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.

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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!

Sunday, May 24, 2009

~HOW HIGH IS YOUR RIGGING?~

GIL GRAY GAVE US OUR FIRST JOB WITH "THE PHAROAHS" CRADLE ACT, WE HAD BEEN ON THE SHOW TWO YEARS WITH TRUDY DOING HER SINGLE TRAP & THE FLYING ACT, AS WELL AS THE ROLLING GLOBE ACT WITH HER SISTERS, SO WHEN WE DECIDED TO DO THE CRADLE WE HOPED HE WOULD GIVE US THE CHANCE.
DOING BUSINESS WITH HIM WAS ALWAYS AN INTERESTING EXPERIENCE, HE WAS NOTORIOUSLY "HARD OF HEARING", OR SO IT SEEMED, AT OPPORTUNE TIMES IN THE CONVERSATION, THE HAND WOULD GO BEHIND HIS EAR & HE WOULD SAY, "EH". HE ALSO SEEMED TO KNOW JUST WHEN YOUU WERE GOING TO TALK MONEY, & WOULD SUDDENLY NOTICE A SCRATCH ON ONE OF THE FLOATS, OR SOME OTHER DIVERSION. WHEN WE FINALLY GOT THE DEAL SET & I TURNED TO WALK AWAY, HE ASKED, "HOW HIGH IS YOUR OUTDOOR RIGGING?", I REPLIED "48 FEET", HE THEN SAID, "PUT 12 FOOT FLAG POLES ON IT & TELL 'EM IT'S 60 FEET".
NOW FAR BE IT FOR SHOW PEOPLE TO EXAGERATE ANYTHING IN ADVERTISING THEIR ACT BUT TRUE OR NOT HERE ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF "TELL 'EM IT'S 60 FEET", STARTING WITH OLD TIME "SWAY POLE" ACTS.


D'LONRA~75 FEET



HARRY FROEBESS~75 FEETHARRY'S POLE WAS UNIQUE IN IT'S TIME, IT WAS 75 FEET HIGH WITH ONE SET OF GUY LINES AT 20 FEET, THUS HAVING A LONGER MORE GRACEFUL SWAYING MOVEMENT MUCH LIKE THE POLES OF TODAY.



APRIL FOSSETT~110 FEET



THE SENSATIONAL MARIONS~120 FEET




COL. MARVIN SEABRIGHT~148 FEET THIS IS COL. MARVIN SEABRIGHT WORKING ON THE POLE THAT FORMERLY BELONGED TO BEN MUTON,(sp?), ON THE GIL GRAY CIRCUS MARVIN GENERALLY WORKED AT 105 FEET, BUT HE & BEN BOTH TOLD ME WITH ALL THE SECTIONS THE TOTAL HEIGHT WAS 148 FEET.

WHEN BEN DID THE ACT HE CLOSED WITH A HIGH DIVE INTO A TANK, SURROUNDED BY, "SHARP" SPEARS. HE WAS AN OLD LOUISIANA CAJUN, & I MET HIM IN 1957, WHEN WE WORKED IN PONCHERTRTAINE PARK IN NEW ORLEANS, AT THAT TIME HE WAS TAKING CARE OF THE SWIMMING POOL. HE HAD ONE OF THE OLD TOP PEICES OF HIS OLD POLE MOUNTED IN THE GROUND & WAS STILL ABLE TO PRESS A ONE HAND STAND

THE GREAT JANSLEY~168 FEET

4 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

These pictures & acts are incredible. Your story from Gil Gray might be the key to where the term "scratch" came from.
cc

5/25/2009 8:36 AM  
Blogger 24-HOUR-MAN said...

The slang word for money I remember Gil using most, was "getus".(w/ a long e)

5/25/2009 11:44 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hey Bill,
I love these pictures, I have alot of Peaches Sky Review pictures I need to get to you also their Simru Duo act. Two of the nicest people I had to pleasure of knowing. Where is Yetty ? I miss seeing her in this group.
Keep up the great work !!!

Dale

5/28/2009 11:13 AM  
Blogger 24-HOUR-MAN said...

THANK YOU DALE~
NOW,,,,THAT IS A KING SIZED BLUNDER!!!! MY DEEPEST APOLOGY!
ACTUALLY THE POST IS ABOUT CLAIMS OF RIGGING HEIGHT, AND I HAVE MANY MORE ACTS I HAD PLANNED ON IN A SEPERATE POST, BUT YOU ARE RIGHT, NO GROUP OF THRILL ACTS IS COMPLETE WITHOUT RIETTA WALLENDA GROTENFENT, "YETTY".

6/03/2009 12:00 PM  

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