Saturday, September 09, 2006

Gene Holter Animals #2


These two were big buddies. I think the elephant's name was "Lisa" and she would follow this hippo everywhere she could. She was later sold to Ralph Helfer and for years took part in the usual West Coast activities.

Posted by Buckles at 9/09/2006 06:25:00 AM

4 comments:

Buckles said...

The title on this picture was "Lisa Hermann" and my first thought was that a horse act label had been misplaced.
I have since received an eMail from Mr. Styles saying:
"Hermann was the hippo and was totally imprinted on "Lisa". They did several movies/TV shows together. Interestingly Hermann didn't like other elephants and every now and then he would charge them trying to bite them. He had a scar over one eye received when he went after good old Babe and she sent him flying."

09 September, 2006 09:22
Anonymous said...

SEEING THIS PHOTO REMINDS ME OF ONE OF THE FIRST FAIRS THAT MY BROTHER AND I PLAYED WITH A NOVELTY STAND, MCCONELLSBURG,PA.
THIS WAS BACK IN THE MID-70'S. WE HAD FINISHED WORKING LATE ONE EVENING AND WERE SITTING OUT UNDER OUR AWNING HAVING SOME LIQUID REFRESHMENT WHEN WE HEARD SOME YELLING AND SCREAMING. COME TO FIND OUT GENE HOLTER'S MOVIELAND ANIMALS WERE PLAYING THE GRANDSTAND THE NEXT DAY AND HERMAN AND LISA HAD DECIDED TO GO FOR A STROLL. NEEDLESS TO SAY THERE WERE SOME SHOOK UP CARNYS AROUND!

09 September, 2006 10:46
Anonymous said...

In one or two of the Jos.Schlitz Circus Parades in Milwaukee which was a predecessor of The Great Circus Parade there was a hippo that walked the entire parade route.I beleieve it was from Gene Holter and must have been "Hermann".

09 September, 2006 16:04
Anonymous said...

Richard Reynolds says - -

Yes, Holter's hippo together with elephants and some chimps were in at least the 1967 Milwaukee parade. I have movies of it.

The Diano hippo was also there and rode in that same procession in the ex-Cole Bros bay-window hippo wagon (It originated on Buchanan's Robbins show). So, two hippos in the '67 parade. The Holter hippo walked the entire parade route with the eleephants. They may have also paraded in some of the other Milwaukee processions.

I have never heard of another hippo appearing in a circus parade as "lead stock."

Several times Holter staged publicity stunts where his hippo would seemingly get away, once going for a swim in the Pacific. I assume they were staged getaways.

10 September, 2006 16:41

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