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Best known for his cerebral, often nonlinear storytelling, acclaimed writer-director
was born on July 30, 1970 in London, England. Over the course of 15 years of filmmaking, Nolan has gone from low-budget independent films to working on some of the biggest blockbusters ever made. At 7 years old, Nolan began making short movies ...
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A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that include , , trained animals,
acts, , , , , , , , as well as other
and stunt-oriented artists. The term 'circus' also describes the performance which has followed various formats through its 250-year modern history.
is credited with being the 'father' of the modern circus when he opened the first circus in 1768 in England. A skilled equestrian, Astley demonstrated trick riding, riding in a circle rather than a straight line as his rivals did, and thus chanced on the format which was later named a 'circus'. In 1770 he hired acrobats, tightrope walkers, jugglers and a clown to fill in the pauses between acts. Performances developed significantly through the next fifty years, with large-scale theatrical battle reenactments becoming a significant feature. The 'traditional' format, whereby a ringmaster introduces a varied selection of acts that mostly perform choreographed acts to traditional music, developed in the latter part of the 19th century and continued almost universally to be the main style of circus up until the 1970s.
As styles of performance have developed since the time of Astley, so too have the types of venues where these circuses have performed. The earliest modern circuses were performed in open air structures with limited covered seating. From the late 18th to late 19th century, custom-made circus buildings (often wooden) were built with various types of seating, a centre ring, and sometimes a stage. The 'traditional' large tents, commonly known as 'Big Tops' were introduced in the mid-19th century as touring circuses superseded static venues. These tents eventually became the most common venue and remain so to the present day. Contemporary circuses perform in a variety of venues including tents, theatres and casinos. Many circus performances are still held in a ring usually 13 m (42 ft) in diameter. This dimension was adopted by Astley in the late 18th century as the minimum diameter that enabled an acrobatic horse rider to stand upright on a cantering horse to perform their tricks.
has been credited with reviving the circus tradition since the 1980s when a number of groups introduced circus based almost solely on human skills and which drew from other performing art skills and styles.
First attested in English 14th century, the word circus derives from
circus, which is the
κ?ρκο? (kirkos), itself a
κρ?κο? (krikos), meaning "circle" or "ring". In the book De Spectaculis early Christian writer Tertullian claimed that the first circus games were staged by the goddess Circe in honour of her father Helios, the Sun God.
with Great Danes
Video of a circus from 1954.
The modern and commonly held idea of a 'circus' is of a Big Top with various acts providing entertainment therein. However, the history of circuses is more complex, with historians disagreeing on its origin, as well as revisions being done about the history due to the changing nature of historical research, and the ongoing 'circus' phenomenon. For many, circus history begins with Englishman , while for others its origins go back much further—to
In Ancient Rome, the
was a building for the exhibition of horse and chariot races, equestrian shows, staged battles, gladiatorial combat and displays of (and fights with) trained animals. The circus of Rome were similar to the ancient Greek , although circuses served varying purposes and differed in design and construction, and for events that involved re-enactments of naval battles, the circus was flooded with water. The Roman circus buildings were, however, not circular but rectangular with semi circular ends. The lower seats were reserved for persons of rank, There were also various state boxes for the giver of the games and his friends. The circus was the only public spectacle at which men and women were not separated. Some circus historians such as
have stated "these performances may have taken place in the great arenas that were called 'circuses' by the Romans, but it is a mistake to equate these places, or the entertainments presented there, with the modern circus"
Others have argued that the lineage of the circus does go back to the Roman 'circuses' and a chronology of circus-related entertainment can be traced to Roman times, continued by the Hippodrome of Constantinople that operated until the 13th century, through medieval and renaissance jesters, minstrels and troubadours to the late 18th century and the time of Astley.
The first circus in the city of Rome was the , in the valley between the Palatine and Aventine hills. It was constructed during the monarchy and, at first, built completely from wood. After being rebuilt several times, the final version of the Circus Maximus could seat 250,000 it was built of stone and measured 400m in length and 90m in width. Next in importance were the
and the , from the notoriety which it obtained through the Circensian pleasures of Nero. A
its ruins have helped archaeologists reconstruct the Roman circus.
