Col. Tim McCoy (From Eric Beheim)

1935%20RBBB%20Program, originally uploaded by bucklesw1. During Ringling-Barnum’s 1935, ’36, and ’37 tours, the aftershow featured Col. Tim McCoy and his Wild West troupe. (“Colonel” was not an honorary title. McCoy had attained that rank while serving in the U.S. Army during World War I. He also served in World War II.) In his autobiography TIM MCCOY REMEMBERS THE WEST, he devotes an entire chapter to relating his experiences while touring with the GSOE. According to McCoy, he was first approached by acting circus boss Sam Gumpertz in 1934. Since McCoy was then under contract to make Westerns for Columbia Pictures, he tried to work out an arrangement whereby he could tour with the circus from April to November and then return to Hollywood to make his films during the winter months. Columbia studio bosses, however, nixed the idea, and the offer from Gumpertz had to be turned down. In 1935, McCoy signed a new contract with Puritan Pictures that allowed him to tour with Ringling.