answer. 

The female announcer is his wife, Vera, but I do not know who the whiteface is.

Please help out with any details. You don't know what you don't know. Thanks!

Update from John Cooper: "It's Great Yarmouth Hippodrome rather than Blackpool Tower Circus. This video is from the 1972 summer season, at which Tommy and Vera did their juggling act too."

Circus Vargas: Johnny Peers and Zapata

From the collection of Ralph Pierce. Zapata, Johnny Peers and Stephen Brennan on Circus Vargas in 1974.

Zapata and Johnny Peers met at Ringling Clown College in 1969 and performed together for several years on the Red Unit. Later in the 70s they became a renowned clowning duo on Circus Vargas and Gatti. They were in the midst of their season on Tihany when Zapata passed away way too young.

Yuri Nikulin

The extremely talented artist, Elena Zaïka, has had two of her paintings chosen to be used as celebratory stamps for the Monaco Principality. The first is of the well known Russian clown, Yuri Nikulin.

Born in Demidov in 1921, Yuri Nikulin is Russia's most famous clown. Demobilized in May 1946, with the rank of sergeant and several military decorations, he failed to enter several acting schools. He finally joined Clowns in the Moscow training studio graduating from 1950. He will work there for more than 50 years and from 1982 until his death in 1997 will be the Director of this circus which is named after it today. He also has a film career and offers remarkable performances both in Leonid Ga ddai comedies including Le Bras de Diamond (1969), a film that became cult for generations of Soviet people, and in the dramatic register like When Trees were Big ( 1962) by Andrei Roublev. TV man, he created and hosted the comedy show The White Parrot Club. His natural style, precision of his prestions and sense of timing have made Nikulin an outstanding artist whom some consider to be the best Russian actor of all time.

Clown College Audition 1985

Prospective students for the Ringling Clown College audition for Frosty Little on the Blue Unit in 1985.

Robin Eurich

Many of you that watched the Bozo Show in the late 90s until the show's end in 2001 will remember Robin Eurich, who played Bozo's sidekick, Rusty the Handyman.

Robin has had a long career of acting, clowning, and teaching, but due to recent health problems has fallen on hard times. Joey D'Auria, who played Bozo for the show's final seventeen years has set up a Go Fund Me page to help Robin during these tough times.

If you are able, please make a donation, or share this link on social media to help a man who has brought happiness to so many people. Thank you.

Link: Help Robin Eurich

Happy Lou Year!

Happy New Year from the International Clown Hall of Fame and Pat Cashin's Clown Alley! 

January 1st is not only the start of a new year, it is also the birthday of arguably the most recognized circus clown in the world, Mr. Lou Jacobs.

In honor of Lou's birthday and (hopefully) a much better year, we are proud to share with you some extremely rare photos generously sent to us by Gloria Wilkinson, long time Ringling Blue Unit head of wardrobe and friend of the clowns.

These photos were taken on Lou's birthday in 1990 when the Blue Unit was in Winter Quarters for the 120th Edition (the Flavio Togni show for you non edition-alists). Many thanks to Gloria for these wonderful moments from history, and many thanks to all of you who visit this blog and support the ICHOF.

And in honor of Mr. Jacobs, let there be no spaghetti served on this day!

Lou, Sean Conklin, and Ruthie Chaddock

Mike "Hillbilly" Weakley, Johnny Peers, Frosty Little, Dolly Jacobs, and Lou

Frosty, Dolly, and Lou

Quidam: Toto and Voki

 

From Le Grand Chapiteau: In 2004, with subversive, crazy audience participation numbers, Toto (Guillermo Castineiras) and Voki (Voki Kalfayan) brought a contemporary North American vision of clowning to the show by bringing some of David Shiner's best acts. In the "Film Scene" (as seen in Nouvelle Experience) Voki plays an embittered film director who tries to guide four audience members through a few routines for a shocking scene in his film. The dictatorial director grows increasingly frustrated with his actors’ abilities (or inabilities), and hence the comedy. Another is the re-introduction into what has become a crowd-favorite in "The Car", in which Toto selects a female audience member to go on a drive-date with. {NOTE: Sometimes it's just Voki, sometimes it's just Toto; In 2006, Voki left and and others have played opposite Toto, such as: Ambrose Martos (2006), Eric Davis (2007-2008), and Fabio Esposito (2010) amongst others.}

More Clowns From Ralph Pierce

A couple more program scans from the collection of Ralph Pierce. In the first you can see a white faced Tom Sink, better known as "Popcorn", who performed on mud shows for many years. I know him best from his stint on Kelly Miller. Also a photo of Buck Nolan, long time Clyde Beatty clown, sporting a makeup that's new to me.

The second page.....that's anybody's guess. I'm guessing the pair in the upper left corner are Roberto & Eleazar....just rolls off the tongue.

