Circus Era Ends

          More Letters from Paradise
              Circus Era Ends
This Spring will see the end of an era, with the closing of Ringling Brothers Circus. For 146 years, millions of Americans thrilled to the events of this circus, but times change and people's tastes change. In its heyday wire walkers, elephants, trapeze artists, were unique forms of entertainment. But not so today. Also, there are critics of animal treatment and housing.

The closing of the circus will put five hundred people out of work, and will require housing for them. Also, homes have to be found for all the animals. There is already a retirement home in Florida for the elephants. But what about the railroad cars that used to occupy over a mile of track? Homes on wheels, animal pens, not to mention foodstuffs for both people and animals. Maybe some European circus will buy these specialized cars.

I remember going to the Ringling Brothers
Circus when I was a kid living in Texas. The huge tent with something going on in  each of the three rings at the same time.It's a good memory.

There also were small carnivals to be found in the 1950's. One was located outside of my town for a week. Kids rushed to help unroll the heavy canvas tent and do other jobs in hopes of getting a free ticket. The carnival boss  also employed a few high school kids to work ticket booths. My job was at the ride called the "Loop a Plane." It consisted of a tall tower with an arm and a cab at each end,that would whirl the riders around  vertical at high speed. When there were no customers, a search of the area under the ride would often turn up a number of coins lost by riders.

One of the carnival workers used to hide his whiskey bottle in my booth, and he warned me to watch out for "spotters," men who would tell the boss. He taught me a couple of tricks.  First, when the customer, handed him his ticket he would make like he was tearing the ticket up and then return it to me to be resold. I don't remember if I participated in this activity or not. But I don't think I did. One other thing I learned was to slide the customer's change just slightly back under the booth's thick wood window which blocked the customer"s view of some coins.

Many years ago I read in a part of a book by John Steinbeck, in which  the character is also taught the same tricks I was taught. l

The era of the Ringling Brothers Circus is now history, and has been replaced by many small carnivals which travel across America. We have these carnivals even here in Hawaii.
    Aloha
    Grant