Saturday, June 03, 2017

#1 Steel Arena


7 comments:

Chic Silber said...


That's a whole mess of fur

Running them in & getting

them seated must have been

half of the routine

Buckles said...

I remember Cap Jacobs telling my father that this was only done in the Garden and his Cage Man would yell what cat was coming in and where it was seated.

4pawfan said...

If you will notice that the information on the bottom of the photo looks like a Edward J Kelty photo, but his business like the photo on his business card was "Gone in the Wind" in 1939.
( Kelty's business card was a knock off of Margaret Mitchell's 1936 book)

This photo was taken by the famous theatrical photographer James J Kriegsmann when he was about thirty years old. He was not know for his circus photos, but there are a few early photos he did of the Wallendas in their early years.

Most of Kriegsmann's photos are studio work and bet he was surprised to get a call to take this photo of Jacobs in MSG.

p.j.holmes

Harry Kingston said...

Did the MSG have a dirt floor as stakes were driven to hold the cage up?????
I would have though it was a concrete being in New York.

Chic Silber said...


The "old" Garden (#3) Harry

between 49th & 50th Streets

had a concrete floor from

at least the early 60s if not

always (would be my guess)

Both Gardens have (or had)

threaded inserts for bolted

ring plates to tie to & many

were added as needed

Roger Smith said...

The man called the cats' names for Jacobs, since before long the cage was so full, he couldn't tell who was coming in. This man was "Haywire", among those we have all known who is essential to the act on the outside. John Ringling North was appalled that Haywire went out there barefoot and in bib overalls, and demanded of Jacobs that he put the guy in uniform. Jacobs replied uniforms didn't fit his man, and without him there would be no act. Haywire continued as before, and RBB got the next Big Act since Beatty left in '34. Judy Jacobs told me her father carried 55 cats that season of 1939, and worked between 35 and 52, allowing for the variables of the steel arena.

This cage is the largest on record in this country. They expanded the ring curb to accommodate the 50-foot arena.

Mr.Lee said...

Thanks for the info Roger !