| My mother also collected a lot of memorabilia much of which she enhanced by coloring pictures by hand, for better or for worse. Her choices varied from Emmet Kelly to John Wilkes Booth. I enjoy looking at this sort of stuff. |
Monday, February 11, 2008
Assorted Ringling pictures #1
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7 comments:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/coney/peopleevents/pande02.html
Click and paste for the PBS mini-bio of Samuel Gumpertz, most interesting.
Very interesting, but they omit a discussion the period we are all most familiar with (except for giving the wrong year he came to the Big Show).
Someone needs to write an accurate biography of Gumpertz. There's a lot to his story that's never been said. His pre-1932 relationship with John Ringling especially needs scrutinized. He's aggrandized as a major guy at Coney Island's Dreamland, but at least one period report by an insider declares him to be little more than a flunky for Senator Reynolds, who owned the place.
There might be something to that.
I once asked Mr. Concello how it felt to be manager of the Greatest Show on Earth while still in his 20's and he replied, "Nothing to it. Each department head was the best in the business. The show ran itself!"
Mike, thanks for pbs link.
Whatever Gumpertz's original relationship with Reynolds before the original Dreamland fire, by the time he was close with John Ringling in the '20's he was President of Coney Island Amusements, owned hotels on Coney Island and in Florida and wasn't just a "yes man." He seemed to have access to credit in the early '30's so many successful businessmen did not.
anonymous,
I'll bet Mr. Gumpertz is relieved you did't find that "gem" while he was alive. I'll also bet he's peeved at his publicity department.
Wade Burck
He was a great friend of John Ringling before 1920 and induced John To come to Sarasota in winter to live as he preceeded John in being there. Seems with his showbiz knowledge and knowing Ringling operations that he was the perfect guy for the bankers to go to during this financial crisis and did indeed keep it afloat for those years and turned it back to Ringling when bank was satisfied. Quite a guy. Those are referred to as the Gumpertz years. Just a thumb nail scetch from a novice historian and am sure those knowledgable historians can disect the whole story.
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