YESTERDAY'S TOWNS

HOWDY, MY NAME IS BILL STRONG, I'LL BE YOUR "24 HOUR MAN", ROUTING YOU INTO THE PAST TO SEE WHAT THE CIRCUS WAS IN DAYS GONE BY. IF YOU'RE LIKE ME, AND MISS WHAT IT USED TO BE, THEN COME ON ALONG AS WE GO DOWN THE ROAD FOLLOWING THE ARROWS BACKWARDS, TO "YESTERDAY'S TOWNS"! IF YOU HAVE CIRCUS RELATED PICTURES YOU WOULD LIKE POSTED, SEND THEM TO,,,,yesterday1@verizon.net,,,,AND WE WILL TRY TO FIT THEM IN. "24 HOUR MAN" WILL HAVE THE FINAL DECISION ON POSTING.

My Photo
Name:
Location: GIBSONTON, FLORIDA, United States

Three years at CWM made me a real traditionalist, and I keep remembering Bob Parkinson saying, "I want the people to see what the circus used to be, not what it is today. That's what this site is about!

Saturday, February 28, 2009

IN MEMORY:HENRY A. HAMID

HAMID, HENRY A.
January 11, 2009
HAMID--Henry A.,beloved husband of Carolyn Hamid, passed away on December 26, 2008 from ventricular fibrillation. Mr. Hamid retired from Wellington Associates in 1972 where he served as a General Manager of a chain of 24 hotels located throughout the United States, including the St. Regis, Gotham & McAlpin and Stanhope Hotels in New York City. Mr. Hamid was CEO of National Sugar Corporation and was on the Board of Directors of the NYC Hotel Association. He was also a real estate investor and management consultant. Early in his career, Mr. Hamid was General Manager of GAC Corp., a National Theatrical Management Agency which owns the Hamid-Morton Circus and was instrumental in booking the Beatles in the early 1960s in Convention Hall in Atlantic City. The family also owned the Steel Pier in Atlantic City. Mr. Hamid was the son of Ameen A. Hamid who performed in Buffalo Bills Wild West Shows in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Mr. Hamid was 81 years old and a graduate of Blair Academy and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute with a BS in Electrical Engineering. He is survived by his wife Carolyn Hamid, daughters Debra Hamid-Zygmunt and Pamela Sutherland, and three grandchildren, Alanna, Caroline and Henry Sutherland.

STAINLESS STEEL 1936 FORD

A little change of pace here, I've been looking at all the cars in the old Circus Programs in the store so I thought I'd see if there was anything interesting in the garage. I found this parked in between my Tucker, & my '41 Chrysler Thunderbolt, and thought you might like it.





The 1936 Stainless Steel Ford
This is one of the 1936 Stainless Steel Fords built for Allegheny Ludlum
Steel. It was shown at our open house and then was featured in a local
parade with over 100 of our salaried, hourly and retired employees walking
alongside it. This is one of only four in existence and is the only one
currently running and roadworthy. The car is in exceptional condition, with
the interior and even the frame looking great.

Each of the four surviving 1936 stainless steel vehicles built by Ford for
Allegheny Ludlum Steel had over 200,000 miles on them before they were
removed from service. These cars were built for Allegheny as promotional
and marketing projects. The top salesmen each year were given the honor
of being able to drive them for one year. The V-8 engine (max 85 hp) ran
like a sewing machine and was surprisingly smooth and quiet. I thought this
was a much better looking automobile than the Ford Thunderbird.


FYI, the car was insured (we were told) for the trip to Louisville via covered
trailer for 1.5 million dollars. We were also told that the dies were ruined by
stamping the stainless car parts, making these the last of these cars ever
produced.

Friday, February 27, 2009

ROUTE BOOK: BARNUM & BAILEY CIRCUS, GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH, 1903 & '04

This is one of many great old route books from the collection of the late E.C. "Buster" Bailey, I really wish I could have scanned more pages but sometimes the risk of damaging the book was too great. They contained not only the route, a day by day diary of events of the whole tour, and the program & photos of the acts, plus many interesting stories.

BARNUM & BAILEY '03 & '04: #2: BACK FROM THE STREET PARADE

BARNUM & BAILEY '03 & '04 #3: CONCESSIONS

BALLOON & WHIP PEDDLERS


NOVELTY JOINT

BARNUM & BAILEY '03 & '04 #4:TICKETS

BARNUM & BAILEY '03 & '04 #5: INSIDE THE BIG TOP

READY FOR "DOORS"

BARNUM & BAILEY '03 & '04 #6: BICYCLE ACT

THE UGO ANCILOTTI TROUPE
It is an interesting statement about Ugo, perhaps someone can elaborate on it.