For some time after the fall of Rome, large circus buildings fell out of use as centres of mass entertainment. Instead, itinerant performers, animal trainers and showmen travelled between towns throughout Europe, performing at local fairs.
in London c.1808
The origin of the modern circus has been attributed to , who was born 1742 in Newcastle-under-Lyme, England. He became a cavalry officer who set up the first modern amphitheatre for the display of horse riding tricks in Lambeth, London on 4 April 1768. Astley did not originate trick horse riding, nor was he first to introduce acts such as acrobats and clowns to the English public, but he was the first to create a space where all these acts were brought together to perform a show. Astley rode in a circle rather than a straight line as his rivals did, and thus chanced on the format of performing in a circle. Astley performed stunts in a 42 ft diameter ring, which is the standard size used by circuses ever since. Astley referred to the performance arena as a Circle and the building as an amphitheatre but these were to later be known as a Circus. In 1770 Astley hired , ,
and a clown to fill in the pauses between acts.
Astley was followed by , whose feats of horsemanship had much to do with establishing the traditions of the circus, which were perpetuated by Henglers and Sangers celebrated shows in a later generation. In England circuses were often held in purpose built buildings in large cities, such as the , which was built as a combination of the circus, the menagerie and the variety theatre, where wild animals such as lions and elephants from time to time appeared in the ring, and where convulsions of nature such as floods, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions have been produced with an extraordinary wealth of realistic display. , the first mainstream , had his first major role as Little Clown in the pantomime The Triumph of M or, Harlequin's Wedding in 1781. The
opened in London on 4 November 1782 by
and his partner Charles Hughes. In 1782, Astley established the
in Paris, the first purpose-built circus in France, followed by 18 other permanent circuses in cities throughout Europe. Astley leased his Parisian circus to the Italian
in 1793. In 1826, the first circus took place under a canvas big top.
artists, in lithograph by Calvert Litho. Co., 1890
The Scotsman
brought the first modern circus to the United States. He began his theatrical career with Hughes Royal Circus in London in the 1780s, and travelled from England in 1792 to establish his first circus in . The first circus building in the US opened on April 3, 1793 in Philadelphia, where Ricketts gave America's first complete circus performance.
attended a performance there later that season.
In the Americas during the first two decades of the 19th century, the
toured from Montreal to Havana, building circus theatres in many of the cities it visited. , a native New Yorker, was the first American to operate a major circus in the United States. Later the establishments of Purdy, Welch & Co., and of van Amburgh gave a wider popularity to the circus in the United States. In 1825,
was the first circus owner to use a large canvas tent for the circus performance. Circus pioneer
was the most famous pre- circus clown, popularizing such expressions as "The One-Horse Show" and "". The American circus was revolutionized by
and , who launched the travelling , the first . Coup also introduced the first multiple ringed circuses, and was also the first circus entrepreneur to use
to transport the circus between towns, a practice that continues today.
Circus parade around tents, in lithograph by Gibson & Co., 1874
In 1838, the equestrian
returned to England from the United States, bringing with him a circus tent. At this time, itinerant circuses were becoming popular in Britain. 's circus, for example, between 1838 and 1840, travelled from Newcastle to Edinburgh and then to Portsmouth and Southampton. , who is noteworthy as Britain's only black circus proprietor and who operated one of the most celebrated travelling circuses in Victorian England, erected temporary structures for his limited engagements or retrofitted existing structures. One such structure in Leeds, which Fanque assumed from a departing circus, collapsed, resulting in minor injuries to many but the death of Fanque's wife. Three important circus innovators were Italian , and Frenchmen
and , whose early travelling circuses introduced the circus to Latin America, Australia, South East Asia, China, South Africa and Russia. Soullier was the first circus owner to introduce Chinese acrobatics to the European circus when he returned from his travels in 1866 and Tourniaire was the first to introduce the performing art to Ranga where it became extremely popular.
