Thursday, October 14, 2010

1954 RBBB Mailer #7


1954 RBBB Mailer-7, originally uploaded by bucklesw1.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

The photograph of the tiger trainer used here is not Trevor Bale, but rather it is Rudolph Mathis, who was brought in to replace Roman Proske who left the show for dates with Polack Bros. in 1948. This became a stock photo since it didn't show anyone's face, but it definitely is Mathis.
Neil Cockerline
Minneapolis, MN

Roger Smith said...

Good call, NEIL: It's Mathies, sometimes spelled as you did, sometimes with two "t's", but it's him.

A question arose about Proske--did he ever travel with a tent show in this country, or just the Garden dates, and building shows thereafter?

You can see Proske very briefly on YouTube, under 1940s Coney Island Wild Animal Act. He is unnamed in this short clip, doing a dancing routine with his feature tiger, Judith.