In answer to your question, Barbara and my parents had known each other over the years as most circus people do however she and I first met on the Texas Shrine dates in 1958 while she was in the process of her divorce from Rex Williams.
The following winter she came in Hugo, Oklahoma with an Oldsmobile, a house trailer, a six year old son named Ben, a big black Poodle named Robert and a Chimpanzee named Tommy that despised me.
After our marriage, we started trying to figure out how the Miller-Woodcock elephant act was going to support this arrangement but it wasn't long before the Finance Company solved most of our problems by re-possessing the car and trailer so we all to moved into the front of the elephant truck as seen above.
Next came the heart wrenching decision between either me or the Chimp and I barely won out when he was reluctantly sold to Helen Haag.
And on this start we headed off into a fifty year marriage.
Years later after telling this story to Gary Jacobson and Ted Svertesky they started ragging Ben by saying, "Looks more like they sold the boy and kept the Chimp!"
I've often thought this would have made a good TV Series.
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Monday, July 27, 2015
To Chic Silber
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15 comments:
You two: perfect together! Now sit down and WRITE YOUR BOOK! PUT ME DOWN FOR 2 COPIES, AUTOGRAPHED OF COURSE.
I just have to add a few little things to keep the record straight. First Rex had agreed to pay child support. This had nothing to do with Buckles, it was before he entered the picture. My Mother had given me a car and a trailer. But Rex didn't like them so he traded them off, thus payments. So he said in the divorce papers that he would make payments on said car and trailer for child support. I told him that when they were paid off he would owe no more child support. Well first they repossessed the car. So I called the trailer and took over the payments on it. I was so mad at Rex for not keeping his word that I told Buckles I wanted to report him for no child support. Buckles told Col. And Col. said yes we took his car, his trailer, his dog, his chimp, his son. "NOW LETS PUT THE SON-OF-A-BITCH- IN JAIL". I cracked up on that. Col. was such a wise man. (But before all that Rex had said it would make it easier to make child support, if he had the chimp, "Tommy Williams" so I had given him Tommy Williams.) Tommy was jealous of Buckles. He was like my other son. Buckles and I made payments on the trailer and had not been late, I had all the receipts. We had about six months to go to have it paid for, and they repoed it. The Sheriff was very nice, but in those days they could get away with that sort of thing. We had moved into the compartment when they took the car, as nothing to pull the trailer with. But I was used to that. The Woodcock Performing Elephants paid me a small salary which I saved to invest in new props ( the W tubs ) New costumes, new music, Merle Evans, did our music. He was a friend of Col. I thought you all might get a kick out of my dear father in law. He was fantastic to me. PS Rex never did pay child support. But Buckles said he knew I had a son when we got married, so he was his son. He was adopting Ben here in Ruskin, and we paid the lawyer. But the lawyer took the money and left town. And we just never got around to it again. I sat down to add a few notes and again I have written a book. Rex was a great guy, just not for me to be married to. I was married to him for 11 very long years.....Barbara.....
Thanks Barbara as we are all
products of our back stories
I consider us among many of
the lucky ones aside from
our few terrible losses
Bless you all
Paul the book is here in all
the past stories among years
of "Buckles Blog" comments
You just need to add them up
(maybe not all of them)
Those 11 years Barbara were
more than repaid with all
your joys and pride of Ben
May he rest in peace
At long last we now have the rest of the story! Many thanks for sharing.
Well! Getting back to Arthur Bros.........
I don't quite know how to say this. But I told the story up above not out of bitterness, just the opposite. I am very proud of ALL of my past hard knocks. I do not see them as that. I see them as my learning process. Rex & I ended up being the best of friends. Buckles always took Ben to visit Rex when we were going to our dates. And my son was my life. I married young, not because I had to. I was married one year and four months before I had my first child, whom I lost when I was sixteen. She was ten months old. That was very hard to take. My children made up for my loss. The years with Rex were NOT wasted. I always continued studying, I loved school. I taught Ben home school. When he went into public school in the first grade, he was doing second grade work. He ended up with five scholarships, which he didn't want to use. He told me he knew what he wanted to do and didn't have the time to waste going to collage. He was president of the National Honor Society in high school. I am very proud of my early years. And if I sounded bitter, I just did not express myself well. I just wanted to tell the story of our beginning, I thought it was funny. ( at first I didn't. ) But my father-in-law was so funny, I thought. And I wanted to share that with my friends. I was on my own from 12 years on, I made my own living. I am very proud of that. NOTHING WAS GIVEN TO ME. Except love from my mother, and the love for animals & training she taught me for animals. I married young, that was the way it was done back then. I would not change any part of my life. I feel it just made me stronger. And we all know Buckles has spoiled me rotten all of our married life. I really had a fairy tale career. I did just what I dreamed of doing from the time I was five years old. How lucky is that?.....Barbara....
Great Story!!
Thank you so much for sharing, Ms. Barbara. I've seen for some time how much you and Buckles love each other, and compliment each others personalities so well. As a couple you are an example of what it's all about, Family, Marriage and Kids.
Buckles, if you want to do something with a book, I might have someone in Parrish that can help you with it, and a possible publisher here in Orlando.
I think the book would be great.
Wonderful words Barbara. Thank you. I am going to make sure that my boys read your story. It will help them to appreciate life in all its ups and downs. To you and Buckles please be well.
Thank to both of you for sharing these JackPot's. I treasure our friendship we have . You have always been good to the Gibbs Family !!!
First class storytelling in this history, Barbara. You are gifted as a writer, and I join those encouraging your working on a book. I remember when we all first met, on James Bros., in '69, and the guys standing around listening to the stories Buckles told, all begged him to write a book. Another who should have done so, and could have, was Parley Baer. I was there when Mack MacDonald urged him to. Some of these writing dreams are gone now, but yours holds the promise of welcome and anticipation. Look at the earnest response from just this much today.
I think a book written by Buckles and Barbara and also a book written by Chic would be big sellers. There are plenty of people that would be ghost writers for you. If nothing else, getting you recollections put on video tape.
Barbara & Buckles have a much
greater array of stories to tell
They have been asked countless
times before but I wouldn't bet
folding money on publication
I actually started a feeble
attempt 19 years ago & created
a title & a short prologue
Within a few weeks I added
7 more pages & have continued
to delude myself to finish it
Thanks Bob
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