, in lithograph by Gibson & Co., 1873
Following Barnum's death, his circus merged with that of , and travelled to Europe as the Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show On Earth, where it toured from 1897 to 1902, impressing other circus owners with its large scale, its touring techniques (including the tent and circus train), and its combination of circus acts, a zoological exhibition and a freak show. This format was adopted by European circuses at the turn of the 20th century.
The influence of the American circus brought about a considerable change in the character of the modern circus. In arenas too large for speech to be easily audible, the traditional comic dialog of the clown assumed a less prominent place than formerly, while the vastly increased wealth of stage properties relegated to the background the old-fashioned equestrian feats, which were replaced by more ambitious acrobatic performances, and by exhibitions of skill, strength and daring, requiring the employment of immense numbers of performers and often of complicated and expensive machinery.
Painting by Venezuelan , c. 1891, depicting a backstage area at the circus
In 1919, , head of the , expressed a wish for the circus to become 'the people's art-form', with facilities and status on par with theatre, opera and ballet. The USSR nationalized Russian circuses. In 1927, the State University of Circus and Variety Arts, better known as the Moscow Circus School, performers were trained using methods developed from the Soviet gymnastics program. When the Moscow State Circus company began international tours in the 1950s, its levels of originality and artistic skill were widely applauded.
Circuses from China, drawing on Chinese traditions of , like the
are also popular touring acts.
has been held in
since 1974 and was the first of many international awards for circus performers. From the late 19th century through the first half of the 20th century, travelling circuses were a major form of spectator entertainment in the US and attracted huge attention whenever they arrived in a city. After World War II, the popularity of the circus declined as new forms of entertainment (such as television) arrived and the public's tastes became more sophisticated. From the 1960s onward, circuses attracted growing criticism from
activists. Many circuses went out of business or were forced to merge with other circus companies. Nonetheless, a good number of travelling circuses are still active in various parts of the world, ranging from small family enterprises to three-ring extravaganzas. Other companies found new ways to draw in the public with innovative new approaches to the circus form itself.
performing
(originally known as nouveau cirque) is a recent performing arts movement that originated in the 1970s in Australia, Canada, France, the West Coast of the United States, and the United Kingdom. Contemporary circus combines traditional circus skills and theatrical techniques to convey a story or theme. Compared with the traditional circus, the contemporary genre of circus tends to focus more attention on the overall aesthetic impact, on character and story development, and on the use of , original music, and
to convey thematic or narrative content. For aesthetic or economic reasons, contemporary circus productions may sometimes be staged in theatres rather than in large outdoor tents. Music used in the production is often composed exclusively for that production, and aesthetic influences are drawn as much from contemporary culture as from circus history. Animal acts appear rarely in contemporary circus in contrast to traditional circus where animal acts have been a significant part of circus entertainment.
Early examples of nouveau cirque companies include: , forged in Australia in 1978 from SoapBox Circus and New Circus, both founded in the early 1970s; the , founded in
in the UK in 1983,
in 1984 , founded in
in 1984; and
in 1986. More recent examples include: , founded in Seattle in 1998; Quebec' Les 7 doigts de la main (also known as The 7 Fingers); and the West African Circus Baobab in the late 1990s. The genre includes other circus troupes such as the Vermont-based
(founded in 1987 by ), Le Cirque Imaginaire (later renamed Le Cirque Invisible, both founded and directed by , daughter of ), the , Dislocate, and Vulcana Women's Circus, while
is an interesting take on the . Swedish contemporary circus company
was founded in 1995. U.S. Company PURE Cirkus was founded in the subgenre of "cirque noir" in 2004, and in , (United Kingdom), Skewed Circus combines punk, rap, dance music, comedy, and stunts to deliver "pop-circus" entertainment to young urban audiences.
The most conspicuous success story in the contemporary genre has been that of , the Canadian circus company whose estimated annual revenue now exceeds US$810 million, and whose nouveau cirque shows have been seen by nearly 90 million spectators in over 200 cities on five continents. Despite the contemporary circus' shift toward more theatrical techniques and its emphasis on human rather than animal performance, traditional circus companies still exist alongside the new movement. Numerous circuses continue to maintain animal performers, including , and the
from the United States,
from Munich,
from Australia, , Circo Atayde Hermanos, and Hermanos Mayaror Circus from Mexico, and
Circus from Italy, to name just a few.
