Show World (June 1909)

June 26, 1909. THE SHOW WORLD 9 WHO IS THE BEST CLOWN IN CIRCUSDOM? Webster’s definition of a clown is not at all satisfactory when describing the class of artists being considered in these articles. The Standard defini¬ tion of a clown gets closer to the meaning of the term as used in the circus world, but there is still lacking that shade of meaning which is de¬ sired. Too offset this difficulty and to de¬ termine once and forever the mean¬ ing of the word “clown” as used in circusdom, an appeal was made to Otto Ringling, who is greatly inter¬ ested in clowning and in everything. I Definition of “Clown.” ^ “A man of coarse nature and E manners; an awkward fellow; gian ill-bred person; a boor.”— & WEBSTER. “A professional buffoon in a patomime, circus or the like; j in old plays a fool or rustic, buffoon, a Merry Andrew.”— .. STANDARD. “A provider of comedy for a \Jcircus.”— OTTO RINGLING. which would tend to advance the art. Mr. Ringling, who is a recognized au¬ thority in all things relating to the circus, settled the question with that unyielding firmness for which he is noted and permits this contribution to the dictionary of today to be used for the first time in these columns. Mr. Ringling’s definition of a clown, A PROVIDER OF COMEDY AT A CIRCUS, is certain to be received with that degree of respect which charac¬ terizes his every action and the set¬ tling of the dispute which has thus far interfered with a dispassionate discus¬ sion of this momentous question in dressing room and on the circus train will tend to advance the ultimate de¬ cision of this deliberated problem. ■Several letters have been received in ^ich it was asserted that a character ^median working before the perform- &ce began or during the show is not ifcclown. A correspondent from the Kngling Brothers show attempts to point out that a “Hooligan” or a Dutch comedian is not a clown. Mr. Ringling’s definition of a clown puts an end to such claims and assists very much in the determining of who is entitled to the honor of being styled the best clown in circusdom. |rThe value of Mr. Ringling’s defini¬ tion cannot be overestimated by those who honestly wish to reach a decision which will reflect credit on all who have participated in the discussion of the question. ■ The promise made in the last article to positively reach a decision in regard to the best clown with the Barnum & Bailey show was made in all sincerity and were it not the desire of the ar¬ tists themselves to continue the dis¬ cussion for a time until some points fording originality are positively settled, the circus editor would be as good as his word. As it is, the rights if the clowns are considered too im¬ portant to be trampled upon and the figures given on this page are still sub¬ ject to change and are printed only as an evidence that the compiler of the table is faithfully working on a task which might well occupy the mind of the greatest expert in circusdom. The Bamum Clowns, The points given Harry La Pearl in the last issue have been materially in¬ Otto Ringling Puts an End to the Discussion Regarding Who is to be Considered in these Articles; Says Clown is Provider of Comedy BY E. E. MEREDITH. creased owing to his temporary posi¬ tion in a circus aerial act and because his dancing number is much better re¬ ceived oi! the road than it was in Chi¬ cago. Henry Stanz is given additional points because it has been learned that he clowns throughout the perform¬ ance. A1 Olifan, whose standing put him among the half a dozen best clowns with that show, is one of the original Four Olifans and probably has more mechanical stuff than any other clown in circusdom. Two of his figures—the three-legged, three-headed man and the four-legged, two-headed man, are copyrighted and his giant rooster, while not new, is always attractive to the -young folks. He was principal clown with the Hagenbeck show in 1906 and was with the Sells-Floto show in 1907 and the John Robinson show in 1908. He is assisted with the Barnum show by Bill Scott and Jake Klipple and the trio are known as the Three Olifans. George Sully was given credit by a contributor to this page, who spoke of his work in reference to the Four Comrades — George Sully, Leonard Rooney, Jack Hedder and George Donahue. The acrobatic act of the Four Comrades in the circus perform¬ ance is always a big hit and is familiar in vaudeville. James Rossi, who portrays “Teddy” in “Hunting in Africa,” which is by all means the clown hit of the show, is given the limit of points for public ap¬ proval, but as the idea did not origi¬ nate with him, his total does not reach the amount it would otherwise. Rossi has been in vaudeville for 14 years and returned to circusdom last summer with Yankee Robinson. Fred Egener asserts that he was first to do the clown with the little dog on the big rope on the hippo¬ drome track and this clown feature has been frequently cartooned and widely applauded with various shows. Harry Clemmomns, who is the Zulu in “Hunting in Africa” and works with D, _W. Winslow with the tray gag (which is put on exceptionally well) gets many laughs. Dick Ford recently joined the Bar¬ num show and has been given the place of clown policeman. He is given 13 points for originality owing to work in the past which is not evidenced in his present position. T. Valdo, who was with “Polly of the Circus” for the last two winter seasons, in entertaining as a fat wo¬ man in the “crazy number” and his comedy juggling act is always well received. Art Jarvis is doing a one man base¬ ball game now, which is different from others, and his mule hurdle act is re¬ ceived with the same laughter that similar acts invariably attract. D. W. Winslow rides in the Roman races as well as participating in the mule hurdle act and clowning through¬ out the performance. Spot Gerome and Harry Burns of¬ fer a statue act which is excellent, in addition to the prize fight number, in which their talents