Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Lee Keener (From Jim Cole)


scan0427, originally uploaded by bucklesw1.

Taken on the Hubert Castle show in Utica, NY 1965.

Posted by Buckles at 8/22/2007 11:59:00 AM

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

One of the names I remember from my earliest days as a clown. I hate it when people I know/knew die. Seems to happen more often, the older I get . . .

22 August, 2007 12:20
Anonymous said...

Is the first one tommy?

David

22 August, 2007 16:58
Buckles said...

Yes it is.

22 August, 2007 17:06
Anonymous said...

Sorry to hear the news of Lee Keeners passing...The man with steel eyes..The last time I saw Lee was three or four winters ago by accident at Wally World on Cattlemen in Sarasota..He was working as the Greeter..Our eyes met about the same time...He did a double take on me and I the same...We cut up a few jackpots and I went on my way..His daughter was working their also..Back in 1983 or 84 I put the money together for the DAIRY MART CIRCUS for the Morgantown, WV Fair..I approached Jim Hetzer, Huntington, WV and Kathy Hetzer to Produce..One act, I wanted was Tony Diano's Elephants..Jim secured the act with Lee in charge..Will the day came for Lee to pull in from Canton, OH. with Diano's elephants...I though I had died and gone to heaven..Thank You Lee and Jim Hetzer for making the DAIRY MART CIRCUS a success. Now, Jim and Lee and can produce some fantastic shows on the BIG LOT...

Thank you Lee for those memories. Great picture of Lee from Jim Cole.

23 August, 2007 07:53
Anonymous said...

Not born in the circus, Lee was a young elephant hand on Mills Bros living in wtrqtrs. with the elephants on a dirt floor barn where he had a cot right beside the elephants and had to dig ditches around them for the urine to run off and keep the stove fired up for warmth. No coal, just scrounge for woode around the fairgrounds qrters. No shavings or straw, all for the princely sum of five dollars a week plus cookhouse. Inspite of all of this he wased his clothes and was always neatly turned out with boots and shoes shined and on the road took excellent care of the elephants, dept. etc. Ky was seldom around the elephants as he was also trans. boss and repair man-builder.

Lee carried that same neat work ethic in his years with the Diano operation and Tommy. The nicely painted Diano trucks and Lees operation were a credit to the Bus. Unfortunately his Ringling time was difficult as others had designs on Tommy and made it difficult for Lee as has been the case with others in that org.

Neverthless, Lee was a credit to our business and one of us. He liked to cut it up with a few beers after the work was done. Don't most of us. But he was always there and ready, elephants clean, headpieces polished and shining, he welltuyrned out as well and no problems with his elephants. I knew him pretty well over those years and can only say Farewell old buddy, you did your thing. My sympathy to the family.

The newspaper today has an obituary and there will be a Mem. service on Saturday at 2 PM at Brown and Son Funeral home and crematorium here in Bradenton.

23 August, 2007 09:36
Anonymous said...

I worked the Texas dates a number of times with Lee and the Diano Five, back in the day's of big acts and five rings. As great as everyone's act was, you couldn't help but pause for a moment, and watch as Lee and Tommy entered the ring. No amount of begging, pleading, threatining, or pay off was going to get John Cuneo the center ring, when Sheriff Keener and the Diano posse road into town
Wade Burck

23 August, 2007 10:11
Buckles said...

In 1986 I had three of my elephants in Baraboo for the summer and one day I was informed (in strict secrecy of course)that Feld had bought the 5 Diano elephants and they would be stashed at the Museum.
Sure enough before long, they arrived and were placed along side our elephants under the wagon shed so they could be viewed by the public.
Lee was uncomfortable with this arrangement and the next morning asked that the horse drawn water wagon be excluded from wetting down around our area, so he must have known something.
Later he took "Tommy" to Canada to make a TV Movie about Barnum (Burt Lancaster played the part) He asked me to keep an eye on the other four while he was away, which I did, They were no problem.
After he returned "Tommy" started bulling, all that testosterone running down face plus extending himself most of the time.
On a calm, humid morning he was the first thing you smelled when you stepped out of your trailer door.
When the Ringling creative people arrived to measure him for his Spec blanket, I recall several of the ladies wearing masks. He was pretty ripe.

23 August, 2007 11:46
Anonymous said...

Johnny, I know first hand how difficult Lee's time was with Ringling. I think we all had "those" difficult times. I alway's consoled myself by concluding that it was usually some pretty qualified people who wanted my stuff. In another organization, heartbreaking is someone having "design's" on your work, and their only qualification is that they are "cute and charming". Wade Burck

23 August, 2007 12:51

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