Ticket Sale of
in , Finland
risk burns, both internal and external, as well as poisoning in the pursuit of their art.
A traditional circus performance is often led by a
who has a role similar to a . The ringmaster presents performers, speaks to the audience, and generally keeps the show moving. The activity of the circus traditionally takes large circuses may have multiple rings, like the six-ringed . A circus often travels with its own band, whose instrumentation in the United States has traditionally included , drums, , and sometimes the distinctive sound of the .
Common acts include a variety of ,
(including
and ), aerial acts (such as , , ), , , and a variety of other routines.
is one of the most com the combination of juggling and gymnastics is called
and include acts like
and the . Acts like these are some of the most common, and the most traditional.
are common to most circuses and are typically skilled "clowns getting into the act" is a very familiar theme in any circus. Famous circus clowns have included , the , , , , and .
are also parts of some circus acts, these activities may include , , , , and , , , , or . Famous sideshow performers include
and . A popular sideshow attraction from the early 19th century was the , where fleas were attached to props and viewed through a .
and leopard.
from Cole Brothers Circus parade through downtown Los Angeles, 1953
A variety of animals have historically been used in acts. While the types of animals used vary from circus to circus, , , , , , , and domestic animals such as
are the most common.
The earliest involvement of animals in circus was just the display of exotic creatures in a . Going as far back as the early eighteenth century, exotic animals were transported to North America for display, and menageries were a popular form of entertainment. The first true animals acts in the circus were equestrian acts. Soon elephants and big cats were displayed as well.
entered a cage with several big cats in 1833, and is generally considered to be the first wild animal trainer in American circus history.
was a famous female tiger-tamer.
Elephant act at a 2009 circus in , , Mexico. In December 2014, as a response to reports of animal mistreatment, the
passed a law banning the use of animals in any circus in the country. The law set fines for violations and required circuses to submit lists of the wildlife they possessed, which would then be made available to zoos interested in taking the animals.
groups have documented many cases of
in the training of performing circus animals. The
(PETA) contends that animals in circuses are frequently beaten into submission and that physical abuse has always been the method for training circus animals. According to PETA, although the US
does not permit the use of electric shock prods, whips, hooks, or similar instruments by trainers, these are still used today. According to PETA, during an undercover investigation of Carson & Barnes Circus, video footage was captured showing animal care director Tim Frisco training endangered Asian elephants with electrical shock prods and instructing other trainers to "beat the elephants with a
as hard as they could and to sink the sharp metal bullhook into the animals' flesh and twist it until they screamed in pain."
On behalf of the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality of the Netherlands,
conducted an investigation into the welfare of circus animals in 2008. The following issues, among others, were found:
71% of the observed animals had medical problems
33% of tigers and lions did not have access to an outdoor enclosure
Lions spend on average 98% of their time indoors
An average enclosure for tigers is only 5 m2
Elephants are shackled in chains for 17 hours a day on average
Elephants spend on average 10 hours a day showing
Tigers are terrified of fire but are still forced to jump through fire rings
Since 1990 there have been over 123 cases of lion attacks at circuses
Animals are trained through discipline.[]
Based on these findings, the researchers called for more stringent regulation regarding the welfare of circus animals. In 2012, the Dutch government announced a ban on the use of wild circus animals.
In testimony in
acknowledged that circus elephants are struck behind the ears, under the chin and on their legs with metal tipped prods, called bull hooks. Feld stated that these practices are necessary to protect circus workers. Feld also acknowledged that an elephant trainer was reprimanded for using an electric shock device, known as a hot shot or electric prod, on an elephant, which Feld also stated was appropriate practice. Feld denied that any of these practices harm elephants. In its January 2010 verdict on the case, brought against Feld Entertainment International by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals 'et al.', the Court ruled that evidence against the circus company was "not credible with regard to the allegations". In lieu of a
hearing, . (parent of Ringling Bros.) agreed to pay an unprecedented $270,000 fine for violations of the Animal Welfare Act that allegedly occurred between June 2007 and August 2011.
