Three Dots . . . dot dot dot . . . and away we wobbly go! Warning to the clear of mind: This may go out un-spell-checked, so fasten your safety belts for some weedy prose ahead ... Vegas Vanishers: I rue those mortals, like the great Wally Eastwood, who sell out to Nevada neon, meaning we never see them again. The fabulous Anthony Gatto emerged from the mist of Vegas to re-submerge into the mist of Cirque du Soliel, but there I saw him, and there I thrillingly beheld. ...
From Circus Report reviews, I usually don’t expect anything less than "best ever" — such as "maybe a twee bit less than terrific" or "merely wonderful, demand your money back" (if you paid any) — but at least they usually provide a concise listing of the acts, giving me a sense of where a show is, and, sorry to rue, Carson & Barnes seems not to have advanced an inch away from its now-standard one-ring format, what with the same ringmaster, et all. I’d hoped the show would mirror its marvelous website makeover, but no ... A nice Circus Report bonus are its center folds, which can be quite pictorially alluring, they can. Came across one, seen here, that took me back to the Big Show under white canvas in the 1920s during Grand Entry. All those showy costumes. Three rings. Crowds in the seats. But --No, No, it did not! Upon closer examination, 'twas a photo of the 1973 spec in a building, with guy wires lending then impression of a tent -- such a striking contrast to where this show has gone ... Has it a future?
Feld Family Intrigue: A big story in the Washing Post about Kenneth Feld's tutoring his three daughters to take over as producers, which they already have. I hear he’s keenly into the dump truck follies; oops, make that the Monster Jam thing. Girls seem each to bear potentially complimentary personalities ... I’m guessing that Nichole, at only 34, oldest of the sawdust sirens, will end up in control, aided by siblings Alana, 32, and Juliette, 28 ... “Observers wonder if they are up to it,” writes Thomas Heath, “or, not, whether they will leave behind a company with valuable pieces to be picked up by competitors.” Indeed. The Feld of Feld’s “biggest unknown” reveals he, is “what is the next big thing that may not exist now? Will they see it?” ... This huge organization continues to astonish and baffle me, it is so sprawling and, judged by the moderate turnouts I have observed in the Bay Area, so under-patronized as to make me wonder how they pull if off ... Corporately speaking, they might be Giants.
I’m cracked as hell, and I’m not going to crack em’ anymore! Yes, about my anti-peanut pitch rants. Well, not if John Ringling North II has he way. Previously, he’s tempted me to break peanuts with him together during a visit, to which I am invited, upon a day at Kelly Miller, which I, now shy of the backyard, may never see. Now comes, in the mail from John the Sequel, a copy of this year’s program magazine (lovely to look out – let whomever designed this REDESIGN your HUMDRUM website), and a genuine package of Peterson’s “Gourmet Nuts and Snacks” Salted Peanuts. Unopened, there it lays at the salty edge of my monitor .... When I have reason to celebrate, I will crack back. ... Behind the Big Top, my first tome, gets listed on Amazon like all the others, selling for as high as $242.18. Does anybody really pay that much for a book? Same book also can be had for around 20 bucks .. Go figer ... Montreal Magic: Up there, they put on a big circus festival in July, drawing from troupes and artists in European ring capitals. So close, and I wouldn’t have to fly. Next year, I must, I must ...
Under His Radar, Gossip Monger, Me? That’s what Kelly Miller’s tiger guy, Ryan Easley (Radar) thinks, as witness his reaction to a story I did about an elephant connected to our nationally revered, big top trend setting, one-star Ticketmaster rated Piccadilly Circus testing positive for the Big T. Here comes, what, me in reverse? “Repeating unsubstantiated rumors with nothing other than press quips from extremists as evidence does nothing but continue to destroy this industry you profess to love and classify yourself as a gossip-monger, uninterested not in the true story but rather to glorify your petty criticism of all those not meeting your unrealistic vision of the real world.” Oh really? So, now, a circus review from yours unruly can amount to a world vision. I feel honored, World. Actually, the item in question came from the Bangor Daily News, forwarded to me by (hardly a gossip monger, he) Don Covinton. If you wish to send me your rebutting evidence, Ryan, please do, and I will be most obliged to blog -- one hand on my mouse, the other on a nut ...
End Ringers: Did you know that John Phillip Sousa started out in a circus band, around 1867? I didn’t ... A smaller Bandwagon? I wonder why the Circus Historical Society, especially while they are hustling to catch-up on back issues, needs put out so many pages? The Sept-Oct issue last year numbered a whopping 76 .... Okay, see you down – or up the road – kids, as Billy Barton used to kind of say at the end of his CR columns ...
