| To quote Gloria Swanson in SUNSET BOULEVARD, "They don't make faces like this anymore!" |
Thursday, April 10, 2008
"Circus Fanfare" #4
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27 comments:
This is John Carroll, from Carson and Barnes Circus.
"We pride ourselves in tales of yore, too bad we can't remember how many times we told these stories before", so I'll tell it again!
We were on Vargas with Rex for two years and every other week he would say, I wonder what ever happened to "One arm Paul", or "Bad Eyed Nick", or "Kansas City Mike", or "Hole In The Head Whitey", of course "Hog Jaw" was still around then, and has anyone seen "Head Down Harry" lately?
Tony Steele says the trouble with the circus now is, there are no more characters left.
John Carroll was another of the great unique personalities that made our lives a "CIRCUS"
Ted Svertesky and Gary Thomas had a unique method of communication.
A message of a phone call from Humphrey Bogart meant one thing or an impending call from Claude Rains meant something else. Better than paying for phone calls.
Once Charly Baumann came out to the elephant tent and told Ted, "You got a message, Low Down Harry died!"
Dirty John, could he work those elephants.
I can hear him yelling now, come on Barbara or come on Kay.
But he was there when D. R. Miller needed him in or out of the mud.
Yes, the real characters of the circus are mostly gone.
And what a face as he circus.
If I am not mistaken the money he had saved up went to starting showmans rest in Hugo?????
Where have all the characters gone.
Harry
In the early '70's....My Brother and I would rise early...to help set up shows visiting our fine city...Then Sells & Gray arrived...While walking the lot...A fellow came up and said..you guys want to make some Money? ..We said sure because we only had recieved Free passes before....The Fellow lead us to a Bull truck and instructed us to "Clean it out"...After We finnished....The Fellow said "You Guys like that work" Not bad we replied...He said GOOD, we will be in Escanaba Mi. tomorrow Be there! as he flipped us each a quarter!!...in 1982 I travelled to the Sun Dome in Phoenix to work props for Big John Strong's indoor Circus....While setting up..Texas Annie pulled in with the Donnie Johnson Bulls...This Fellow walked across the stage....I stopped him (I never forgot his Face) and relayed the story I just told..He replied..GOOD, I'll have the bulls out in a 1/2 Hr.. as he flipped me a quarter!!!....I Declined...But I found out his name.....It was Head Down Harry!!!......Jim Zajicek
jim - what year was that? i know sells and gray played escanaba in 1965- i received my draft notice in duluth a few days later. bill english would have laughed - but he'd have given you some money and chewed out whoever it was. he was always adamant about treating people fairly. if it were that year, we had a new elephant man at that time who didn't last long enough for me to learn his name. on behalf of bill, if this was the year, i apologize. that was my last year on the road, so if it were later, i don't know who it might have been. if it were that year, bill, or paul hudson, our seperintendent, would have offered you a full-time job. (admittedly, with the emphasis on full-time)
Henry...It was '73 or '74 and actually they went to Antigo Wi Next......Sells & Gray and King Bros used to alternate playing Wausau every year....Hoxie came 1 year also..(The year Mud Show was written) I used to see Carson & Barnes in Merrill...saw CBCB there once also....those were the days.........Jim Zajicek
Henry or Jim,
Who was the little short fellow like with no neck on King Bros. or Sells and Gray. Could this be Froggy?????
He wore I think thick glasses also.
It has been so long I do not remember.
Carson and Barnes had Ya Ya the electrician and all I ever heard him say was Ya Ya and always real dirty.
We already in a past blog entry brought up Congo. We talked a many a time on the Dailey Bros. railroad show.
Eddie Kuhnaman, on Carson and Barnes many years ago filled me in on Sky Queen aka Sky King.
Any characters on Hoxie Bros. as it never came Texas way and i only got to see it one time.
How about Dutch Crawford who was on Carson and Barnes and many more.
Great days of the circus.
Harry
jim - that was way after my time. i don't even know who was on sells and gray then but i believe willie story was manager. i knew this didn't sound like the kind of thing bill would have tolerated, but basically the bill english crew left, i think, in either 1967 or 68 so it was a completely different show, when bill was running sells and gray and bobby snowden was running king, there was no sharing of route. even though they were owned by the corporation, they, along with beatty cole, were operated completely independently.
harry - again i think this was after my association with sells and gray. i don't remember anybody like that, though i never knew most of the working men because i was always at least a week ahead of the show.
Harry...remember Stash on Hoxie? I was on Hoxie a brief time in '81...Stash was the Boss canvasman...he had a ballcap with sewing needles stuck in it..and embroidering on the front said "Stash, NOT Snatch".....Jim Zajicek
Harry Kingston,
Talk about great days. You have become what is now called a character.
Wade Burck
Henry, I found out from Gary Thomas years later that Ted had the Elephants that year, one of the few years Head-down was'nt with Gary......
