Buckles Blog: Ringling Wardrobe #1 (From Sue Lenz)

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Ringling Wardrobe #1 (From Sue Lenz)

Sue, originally uploaded by bucklesw1.

Hi Buckles:
Johnny Herriott recently mentioned Don Foote the costume designer from RBBBC on another Blog, That reminded me just how brilliant Don Foote was.
Don was a great help to Rudi and I when we changed the theme of our Chimp act every two years while with Ringling.

I thought it might be of interest for your readers to see some of his designs.
Kindest regards.
Sue

35 comments:

Anonymous said...: Thanks, Sue for sharing.; 20 August, 2008 09:26
Anonymous said...: Great Don Foote costumes! Thanks for posting them, Sue.

Don had a real flair for both costumes and his amazing elephant blankets. Would love to see them in the Ringling show today, lit by their now state-of-the-art theatrical lighting. Wow.; 20 August, 2008 09:39
Anonymous said...: I never had the privelege of being part of or even seeing the Ringling quarters in Sarasota, but for fantastic circus activities the Irvin Feld years in the Venice Arena were increditable. Two shows with rehearsals of one and the other. Training ring barn activities never ending all day long, plus outdoor cat training arena also in constant use. The Lawson "center ring restaurant" serving a full brkfst and lunch menu. At lunch time a Who is Who in the restaurant. With Lou, Otto, Gunther, Althoff, Charly, Irvin, Rhodin, Antoinette and clowns showgirls, management, Tito, Dom Matinez, Farfans, Gills and and plus plus. Hugo Axel. Everybody doing their thing. Irvin on top of it all and frequently walking all over seveying this fantastic empire. The dress rehearsals and the "opening nights". I am sure never to be seen again and am sure Sue, Rudy and all the others that were there would be like me in being so grateful to have been part of it. Es indeed those Irvin Feld years were pretty special and exciting. Probably the biggest fan of the Don Foote-Brooks Van Horne era was Irvin himself and how he loved to negotiate for all the props, wardrobe, salaries, etc. He enjoyed and loved being Mr. Head honcho of the GSOE.; 20 August, 2008 10:03
Anonymous said...: I forgot to mention the great individual stars like Vicky Unus, Elvin Bale and others and of course Richard Barstow, Bill Ballentine, Doc Henderson, cHARLIE sMITH, ETC.; 20 August, 2008 10:08
Wade G. Burck said...: John, Jack, and Sue,
Thank you so very much for sharing these priceless sketches, of a brilliant era.
I am so envious that you have these Sue. The one's Don made for me, with my name exactly written where yours is, after they were sent to me, we given to Mr. Cuneo so he could show JoAnn Pinson what needed to be made. I never got the 4 chalk sketches back, after begging, pleading, and groveling, as there was an "assumption" that they were not mine. Even with the name. At this point in my life of all the things I wish I had, those chalk sketches are at the top of the list. Consolation is I have the manila envelope they were sent in, and the letter with Don Footes signature.
Wade Burck; 20 August, 2008 10:42
Wade G. Burck said...: Johnny,
Turning the tiger truck left off of 41 and left on Feld Ave. and left up to the gate will always be etched in my memory as the greatest, most thrilling moment of my life. To have Charly Baumann come out of the guard shack and tell me I had to wait as Gunther was running the elephants in the back lot, and let's go watch him will remain with me forever. Why my chest did not burst with pride I will never know.
Wade Burck; 20 August, 2008 10:50
Mike Naughton said...: Wow...Lenzs' wardrobe and Charley's mirror globes...all in one week. Doesn't get any better than that. Stuff like this makes you want to run away and join the circus.; 20 August, 2008 11:23
Buckles said...: The first time I ever walked into the Venice Quarters as an employee was in October of 1973 and at the security gate I was greeted by Hugo Schmitt chewing out Dick Brown's ass along with a couple of his security guards.
After he had finished with them he turned and yelled, "And vat the Hell do you want!"
All I could think to say was, "I came to take your Job."
Shaking my hand he said, "Ya Biggle, I heard you was coming but I thought you was too smart for that, come I show you around."
He always called me "Biggle" and Smokey Jones "Schmokey Johnson" Mike Rice "Rice Mike" and Slivers Madison "Pinky Schlivers" unaware he had rolled two people into one.; 20 August, 2008 11:24
Wade G. Burck said...: Mike,
Don't pack your pack just yet. There isn't anyplace even close, like that to run to anymore. Similar to ordering a Lamborghini out of a picture book, and taking possession of a Ford.
Wade Burck; 20 August, 2008 12:14
jerry digney said...: the stories are great fun--yes i remember Venice well; spent many winter holidays there in the 70s, working in my office upstairs next to Bill Ballantine's and observing all the comings and goings! Listening to Barstow rant...it was very exciting to see a show come together and having a condo on the beach wasn't bad either--all those characters, mostly gone, made it all a rich, unforgettable experience that's just not around anymore. Of course, there was plenty of stress to go around and we all took our share of heat! And though I haven’t been to Venice in years, I’m sure there are more places to eat and ship than there were back then.; 20 August, 2008 13:42
Anonymous said...: WADE WRONG! I felt the same way when I hung a right off of US41 onto Shirley St. and another Right into Ward Halls winterquarters only to be Greeted by Poobah, Chris and Ward himself!! and By-God there just isnt anything left, quite like it...or even close....; 20 August, 2008 13:44
jerry digney said...: p.s. regarding Don; one of the all time nicest people in show business who had an impossible job and an unbelievable talent--really transformed the look of the circus in a big way...we used to get to see his sketches in NYC in the late Spring early summer...great fun--of course some things never made it into the show as they either didn't work or wouldn't pack; Don would bring down a crew of old school costumers/sewers from New York to help him and Mel (Cabral) out at quarters where they were stashed by the back door for all the last minute fitting and changes. It's true, we had minimal show lighting back then, so Don's costumes never enjoyed the theatrical radiance they would with today's rock 'n roll lighting...Don passed young from kidney failure and is sorely missed as he had a great sense of humor, was fun to be around and socialize with and was very down to earth but wildly gifted with a pen and pad...thankfully, I have a series of his original drawings which are prized!; 20 August, 2008 14:19
Anonymous said...: I had a blast in those days. I was a 1st of May for the 73 Red Show and what fun. We Joeys had to under-dress for spec, entering as Latin American, chickens and quick changing in less than a minute into green aphids.

