Posted By thecircusblog on May 26, 2009
Another wonderful page in circus history. Col. Tim Mc Coy is in the center of this photo. He presented one of the finest exhibitions of trick riding performers from countries such as Canada, Morocco, Australia, Spain, Mexico, Russia and Argentina. The show would not have been complete without our own American cowboys and Native American Sioux and Lakota people demonstrating their special riding skills. Before Col. Mc Coy was in show business he worked for the department of interior as an Native American agent, then called an Indian agent. He not only assisted the native people but became their friend and learned much of their languages and customs. I remember in many of his shows he would speak in the Sioux language and at the same time do sign language teaching the kids in the circus audience and later on television the Indian ways. Kids loved it and went away knowing that the native American people were not that much different and had a positive attitude toward the American Indian. The rough riders did a special show after the circus performance was over. This was called the “After Show” and would last about 30 to 40 minutes. This photo is of Ringling Bros Barnum and Bailey Circus, Newark, N. J 1935. Let’s not forget Buffalo Bill, William Cody set the stage for all the great western shows that followed.
Category: Col. Tim McCoy |
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Posted By thecircusblog on May 26, 2009
Taking a little time out between shots. Johnny Weismuller with Tamba on location shooting one of many Jungle Jim movies in the late 1940’s. As Johnny got older he did not fight the young Tarzan image, so the studio created the Jungle Jim series. They were still exciting and adventurous and the kids loved them.
Category: Movie and TV, World Jungle Compound |
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Posted By thecircusblog on May 26, 2009
I am publishing Frank Buck again because of his autograph on this photo and because I found some additional history on him. In 1939 these autographed photos were given out to some of the public when Buck toured with Russell Bros and Pan Pacific Circus. This is a little known fact. In 1938 Frank Buck appeared with the Ringling circus and later that season with Sells Floto and Al G. Barnes circus.
Category: Frank Buck, Sells Floto Circus |
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Posted By thecircusblog on May 26, 2009
I never met or worked with Bobby Gibbs, but my cousin Gary Henry and his wife Zoeanna said that he was a great guy and that’s enough for me. I found this picture in my collection of photos so I published it for you to see. Perhaps one of these days I will have the opportunity to meet Mr. Gibbs. 5/31/09. Today I found out from Judy Jacobs that Bobby Gibbs is no longer with us, I am about three years to late in knowing this fact.
Category: Elephants & Elephants Trainers |
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Posted By thecircusblog on May 26, 2009
Cheerful Gardener, trainer and the elephant, Major.The John Robinson Circus 1923. Cheerful was also with Hagenbeck & Wallace, Circus.
Category: Hagenbeck & Wallace Circus |
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Posted By thecircusblog on May 21, 2009
Little Makimba saved the act when he took Bongi’s place after Bongie’s death in Las Vegas, Nev. In 1970 I lost Bongie, my hand balancing and lead comedy chimp to a stupid and selfish person that unplugged the electricity from my chimp truck and used it for their own. We had just arrived in Vegas and we pulled into the Desert Rose Trailer Park where most performers stayed. It was mid summer and very hot. I put on all of the air conditioning for the trailer and the chimp truck and all was well. I had a meeting at the Sands Hotel with an agent for a gig we were to do with Red Skelton. The interview took about three hours. When I got back to the trailer park I discovered the tragic event. A friend and fellow performer Billy Stebbings ran out to my car and said they were trying to revive the chimps. Someone had pulled the the electric plug from the chimp truck and used it for there 0wn purpose. The temperature rose beyond normal it was summer in Vegas, need I say more. Billy told who ever it was that they had better leave town before I got back. Thanks to Billy and Lilly and others, they saved all my chimps but my Bongie. I still hurt to this day.
Category: Henry's Chimps |
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Posted By thecircusblog on May 21, 2009
After a short lay off to practice with Makimba, we went out on the road again. As you can see Makimba’s hand to hand is perfect. The comedy became natural and within a few month’s I had it all back together.
Category: Henry's Chimps |
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Posted By thecircusblog on May 21, 2009
It was wonderful how my chimps seemed to understand my problems . Makimba seemed to know just what to do and how important he was to the act… every show he became better and better. After doing this trick with Bongi who weighed in at 140 lbs, Makimbs’s one hand was a breeze. The act worked for another ten years. It finally ended at Legend City Amusement Park, Tempe, Arizona. I lost all my chimps to a disease called Valley Fever. There was no cure for the disease at that time for chimpanzees.
Category: Henry's Chimps |
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Posted By thecircusblog on May 21, 2009
The comedy with Bongi started almost from the very first day I got into the act with my father in the mid 1950’s. It was my intention to have a strict chimp act with hard and different tricks and controlled humor. I didn’t want to be like all the other chimp acts. Bongi seemed to have a different idea. He seemed to live to make a fool out of me in every performance. He actually would embarrass me at times. No matter how I complained my father and others wanted to keep that slap stick comedy in the act. The booking agents loved it and so did the audience and eventually so did I. This photo shows the beginning of what is supposed to be a serious hand balancing routine but as you can see.. Bongi began with the foot in the face. It was kind of like Laural and Hardy from then on.
Category: Henry's Chimps |
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Posted By thecircusblog on May 21, 2009
After a while I had to stop doing so many balancing tricks because the act became too long… what with the comedy and my father doing tricks with the other chimps. It was easy to do a fast and funny 30 minutes and sometimes longer which was ok at a fair or night club but not in a circus. Louie Stern of Polock Bros. Circus would time the act every show. He never said a thing, but Dad and I thought we had to cut down the time of the act. Not long after cutting some tricks and some funny stuff, we shortened the act down to 12 or 14 minutes…..A few shows went by and Louie told Ross Paul that he wanted to see Dad and I. We waited for Louie to finish talking to some Shriners and then he looked over when he was done talking and said to me “what the BLANK happened to chimp act?….. it’s to short”! I started to say “I thought you wanted us to cut the time down” when he interruped me with “I don’t care how long you run the act….. just as long as you keep them laughing.”
Category: Henry's Chimps |
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