Any info on any of those clowns (or the show they're on) would be most appreciated!

Additional info from Dan McCallum and Greg DeSanto: Also pictured in the first photo are Walt and Millie Stimax, who in addition to being clowns had a chimp act.

The first photo is most likely from a Hoxie Bros. program.

Jigalov & Morinov: Le Plus Grand Cabaret Du Monde

Andrey Jigalov was born on April 21, 1966 in Chelyabinsk. He grew up on the CHP. From an early age he was engaged in music. At the age of 13 he composed his first song and since then, according to him, he has not parted with the guitar. "The courts still remember my "concerts,"" he said. 

After graduating from the eighth grade of school, he studied at the Chelyabinsk Vocational School, having received a specialty of welder. Then he worked at the Chelyabinsk tractor factory. 

In 1984-1986 he served in the Soviet Army and served in Shuya. In 1987 he entered the GUCEI (State School of Circus and Variety Art by M. Rumyantsev (Pencil). 

He became widely known in 1990, when he played the main role - Kolya - in the tragicomedy of Nikolai Dostal "Cloud-paradise". Thinking of the film "Cloud-paradise", Nikolai Dostal was looking for an actor similar to Yuri Nikulin in his youth. The candidacy of Andrei Jigalov was prompted by actress Alla Kluka. 

In the plot of the film loitering in the yard from idleness Kohl annoys neighbors with stupid conversations. Not finding interlocutors on the street, he goes to his friend Feda. Meet him tired and indifferent. Wanting to attract attention, Kolya says that he is supposedly going to go to a friend - the Far East. This decision finds universal support, Kolya becomes a local hero, all the neighbors participate in his gatherings and wires. Under the dictation of Fedi he writes a statement of dismissal, Valya collects his suitcase, enterprising neighbors buy his furniture. For the decision to leave boring monotonous life Kolya gets respect and even good envy of friends. And when he says that the story of leaving - just a fiction, no one believes him. Kolya is put on the bus, and he leaves his hometown and the people who became his closest for that day. 

According to a survey of film critics and journalists, "Cloud-Paradise" was recognized as the best film of the year, the role of Andrey Jigalov - the best male role. 

For his work in this film, he received the Prize "For breaking the barrier between films for the chosen and cinema for all" at the first film festival "Kinotavr" in 1991. In 1992 he was awarded the Golden Aries Prize. He was also awarded the "Silver Leopard" - a special grand prize of the jury and the second prize of the city of Locarno, the prize of the ecumenical jury, the prize of the youth jury, the prize of the International Confederation of Experimental Cinema in Locarno. He also won the Grand Prix II MFEC (France) and the Special Jury Prize for the Cast of the Young Actors Film Festival in Geneva. Andrey Jigalov in the film "Cloud-paradise" 

In the 1990s he played in several more films - "Body," "The Hermit," "Education of Cruelty in Women and Dogs," "It's Not Serious" and others. He worked as a clown with Eduard Alekseenko at the Center of The Eccentrics of Alexander Jerome. In 1992 he was awarded a gold medal at the prestigious circus festival "Circus of Tomorrow" in Paris. 

In 1993 he left under a circus contract for Germany, where he settled. With his variety-circus "Jigalov-show" performed in the best circuses in Europe. Recognized as one of the best clowns in the world. He received almost all the highest awards in the field of circus arts, including the "Chaplin Cup" at the international competition in Canada. In 2003 he received the highest award of the circus world - "Silver Clown" at the circus festival in Monte Carlo from the hands of Princess Stephanie. 

In 2005, he starred with Nikolai Dostal in the sequel to the film "Cloud-Paradise" - the picture "Kola-roll the field". This is a new story about the same heroes. Once accidentally thrown in front of witnesses phrase forced Kolya to leave his house and her girlfriend. Overcoming the seas and oceans, Kolya returns to his hometown, unaware of the changes that occurred in his absence. For fellow countrymen such a surprise - a complete surprise, splashed out a storm of emotions and escalated into panic, because the arrival of Kohli - the real threat of their measured life. Like ten years ago, Kolya invents a story that turns everything upside down. At the 2005 Window to Europe Film Festival, the film "The Rolling Field" was awarded the Special Jury Prize "Golden Rook". Andrey Jigalov in the film "Kola-roll-up field" 

In 2007, jigalov starred in the joint production of Kazakhstan, Germany, Russia and France "Songs of the Southern Seas." In 2011 he played the role of Vasi Skvortsov in the crime series "Comrades Cops". In 2016, he shot a video "Ranetki" about a Chelyabinsk guy. The text was composed by Yuri Kosintsev, his colleague by profession and countryman. 