are exhibited to advantage. An Innovation. Jim Rutherford has improved his balloon number with the Hagenbeck- Wallace show until it stands as one of the most timely offerings with the circuses of 1909. A communication signed^ by Harry X. Beaumont, who represents “Variety” in Denver, Charles Jacobs, manager of Tuileries park, and William A. Weston, general manager of the Crystal theater com¬ pany of Denver, states: “The clown articles have caused considerable discussion among show¬ men in Denver. “We' had the pleasure to be in a party which witnessed the perform¬ ance of the Hagenbeck-Wallace show here last night and must say that the clowns with that show are so far ahead of the majority of clowns we have seen that there is positively no chance for comparison. “They first appeared in a big clown song number, about twenty clowns in all, singing and dancing like a big musical comedy chorus. The clown who arranged that number should not be overlooked for it was a solid hit. “During the next number an up-to- date airship^, with sails spread and wheels buzzing, shot across the entire length of the tent to the rescue of an unfortunate clown who had in some manner become entangled in a rope and was dangling from the top of a center pole. This stunt was the big¬ gest laugh creator we have ever wit¬ nessed. We learned during the even¬ ing that Jim Rutherford was the pro¬ ducer of these numbers. If such is the case, he is certainly entitled to the title of BEST CLOWN for not only were they the best things of their kind shown here in many a day, but Ruth¬ erford surely knows how to play to a circus audience and leaves them roar¬ ing for more. “We have witnessed nearly every circus that has shown here and can safely say that no clown ever created such roars of laughter and provided such up-to-date comedy as he has. “Hoping that this information may be of some value to you in making your decision, we remain,” etc. Arthur Borella Boomed. Another communication from a wit¬ ness of the Hagenbeck-Wallace show at Denver praises the “Afraid-to-go- home-in-the-dark” offering of Borella so highly that it is evident that the points given him in the last issue must be increased. That country is all stirred up over prohibition so the number referred to, is therefore so timely that it must be given consid¬ eration. There is some dissatisfaction in re¬ gard to the points given John Lancas¬ ter and some make the claim that he is not as funny as the policeman. Such assertions do not, however, influence the mind of the circus editor, who OTTO RINGLING CAN’T BE CAUGHT “NAPPING.” It is an axiom of the show business that Otto Ringling is never cau^t off his guard. In discussing the clown articles with him the question was asked: “Whom do you consider the best clown”? Mr. Ringling replied: “You are determining that” feels thoroughly competent to pass on what “goes” well and insists that Jack Lancaster’s policeman is a notable of¬ fering for which he has not been given more credit than he deserves. Other Clowns Considered. Ab Johnson is principal clown with the Mighty Haag show and other fun- makers with that enterprise are: Roy Fortune, Ed Parsons, Spider Mardello, Sam Deforrest, Harry Deforrest, Wil-' Ham Johnson and Ed Land. Gary Vanderbilt, the fat policeman with the Gollmar Brothers; Philip Darling, with the Sells-Floto show, and Harry Clark, Charles Sasara and James Kincaid, of the John Robinson shows, are recent additions to the pre¬ liminary list from which the best •clown is being selected. If “Slivers” Oakley, John Lolo and Art Adair were still active circus clowns they would, of course, be con¬ sidered. Mr. Lolo wa« with the John Robinson show for many years and was remarkably clever. In reply to a communication regard¬ ing the standing of the Ringling Brothers’ clowns, it may be stated that figures compiled to date indicate the selection of A1 Miaco with Jules Tournor and George Hartzell close seconds. A1 Miaco is given twenty- five points, the limit for the “number of offerings’! he has given clowndom, and nine_points out of a possible ten for personality. It will be seen that his standing will be very high. George Hartzell was first to produce a “teddy” number as it will be remem¬ bered. His “big stick” was a big hit with the Ringling show of 1908. It is said that he is the originator of the “Hunting in Africa” number now of¬ fered by the Ringlings. If so it will count considerably in his favor and may put his points as high or even higher than Miaco. The “Merry Widow,” “sheath gown” and “William Jennings Bryan stumping on the hip¬ podrome track” are also credited to Hartzell. There is still another argument in favor of delay in determining the best clown in circusdom. The Mackay European circus does not open until next Monday and it will have some clowns which are certain to rank among the three or four best ones. Spader Johnson, James Adams, Steve Miaco, Stanley Ferguson, the Jenkins Trio, Charles Warren, Marcelle, Lee Wilson and others will be with that Would Have Cabled. There is a report that Henry Gentry was so anxious to secure the services of “Buck” Massie that he instructed Lon Williams, general agent of the No. 1 show, to cable for him. Wil¬ liams learned that Massie was in this country and communicated with him at St. Louis. It is believed that Mas¬ sie will be contracting with that show again within a few days. Figures Indicating the Relative Merits of the Bamum & Bailey Clowns (Subject to change.) Public Number Orig- Per- Doubling Doubling Appro- offer- inal- sonal- in in Name. val. ings. ity. ity. Concert. Circus. Total. Horace Webb. 21 25 2 2 .. 14 64 Harry La Pearl- 17 17 15 7 .. 7 63 Henry Stantz. 24 10 18 9 .. .. 61 George Baker. 23 17 13 8 .. .. 61 Eddie De Voe. 23 17 13 8 .. .. 61 A1 Olifan. 20 18 15 6 .. .. 59 George Sully. 15 10 8 9 .. 14 56 James Rossi. 25 10 12 8 .. .. 55 Fred Egener .21 10 11 7 5 .. 54 Harry Clemmons ..14 10 11 6 5 .. 46 Dick Ford. 20 . 5 13 8 .. .. 46