Had a nice chat with Jackie today regarding our late friend Jimmy James and during the course of the conversation he mentioned that a lady clown student that he had instructed put a Blog Site together for him, jackieleclaire.com. |
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
Jackie LeClaire
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The photo of me in the "Fat Suit", that my dad created, was taken for a PR photo for the Aut Swendson Auto Thirll Show for the 1953 season. We were playing the Dayton, Ohio Shrine Date and it was taken in a near by barn. The standing clown is Glen Sunberry (spelling?) and Earl Shiply did not want to put on make up, so he just held his head down. Gosh, what memories it brings back to me. Jackie Le Claire
If I'm not mistaken, I think that Glen was with RBBB in the mid-to-late 60's. I always remember him crossing his eyes and I'm STILL not sure if it was an act or not! ~frank
Glen "Kinko" Sunberry was on Ringling in the mid to late 60's, just till about the time the Felds bought in. He was a contortion clown, had a little "Squat Car", like Lou Jacobs, and was an albino. Photo's of him in make-up towards the end of his career show him wearing glasses, and his vision was so poor I've been told he would have to led on and off the floor during the blackouts.
Great photo Jackie!
-Greg DeSanto
Mark Anthony used to make sure Kinko got from the building to the train. One night Mark stopped to talk with someone and Kinko started off down the track, in the wrong direction, until Mark caught up and brought him back. To make extra money, Kinko would fasten little gold safety pins to leashes the bug man sold with his "bugs". With his poor vision, I never undrstood how he could do that but he did.
John Herriott told me that with the Gil Gray Show a group of performers would sometimes set up a card table outside after the show at night and play a few hands of poker.
Kinko's vision was so bad he had to hold the cards inches from his face.
Before long his wife Mary would yell. "Kinko! the water's off!" and he would then walk around feeling on the ground for the hose and then follow it back to the trailer and turn the spigot on.
After the game had resumed the instigator Jimmy Reynolds would appear watch for a while then go over and turn the water off again and the process would repeat itself.
On another occasion we were making the Orin Davenport dates in Western Canada. The highways were so bad the elephants, horses and camels had to travel by baggage car.
Kinko had a dog that came out of the trunk of his little clown car but due these long jumps, Mary decided stay behind in a trailer park and kept the dog.
My dad said that Kinko needed a dog and told me to put my tramp dog Charlie in the car since they were about the same size.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, direct from Disneyland! The one and only KINKO!"
The car made it just inside the doorway, hit a bump, the trunk door flew open, Charlie stepped down, walked over to me and sat down.
The car continued down the track and into the ring, followed by other clowns who would actually direct him.
After Kinko's exit from the car Col. Thomas would ask "Kinko, what do you have in the back of the car?" accompanied by much arm waving and pointing by the other clowns he reached in and of course came up empty. I could hear someone yelling, "Get ahold of the son of a bitch and drag him out!"
Later I heard Chuck Marine tell my dad, "I never heard Orin laugh so hard. I thought he was going to fall out of his chair!"
Kinko was among Clyde Beatty's closest friends, and also befriended Beatty's son, especially back in the Fort Lauderdale days of the Clyde Beatty Jungle Zoo.
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