WATER FOR ELEPHANTS BITES THE DUST ... BROADWAY BIG TOP GOES DOWN DECEMBER 8 ...

Remembering Circus Report Founder Don Marcks: End of the Road

Seventh and last in a series 

Don in the 1970s

The day was Sunday. Don Marcks did not know that I spent my 50th birthday with him, at his house.  I did not play up my birthdays.  I had more intimate friends, and there was always that reserve about  Don, but we shared circus, the reason for my having invited myself over, as I had many times before. 

Now, that is how I intended to open this post, but that is not exactly true. I discovered, when returning to my weekly At-A-Glance booklet for the year, a more  specific reason for my seeking  Don’s company: This I wrote: “Why Marcks?  Because I’ve known him longer than any of my other friends, and we share circus”

I point this out because, memory alone can be a careless editor, which is to say that some things in these posts may be inaccurate constructions of what actually happened.  Oh, how a  single document can be such a beautiful thing!
                                    
Our personal lives were rarely if ever discussed other than Don now and then talking about a woman he was trying to date, or more likely, hoping to.  His romantic pursuits felt to me a bit more like a pattern more than a passion.

Aches and Pains -- and More

The most intimate encounter I ever had with  Don was in the ICU at Doctor’s Hospital in Richmond, only a few miles from where he lived. He had survived some medical crisis — he would suffer many — and was hopefully on the mend. I could tell it had shaken him to the core.  He looked into my eyes almost with tears, and practically reached out to hold my hand, and, as if making a sacred vow, promised to continue on and make Circus Report even bigger and better than ever. I knew it was the great love of his life.

He almost never took a vacation. And rarely, to my knowledge, exercised.  The only time that Circus Report subscribers missed copies was when Don was hospitalized, usually announcing in advance of having to take so many weeks off. He suffered many medical problems through the years.

    Resisting Rivals

Don did have an ego. He coveted his position in the CFA, as a prominent and maybe senior member of the  Joseph Andrew Rowe tent. So prominent, that when another local fan, new I think to the CFA, made waves about wanting to reboot the dormant group, Don spoke harshly of the fellow – as if a move was afoot to topple his position. 

Don  grew suspicious of people offering to help out with Circus Report.  Two locals from Berkeley wrote him with such an offer, the implication being that there would be someone to carry on when his time had passed..

Nov. 6, 1983:  “She says I ought to relax the strings a bit and not work so hard, but I’m not in favor of their helping out ... I keep getting the feeling they just want to see how things are done and go get a chance to see what money comes, in. etc.”

The next time I visited Don  he brought up the matter, pulling out the letter.  I encouraged him to consider that their motives might be genuine.  And there before my eyes, he tore it up almost in a peevish fit, and threw it into a waste basket. 

The Gift of Praise

The greatest compliment he ever gave me was to bring up the subject of my book, Behind the Big Top, and to tell me how books like mine had never been written before.  More than that, how it seemed to me like he had made a conscious effort to force himself out of his comfort zone in order to make his recognition known.  I regarded this as a supreme compliment, coming from Don.  Touched by the adulation, yet there had been other books, by Dexter Fellows and by William Coup, that candidly covered some of the darker aspects of circus life, such as grift and animal abuse.  Another time, Don offered me my own regular space in the paper for a weekly column. I wrote to him of my gratitude, telling him of my fears that I would write something that got us both in hot water. I had not contributed a single piece since my Irvin Feld story.

 A Long and Long-Forgotten-Why Silence

.

There came an impasse between us, a wordless falling out if you will.  There had been no arguments, nothing dramatic, just perhaps, on both sides, a growing number of  irks and perceived slights forming a mass of vague, lingering resentment.  Either of us could easily have lifted the phone and dialed the other’s number, and likely, the conversation would have flowed on.

In his last letter to me, dated Dec. 3, 1995, Don ended by talking about a showboat model he had been working on, having discarded one and now considering a second try at another: “Only recently found some folks who have knowledge of the thing, because of their study or River Boats  - who knows, it might arise from the ashes, as they say.”

