Irina Bugrimova #1 (From Henry Penndorf)

Thank you for posting the pictures of Roman Proske. You don't see or hear much about him. Proske's biography, "Lions. Tigers and Me", was the first book that I read on the life of a wild animal trainer.I believe that the tiger trainer that both Todd P. and Larry Allen Dean referred to was the Russian Nikolai Pavlenko. I actually saw him perform when the Moscow State Circus, in the days of the Soviet Union, made a tour of the United States. Pavlenko's tiger presentation was elegant, effortless and pure class. He presented a group of seventeen Sumatran Tigers and only used an orchestra conductor's baton to direct them. Pavlenko said he preferred the Sumatran Tiger over the Siberian Tiger because the Sumatran Tiger "is most like the! people of Caucasus, lively and temperamental". If memory serves, you can see Pavlenko preform on either a PBS or National Geographic video about tigers.I was surprised that there were no comments for the picture you posted of Irina Bugrimova. She was a star of the highest magnitude and a legend of the Russian (Soviet) Circus. Ms. Bugrimova was a remarkable woman and had a long and illustrious career in the circus. Growing up she was very athletic. At seventeen, she was a speed skating champion, She also studied ballet and even assisted her father, a veterinarian, in operations. At nineteen she joined the circus as bareback rider, and soon was a member of trapeze act. Ms. Bugrimova also worked as a stunt woman in Russian films. She learned to train wild animals under the guidance of Boris Eder and Nikolai Gladilshchikov. In 1939 she became the first woman animal trainer in Russian Circus ! history. Her career as animal trainer spanned over thirty-five y ears. She retired from performing in 1976. Her retirement from the ring did not end her life with the circus. Ms Bugrimova was Director of the Grand Moscow Circus, Chairperson of the Council of Circus Veterans, and a member of the Russian Society of Animal Care. Mix in two husbands and an intrigue involving diamonds and the KGB and her life's story rivals that of Mabel Stark. She has been called an innovator. She was dedicated to "creating more thrilling acts, but never accentuates the perils of her act". Ms. Bugrimova has been credited with teaching a lion to walk on an inclined tightrope, and at different times teaching lions to ride on horseback and on a motorcycles. She even trained lions to take pieces of meat from her mouth. Her act usually consisted of twelve lions. The signature part of her act was to take a lion high above the arena floor on a swing. In paying tribute to Ms. Bugrimova, Boris Eder, who is re! garded as the greatest animal trainer in Russian Circus history, and arguably one of the great trainers of all time, said that "she combines feminine grace, with a man's strength and courage. Her lions, as she presents them are really kings of beasts". It is unfortunate that due to the times, performers like Ms. Bugrimova and Boris Eder were hidden behind the Iron Curtain.I have attached two pictures of Ms. Bugrimova and a very colorful Russian Circus poster of her. I found the pictures on a Russian web site. The poster is from 1950. I had my cousin, who is fluent in Russian translate the poster for me. Basically, the poster says...Circus...Female Lion Tamer...Irina Buslajew. It is a great poster .The pictures that you posted of lions riding on horseback under the names Alexander and Tamara Bulasjew have me curious if there is a connection to Ms. Bugrimova. Her first husband was named Aleksandr Buslayev.! After their divorce, Buslayev continued with a lion act with h is second wife. Since Ms. Bugrimova trained lions to ride on horseback and the names are very close, I wondered if he is one and the same. I saw in the comments posted for that picture, that Larry Allen Dean had some interest in the Bulayevs. Perhaps some of your European readers have more information about a possible connection between Ms. Bugrimova and Aleksandr Bulayev. Does your book, "Raubtere Im Circus", have any listings and pictures for the Russians trainers Sarwat Begbudi, Stepan Denisov, Boris Eder, or Nikolai Gladilshchikov? How about a Czechoslovakian lion trainer named Sandor Kolmos? I am not sure of the spelling of Kolmos. I only know of Boris Eder, and Nokolai Gladilshchikov by reputation. I did see both Sarwat Begbudi and Stepan Denisov perform when they toured the United States with the Moscow State Circus. I saw Sandor Kolmos on a NBC Television Special, "Circus Lions, Tigers And Melissas, Too". ! I remember him carrying a lion on his shoulders.The pictures that you post from the book "Raubtere Im Circus" get faint and pixelated when I click on them to enlarge them. Do you know if I can do anything to restore their clarity? I was happy to see that you posted a picture of yourself, Barbara, and Anna May. You don't do that enough. It was long overdue. You have to do it some more.I have a question about Circus Vern. Who, or what is Circus Vern? I have seen the name mentioned as a source of circus information a number of times. Is it a web site? Does Circus Vern have a Blog?Is there any more news on the new Kelly-Miller Circus? Controversy in Buffalo, New York...The Common Council of Buffalo has been listening to tales of animal abuse from Archele Hundley, a former employee of "the nation's largest touring circus". Two councilmen, Joseph Golombek, J! r and Dominic Bonifacio, Jr., seem interested in introducing legislati on that would prohibit elephants from appearing in circuses that perform in Buffalo. After listening to both sides, the Buffalo lawmakers don't know who to believe. So far no legislation has been filed about a proposed ban. Committee Chairman Richard A. Fontana looking for guidance has been quoted as saying, "if elephants could only talk".Do you, or perhaps Mr. Cole, have any pictures of Daniel Raffo or Flavio Togni's cage acts when they were with Ringling Brothers? Also any pictures of Flavio Togni's mixed act of a rhino, and a black leopard? When Flavio Togni first came to Ringling Brothers I thought they were grooming him to be the new "Gunther". Flavio's versatility was very similar to Gunther's. In his edition, Flavio presented horses, elephants, tigers and his rhino and leopard act. Ringling Brothers ad campaign that year hyped Flavio as "The Sensation Of A New Generation".I enjoy y! our Blog. It starts my day.Henry