Baraboo weekly news. [volume] (Baraboo, Wis.) 1912-197?, 1918-01-24
SIDE LIGHTS on the
CIRCUS BUSINESS

Since the close of the shows last fall
many people have been asking, Will
the big circus be able to get transpor-
tation to go on the road next season
the same as heretofOre?" While | do
not claim to be an authority on this
question, it is indeed certain that II 1t
was all work and no play, or all sorrow
and no joy, then it would indeed be
sad world to live in. The tent manu-
facturers took time long ago to buy
many thousands of yards of canvas, so
they have been able to furnish tents OF
all kinds for the shows the coming
season. AS the big railroad shows
have their own rolling stock, all they
have to ask of the railroads is engines
and crews to take them from one town
to another. l look for the shows TO
move the coming season the same as
heretofore.
In the winter quarters Of the big
shows they are busy remodeling for
the coming year 1t is safe to say that
in less than ninety days the great
Ringing circus will be giving exhibit
tions in the Coliseum, Chicago, and
the Barnum & Bailey show in Madison
Square Garden, New York.
We are promised that the new show
will be launched for the first time
early this season, and although moth
ing in comparison in magnitude to the
Ringing or Barnum show, yet it will
be the highest class show ever put on
the road for it's size. It's owner and
manager is an Old-time friend Of mine,
with whom | trOuped for several years
with the old Adam FOrepaugh show
when | was young and he mere boy.
| take great pleasure in giving you the
details of a letter which was given out
to the Billboard last week:
/ / + /
"Rhoda Royal closed a deal with H.
Fl. Tammen whereby the title OF Bufa-
10 BiIPs Wild West was leased fOr
year Mr.. Tammen had been figuring
to sublet the title to other interests,
but Rhoda Royal made so f1attering
proposition that it was Immediately
accepted. A new show was again ere
ated, which will be known as Buffalo
Bills Original Wild West 1t is to
be a twenty-four car show, and IN ad-
ditiOn to the wild west features will
embrace the spectacle entitled Revels
in HindOOIand,' The latter conception
is original with Mr.. Royal, and will be
interpOlated with many astounding and
sensational features. Ed. G. Warner
former general agent of the Sells-FlotO
show, was engaged by Mr.. Royal and
will have charge of the advance OF the
new show. Mr. Royal left for Chica-
90 tonight to commence QUILTING his
show, and promises he will present
the greatest and most interesting wild
west performance since the days OF
Cody. Salisbury and Bailey. Head
quarters for the new show will be at
the Grand Pacific hotel, Chicago. The
price Mr.. Royal paid for the use Of the
title was not made public
i i i !
Through the courtesy Of an Old
friend, few days ago l was handed
route book of the great Ringing
show for the entire season, which
gives all the different towns that they
showed in during the season Of 1917,
also the distances from one stand to
the next and the number of miles trav-
eIed during the entire season.
AS this official route book was COM
piled by an old friend of mine with
whom I trOOped back in the late 7Os,
with the Burr Robbins show, it helped
to make it all the more interesting to
me. This official route book was COM
piled by julius TurnOur, an English
clown, who came over from England
in the '7O's, and who commenced his
seasons work in this country with the
Burr Robbins show in '79, and Julius
has been a clown and a ''Wanamaker,"
as the boys call it, with the Ringing
show, after he had been postmaster
and mail carrier for the show, for more
than twenty years. This is certainly
recommendation enough for his faith
fulness in the business.
1t was along about the first of April
that the heavy trains bearing the
Ringling show passed through James
Vile for Chicago, where the show
opened the season of 1917 on April Z,
and closed the Chicago engagement on
April 20, going directly to st. Louis,
where they showed for five days, after
which they took to the one day stands.
The show then started in a south
easterly direction from Indiana, Ohio
and West Virginia. Two weeks after
leaving st. Louis they showed in Bal
timore and Washington, and after
taking in all the larger towns through
out the southeast they started back
through the west.
They showed in Boston one week,
where they turned away people several
times during their engagement, and
it is said that in many of the large
cities hundreds of people would come
into the tent late for no other purpose
than to witness the riding Of the great
May Wirth, who was the only big fea-