We never arose from our own ashes.  I have no letters from him during all of 1996, not a single one.  Which even intrigues me to try recalling what might have silenced our dialogue

My subscription came up that year for renewal in October. $40 a year.  I had grown, frankly, a little  disengaged by the papers particular style  — unless there was something he had done that set me off and hastened the cancellation.  In the last issue I have, Oct. 28, 1996, Billy Barton’s column is missing. Perhaps he had been gone for some time.

And so I decided to spend my money, instead, on the Bandwagon, and in a brief note, dated 10/22/96, made this known to Don, singing off  “Good luck on CR’s future ...”

Yes, I know, the sound of betrayal.

Seven years later, Don Marcks passed away.  He left behind his widow, Martha.  I believe she was the woman at the post office who had through the years been of great support to Don in his weekly send outs. 

                      A Circus Auctioned to the Wind

Truly saddest of all, Don left his model circus to Richard Tuck’s then-in-the-planning Playland Not at the Beach on San Pablo Avenue in El Cerritos, where it would be displayed in separate cases. And when the museum closed in 2018, the circus, like every thing else, was auctioned off in sections.  A terrible pity that it could not have been offered to a single entity, such as one of the circus museums.

The house at 525 Oak Street  is no longer recognizable as the one I knew when I visited Don.  The large side yard of grass upon which stood the old shed where his model circus was kept, is now a faded pink, one-story motel-like apartment house. In that long-gone shed, a  twelve- or thirteen-year-old boy had once stood in rapt awe while  the builder of the wagons opened large trunks to take out one, and then another, for the boy to see and to hold.  To his eyes, they were the most magical objects he had ever seen.  And from that same house on Oak Street, for thirty four years there had gone out a weekly circus paper to subscribers near and far.

Bill and Jan Biggerstaff bought Circus Report after Don died, and did a fine job of keeping it in circulation, twice a month, for the next nineteen years.  Now it, too, is history.

And thus, the story of my friendship with fellow circus fan Don Marcks comes to a close.  One day maybe, I will be on a bus going up  San Pablo Avenue in El Cerrito, and get off to walk up to Mechanics Bank on the corner of Fairmount --- where I got off a bus one day long ago, to walk five blocks up and make a left on Oak.

P.S. today at 4:35 PM, I just went down to my mail box to find the last last issue of Circus Report. It feels so bleak and sad, like a defining death that I can't put into words. I don't want to put into words. As if, trying, some kind of a reigning light above the whole of what we had has gone out. Thank you, Bill and Jan,  for keeping it going as long as you did.  Goodbye, Circus Report, good bye.

********************************************************************************

Next week, looking back years later: A friendship formed in the church of sawdust and spangles.

All of Don’s letters will eventually join my archives at Illinois State University’s Milnar Library

first posted 12.31.19

VANISHING WATER FOR ELEPHANTS ... Bucket's Now Half Empty ...

When last I updated, they were comfortably back in the 70% range, and so I though maybe they are finding a hook to keep going.

Latest figure: 56.9%.

From Broadway World, two days ago: "What an embarrassing number even in a week where many shows took a big hit. I expect a closing notice for Water For Elephants sometime soon too

 

Book Quiz Contest Results!

A huge crowd here last Friday, but not a one of them could produce the correct answer to the question: Who was the first and still only performer to land a Gold Clown for the type of act they performed at Monte Carlo? The next day came the answer:

JUGGLER ANTHONY GATTO

The winner:

BONNIE O'CONNOR

Congrats, Bonnie! I will e-mail you to facilitate my sending you your copy.

Two Phone Calls, One About Scott O'Donnell Leaving Circus World, the Other About Ringling Crowd Sizes in L.A.

Sometimes today when we are drowning in AI, bots, and even the "Operator" no longer being there,it is possible to get through.  I just start dialing numbers, hoping that one will still work, better yet, might deliver me to a living human being from the age of He and She.

FIRST CALL: Why did  CEO Scott O'Donnell, as the official story goes, which he confirmed when I reached him by phone, "resign" from circus world?  Scott would only say that he and his overlords (aka: Wisconsin Historical Society) did not share the same vision for the future.