From Circus Report reviews, I usually don’t expect anything less than "best ever" — such as "maybe a twee bit less than terrific" or "merely wonderful, demand your money back" (if you paid any) — but at least they usually provide a concise listing of the acts, giving me a sense of where a show is, and, sorry to rue, Carson & Barnes seems not to have advanced an inch away from its now-standard one-ring format, what with the same ringmaster, et all. I’d hoped the show would mirror its marvelous website makeover, but no ... A nice Circus Report bonus are its center folds, which can be quite pictorially alluring, they can. Came across one, seen here, that took me back to the Big Show under white canvas in the 1920s during Grand Entry. All those showy costumes. Three rings. Crowds in the seats. But --No, No, it did not! Upon closer examination, 'twas a photo of the 1973 spec in a building, with guy wires lending then impression of a tent -- such a striking contrast to where this show has gone ... Has it a future?Feld Family Intrigue: A big story in the Washing Post about Kenneth Feld's tutoring his three daughters to take over as producers, which they already have. I hear he’s keenly into the dump truck follies; oops, make that the Monster Jam thing. Girls seem each to bear potentially complimentary personalities ... I’m guessing that Nichole, at only 34, oldest of the sawdust sirens, will end up in control, aided by siblings Alana, 32, and Juliette, 28 ... “Observers wonder if they are up to it,” writes Thomas Heath, “or, not, whether they will leave behind a company with valuable pieces to be picked up by competitors.” Indeed. The Feld of Feld’s “biggest unknown” reveals he, is “what is the next big thing that may not exist now? Will they see it?” ... This huge organization continues to astonish and baffle me, it is so sprawling and, judged by the moderate turnouts I have observed in the Bay Area, so under-patronized as to make me wonder how they pull if off ... Corporately speaking, they might be Giants.
I’m cracked as hell, and I’m not going to crack em’ anymore! Yes, about my anti-peanut pitch rants. Well, not if John Ringling North II has he way. Previously, he’s tempted me to break peanuts with him together during a visit, to which I am invited, upon a day at Kelly Miller, which I, now shy of the backyard, may never see. Now comes, in the mail from John the Sequel, a copy of this year’s program magazine (lovely to look out – let whomever designed this REDESIGN your HUMDRUM website), and a genuine package of Peterson’s “Gourmet Nuts and Snacks” Salted Peanuts. Unopened, there it lays at the salty edge of my monitor .... When I have reason to celebrate, I will crack back. ... Behind the Big Top, my first tome, gets listed on Amazon like all the others, selling for as high as $242.18. Does anybody really pay that much for a book? Same book also can be had for around 20 bucks .. Go figer ... Montreal Magic: Up there, they put on a big circus festival in July, drawing from troupes and artists in European ring capitals. So close, and I wouldn’t have to fly. Next year, I must, I must ...
Under His Radar, Gossip Monger, Me? That’s what Kelly Miller’s tiger guy, Ryan Easley (Radar) thinks, as witness his reaction to a story I did about an elephant connected to our nationally revered, big top trend setting, one-star Ticketmaster rated Piccadilly Circus testing positive for the Big T. Here comes, what, me in reverse? “Repeating unsubstantiated rumors with nothing other than press quips from extremists as evidence does nothing but continue to destroy this industry you profess to love and classify yourself as a gossip-monger, uninterested not in the true story but rather to glorify your petty criticism of all those not meeting your unrealistic vision of the real world.” Oh really? So, now, a circus review from yours unruly can amount to a world vision. I feel honored, World. Actually, the item in question came from the Bangor Daily News, forwarded to me by (hardly a gossip monger, he) Don Covinton. If you wish to send me your rebutting evidence, Ryan, please do, and I will be most obliged to blog -- one hand on my mouse, the other on a nut ...End Ringers: Did you know that John Phillip Sousa started out in a circus band, around 1867? I didn’t ... A smaller Bandwagon? I wonder why the Circus Historical Society, especially while they are hustling to catch-up on back issues, needs put out so many pages? The Sept-Oct issue last year numbered a whopping 76 .... Okay, see you down – or up the road – kids, as Billy Barton used to kind of say at the end of his CR columns ...
8.4.2012
2 comments:
David, Can you direct me to the segment you did regarding the Piccadilly elephant with tuberculosis. Evidently I missed it. Is Ryan's not also included?
Thanks
Jeff Swanson
Jeff,
Either scroll way way down, about 20 posts until you see this headline:
Saturday Slide Bys: Sex in the Seats?
OR, type or paste those words in the search window above to your left.
That should take you there.
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