BARNUM & BAILEY '03 & '04 #7: HEAD BALANCING TRAPEZE ARTIST

FRANK SMITH

BARNUM & BAILEY '03 & '04 #8: BAREBACK RIDERS

THE LEDGETTS

BARNUM & BAILEY '03 & '04 #9: BAREBACK RIDING ON A MULE????

ALBERT CRANDALL

BARNUM & BAILEY, '03 & '04 #10: SLIVERS OAKLEY

A great Clown, who came to a sad ending,,,,but then that's a whole nother story.

For Slivers' story go to Pat Cashin's CLOWN ALLEY, http://clownalley.blogspot.com, type SLIVERS OAKLEY into the search bar at the top of the blog, it is probably the best history you will find of Slivers.

BARNUM & BAILEY '03 & '04, #11: THE FORTY HORSE HITCH, COMMIN' & GOIN'

The top photo is dated 1903, but is not from this route book, I just thought it would be interesting to have both views.


Wednesday, February 25, 2009

BARNUM & BAILEY GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH PROGRAM AND BOOK OF WONDERS 1903

BOOK OF WONDERS #2: THE LOT LAYOUT

BOOK OF WONDERS #3: THE ELEPHANTS

BOOK OF WONDERS #4: MUSIC BOX

THE MYRIOPHONE

BOOK OF WONDERS #5: LITTLE PEOPLE

THE HOVART FAMILY

BOOK OF WONDERS #6: LION FACED BOY

LIONEL

BOOK OF WONDERS #7: LEGLESS ACROBAT

ELI BOWEN

BOOK OF WONDERS #8: FAT LADY

BEAUTIFUL MARIE

BOOK OF WONDERS #9: MISSING LINK

KRAO

BOOK OF WONDERS #10: GIANT LADY

MISS LEAH MAY EIGHT FEET THREE & ONE HALF INCHES

Saturday, February 21, 2009

WHO WAS MISS MARA????

I recieved an email asking this question from a reader who had seen the entrance photo in a post about feathers on Buckles Blog. According to photo #4 she was on Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus from 1950 through 1955.








PRESENTING THE LOVELY, AND TALENTED, MISS MARA

SCRAPBOOK SNAPSHOTS:IMPROMPTU REUNION 1927


HAPPY BIRTHDAY GAYLORD,,,,WE MISS YOU BUDDY!

FEBRUARY 21, 1938----OCTOBER 6, 2007

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

JOANNE WITH "CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG" IN SAN ANTONIO

The Dog Blog:
http://blogs.mysanantonio.com/weblogs/dogblog/2009/02/chitty-chitty-bang-bang.html

SApaws producer Julie Ruff writes about her Lab-mix Missy, volunteering and adoption. She reviews products, tries recipes and keeps tabs on local news of the canine variety. Guest blogger Jason Olivarri and his Lab Sassy will also chime in from time to time.

Rescued dogs shine in 'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang'
By Julie Ruff on Feb 15, 2009 6:26 PM

When I spoke to Joanne Wilson, she was riding shotgun next to her husband on their way to Texarkana from Little Rock. From there, it would be about another 200 miles to Gainesville. No need to check a map. She talks as though she's made this trip a hundred times. And her 12 furry passengers, she explained, are just as used to the road.
Broadway Across America is bringing "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" to San Antonio this week, and Joanne is responsible for making sure the eight dogs in the cast are ready for every show in every town on the tour. So Joanne really is the queen of the road. And her dogs are the most loyal subjects you could imagine.

From the streets to the stage, these canine stars have come a long way.

(Photo courtesy Joanne Wilson)
Joanne with her newest dog, Lucky.
The other road warriors with Joanne and her husband are some of their dogs from home — her "old men" who she'd never leave home without. If these dogs were human, Joanne said, you'd find them each in a rocking chair with a cigarette in their hands.

"They can't perform, but they're always with me. They're my babies," she said.

Joanne started this tour with one more dog, a Chihuahua she rescued — something she and her sister Trudy Strong are in the habit of doing as you'll find out. A man with the show in another city fell in love with the little dog, and after seeing a veterinarian, Joanne let her go to her forever home.

Rescuing dogs is why Joanne is on the road and working all the time. It's the only way she can afford to feed, vaccinate and sterilize all the dogs that end up on her doorstep and the ones she finds hungry in the street with no one to claim them.

Joanne has 45 dogs back home she has to think about. Trudy, who also knows a thing or two about training and performing, takes care of them while Joanne is on the road.