A 14-year litigation against the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus came to an end in 2014 when
and a number of other animal rights groups paid a $16 million settlement to Feld Entertainment. However, the circus closed in May 2017 after a 146-year run when it experienced a steep decline in ticket sales during the year after it discontinued its elephant act and sent its
to a reserve.
On February 1, 1992 at the Great American Circus in , an elephant named Janet (1965 – February 1, 1992) went out of control while giving a ride to a mother, her two children, and three other children. The elephant then stampeded through the circus grounds outside before being shot to death by police. Also, during a Circus International performance in
on 20 August 1994, an elephant called
(1974 – August 20, 1994) killed her trainer, , and severely mauled her groomer, Dallas Beckwith, in front of hundreds of spectators. Tyke then bolted from the arena and ran through the streets of
for more than thirty minutes. Police fired 86 shots at Tyke, who eventually collapsed from the wounds and died.
In 1998 in the UK, a parliamentary working group chaired by MP
studied living conditions and treatment of animals in UK circuses. All members of this group agreed that a change in the law was needed to protect circus animals. Gale told the BBC, "It's undignified and the conditions under which they are kept are woefully inadequate—the cages are too small, the environments they live in are not suitable and many of us believe the time has come for that practice to end." The group reported concerns about boredom and stress, and noted that an independent study by a member of the
"found no evidence that circuses contribute to education or conservation." However, in 2007, a different working group under the UK , having reviewed information from experts representing both the circus industry and animal welfare, found an absence of "scientific evidence sufficient to demonstrate that travelling circuses are not compatible with meeting the welfare needs of any type of non-domesticated animal presently being used in the United Kingdom." According to that group's report, published in October 2007, "there appears to be little evidence to demonstrate that the welfare of animals kept in travelling circuses is any better or any worse than that of animals kept in other captive environments."
A ban prohibiting the use of wild animals in circuses in Britain was due to be passed in 2015, but Conservative MP
repeatedly blocked the bill under the reasoning that "The EU Membership Costs and Benefits bill should have been called by the clerk before the circuses bill, so I raised a point of order". He explained that the circus bill was "at the bottom of the list" for discussion. The
non-profit group dubbed this "a huge embarrassment for Britain that 30 other nations have taken action before us on this simple and popular measure".
There are nationwide bans on using some if not all animals in circuses in Sweden, , India, Finland, , Switzerland, Norway, Austria, Belgium, , , , , , Greece, Hungary, Poland, Portugal, , , , , , , , , , , , Netherlands, and Denmark. Spain, Ireland, United Kingdom, , Austria, , Brazil, Canada, , and the United States have locally restricted or banned the use of animals in entertainment. In response to a growing popular concern about the use of animals in entertainment, animal-free circuses are becoming more common around the world. In 2009, Bolivia passed legislation banning the use of any animals, wild or domestic, in circuses. The law states that circuses "constitute an act of cruelty." Circus operators had one year from the bill's passage on July 1, 2009 to comply.
City ordinances banning performances by wild animals have been enacted in
(2017), and
Greece became the first European country to ban any animal from performing in any circus in its territory in February 2012, following a campaign by
and the Greek Animal Welfare Fund (GAWF).
On June 6, 2015, the
adopted a position paper in which it recommends the prohibition of the use of
in traveling circuses.
Circus building
Paper postcard of the Old
Wood Circus
In some towns, there are circus buildings where regular performances are held. The best known are:
Cirque Jules Verne in
Hippodrome Circus,
in Montreal
Riga Circus in Riga
"Globus" Circus in Bucharest
In other countries, purpose-built circus buildings still exist which are no longer used as circuses, or are used for circus only occasionally among a wider for example, the Cirkusbygningen (The Circus Building) in Copenhagen, Denmark,
in Stockholm, Sweden, or
in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
The Circus, by , painted 1891. Original in , Paris.