So, dialing for balance by reaching out to WHS and leaving  messages with, among others, Colleen in Media Relations, she did return my call!  I asked her if she could explain how they had come to loggerheads. She promised to consult with others and get back to me.  This she did, but with not a single word answering my specific query.  She sent me the same press release that I already had, which  I quoted from in the story I earlier  posted.  An expert in the ways of the business world might be able to decode this, but I am not going there. 

SECOND CALL:  To Crypto Center (previously Staples) in L.A, about Ringling's recent three day stop there.  To the guy, Lewis, who answered the phone, I said that I was hoping to get an estimation from them of the average number of customers in the seats per performance.  He did not waste an empty second in evasion or passing the buck, but answered: "Between six and eight thousand." The arena seats 20.000. 

Would that have been a disappointment to Crypto, I asked my source.  "No," he replied. 

You can look at the figure in two ways:  What a flop!  Not even half houses!

Or, you can look at the figure in context.  Is there another circus out there anywhere in the world that draws that number of bodies in the seats?

EYES ON THE SCENE: And how did Ringling show?  I have a deep state source who was on the scene and noted that the ends of the arena were blocked out.  Pyrotechnics "were greatly reduced" and the large overhead screens were not in use.The show, he reported, was a "scaled" down version of what he had seen at an earlier date months ago, which amounted to him as a "thinning of the herd." (I like that) For example, an Ethiopian father and son foot juggling was not on the bill.  Some of those in his party, he noted,  were critical of the show, but he stood by the excellent review he had given the show when he saw it earlier in the season.

End of on-the-ground reporting the older fashioned way.

MIDWAY FLASH! MIDWAY FLASH! Scott O'Donnell to Leave Circus World ... Dave Salutos, Another Exit ..

updated: 9:21 AM

The sudden exit of CEO Scott O'Donnell from the ringmaster's desk at Circus World took me by total surprise.

News of his exit came through a Don Covington link.  Naturally my first thoughts where, why? Had he been let go?  So I called CW this morning, to inquire, and they put me through to Scott, which marked the first time we have ever spoken. 

Was it his decision, I asked him?

Yes, he answered. 

Why?

He said he does not share a new vision held by  the state government, which now owns Circus World Museum. For most of its  existence, CW operated as a virtual private enterprise.  But that changed about four years ago, when the Wisconsin State Historical Society came in with much needed funding and assumed  greater control.   Evidently, they now want more power at the Top.  

Momentous achievements on the job, not good enough?  A press release from Circus World overflows in citing O'Donnell's "countless transformative contributions," including preservation of Ringlingville, creation of a master plan "that will enhance the visitor experience for generations to come," and the "driving force" behind the Society's acquisition of the Al Ringling Theatre.  This and more, in but eleven seasons?  Something is wrong with this picture.   

I asked Scott if he will miss being there.

"I put my heart and soul into Circus World" he answered. Clearly, as I heard him speak, the job meant a great deal to him, and yet he is leaving without rancor, ready for an "encore" somewhere else.

Scott's departure will be in tandem with Dave Salutos, who is  retiring at the end of the current season, following a 40 year run.  Ominously, this adds another layer of implicit intrigue to a back story.

Sheer speculation on my part, we may find out what was really going on when we learn who will next assume the CEO desk.

There are some things in life that just don't make sense.  This feels like one of them to me.

 Sad to see you go, Scott.

Step Right Up! Snappy Snippets in Sawdust and Spangles! -- And It's All Free on the Inside!

The circus plays a big role in my new book Keep That Day Job!  Here are some excerpts:              

 The Dark Side of a Spangle

Wallace Bros hired me to usher.  A few weeks later, they recruited me to replace a fired clown.  Now I was “with it and for it,” and now being one of them myself, soon — all too soon —   reality’s wry sense of humor struck, when  I was introduced to a real life sledgehammer.  Sure, such a pleasure to meet you! 

