Marcel Peters (From Maarten de Jong)

Marcel Peters, originally uploaded by bucklesw1. Dear mr. Woodcock, First my compliments for your very interesting blog. What a very rich history of American circus you are presenting. With this mail I'll try to contribute a little bit from 'the old world' answering a question I read in August. (I have tried that before, but as I was - and am - not familiar with all the possibilities on a blogspot) I failed, I guess. But now that someone provided me with your emailadress, this is another attempt. The question concerned the relationship between the trainers Marco, Marcel and Jason Peters. Short: Marcel and Jason Peters are father and son. Marco Peters is not related. Could n't be, because Marco Peters is his real name and Marcel Peters' passport shows the name Marcel Peter Hodge. To make it a bit complicated: Marco Peters is a very good friend of the Hodge-family. As a circus-minded journalist (retired now) I have followed their adventures from somewhere in the seventies on. Marco is the son of a Dutch tv-producer, Hans Peters. Circus was (and is) his passion. No wonder Marco started his career as a pupil of the German wild-animaltrainer Dieter Farrell, and his brother Philip became a catcher in the flying act of Luciano Jarz. More or less hilarious (and tragic at the same time) was the way they got to the wheel. An American artist (I forgot his name) stored his equipment in the Ahoy' Sports Arena in Rotterdam after a Christmascircus a little bit too long, giving the boys the opportunity to secretly study the construction and take measures. The story goes that they did do that so secretly, that they measured it by using their arm. From fist to elbow is about 40 centimeters, is n't it? Marco built his first single wheel himself in Holland, practising in the backgarden. He was working it in Hong Kong at Gerry Cottle's where Marcel Peters was working Dicky Chipperfield's polar bears. Coincidence? Not completely. I remember Marcel calling me. He wanted to make contact with Marco because Gerry Cottle want to have the wheelact for Hong Kong, but he did n't know where he was. I did: In a Dutch amusementpark, trying out the wheel-act. So Marco got his first contract with the wheel. Then something tragic happend. In Portugal Luciano Jarz met with an accident and Philip Peters joined his brother Marco in Hong Kong. There the idea for the double wheel got real. And yes, the first double wheel ever was built in Ocean Park, Hong Kong. On the carpark. It must have been 1982 or 1983. And they all were welding: Marco from the wheel, Philip with no job and Marcel from the polar bears. What followed for Marco and Philip was a season in Italy, a season at Krone and after that came Ringling. And what happened over there with the two brothers (in the cage and in the air) you know better than I do. Marcel Peters (63 next month) is English. Left home as a boy, starting his career in the stables of the Billy Smart Circus. He has done so much and worked so many wild animals that I lost the chronological order. Polar bears, tigers, lions, elephants. South-Africa, the Netherlands, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malasia, Australia and finally Spain, where he lives now. After his appearance on the 4th Ciscusfestival of Monte Carlo in 1977 with Boltini's lions, het left for Australia to join the Ashton Circus. Years later he returned to England and was with Gerry Cottle. When Cottle sold his elephants to the Spanish Circus Mundial, Marcel went too. And there - finally - he was able to fulfill his dream: bought a 'hacienda' where he could train his own lions and tigers. And - how lucky can you be as a father - Jason followed in Marcel's track. As a presenter ánd as a trainer. At the moment Jason is working the lionact at Circus Americano (Faggioni) in Spain and will go to the February-program in the Krone-building in Munich. And more acts are available. The German Rita Labahn, who was educated at the Spanish farm, worked for several years with a group of tigers. As a matter of fact the sign 'presenters wanted' is always up at the Spanish Peters' farm. I know all these Peters' usually are joking around a bit when it goes about their relationship (no better publicity than a bit of mystery) but this is the truth. As is the fact that Marcel Peters will stay at ours for a few days next week (visiting ciircusses and collegues in the Netherlands and Belgium) and that Marco and Kathy Peters will spend Christmastime in Spain. Guess where they will stay. And yes, father Hans Peters will come too. Well mr. Woodcock, I hope you will find this contribution interesting enough to publish. You have inspired me to dig up this box with old - and less old - circuspictures I gathered during my working life. It's one, big unorganized mess. But may be, there are some that might be interesting for you and for the visitors of your blog. Regards, Maarten de Jong