Circus seals
The atmosphere of the circus has served as a dramatic setting for many musicians. The most famous circus theme song is called "", and was composed in 1904 by . Other circus music includes "El Caballero", "Quality Plus", "Sunnyland Waltzes", "The Storming of El Caney", "Pahjamah", "Bull Trombone", "Big Time Boogie", "Royal Bridesmaid March", "The Baby Elephant Walk", "Liberty Bell March", "Java", Strauss's "Radetsky March", and "Pageant of Progress". A poster for 's Circus Royal, one of the most popular circuses of Victorian England, inspired
on ' album, . The song title refers to , a well-known circus performer in the 19th century. Producer
engineers created the song's fairground atmosphere by assembling a sound collage of collected recordings of calliopes and fairground organs, which they cut into strips of various lengths, threw into a box, and then mixed up and edited together randomly, creating a long loop which was mixed into the final production. Another traditional circus song is the
march "", which is played only to alert circus performers of an emergency.
Plays set in a circus include the 1896 musical The Circus Girl by , Polly of the Circus written in 1907 by , He Who Gets Slapped written by Russian
1916 and later adapted into one of the first circus films, Katharina Knie written in 1928 by
and adapted for the English stage in 1932 as Caravan by playwright Cecily Hamilton, the revue Big Top written by
in 1942, Top of the Ladder written by
in 1950, Stop the World, I Want to Get Off written by
in 1961, and
with music by
and lyrics and book by , Roustabout: The Great Circus Train Wreck written by
Following World War I, circus films became popular. In 1924
was the fir in 1925 Sally of the Sawdust (remade 1930), Variety, and Vaudeville were produced, followed by The Devil's Circus in 1926 and
starring , Circus Rookies, ; and Laugh Clown Laugh in 1928. German film Salto Mortale about trapeze artists was released in 1930 and remade in the United States and released as
in 1956; in 1932
Charlie Chan at the Circus, Circus (USSR) and The Three Maxiums were released in 1936 and
starring the
and You Can't Cheat an Honest Man in 1939. Circus films continued to be popular during the Second World W films from this era included The Great Profile starring
(1940), the animated
(1941), Road Show (1941),
(1941) and Captive Wild Woman (1943).
Tromba, a film about a tiger trainer, was released in 1948. In 1952 's Oscar-winning film
was first shown. Released in 1953 were Man on a Tightrope and 's Gycklarnas afton (released as Sawdust and Tinsel in the United States); these were followed by Life Is a Circus; Ring of Fear;
(1954) and
(1954), an Oscar-winning film by
about a girl who is sold to a circus strongman. Fellini made a second film set in the circus called
in 1970. Films about the circus made since 1959 include Disney's
(1960), the
(also in 1960); the
(1962); A Tiger Walks, a Disney film about a tiger that esc and
(1964), starring .
(1970) a Hindi drama film directed by
which was about a clown who must make his audience laugh at the cost of his own sorrows. In the film
(1997), Leo's son Lune is captured and placed in a circus, which burns down when a tiger knocks down a ring of fire while jumping through it.
The TV series , based on the novel by , follows the history of the circus family Humberto between 1826 and 1924. The setting of the HBO television series , which ran from 2003 to 2005, is also largely set in a travelling circus. The circus has also inspired many writers. Numerous books, both non-fiction and fiction, have been published about circus life. Notable examples of circus-based fiction include
by . The novel
tells the fictional tale of a circus veterinarian and was made into a , starring
Circus is the central theme in comic books of , an Indian comic book superhero. According to this series, Dhruva was born and brought up in a fictional Indian circus called Jupiter Circus. When a rival circus burnt down Jupiter Circus, killing everyone in it, including Dhruva's parents, Dhruva vowed to become a crime fighter. A circus-based television series called
was also telecast in India in 1989 on , starring
as the lead actor.
, tent shows that preceded American circus
, Charlton T. Lewis, Charles Short, A Latin Dictionary, on Perseus
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Croft-Cooke & Cotes, Rupert & Peter (1976). Circus: A World History. London: Paul Elek. p. 27.  .
Dagron, Gilbert (2011). L’ Hippodrome de Constantinople: Jeux, Peuple et Politique. Paris: ?ditions Gallimard.  .
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Speaight, George (1980). A History of the Circus. London: Tantivy Press.
