Sunday, February 23, 2014

To Bob Cline


8 comments:

Bob Cline said...

Thanks Buckles.
Bob

Chic Silber said...


Thanks Barbara & Buckles for a

great afternoon yesterday

Chic Silber said...


I'm told that "Peggy" who is

either 56 or 58 is still with

Scott up in Arkansas along with

"Amy" at 27

Chic Silber said...


I'm also told that "Shirley"

from Oscar & Carin is alive at

70 in a park somewhere

Ryan Easley said...

Pete Cristiani bought Helen and Susie from the St. Louis Zoo in August 1960. They were two of the eight purchased in 1955 by the zoo from Louis Goebel to be trained by Floyd Smith. Jim Alexander has discussed this arrangement many times.

A 1960 Billboard article states Pete had bought three from the St. Louis Zoo and three more from Henry Trefflich - six altogether for his new 1961 show with the leased name Wallace Bros. Circus. Tigers and chimps were also acquired from the zoo, as well as lions from the former Terrel Jacobs act.

Buckles, do you know any more about this Helen ? I cannot find any information about the third elephants supposedly purchased from St. Louis, nor three from Trefflich.

Buckles said...

The elephants I heave listed for Cristiani-Wallace in 1961 are "Lois", "Sheba", "Suzie", "Kate" and "Norma" (not to be confused with Beatty-Cole Norma).
Helen" is a an unusual name for an elephant, I only have two listed Rhoda Royal had one and Beatty-Cole the other.

Ryan Easley said...

Thank you.

Ole Whitey said...

Buckles:

This goes so far back it may have been handed down by Moses.

Stuart Thayer (Jan-Feb 1987 BW) told of a "Helen McGregor" who was imported September 1831 from India. She hurt her shoulder once on board and once on the road and didn't last long.

She joined J B Green & Co Menagerie the fall she arrived and in 1832 was with Brown & Green Circus and Menagerie (a most colorful show) dying in September 1832 after a mere year here.

The important thing is that she was (as of Thayer's research at that time) the first elephant ever to appear with a circus.

Stuart assumed she was named after a steamer of that name that blew up on the Mississippi in 1830.