Why... you might ask? Well we were to climb into giant flower pots and attach ourselves to a web that doubled as a flower stem. The gag was that chain motors would be attached to the flowers and they would 'grow' to 20 feet in front of the audience... and how can you have 20 foot flowers without clown aphids. There was only one thing wrong... nobody had bothered to see if the flower pots would fit on the train... they didn't, and for 2 years we had mysterious clown aphids running around looking for a flower.

Thanks Sue for starting such a nice thread.

PS Let us not forget Don's very able assistant Mel.; 20 August, 2008 14:27
GaryHill said...: Capt that story made me laugh hard! I remember being told that you were coming and I was still tryin to understand whether you went by Bill or Buckles ,and then when Hugo was calling you Biggles I was really confused for the first few days! I was looking at the aireal shots on the mapquest on my computer one evening and was trying to locate the old Circus World site. I also looked the old Winter Quarters site and you can still see the building and rings plus other stuff parked there. The old railroad tracks are gone, so that part is changed, at least from a birdseye (satelite) view. I wonder if google earth would have better views?; 20 August, 2008 14:59
Wade G. Burck said...: Buckles,
Definition of First of May. There is a picture in Websters,under First of May, of me finishing elephant practice at Tarzan Zerbinis place in 1975, and being introduced to Hugo by Andrew Kirby, and turning to Marie Kirby when they left and saying, "he can't be anybody who knows anything, he's just a short bald man!!!!!!!!
Wade Burck; 20 August, 2008 15:29
Anonymous said...: Funny how the term "first of May" has come to mean a circus newcomer. It didn't quite start that way.

It's origins go back to when Ringling opened the season in the Garden and then moved to its first outdoor date -- sometimes Brooklyn.

A train came up from Sarasota about "the first of May" with the canvas, seat wagons and all the other things needed for the under-canvas tour.

And, a huge wave of new hires came on board to deal with moving and setting up the show.

They were called "the First of Mays."