"It's not easy. How could I say no when I have the room? It's the money I don't have," Joanne said. "That's why I'm out here working."

Sometimes the dogs she finds are just lost and need help getting back home. Joanne is happy to lend a hand. If she can't find their owners, they take up residence with her until she can find them a good home. And sometimes, if a dog shows interest in learning and performing, he may become part of the show.

(Photo by Ian Ibbetson)
Samantha as "Edison," (from left) Camille Mancuso as "Jemima Potts," Steve Wilson as "Caractacus Potts," and Zachary Carter Sayle as "Jeremy Potts" in "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang."

People often bring dogs to Joanne, knowing her reputation for taking in unwanted dogs. Buddy, a rat terrier, was one such dog. He now knows how to run the weave polls on his back legs, but his previous owners didn't want him because they said he "wouldn't mind." Buddy was scared and tried to bite any time Joanne got near his collar. But she showed Buddy she wasn't going to hurt him, and soon he was learning a new trick every day.

"He was so eager to please. He was learning tricks so fast, I was running out of things to teach him," Joanne said.

Buddy is currently on the "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" tour and is one of Joanne's greatest performers. She and Trudy have been training animals for more than 30 years. And "Chitty" isn't Joanne's only canine gig. Go to her Web site to see the different acts and some of her other doggie stars.

So what's Joanne's training secret?

"It's consistency, and I'm with them all the time. They trust me and would probably do whatever I asked them to," she said.

But the toughest part, Joanne said, is not the training or the performing. It's all the driving. And when you're working with dogs, you have to be committed to a schedule. Joanne and her gang know theirs well. It includes six stops a day. And each dog gets bathed once a week to look their best for the show.

But it's worth it, Joanne said, to see them on the day of the show. Everyone is laying around all day, but the minute she stands up for the show, the dogs jump up, ready to go. They can't wait to get inside and on stage and will pull Joanne the whole way there. The whirlwind entrance is punctuated with happy barks and wagging tails.

"They get so excited. I get tickled every time I see them," Joanne said.



'Chitty' dogs are audience favorites
By Julie Ruff
Feb 19, 2009 2:31 PM |
I went to see "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" at the Majestic Theatre, and having never seen the movie or anything before, I didn't know what to expect. I definitely was not disappointed.
Joanne Wilson's dogs, who I wrote about a few days ago, were delightful and adorable. The audience oohed and ahhed whenever they made an appearance. The dogs stole the scene a few times.
Samantha, who plays the Potts' dog Edison, received a large applause at the end. Don't tell the human actors, but I think it was greater than what some of them received.

Joanne says Samantha's breed is anyone's guess. She was left at a veterinarian's office as a young pup. Joanne could tell she was going to be big and wasn't sure she wanted another big dog. But she knew she couldn't leave her there. Audiences are glad she didn't. Samantha is about 8 and a half years old now, which was surprising to me because she bounds across the stage like a young pup. You can probably see the joy on her face from the back row.
By the end of the show, all the smaller dogs had eaten their dinner and were tucked away. I met Joanne at her truck out back and was happy to see Samantha was still out. (I really wanted to pet "Edison.") Some of her fans happened by, and Samantha was happy to let them scratch her back.
It's a fun show, so I definitely recommend it. The kids are cute, and the "bad guys" are very funny. It runs through Sunday, and you can get tickets at the Majestic Box Office and other Ticketmaster outlets or through charge-by-phone at (210) 224-9600.
(Photo of Samantha courtesy Joanne Wilson, wilsondogs.com)
-- Julie J. Ruff/mySA.com
E-mail me: jruff@mysanantonio.com
Follow me on Twitter: twitter.com/SApaws

Monday, February 16, 2009

THE CRISTIANI FAMILY: THE MOVIE

I know many of you have seen this over & over, but I don't think it is not worth seeing again. For those who haven't seen it, you will find it a very enjoyable trip into "CIRCUS PAST".


Posted on "you tube" by Mateocristiani1.

Sunday, February 15, 2009

WITH THE CIRCUS: RINGLING BROS., WORLDS GREATEST SHOWS,,,,1895-'96


WITH IT #2 : UNLOADING THE TRAIN

THE POLE WAGON

WITH IT #3 : HAMMER GANG

"READY TO DRIVE THE STAKE"I count 9 guys.

WITH IT #4: LACING THE TOP

"RUNNING A LACING"

WITH IT #5: RAISING THE QUARTER POLES

"PUTTING UP THE QUARTER POLES WITH HORSES"

WITH IT #6: THE SHOW GROUNDS & MIDWAY

"THE SHOW GROUNDS & TENTS"

"TYPICAL RINGLING CROWD"