Monday, November 27, 2006

Gunther Gebel Williams (From Sue Lenz)

 Posted by Picasa

Posted by Buckles at 11/27/2006 06:23:00 AM

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

When I commented somewhere recently on three giants of small stature I inadvertantly forgot two more, namely Gunther Gebel and Willy Storey.

27 November, 2006 09:14
Anonymous said...

from Eric:

The first season that Gunther’s leopards-panthers-pumas display was presented, the Felds introduced it by borrowed a page from Siegfried & Roy’s book: while the band played the very dramatic "Benediction of the Daggers" from Meyerbeer’s opera "Les Huguenots," Gunther entered the big cage (still empty of cats) and bounded gracefully up onto a high pedestal. A curtain was lowered that completely hid him from view. After a brief interval, it was raised to reveal Gunther with the leopard “Kenny” draped around his neck. Amid cheers and gasps of astonishment from the audience, the music built to a rousing climax. Then, on a whistle cue, the band segued into Sousa’s "Nobles of the Mystic Shrine March" as the act itself got underway.

At the end of the act, when Gunther exited the big cage with the leopard once again draped around his neck, the music that accompanied this final bit of business was "Cotton Bowl Fanfare."

27 November, 2006 11:59
Anonymous said...

I remember picking up 'Blackie' from a breeder in Roubadoux (sp?), CA. Henry Schroer was sent to pick out a good black leopard from a litter of 4. Two came up to Henry's hand for a rub, one just stared at him, and 'Blackie' hissed and spit and tried to claw Henry. "This is the one," said Henry and we took him back to Gunther. I asked Henry why he picked the meanest little bastard from the litter, and what he had against Gunter. Henry's answer was simple and to the point. "All of those other cats would sleep through the act... this one has 'personality'."

Blackie went on to become the star of the act.

27 November, 2006 13:42
Anonymous said...

Actually with all the time spent in getting the animals, props, Hours spent in training on the road and the space it took up on the train the act was a disaster. With all the prodding and slinking around the floor it just wasn't Gunther's style and he admitted to me that he had made a mistake in training as he had never trained small cats before. He was very pleased to turn the act over to Henry and the Felds were pleased to sell it down to Mexico. I do not recall any pumas in the act but I could be wrong. Dickie the untrained Giraffe was also a snafu, but then you can't win them all. I will say that he salvaged the leopard that he carried out of the cage and it would always remain as his signature milk run at the end of his tiger act.

28 November, 2006 10:49

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)