Andrey Jigalov lives in Berlin,Germany, and continues to work as a clown. His performance of La Clown on the German NETWORK's GOP variety show for 15 years has been the leader in the number of viewers who have visited it. He performs with the Jigalov and Friends Show in well-known circuses and variety shows - Roncalli, Knie, variete Wintergarten, etc.

Cocotina

A British Pathé film from 1961 entitled Girl Clown showing Valentina Rowland, Nicolai "Coco" Poliakoff's granddaughter, performing as an apprentice clown in the Bertram Mills Circus.

In addition to Coco, Jimmy Scott, Little Billy, and Little Nikki are featured. 

Mike Snider: Mouth Chase

Photo credit: Paul Gutheil

Mike Snider backstage after performing the mouth chase on Vidbel's Olde Tyme Circus in the 1990s.

The mouth chase was first performed by Steve LaPorte and Teri Dryden on Ringling in the 1970s. Since then it has been performed again several times on the Ringling show, Vidbel, Shrine dates, Kelly Miller Circus, and even (for a very brief time) at Cirque D'Hiver Bouglione in Paris!

Clown College: Robin Hood Gag

Brad Leavitt, Matthew Pauli and David Solove performing in the 1991 Clown College graduation.

Clyde Beatty Clown Alley 1980

For the next few days I will be sharing some circus program scans from the collection of Ralph Pierce. First up, the Clyde Beatty Cole Bros. Clown Alley from the 1980 season. I'm 99% sure it's from 1980 because Tony Blanco graduated from Clown College in 1979 and was only on the road for a partial season, or so I've heard.

Jimmy James became Ringmaster that year and John Kennedy Kane aka Eggroll took his spot in the Alley. Not sure why he isn't pictured.

Mark Anthony: Bigger, Bigger

Mark Anthony performing that perennial favorite, "Bigger, Bigger". I'm not sure of the year or show; perhaps Showfolks in Sarasota, FL?

Kelly Miller: Robleigh Majors

 

Robleigh Majors, a 1986 Clown College graduate, on the Kelly Miller Circus in 1987. Boy would I hate having that wardrobe on a mud show!

Spymonkey: Stairs

Stephan Kreiss milking every laugh out of the simple act of going up stairs. This is an excerpt from Spymonkey's production of Moby Dick performed at the Lyric Hammersmith in May 2010.

Spymonkey

Don Saunders

Don Saunders performing in 1960. I would love any more info about him (John Cooper? Bobbo Roberts?) I've heard conflicting reports of him being British and Scottish.

I know he performed on many variety TV shows like Hollywood Palace, Ed Sullivan, and La Piste Aux Étoiles. 

Kellogg's Masks of Famous Clowns

Many thanks to Bobbo Roberts for sharing these masks of clowns who performed on British circuses that could be found on the backs of boxes of Kellogg's Corn Flakes.

If anyone has an extra Enrico Caroli mask lying around, feel free to send it to me. Christmas is coming, after all!

Percy Huxter of Bertram Mills Circus

Fiery Jack of Chipperfield's Circus

Alby Austin (sporing his Caesar Romero Joker mustache) of Bertram Mills

Harty of Billy Smart's New World Circus

Pimpo (Famous for his "Where's My Money?!" gag) of Lord George Sanger's Circus

Enrico Caroli of Les Francescos, from Tom Arnold's Harringay Circus. I wonder if Roseanne Barr was part owner?

Coco of Bertram Mills Circus

Franzen Bros. Circus: Randy Hill

 

Randy Hill, a graduate of the 1987 class of Ringling's Clown College, performing on the Franzen Bros. Circus, most likely in the late 80s.

Monte Carlo: The Wolf Bros.

Ryan and I had the pleasure of sharing the ring with David and Richard Wolf at Cirque D'Hiver Bouglione for the 2018/2019 season.

Here they are performing their table entrée at the 41st International Circus Festival of Monte Carlo in 2017.

Bernie Kallman

 

Long time Clyde Beatty clown Bernie Kallman, photographed on the show sometime in the 1970s.

Ringling: Door In The Floor

I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving weekend! 

To kick things off again, here's Doug Rougeux, Jim Vogelgesang, and Glenn Dwyer performing that perennial favorite, Door In The Floor, on the 115th Edition of Ringling in 1985.

Lucy and Harpo: The Mirror

Lucille Ball and Harpo Marx recreate the mirror routine from the Marx Bros. film Duck Soup on an episode of I Love Lucy in 1955.

Circus World Museum: Mr. Bill and Happy

“Mr. Bill” Machtel and Jimmy Williams, aka “Happy”, perform at Circus World Museum in the summer of 1994.

Ringling: Jim Streit and Sam Drummond

 

Long time pals Jim Streit and Sam Drummond on the Ringling Blue Unit in 1982.