Dining, Haute-off-the-lot at Wallace Bros. Circus

 $25.00 a week ... Not bad given the sweet free extras that come  with the glories of performing — your flat bunk in the truck you share with the band, and the three full-course adventures served you each day in the “gut foundry” as some called it — while others preferred  “ptomaine joint,” for cookhouse. One of our musicians regaled us over his having ordered  chicken fracases for dinner and being served “fried flower” 

      Pitching Elephants to ABC from a Payphone

I am off skates, on a pay phone at the Greyhound bus depot in Chicago, having just arrived with a list of media contacts in hand.  Time is of the essence, only three days before the circus of Sid Kellner, now titled George Matthew’s Great London, is to open in the suburb of Oak Terrace.   I shove a lot of change into the phone, and start frantically dialing up local TV and radio stations, hoping to land free coverage

Typing through Tears

Up to my clerk's  desk at a chemical company in Century City, steps the office manger, handing me a just published rave review in Variety of my musical, Those Ringlings. After reading it, I continue pecking dutifully away  as a flood of tears come rolling down my face.  No town like this town.

The Ringlings, as Cast in Hollywood

Jeffrey Rockwell, who played Al Ringling  was the son of Robert, who had played Mr. Boynton on the TV version of Our Miss Brooks.   Hal Landon, Sr., who played August Ringling, was in real life the father of Hal Landon, Jr. The closest  geographical link to Ringling history was Wisconsin native Joseph Lustig, who took on the role of Alf T.    

Wishing I Could Be with Sid

At my first Kaiser Steel Christmas dinner on Lakeshore Avenue in Oakland, while walking back to a private dining room the firm had secured,  I spotted a former boss,  Sid Kellner, sitting on a bar stool chatting with a woman of looks sitting next to him. How I wished I could be sitting with Sid instead. But Sid was from another time.  And he could have been so much more, as I would profile in my book Behind the Big Top.

Buy your  big show tickets now at the Amazon Annex!

Show Me Some Dogs, and I'll Call You a Circus; Big Apple, Welcome Back!

 

Show's next Lincoln Center annual promises a more down-to-earth party.  Best of all, I see doggies on the show's new poster. Do you?  Are the current owners, whomever they are, daring to be a touch more authentic again? Golly molly, wonder of wonders, it looks like a circus is coming!  Best of all, it still calls itself a circus!

Pardon my unintended sarcasm, but I am looking to circus to stave off the end of human civilization, as more and more, the digital world is competing to replace it with a nightmare alternate universe composed of what are called called "bots."  I finally got around to googling out what those ugly four letters spell.  Oh, you already know?  ROBOTS. I am always, it seems, a few upgrades behind the latest gizmo.   More and more, these clever invaders are making more humans feel less connected, needed, valued. More and more, we are coming closer to the inevitable showdown between us and them.  I'd love to see a sci-fi flick in which the bot bastards go to war with each other and blow themselves up into impotent digital dinosaurs imploding over and onto each other. Crash and collapse! 

Over in San Franfreako, here in the State of Insanity across the polluted bay, the new driver-less taxis are getting hissed at and attacked, smashed and left feeble, possibly by the Uber and Lyft drivers they are designed to render obsolete.  How sorry I feel for those drivers.  When I talk to them, I can feel the hurt in their voices, the void in their hearts.  Many of them value what they are doing.  And I recall Chinese premiere, Xie issuing an order to a few regions: If humans can do what your robots are doing, hire the humans. "Hire humans."  How revolutionary.  A preview of what may have to come?

Which, for me, makes real circus as opposed to the human and bots variety, a welcome retreat to the real. 

The mere sight of some jumpy dogs getting to perform with humans tells me that, gradually, the public may come to see what has been lost under our tents in the name of progress.  And then maybe a horse act, and then, maybe some riders, and then, maybe a pig down a slide. One step backward at a time.

There are still animals, plenty of them, in the Russian shows, and in many European shows too.  And over here, among a few heroic hold outs, there is the Zoppe Family.  As I have previously noted, the Zoppes play to a more sophisticated clientele down in the Redwood city main library parking lot, in the the heart of Silicon Valley. 

