2008 Woodie Awards
Murray goes EXOTIC
Circus brings unique animals, live entertainment to Murray
Issue date: 5/2/08 Section: College Life
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Staff writer
Lions and tigers and bears. Well, maybe not bears or lions, but there were most definitely tigers at the Regional Special Events Center Saturday and Sunday as The Greatest Show on Earth came to Murray.
More than 7,500 people attended the show while the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus was in town, Mae Flint, assistant facility manager for the RSEC, said.
"There was a great community response then and Feld Entertainment felt that it was a good fit in Murray," Flint said. "Since we've established that relationship with them it makes it easier to get bigger shows."
Hosting the circus presented unique challenges to the RSEC staff.
"There is always a lot of preparation for bigger shows," Flint said. "It took probably around three hours to just bring in all of their equipment. Of course there are always additional considerations when you're dealing with animals, especially large animals. They even brought in a special dumpster just for elephant dung."
The show featured animals such as lions, tigers, elephants, zebras, horses and alligators. There were also acts like traditional clowns, trapeze artists, gymnasts and motorcycle stunts.
"I saw some of the acts while I was working," Flint said. "My favorite was probably the trapeze stuff."
The circus was the brainchild of P.T. Barnum. Barnum had been gathering rarities and oddities for many years and displaying them at a museum in New York City, according to the Web site ringling.com.
In 1871 the traveling circus debuted under the name "P.T. Barnum's Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan and Circus." The circus' primary act was Jumbo, an African elephant.
James A. Bailey worked with Barnum to promote the circus up until Barnum's death in 1891. After Barnum's death, Bailey gained control of what was then known as The Barnum & Bailey Circus, according to the Web site.
In 1884 the Ringling Brothers started a tented circus in Baraboo, Wis. For the next several years their show grew. In 1907 they bought Barnum & Bailey Circus for $400,000, creating The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, according to the Web site. The circus remained unchanged until 1956, when financial trouble and changing public opinion led to the final performance of the circus under the big top, according to the Web site.
When Feld Entertainment acquired the circus later that year it revitalized the concept, making the move from tents. Feld Entertainment, Inc. purchased Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey in 1967, according to the Ringling Bros. Web site.
Cody Arant can be reached at
cody.arant@murraystate.edu.
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