Saturday, October 27, 2007

Beatty-Cole 1960's-70's #12


Beatty-Cole Lucio 7-7-67 015, originally uploaded by bucklesw1.


PHOTO 12 (Beatty-Cole Lucio 7-7-67 015)
The great Lucio Cristiani who, when this was taken in 1967, was still
turning somersaults on his horse at age 57. His jacket, of course,
will soon be taken off, turned around, and be back on him in a comedic
move. Later, when placed on the ground, he'll roll over it and stand
up, jacket on. For a while when Lucio was on Beatty, he called his
act the Riding Franconis. This was the act in which Rex Williams also
performed along with one of the juggling Bisbinis (Joe, I believe).
When the big and beautiful Cristiani Bros. Circus limped back from
Texas after a disastrous end to the 1960 season, Lucio was broke.
John Ringling North was a savior when he booked them for a Ringling
foray into South America the next year. When he returned to the
states, Lucio was hesitant to use the family name on his riding act
(and he and wife Gilda were the only Cristianis in the act) so he
resurrected a famous early Italian circus name (but best known for
establishing the circus in France). In one of many visits with this
warm and wonderful man who always had a twinkle in his eye and a ready
chuckle or wry comment, I remember him telling me, in explaining the
risks of the circus business, that "even money lenders don't take
chances on circuses!" It's always been a tough business but, as Lucio
also explained, for some, "if you handle money in this business, some
of it is bound to stick to you."
Dick Flint
Baltimore

Posted by Buckles at 10/27/2007 04:42:00 AM

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks for a great series of photos and great comments. Good stuff.

27 October, 2007 07:31
Anonymous said...

Yes ;
I also Like the MINI Documentaries ( so to speak ) on ANY given subject that flows nicely -
Keep em commen folks !

27 October, 2007 10:27
Anonymous said...

You notice that Dick began his description of this photo with the words, "The Great Lucio Cristiani." That's the way I will always remember Lucio.

Somebody also once called him the "Nijinsky of the Horse."

Lucio was a good and caring man as well as a great artiste and I enjoyed working for him.

27 October, 2007 15:53
Anonymous said...

The Cristiani family became unfortunate victims in signing the partnership with John Ringling North to tour South America. By agreeing to share and share alike in the costs, they unwittingly fell into the same trap that other circus owners-producers had experienced earlier with the Cristianis. According to Pete Cristiani, who stayed behind in Sarasota while the rest of the family flew south, Ringling Bros. loaded the South American venture with expensive payroll and trappings, dooming it almost from the start. Currency devaluation in at least one country offset any chance the combined show had of turning a profit. The Cristianis returned to Florida in even worse financial straits than when their own circus had limped home the previous season. To my knowledge, Lucio Cristiani never again took out a circus under the family's name. Pete, of course, did subsequently field Wallace Bros. and Wallace Bros.-Cristiani circuses. Pete's brothers and sisters performed on those shows as their own individual performing schedules permitted.

The Cristianis, however, were no strangers to the top-heavy cost structure that robs the bottom line.

Pete told me in a 2000 interview that Cole Bros. in the 1940s found that it could no longer afford the expenses of a family that took up one and a half railway cars and the accompanying salaries.

Lucio Cristiani, who handled the family's financial affairs, signed onto a partnership with Floyd King in 1950. The circus continued to tour as King Bros. until the paper ran out, when the title was changed to King Bros.-Cristiani.
King quickly discovered that it was the Cristianis, and not he, who were making the money, because the family's salary came off the top. King's tenuous situation as general manager was not made any easier when Pete Cristiani and Norma joined King Bros. to run concessions after Dailey Bros. folded in mid-season 1950. After that partnership was dissolved and Floyd took out King Bros. on his own, the Cristianis formed another partnership, this time with Little Bob Stevens. That arrangement--as Bailey Bros.-Cristiani--lasted two seasons, because Stevens found himself in the same predicament as King--he was paying out more in Cristiani salaries and concession royalties than the show was taking in.

Pete said there was good news and bad news about the Cristiani family starting its own circus in 1956. The good news was that family members and their spouses could almost put on the entire performance. The bad news was that each of them wanted a piece of the pie--and not just the cherry pie, in addition to their individual salaries.

None of this detracted from the adulation of circus fans, who considered the Cristianis as one of the greatest equestrian troupes of all times.

27 October, 2007 17:52
Anonymous said...

The inside out coat trick is very similar if not the same as Mark Karoly's bareback act on Royal Hanneford. Does anyone know if Karoly had any training under the Great Lucio Cristiani?

27 October, 2007 23:14
Dick Flint said...

Tommy Hanneford also did the inside out coat move. Lucio, in addition, worked the coat trick when he did the trampoline act with his two boys. I've seen it work in any number of comedy routines and not necessary in the circus.
Dick Flint
Baltimore

28 October, 2007 01:03
Anonymous said...

I remember seeing Mark Karoly with his mother Evy on the Sells & Gray circus in the early 70's before he ever hooked up with Tommy Hanneford. He did all of the bareback work by himself and his mother directed the horse. Even then, you could see he was amazing and he was still a very young man(maybe in his late teens?)! At that time, he did a completely straight act with no comedy whatsoever. Both his mother and her sister had done bareback riding on RBBB, and I would assume that his initial instruction came from his mother. Even when he became Tommy's protege, he did strictly straight bareback with no comedy- the comedy was left to Tommy. It wasn't until Tommy retired that Mark started doing the comedy, and again, I think it is safe to assume that his only comedic teacher was the master, Tommy Hanneford himself. I can still remember Mark's costume from Sells & Gray, lavendar colored tight-like polyester pants with bell bottoms and a dark purple waist sash with a white "pirate's shirt." Not much flash, but his achievements on the back of the horse made up for it! He also did a dressage act in one end ring with Evy doing dressage in the other end ring. It's always such a pleasure to see young performers that you just know will become stars, and Mark Karoly certainly stands out as a great example in my mind! Does anyone remember the Eastern European guy that worked in Tommy's act in the early 1970's (I think he might have been Hungarian?)? I remember seeing him a couple of times around 1972 or so. If my chronology is right, I think Mark took over the straight riding in the act after this guy left, probably around 1974-75? Neil Cockerline

30 October, 2007 16:17
Anonymous said...

The eastern European guy was Peter Hapner or something close to that for the last name. He was with Tommy about 1973-74 as I recall so Neil, we've probably targeted the date fairly well. Anyone know what became of Peter? Good rider but can't remember whether he used a pad or not.
Dick Flint
Baltimore

21 December, 2008 01:01

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