The daily monitor leader. [volume] (Mount Clemens, Mich.) 1942-19??, 1943-04-15
Steam Calliope Makes 1t
Old Fashioned Article
BY MARGUERITE YOUNG
NEA Staff Correspondent

out again-and it's CIRCUS.
Once more it's the old-fash-
Toned article; it's the shrilly
sweet steam calliope and the
blaring bandwagon the smell
and roar of wild animals, the
stopped breath of forward SOM
ersaults and spins of death on
the high wires, the ludicrous
clown fire house. The multitude
of earthly miracles that made the
name, Greatest Show on Earth,
stick-that is back again.
Those faint violins and citified
plants last year-as the ele-
phans last year-as the elc-
plants used TO stop the show
are gone. And city slickers in
the grandstand as we'll as the cir
Gus folks are dancing a jib about
il.
I'VE had to go out and build a
bandWagon - took us quite a
time, because making them
fancy golden scrolls and angels
was practically a lost art" says
/ Bernie Head, the advance man,
eXultantly. Good TO be done
with that high-hat stuff and be
clrcusy again
RINGLING IN CONTROL
Story behind the swingback:
for the first time since 1892,
Ringing Brothers and Barnum
and Bailey is staged personally
by Robert Ringing, Miss Aubrey
Ringing and Mrs Charles Ring
ling. During the Great Sag years,
John Ringing North had the
helm, banking aid was called in,
and also q host of non-circus de-
Signers, photographers, an d
other noted artists who had
plenty of class of their kind but
not the circus blood.
The Ringlings stood by, put
ting up their personal bankrolls,
but the atmosphere changed.
Customers watching last years
Pageant of Holidays and Ballet
of the Elephants with music by
Stravinski couldn't tell whether
il was the circus, grand opera or
the Follies Bergerc.
THREE-WEEK- OLD CAMEL .
With war, it looked as if the
circus might not come out at all,
what with manpoWer, food. and
transportation shortages. B ut
the son and widow of Charles
Ringing and Miss Aubrey rolled
up their sleeves, won Washing
ton authorities, and put the show
on the road in its oldtime spirit.
There's food. Lions and such
always have eaten horse meat,
anyway. But there are other
essentials, including bananas and
imported sugar for Toto, the
gorilla bride of Gargantua. Incl
dentally. the pair are still man
and wife in name only, but
they're yUurTg- yet, and If YOU
strike it just right you'll see
them playfully mooching up to
the single row of bars separating
them in their air conditioned
loVeWagon.
Cleo the camel has three
Week-old infant, Toughy, three
and half feet long and just as
tall. Uriskiest animal on the lot
IN Porky Points. She replaces
Lydia Pigam. Some patriot
bought Lydia from her master,
the beloved clown Felix Adler,
for a $1,000 war bond. Adler
hated to lose her, but he says
Points is worth her ration value,
1000 points.
All the resplendcnt immensely
of the show is back again-and
brand new costumes. About 500
of the circus family - few
| young performers and many
workingmen, have gone to war
But the oldtime favorite stars
are still here-the four highwire
/ Wallendas, the six Loyal Rap
enskys balanced at a gallop in
I their equestrian pyramid, the
the amazing Chinese Naittos
These are joined by new stars
for whom the high top is war
+ haven. Talk of the show is a
new, mysterious aerial ballet
performer, slim, young Lalage
Some say she's French; others
Swiss; again, they say she's up
from South America.
ANOTHER LILLIAN LEITZEL
But every time Mile. Lalage
takes hold of the web rope, hang
ing from the center top, prac-