Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus (1919 - 2017)
Dates
- Existence: 1919 - 2017
Biography
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus was an American traveling circus dubbed The Greatest Show on Earth.
The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Combined Shows was first formed in 1919 with the merge of the Barnum & Bailey's Greatest Show on Earth and the Ringling Bros.
World's Greatest Shows. Barnum & Bailey had been acquired by the Ringling Brothers, who owned Ringling Bros. Circus, thirteen years earlier but did not merge the two companies until 1919, when it became obvious that running them separately was too complex and expensive.
The company underwent many changes through the second part of the twenty-century including moving the tenting shows to static venues in 1957 and several changes of ownership. The circus was first sold to partners Irvin and Israel Feld, and Roy Hofhein in 1967, they later sold it to the toy company Mattel in 1971, only to buy it back in 1981, to become part of the Feld Entertainment Firm in 1984 until its closure in 2017.
Although the company prospered, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus suffered the effects of the Great Depression in the 1930s but managed to survive and continued operating through to the Second World War, thanks to a special dispensation to travel by train granted by President Roosevelt. The post-war years however, were not to be as sympathetic as the advent of television and the rise in operational costs affected the profitability of the business. At about this time, the Felt brothers bought Ringling and made some radical changes to make the company relevant to its audience once again, including the formation of their own clown college.
By May 1980, the company expanded to three circuses by adding the one-ring International Circus Festival of Monte Carlo that debuted in Japan and Australia. Their shows however, were heavily dependent on animal performances and the opposition from animal protection groups started to take its toll. After years of protests and confrontation, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey opened the Centre for Elephant Conservation (CEC) in 1995, but continued working with elephants until 2016 when they were all retired to the centre. After this, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus declined dramatically and finally closed in 2017.
Found in 23 Collections and/or Records:
Ringling Brothers World’s Greatest Show Poster, 1910 original, c1990 - 1999 reproduction
Colour illustration of army of fifty clowns.
Trade and Advertising Material, c1900 - 1999
A range of items of promotion and advertising from a range of circus companies and performers, including artistes' photographs with act descriptions used for seeking employment in circuses and pamphlets advertising independent performances and circus companies' literature and souvenirs for public distribution and promotion including Gerry Cottle's Circus, Belle Vue, Blackpool Tower, Bertram Mills Circus, Gandey's, Ringling Bros and Barnum and Bailey, Knie and many more.
Various Items of Ephemera, c1800 - 2016
Various items related to George Walter Poole, Wilton's Music Hall, Henry James Mayer, Alexander Billington, James Upton Printers, Gompertz's panorama show, Poole's Myriorama and Diorama shows and Messrs Strange and Wilson Ghost show. Also includes a theatrical clock with two figures on the sides attracting customers.