Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Eddie Allen #1


Scan10859, originally uploaded by bucklesw1.

Cole Bros. Circus 1935, Eddie Allen and "Safari"

EDDIE ALLEN
1924 John Robinson Circus (elephant hand)
1933 101 Ranch
1934 Ranch Elephants (Leased to Barnett Bros.)
1935-38 Cole Bros. Circus
1943-44 Ringling-Barnum Circus

Mr. Allen was the most self promoting elephant man I ever heard of.
After leaving the Ringling Show in mid-season of 1944 he went on to become Business Manager for Gene Autry.
John Herriott remembers him as a Union Representative at the Chicago Stadium in the 1950's and by the time Parley Baer introduced me to him in 1966 he was a Hollywood Executive and owned an island estate off the coast of California.

Posted by Buckles at 10/28/2008 02:59:00 PM

1 comments:

Anonymous said...

I've never had the history of Eddie Allen's ascent to better things this far removed from circus. The Business Manager role for Gene Autry was a major step up, as Autry became among the wealthiest of Hollywood luminaries, easily equaling Bob Hope, Bing Crosby and William Boyd. His studio post was at MGM, I understand, but how he got the connection remains shrouded in mystery, at least for me. Perchance other historians can relate this chapter for us. He and Parley Baer partnered in a land purchase in Lancaster, California, years before the city began to boom, and long before Edwards Air Force Base became prominent in the space shuttle program. One or both of them must have had some keen insight for the times.

29 October, 2008 16:43

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