Emmett Leo Kelly was an American circus performer, who created the clown character "Weary Willie", based on the hobos of the Great Depression in the 1930s.
A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicyclists as well as other object manipulation and stunt-oriented artists. The term circus also describes the field of performance, training and community which has followed various formats through its 250-year modern history. Although not the inventor of the medium, Newcastle-under-Lyme born Philip Astley is credited as the father of the modern circus.
The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, also known as the Ringling Bros. Circus, Ringling Bros., the Barnum & Bailey Circus, Barnum & Bailey, or simply Ringling, is an American traveling circus company billed as The Greatest Show on Earth. It and its predecessor have run shows from 1871, with a hiatus from 2017 to 2023. They operate as Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey. The circus started in 1919 when the Barnum & Bailey's Greatest Show on Earth, a circus created by P. T. Barnum and James Anthony Bailey, was merged with the Ringling Bros. World's Greatest Shows. The Ringling brothers purchased Barnum & Bailey Ltd. in 1907 following Bailey's death in 1906, but ran the circuses separately until they were merged in 1919.
A circus train is a method of conveyance for circus troupes. One of the larger users of circus trains was the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus (RBBX), a famous American circus formed when the Ringling Brothers Circus purchased the Barnum and Bailey Circus in 1907.
The Circus World Museum is a museum complex in Baraboo, Wisconsin, devoted to circus-related history. The museum features circus artifacts and exhibits and hosts daily live circus performances throughout the summer. It is owned by the Wisconsin Historical Society and operated by the non-profit Circus World Museum Foundation. The museum was the major participant in the Great Circus Parade held from 1963 to 2009.
Lillian Leitzel was a German-born acrobat who specialized in performing on the Roman rings, for the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus. The inaugural (posthumous) inductee to the International Circus Hall of Fame, Leitzel died in hospital two days after a fall during a live performance.
The Hagenbeck–Wallace Circus was a circus that traveled across America in the early part of the 20th century. At its peak, it was the second-largest circus in America next to Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus. It was based in Peru, Indiana.
Clyde Raymond Beatty was a famed animal trainer, zoo owner, and circus mogul. He joined Howe's Great London Circus in 1921 as a cage boy and spent the next four decades rising to fame as one of the most famous circus performers and animal trainers in the world. Through his career, the circus impresario owned several circuses, including his own Clyde Beatty Circus from 1945 to 1956.
Chipperfield's Circus is a British family touring show, continuing a 300-year-old family business.
Otto Griebling was a German-born circus clown who performed for many years with the Cole Brothers and Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circuses. He was one of four clowns given the title Master Clown by Irvin Feld.
The Ringling brothers were five American siblings who transformed their small touring company of performers into one of the largest circuses in the United States during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Four brothers were born in McGregor, Iowa: Alfred T., Charles, John and Henry William, and the family lived in McGregor for twelve years, from 1860 until 1872. The Ringling family then moved to Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, and finally settled in Baraboo, Wisconsin, in 1875. They were of German and French descent, the children of harness maker Heinrich Friedrich August Ringling (1826–1898) of Hanover, and Marie Salome Juliar (1833–1907) of Ostheim, in Alsace. While there were seven Ringling brothers, Alfred, Charles, John, Al and Otto Ringling were the main brothers in charge of the circus shows. All of the brothers were Freemasons. In 1919, they merged their Ringling Brothers Circus with America's other leading circus troupe, Barnum and Bailey, ultimately creating the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, which has operated continuously since except for a hiatus from 2017 to 2022.
Jones Bros Buffalo Ranch Wild West Show, and its successor Kit Carson Buffalo Ranch Wild West Show, was formed from the old Cole Bros. World Toured Shows (1906–09), owned by Martin Downs. Cole Bros. World Toured Shows was not associated with the current Cole Bros. Circus or Clyde Beatty Cole Bros. except by name.
The Florida State University (FSU) "Flying High" Circus located in Tallahassee, Florida, is an extra-curricular activity under FSU's Division of Student Affairs. All members of the FSU Circus are required to be a degree-seeking student registered at Florida State University and are accepted after an audition.
William Washington Cole, was part owner of the Barnum & Bailey Circus.
Chester Eugene "Bobo" Barnett was a clown whose career lasted from the late 1920s to the early 1970s. He played for numerous circuses, most notably with Cole Bros. Clyde Beatty Circus and the Shrine Circus. He also appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show. Barnett is one of the main subjects of his daughter Bonnie's autobiography, Bobo's Daughter.
Mighty Haag Circus was started by American entrepreneur Ernest Haag in Shreveport, Louisiana. His circus toured continuously for over 40 years, from 1891 to 1938. During these years, the circus used a variety of types of transport: boat, carts, trains, horse-pulled wagons, and trucks. It was one of the largest traveling circuses in the United States.
The Rieffenach family were circus performers who specialized in a bareback riding act that performed in Europe and the United States during the first half of the 20th century. Family members, daughters Maria (Mitzi) Rieffenach and Rose (Rosie) Rieffenach, were inducted into the Circus Hall of Fame in 1970. The Rieffenach Family Equestrian Act originated from the marriage of the mother Maria Enders of the Hungarian Circus Enders, and Simon Rieffenach Sr. The family performed their horseback riding act with the Sarrasani Circus in Europe from 1905 and were with the German Circus Carl Hagenbeck in 1921. The Rieffenach Family Riding Act came to the United States in 1922 after being booked to perform for the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. The Rieffenach Family Act was with Ringling Brothers for sixteen years through 1937. In her memoir, Tiny Kline, the famous circus acrobat, stated: "The Rieffenachs' riding act had been the feature in the center ring of the Big Show since their arrival from Austria". In 1939 the Rieffenachs went on the Cole Bros. Circus, performing through 1942 after which time the act was disbanded. One son, James Rieffenach, continued riding with the Poodles Hanneford Act, while the other members of the act retired. James died of a heart attack in 1945 while still performing with the Cole Bros. Circus.
Richard Henry Lewis III, better known by his stage name "Rocko," was a circus performer and entertainer who performed as a clown in more than twenty circuses between 1938 and his accidental death during a performance in 1966.
Cooke's Royal Circus (1780–1912) started as a circus show travelling around Britain in the late 18th century. It was primarily an equestrian show with over half the acts involving horses.
Frankie Saluto was an American clown. Standing at just 3'10, he was known as "King of the Midget Clowns". His career spanned 46 years as a professional clown, starting in 1928, although he did not appear in guides until 1931. Saluto spent most of his career with Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey circus. He retired in 1974 and was inducted into the Clown Hall of Fame in 1991.