Whatever happened to Jenny Vidbel? She deserves an apologetic encore. Bring back her magical menagerie, and let the circus be circus again! 

“A joyful pursuit! ... Readers will be delighted and surprised. Not just an excellent, inspirational recommendation for struggling artists, but perfect fodder for book club discussions ... Thoroughly engrossing.” -- Diane Donovan, Midwest Book Review.

JUST PUBLISHED!

 BUY NOW ON AMAZON

  https://amzn.to/3XVKLwB  

Or direct from the publisher:  bearmanormedia. com

7.9.24

WATER for ELEPHANTS BUCKET RUNING DRY? More Empty Seats Spell Trouble ... Rival Stage Versions of The Greatest Showman, So Very Barnumesque ... Gravity Circus Ditches Globe of Death ...

Update 8.14.24: Water patronage slip continues, down to 75.67%.  Show announces national tour starting in the fall of 2025.  Can they reverse declining attendance?

 Update: 8.8.24  Water for Elephants played to the smallest capacity (79.9%) of all shows on Broadway,  the only one in the 70% range.  

 *** Revised, 7.30.24   

 TODAY'S WONDERMENTS  begin with the  84% of seats being filled at  Water for the Elephants on Broadway.  Number looks good to me, but in fact it looms near the bottom of an official  tracking website. Only one or two shows sink lower.  Most  musicals are well in the 90% range, and many are packing them in  – just to give you a jolt of perspective.  70%? Virtually none.  One of the leads already has announced exiting in September. The end of summer could spell less patronage. They might hang on long enough to claim legitimacy for a national tour.

     FOREVER BARNUM:  Rival adaptations of The Greatest Showman are forming on both sides of the Pond, or are they? Over Here, the Mickey Mouse musicals division of Disney still has in the works, or so reported  Stage Spy in West End Theater last October, a stage adaptation of the Hugh Jackman film.  Rumors suggested an opening anywhere as far out as 2027.  But hold your animal crackers!

      OVER THERE,  for a fact, the same score is being featured in Come Alive!, an extravaganza  “inspired” by the Jackman film.  This one kept the songs, but ditched the largely fictional script for a new model.  And it’s slated to open under a 700-seat tent at the Empress museum in Earls Court of London on September 23. ***Disney, which owns 20th Century Fox, maker of the film , appears to be peripherally involved, having "sanctioned" the production. Which begs the question: Are they still at work on their own adaptation?  All suckers, to the front of the line.  How so true did this feel to the darker history of  P.T. renting out use of his name simultaneously to rival big tops.

     OUT, DAMN GLOBE OF DEATH!  From Italy to  the UK comes creatively rich Gravity Circus.   As noted by Douglas McPherson in his review of the show on on his blog, Circus Mania, “Circus thrives in the new.” At its best, surely it does.  At the top  Gravity’s roster of the new, they’ve 86d that tired old Globe of Death carny stunt.  Taking a cue, I’d guess, from a similar arch of flying motorcyclists on Circus Extreme, the riders here soar over “a ring full of dancers and jugglers passing the central fountain while fire erupts in rising balls of flame.” Whew!   Greyhound:  Have you a through bus to there?

      END RINGERS: Speaking of Barnum, latest issue of  Bandwagon delivers a Big Show in  Part 1 of Chris Berry’s spectacular story, “There Used 5o Be a Circus Here: Madison Square Garden."  Lavishly illustrated yarn is centered around P.T. and other major tenting tycoons who played a role.  I can’t wait for Berry to gets to the later years when I was around, assuming he does.

     ROYALLY SPEAKING:  Also In the same Bandwagon issue, James Royal is profiled by Lane Talbuet for his 10-year career in the UK, ringmastering, producing. and promoting.  He has a way of partnering with names in the Gold class. He joined with Philip and Carol Gandley to create the telemarketed Circus Britannia – The Circus With a Purpose. A few years later, they brought out Circus Star. I’m waiting to see what Jim has to say about his days in partnership with John Ringling North II

7.28.24.