Harry & Henry
I miss all the Characters...My all-time favorite is "Hog-Jaw" as Bob Kellogg told me..(Which I can verify, by takin Hoggie to eat many occasions) "You can take Hog-Jaw anywhere.....ONCE!".......Jim Zajicek
Harry Kingston,
When you mentioned "Froggy", the short fellow with thick glasses, I remembered like it was yesterday, a short conversation I had with him on CBCB in 1978 shortly after he managed to burn down the cookhouse truck. He was chuckling with his usual "Huh, huh" laugh as he described carrying a tall gas cylinder with a bear hug grip near the truck when he tripped and fell over with it, the valve broke off and the escaping gas ignited from his ever-present dangling cigarette, blowing the bottle one way and him several yards in the opposite direction. He said if he hadn't been so close to the bottle, the explosion would've made him shredded-froggie. Glad he survived. What a character! Is he still around?
I remember the BOOOOOM! and saw the fireball. I learned that year just how fast aluminum can disappear in a fire. We ate big-macs for a few days until a replacement cookhouse truck was brought up.
On RBBB in 1976, there was a fellow named Back-Door Jack who ruled the back door that season. Does anyone know of him, that can tell any background or stories about him?
He came across as gruff, but underneath seemed an alright fellow.
Mark Lavender
talking about charecters buckles had 2 one was Faoul Raul and the other one is Clean Raul cleanraul
While I was setting thev Paul Kaye Show into Kansa City one year, Paul came to me & told me Texas Annie was going to do Rings in the "Little Aerial" number, & where to hang her rigging. I went over to the spot, & there on the floor was a set of rings, no hang cables, falls, guy lines or blocks, no crane bar, no web or pull up, just two ropes with hooks on one end & rings on the other.
Annie was a "sweetheart", she is here with Dime & Connie you know.
Wade Burk,
On characters if I am one I pass the tourch on to you.
Have you thought of starting your own circus blog with all your experiences to share with us. I know we would enjoy them.
buckles on elephants and you on cats.
I was talking to Billy Barton at a show one time and he said quick there was no great days at the circus was why was he still there???
Mark, your froggy story is a real classic and great to hear about it.
Jim Z, I only got to see Hoxie Bros. one time and had to drive to Gulfport, Miss. to see it so i never heard of Stash, but enjoyed hearing about it.
Another real character not mentioned on here the legendary, Bobby Gibbs.
I friend of mine went to eat with him and he started with spinning his stories and out came the loud cuss words and my friend said he wished he could have hid under the table.
As some of you can see on this blog I love the circus what is left of it. Sure it is not all good but we have to make the best out of what we have.
As a fan i help where i can and I just got Carson and Barnes a free lot here in town.
I helped Cliff Vargas get new poles for his circus and they were made here in town.
I am on my soap box now as Barbara Byrd contacted me to help her get Al. G. Kelly and Miller Bros posters and early Carson and Barnes posters for them.
I had an add on Verns site and all across these United States only 4 people responded to it. This really hurt me as only 4 fans tried to help. Now when the fans come to CB with there hands out for free tickets they usually get in. Right is right and wrong is wrong.
When CB played Beaumont I had my circus stuff to GIVE Barbara.
Go see a circus.
Harry
I take that back about blowing. Rosie would up and blow just when you needed her. For no reason.
Rosie (James Stank) had worked for everyone and would tell stories about "Slithers" Madison, Steve "Flanigan" and Bert "Pencil".
johnny: you are so right, most of them were always there when you needed them, asking nothing in return. I remember years ago when many an act took a working man home with them in the winter.
Does anyone know what became of "Laughing John" Campbell? I think the last I saw him was at CWM with Buckles.
Harry Kingston,
regarding that Froggie story, Nini told me she saw Froggie, apparently right after the explosion, walking from the backyard where the cookhouse truck was, up to the front end. She said he was a sight! He looked like a Warner Bros. cartoon character after an explosion: soot blackened face, eyebrows singed off (he still had his glasses on - looked like a racoon mask), hair blown straight back and standing up, and his soot-blackened big gut sticking out of a scorched circle where the front of his T-shirt used to be.
She asked him, "What HAPPENED to YOU?!", He replied, "Huh, Huh.. I just blew up a propane tank!" and continued on his way.
Mark,
You have made my weekend as what a priceless story on Froggy.
The way you described what he looked like and i am still laughing.
Hell I wish someone had a photo of him after that as that ought to have been a real sight to see.
Mark, thanks again for this.
Like Col. John said you have to have them as they did not blow and was there when you needed them year after year.
Harry
I remember talking with a bullhand on the Sells and Gray show when they played Grawn, Michigan back in the early seventies. He said his first name was Bob (I don't remember his last name), but his nickname was "Dirty Neck". The State Police showed up on the lot with information that he had had a death in the family and gave him a ride to the bus station in Traverse City so he could go home for the funeral.
Robert Dale Cline from Bowling Green, Ohio.
James C. Hall had told me about a elephantman on Hunt.....Then a few years ago I had Jim Hand paint me some signs....when I picked them up..they said (4)"Do not pet or Feed, Exibit Animals"..The 5th said "Keep your @#$% hands off the %^$#@ animals @#$^#%!their @!#$% animals" I asked Mr. Hand "what the HELL is this??? He explained it was the "Roy Bush" version....needless to say I gave the sign to Jimmy...Jim Zajicek
Talk about another character is Little Bobby Cline on Beatty Cole Bucckles since you brought up Robert Dale Cline.
Harry
Buckles,
Did you ever run into a bull hand by the name of Ray Karczewski? There was a man by that name listed in one of the RBBB route books in the early fifties. My route books are in storage, so I can't be more explicit with the date. He would be no relation to me as far as I know.
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