Cole Bros. Circus

The Cole Bros. Circus was a medium-sized American circus. It was founded in 1884 as "W.W. Cole's New Colossal Shows", by William Washington Cole. In the 1930s, the circus employed two noted animal trainers, Clyde Beatty and Allen King, both of whom traveled in their own railroad cars.[1] During their shows the Cole Bros. Circus would often parade from their 35 large cars in the rail yards to where the circus was being performed.[2] Another well-known performer with the circus was Bob Strehlau Juggles the Clown.[3] In 1957 the show was renamed Clyde Beatty Cole Bros. Circus and bought by the Acme Circus Operating Corporation, an organization formed by Jerry Collins, Frank McColsky, Randolph Calhoun, and Walter Kernan.[4]

1884 advertisement

As of 2014, Cole Bros. Circus was one of the few traditional circuses in the United States that remains under the Big Top tent.[5][6][7] As of 2016 the show was essentially defunct, largely in response to animal rights activists advocating against the use of animals for live performances.

In 1940, in Fulton county Indiana, a fire killed many of the animals in the Cole Brothers circus.[8]

Alternative names
  • W.W. Cole's New Colossal Shows
  • Clyde Beatty Cole Bros. Circus - 1957
  • Cole Bros. Circus
  • Cole Bros. Circus Worlds Largest Circus Under The Big Top
  • Cole Bros. Circus Of The Stars[9]

Performers

Many performers traveled with Cole Bros. Circus. In 1908, featured on a herald as performing were the Seven Bostock-Sangers, the Heuman Family, Professor Charles Tinney's Concert Band, and prominently Mlle. De Zizi. On a herald published in 1959, Pinito De Oro, Gallaso, Tonito, 8 Moroccans, Beatty, Flying Palustres, and Hugo Zacchini were some other performers highlighted. Some additional performers who traveled and/or performed with the Cole Bros. Circus over time were the Flying Thrillers, the Imperial Harolds, the Esqueda Family, Harietta, the Nelson Family, J. M. Christiansen, Cese O'Dell, Harold Barnes, Rozina, and Estrella.

Advertising techniques

The Cole Bros. Circus used many advertising formats in order to draw as much attention and customers as possible. One of the advertising techniques they used the most were heralds. The Cole Bros. Circus heralds often didn't have color. These posters would often talk about how incredibly enormous the circus was in performance quality and in comparison to other circuses. The posters included quotes such as, "FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY - STUPENDOUSLY PRESENTING THE WORLD'S FAMOUS, BIGGEST AND GREATEST FEATURES", "THIS COUNTRY'S REPRESENTATIVE AMUSEMENT, ENDORSED BY THE CRITICS OF THE UNIVERSE", and "BIGGEST AND BEST CIRCUS IN THE WORLD".[10]

Visited by the Cole Bros. Circus (1935)

Known for

The Cole Bros. Circus, like most other American circuses in the 1930s, would set up side poles, dozens of feet tall, to put a big tent on top. Nevertheless, although intriguingly enormous, this was a common scene. However, the Cole Bros. Circus was known especially for their giant street parade from the railroad yard to the circus grounds.

See also

References
  1. Atwell, Harry A. (1935). "Cole Bros. Circus". World Digital Library. Retrieved 22 January 2014.
  2. Quigley, Barbara (April 9, 2014). "Cole Bros. Circus Photographs CA. 1935-1949 (Prints Made as Late as 1960s)" (PDF). Retrieved November 28, 2022.
  3. Spychalla, Craig (September 24, 2010). "Send in the Clown: Bob the Clown's daughter talks about discovering the man behind the face paint and his Hall of Fame induction in Baraboo". Portage Daily Register. Retrieved 22 January 2014.
  4. "Clyde Beatty Cole Bros. Circus (Established c1957) | Discover Our Archives". archives.shef.ac.uk. Retrieved 2022-12-01.
  5. "Cole Bros. History: W.W. Cole's Legacy Lives On". Cole Bros. Circus of Stars. Retrieved 22 January 2014.
  6. Bauer, Peter (March 19, 2010). "Circus Brings Back Tigers". The DeLand-Deltona Beacon. Archived from the original on 2014-02-02. Retrieved January 22, 2014.
  7. Audrey Parente. "A Look Behind the Scenes as the Cole Brothers Circus starts its Spring Tour". Archived 2014-02-01 at the Wayback Machine The Daytona Beach News-Journal. March 9, 2013. Retrieved 22 January 2014.
  8. Wilson, Drew C. (2016-03-30). "Off again, off again, Cole Brothers Circus cancels Havelock shows". havenews.com. Havelock News. Archived from the original on 2016-04-02.
  9. "Circus: Cole Bros. Circus, 1935-1952". The Circus in America. Retrieved 22 January 2014.
  10. "Online Collections | Circus World Museum". circus.pastperfectonline.com. Retrieved 2023-06-06.
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