And, that's the rest of the story.; 20 August, 2008 16:06
Henry said...: Buckles mentions the name Dick Brown,who became the Master of security at Winterquartier. We used to call him and his troop the Gestapo. I remember the first year he took the Winterquartier over from Mr.Steele. We where still on the road so we never meet him. We arrived 1 or 2 in the morning after a long trip without a second water stop, I think we closed in Quebec, and Gunther started to water the Elephants and told me to go and get some hay from Winterquartier. So we walked over there an got in through the back door of the Elephant barn. Started up the old Truck and loaded it up with Hay. Here comes this Security guy with Gun drawn and yelling something about to get on the ground. So I told him who we where and what we where doing and he said he does not give a shit. I told him that we where taken the hey no madder what he says and he told me he was going to call his boss and to wait there.
I was not used to having a looked up gate and Guys with guns in Venice and I started to get a bit pissed off. So the guy walked back to his little guard house and I told the guys that came with me to get in to the truck and we drove up to the closed gate.
Here comes my friend the gunslinger and tells me That Dick Brown said nobody takes anything out of Quarters without getting permission from him first and that he does not care if it was Gunther or God. So he left me no choice but to drive through the closed gate. Tuffy Genders was the manager then and he used to call me boy all the time so the next day he comes and I could see that he wasn`t to happy and he said: Boy, you should have run over that guy with the gun as well. From that day on there was no more Guys with guns running around Winterquartier and Dick Brown became the biggest Gunther ass kisser.
By the way, Dick got fired a couple of years later for selling of Don Foote`s creations that where in the costume fund.; 20 August, 2008 17:32
Wade G. Burck said...: Henry,
Great story, although I don't know the individuals. When I went there, years later, you didn't have to ask "who" Gunther was, you just assumed it as you walked in the gate.
And that respect was more then deserving.
Wade Burck; 20 August, 2008 18:22
Roger Smith said...: Dick Brown was available to the Felds after getting fired from the Venice Police Department. Who can tell us why? Most of his staff "retired to Florida" from other police departments after forced departures. Long ago, on this blog, I asked if anyone remembered a Dick Brown staffer named Lou Barton. A still, small "Anonymous" voice replied, "I do," and left it at that. Anyone care to elaborate??Roger Smith; 20 August, 2008 18:29
Anonymous said...: Henry... you GOTTA write a book!

BTW... you can leave me out of it. I worry about the 'statute of limitations' in some of the states we went overland through...; 20 August, 2008 19:01
Anonymous said...: Henry and all,

Yes, about Dick Brown. Several times I came to the Winter Quarters with press people who had flown down from New York. And, was denied entry.

Had a little chat with Mr. Feld the senior about that and, voila!, no more probs.

Will not repeat some of the things Irvin said about the incidents. Suffice to say, it was all smiles and roses from Special Agent Brown ever after.; 20 August, 2008 19:19
Anonymous said...: I dont think anyone who worked there during the Dick Brown years, doesn't have a gestopo story.; 20 August, 2008 21:11
Henry said...: Clown Ron, if I ever write a book you will be in it because you gave me one of the biggest scares in my life.
Once we had this quite turbulent elephant fight between Suzie and Banana and Suzie decided to place Banana on top of my Oldsmobile so the trunk of the car would be permanently shut and flat as a pancake. Our next Town was in Canada so when we got to the border the nice Officer ask me what happen to my car and I replied that a elephant sat on it.
Want to be a smart ass? he replied and made me pull over in one of this booths where the take your car apart and search for undesirable items. The searched us as well and my friend Ron had some undesirable crumbs of a forbidden substance in his shirt pocket and then the search really started and the even managed to open the trunk of the car to find only a chilly bin with some Coors in it. I was really scared and pictured myself already back on the boat to Germany.; 20 August, 2008 21:39
GaryHill said...: Ole Dick Brown sure did run Winter Quarters like he owned it!He always told stories about how the show kept two sets of "books" because the mafia would give them heat in Chicago? Some BS about diving in the river to dodge bullets? All of his security guards were also truck drivers. I remember Lou Barton, Fat Russ, and the other tall guy that had the van with the CB radios, he called it the War Wagon. I remember the red mustang that they rebuilt with Felds money and he gave it to his daughter at a big party in the Arena.; 20 August, 2008 22:38
Anonymous said...: I visited a lot around the Venice quarters in 1973-74 and also remember special agent Brown and the story of his coming from the Venice police dept. But my run-in was not with him. What I really remember was sitting in the Venice arena seats watching Barstow direct a rehearsal. Something got to him and he decided to take it out on me, mike still in hand so he could be heard. I am sure everyone else was relieved they were not the chosen ones and could have cared less about me but at the time glared toward me I sure wished I was much smaller than Prince Paul! Far more pleasant were the times sitting with Prince in the restaurant back of the seats as he reminisced about his favorite specs and the parts he had in them. Does anyone have candid photos of that area or of rehearsals?
Dick Flint
Baltimore; 20 August, 2008 22:45
Anonymous said...: I remember the Barstow 'hissy-fits' well. The one that sticks in my mind was when Zapata showed up for the first day of rehearsal dressed BETTER than Barstow.

