Ringling Brothers Circus

Ringling Brothers Circus

The Ringling Brothers Circus was a circus founded in the United States in 1884. Ringling Brothers Circus eventually joined with the Barnum & Bailey Circus to become "Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus, the "Greatest Show on Earth".

The Circus was founded by seven Ringling brothers, Albert (1852-1916), August (1854-1907), Otto (1858-1911), Alfred T. (1862-1919), Charles (1863-1926), John (1866-1936), and Henry (1869-1918).

History

The Ringling Brothers Circus began in 1884 in Baraboo, Wisconsin using the title "Yankee Robinson and Ringling Brothers", the only time the Ringlings ever gave themselves second billing. It was a small circus at first, conveyed by wagons, and differed little from scores of other little shows that transversed limited geographic areas.

By the late 1880s, however, the circus had established itself as one of the largest and best-run circuses in the country. John Ringling served as the advance man and Charles Ringling assumed the role of the manager. True to the typical hyperbole of the day, the official title of the circus was the "Ringling Brothers United Monster Shows, Great Double Circus, Royal European Menagerie, Museum, Caravan, and Congress of Trained Animals".

What distinguished the Ringling Brothers Circus from others was its honest and fair attitude toward the public. Unlike other small circuses of the time, Ringling Brothers would not allow ticket sellers to short change customers, nor did they allow games of chance such as Three Card Monte and shell games on their lots. This reputation for clean dealing and good value brought them success, and soon they were able to make the leap into the ranks of railroad circuses.Fact|date=January 2008

In 1889 two of the Ringlings went to Philadelphia where they purchased railroad cars and parade equipment from Adam Forepaugh, a venerable showman who had a show on the road since 1864.

The significance of this change in transportation was that henceforth the circus wasn't limited to moving only 15 to 20 miles a night, and could now skip the really small towns that contained a limited audience in order to play larger towns day after day, therefore, greatly increasing the average revenue.

In 1907 the brothers purchased the Barnum & Bailey Circus and ran the two circuses separately until they merged them into one unit in 1919 when they also moved the winter quarters to Bridgeport, Connecticut.

George Auger, a Ringling Brothers circus giant who used the stage name Cardiff Giant, was to act in Harold Lloyd's 1923 comedy film "Why Worry?" but died shortly after filming started, sparking a nationwide search for a replacement.

ee also

*Charles Ringling
*John Ringling
*Henry Ringling North
*John Ringling North
*Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus

External links

* [http://www.whiteglovecollection.com/2whiteglovecollection/publish/article_72.shtml Ringling Owned Car at White Glove Collection]
* [http://web.uflib.ufl.edu/ufdc/?c=part1&s=ringling Ringling Collection of images of 19th century American and British actors and actresses] - Open access digital collection


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Ringling Brothers Circus — Plakat aus dem Jahr 1900 Der Ringling Brothers Circus war ein 1884 in den Vereinigten Staaten gegründeter Zirkus, der von fünf der sieben Ringling Brüder betrieben wurde: Albert (1852 1916), August (1854 1907), Otto (1858 1911), Alfred T. (1862… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Ringling Brothers and Barnum \x26 Bailey Circus — Ringling Brothers and Barnum Bailey Circus Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Ringling Bros. and Barnum Bailey Xpress (RBBX) 41307 después de su restauración Tampa, Florida. Ringling Brothers and Barnum Bailey Circus es un circo estadounidense que fue …   Wikipedia Español

  • Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus — Ringling Bros. and Barnum Bailey Circus Affiche du Barnum Bailey Circus Ringling Bros. and Barnum Bailey Circus est le nom de la caravane de cirque née en 1919 du regroupement des cirques Barnum Bailey Circus de James Anthony Bailey et P.T.… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Ringling brothers — There were seven Ringling brothers, who worked in the circus. [cite web |url=http://www.iowageology.org/gb70/Ring Bros.htm |title=The Ringlings in the McGregor Area |accessdate=2008 07 21 |quote=Beginning their tented circus in 1884, Alf T.… …   Wikipedia

  • Ringling Brothers — Family of U.S. circus owners. After five of the seven brothers formed a song and dance troupe (1882), they began to add circus acts to their show. In 1884 they organized their first small circus in their hometown, Baraboo, Wis., and toured the… …   Universalium

  • Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey — [Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey] the most famous US ↑circus. It calls itself ‘the Greatest Show on Earth’ and has three ‘ring’ areas where people perform at the same time. The five original Ringling brothers started a ↑circus in 1884 and… …   Useful english dictionary

  • Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey — the most famous US circus. It calls itself ‘the Greatest Show on Earth’ and has three ‘ring’ areas where people perform at the same time. Two separate circus groups tour around the country and are seen by about 25 million people each year. The… …   Universalium

  • Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus — was started when the circus created by James Anthony Bailey and P. T. Barnum, was merged with the Ringling Brothers Circus. The Ringling brothers purchased the Barnum Bailey Circus in 1907, but ran the circuses separately until they were finally… …   Wikipedia

  • Circus World Museum — Ringling Brothers Circus Winter Headquarters U.S. National Register of Historic Places U.S. National Historic Landmark …   Wikipedia

  • Ringling — can refer to:People*Ringling brothers ** Charles Edward Ringling (1863 1926), circus owner ** John Nicholas Ringling (1866 1936), circus owner *Henry Ringling North *John Ringling NorthPlaces* Ringling, Oklahoma * Ringling College of Art and… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”