The Oxford English Dictionary lists the 1791 book The History of the Royal Circus about Philip Astley's troupe as the first written use of the word to describe the modern circus.
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Joe Nickell (2005). "Secrets of the sideshows". p.8. University Press of Kentucky, 2005
Stoddart, Helen (2000). Rings of Desire: Circus History and Representation. Manchester: Manchester University Press. pp. 13–15.  .
McConnell Stott|, Andrew (2009), The Pantomime Life of Joseph Grimaldi, Canongate Books, p. 28.
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Leigh Remizowski, " CNN 29 November 2011.
Heath, Thomas (). . .
(1) Wang, Amy B (). . . In 2015, Ringling Bros. announced it would stop using elephants in its shows. The lumbering mammals delivered their final performances last May — dancing, spinning and standing on pedestals at the command of the ringmaster — and then were retired to a reserve in central Florida. The move exacerbated the show’ the elephants’ departure ultimately expedited what was a “difficult business decision.”
“Ringling Bros. ticket sales have been declining, but following the transition of the elephants off the road, we saw an even more dramatic drop,” Kenneth Feld said in a statement Saturday. “This, coupled with high operating costs, made the circus an unsustainable business for the company.”
(2) Brulliard, Karin (). . The Washington Post. ... Ringling had become the target of animal protection groups that claimed it mistreated its elephants, and the two sides soon locked in a 14-year legal battle so cutthroat it involved secret informants paid by animal groups and a former CIA official who was paid by Ringling’s parent company, Feld Entertainment, to spy on activists and a journalist. The litigation ended with several animal groups paying a $16 million settlement to Feld.
While the animal activists never prevailed against Ringling in court, they were victorious outside. The allegations of elephant abuse prompted municipalities around the country to ban elephant bullhooks — a sharp metal tool used by handlers — or to prohibit wild animal performances altogether, as Los Angeles recently moved to do. After Ringling retired its last pachyderms to a company-owned elephant conservation center in Florida, ticket sales declined much more than Feld expected, and the company announced in January that Ringling would close for good.
St. Petersburg Times (May 6, 1993).
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International., Animal Defenders. . Animal Defenders International 2017.
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Berg, Emmett (). . .
Good, Kate (). . One Green Planet.
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(PDF). Federation of Veterinarians of Europe. FVE/013/pos/007. Federation of Veterinarians of Europe.[]
Winter, Stuart (). . Express.co.uk.
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Turner, Steve, "A Hard Day's Write." HarperCollins(1984).
Assael, Brenda, "Circus and Victorian Society", 2005, University of Virginia Press, Charlottesville &#160;
and Cotes, Peter. 1976. Circus: A World History. Elek. London &#160;
Johnson, William M. 1990. . Iridescent Publishing
Nance, Susan. Entertaining Elephants: Animal Agency and the Business of the American Circus (Johns Hopkins University P
elephants as "actors" or creatures of agency in the American circus from 1800 to 1940.
Speaight, George, "A History of the Circus" 1980, The Tantivy Press, London &#160;
Stoddart, Helen, "Rings of Desire: Circus History and Representation", 2000, Manchester University Press, Manchester &#160;
&#160;This article&#160;incorporates text from a publication now in the :&#160;Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "". . 6 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp.&#160;390–391.
Tertullian, Septimus Florens. De spectaculis: Latin text with English translation by Terrot Reaveley Glover. Loeb Classical Library 1931.
Adams, Katherine H. (2012). Women of the American Circus, . McFarland and Company, Inc., Publishers. &#160;.
Dfening, Fred D., III (November 2007). "The American Circus in the 1870s: An Overview from Newspaper Sources". . Columbus, Ohio: Circus Historical Society. 51 (6): 4–60. &#160;.—provides an overview of "low-yield research" into the history of the American Circus as covered in "ragcontent newspapers [and] magazines [such as] White Tops"
Brooke, Bob (October–November 2001). . History Magazine.
Simon, Linda. The Greatest Shows on Earth: A History of the Circus (Reaktion Books, distributed by University of Chicago P 2014); 296
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