After having all of the cast sing 'Getting to Know You' and passing out pieces of plastic bubble wrap (Barstow called it sex paper) and having us pop them in unison he singled out Zap.

Zapata was wearing a cream colored suit and looked fantastic. Barsow then explained to the newcomers in the company that Zap was a master clown excelling in the art of falls. He then had Zapata demonstrate a few falls. Of course the suit would never be the same after rolling around the center ring.

To this day "Getting to Know You" is still stuck in my head, a nasal rendition occasionally hitting the right note...

BTW I think Barstow was wearing his leopard jump-suit that day.; 21 August, 2008 12:17
Anonymous said...: Don's understanding of color and the visual overall picture of each costume he designed was uncanny. His watercolor renderings are true treasures. I'm very proud of the ones I have especially the two from my dear friends Sue and Rudi Lenz. They were tops in the business and changed their theme every two years. This was always exciting to see what Sue and Rudi came up with every other year.
The greats were great, its sad that those days are gone but the memories are forever. I'm so proud I worked with many great people especially Don and Mel; 21 August, 2008 12:24
Anonymous said...: New York Post -- today
Commenting on the out of town previews of an upcoming Broadway opening of SHREK, the less than flattering and BRUTALLY HONEST remark was that the production looked like it was designed by Kenneth Feld, the peddler of middle-brow Disney On Ice...paraphrasing.

So, look what has happened---the Ringling look, once the the gold standard of entertainment --- has sunk to the botton of the barrel.

Time to start sewing sequins, again.; 21 August, 2008 15:47
Harry Kingston said...: Thanks Sue for sharing these great momentos of the past with us.
Sue you and Rudi are in a class by yourselves as great circus performers.
It was my great pleasure to meet you on Ringling and Circus Vargas.
Thanks for memories.
Harry; 21 August, 2008 18:34
Anonymous said...: Thursday's NYPost, Michael Reidel the columnist of Broadway Matinee...comments on SHREK, now in previews prior to its Broadway opening---production looks shabby and way below the accepted/expected standards of the Great White Way. Portions of the article follows-

Chester Gregory, as Donkey, gets laughs, though sources say his costume - a pair of charcoal-gray jeans with hooves - needs work.
Overall, the characters look exactly as they do in the movie. Director Jason Moore ("Avenue Q") hasn't stylized "Shrek" the way the brilliant Julie Taymor did "The Lion King."
One source says the production could have been designed by Kenneth Feld, the peddler of such middlebrow fare as Disney on Ice.
Strap a pair of skates on d'Arcy James, one source says, and "you'd have 'Shrek on Ice.' "; 22 August, 2008 01:56
Anonymous said...: Henry, Didn't you work the leopard act? I was just a teen at the time, so memory a little foggy. Weren't there three cougars in the act at first also? Thanks for the info. Darryl; 22 August, 2008 19:07
Henry said...: Yes Darryl, I worked the Leopard act and took it to Tihany in Brazil at the end of 1982. We had two Pumas in the beginning, a Male and a Female. The girl we took out of the act right in the beginning. Gunther used to do boxing with with the male but we took him out after the first season because he was to spastic.; 22 August, 2008 23:18
Anonymous said...: Thanks for the info Henry. How long did you stay on Tihany with the act?; 25 August, 2008 20:54
Henry said...: Darryl, I was with Tihany for about one and a half years until he closed the show in Brazil. I only worked the act for part of that time because Tihany did not liked all the props involved. I worked the Elephant act after the trainer split and did dressage Horses together with Caroly Donnert and the magic with the cats.; 26 August, 2008 01:34
Anonymous said...: Let's not forget Jerry Freis! (sp?)

Adaline; 26 August, 2008 17:49

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Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Ringling Wardrobe #1 (From Sue Lenz)

35 comments:

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