Ringling Bros. Circus to End 'Greatest Show on Earth' After 146 Years

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Ringling Bros. Circus to End 'Greatest Show on Earth' After 146 Years
From Associated Press/ Nation/ Los Angeles Times/ latimes.com


"After 146 years, the curtain is coming down on "The Greatest Show on Earth." The owner of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus told the Associated Press that the show will close forever in May.

The iconic American spectacle was felled by a variety of factors, company executives said. Declining attendance combined with high operating costs, along with changing public tastes and prolonged battles with animal rights groups all contributed to its demise...."

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey acrobats ride camels during a performance Jan. 14 in Orlando, Fla. (Chris O'Meara / Associated Press)


Richard

 

[silentg]

We have gone to the circus but we really enjoy the Ringling Museum in Sarasota, Florida. If you haven't been you should check it out if you are in the area.
Silentg

 

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Technology Fails to Save Ringling Bros. Circus
By Dean Takahashi/ Business/ VB/ Venture Beat/ venturebeat.com

"After 146 years, the Greatest Show on Earth is closing. Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus told the Associated Press that the show will shut for good in May.

The American icon tried to revive its fortunes with modern technology, but it couldn’t stop declining attendance. Public tastes changed, and the group had damaging battles with animal rights groups over its treatment of elephants (retired earlier) and big cats such as lions and tigers.

“There isn’t any one thing,” said Kenneth Feld, chairman and CEO of Feld Entertainment, told the AP. “This has been a very difficult decision for me and for the entire family.”

Ringling Bros. will finish its tours and perform 30 shows between now and May. The circus was a staple of entertainment in the U.S., and the traveling circus became a part of the American landscape. But the latest version that debuted in the San Francisco area in the summer was hardly recognizable...."

Above: The opening of the Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus.

Image Credit: Ringling Bros.


Richard

 

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We have gone to the circus but we really enjoy the Ringling Museum in Sarasota, Florida. If you haven't been you should check it out if you are in the area.
Silentg

+1 Great museum to visit

Richard

 

[pedro47]

Yesterday the circus announced they were hiring their first female as ringmaster . Now the Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus have announced that they are closing the circus at the end of May 2017.
I guess the new generation of adults and their children do not see the need of the circus.

 

[Patri]

From that image, I guess they needed to head to the Cirque du Soleil style.The overhead would have always been tremendous. It is probably a tribute that it lasted as long as it did.

 

[dioxide45]

It is a business with huge overhead. I don't understand how it lasted as long as it did. Whenever it came to town around here they were practically giving tickets away. It wasn't expensive, probably cheaper than going to a movie.

 

[gvic]

I am "sick" over this decision. Everytime they visit my area .... I always attend with friends or neighbors and "BRING THE KIDS". Maybe a new "Management Group" will become involved.... is there "HOPE"???

 

[FLDVCFamily]

This weekend as we were driving home from the barn on Sunday morning we saw an elephant on the side of US1 getting what looked like a bath from a few people! My daughter and I were really surprised, but when we googled it it seemed like it was likely one of the Ringling Bros. elephants being relocated to the elephant sanctuary that is apparently in that area (also a surprise to me that we have an elephant sanctuary near us). Crazy...I didn't even know Ringling Bros was shutting down.

 

[csxjohn]

I visited The Ringling last Thursday, what a great museum, four different buildings including a fantastic art museum. The next day I saw this announcement. We are going to try to get to Cincy to see this circus one last time.

There are still some other small circuses around but this is The Greatest Show on Earth.

 

[rapmarks]

The Ringling in Sarasota is wonderful, as is circus world museum in baraboo Wisconsin where the Ringling brothers started out. I remember a tour guide saying that for several years, four of the brothers were among the top twenty wealthiest Americans. If you go to Wisconsin dells, a visit to circus world is a great stop


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Timeshare Von]

Another great circus museum is here in Wisconsin. I have been twice and was amazed at their collection of circus wagons (I think that is the correct term). If visiting Wisconsin (particularly a timeshare vacation in The Dells) this should be on your to do list as well.

 

[DaveNV]

I've heard all the clowns have already found new jobs - in Washington, DC.

Dave, (ducking for the political backlash that is sure to happen. It's a joke, people. Laugh.)

 

[csxjohn]

It would be funny if it weren't true.

I've heard all the clowns have already found new jobs - in Washington, DC.

Dave, (ducking for the political backlash that is sure to happen. It's a joke, people. Laugh.)

 

[shagnut]

We have always gone to the circus and one year Kelli waS selected to be in thee show So many memories. Luckily they are coming to Greensboro in Feb so we can
see it one more time before it folds. So Sad. One of my fav books ( couldn't put it down ) was Water for Elephants. By Ringling

 

[VegasBella]

I, for one, am not sad about this news. I am happy that these poor animals will not be subjected to extensive travel and gawking loud humans and potentially cruel trainers and small living quarters.

I attend many of the human circuses and circus-type performances instead, such as Circus Vargus.
Here is a list of others: http://www.bornfreeusa.org/facts.php?more=1&p=419

 

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Fans Brace for Farewell as Ringling Brothers, 'Elixir of Youth,' Fades
By N.R. Kleinfield/ N.Y./ Region/ The New York Times/ nytimes.com

"When Dom Yodice heard that the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus was shutting down, he said, “I ran the full cycle of emotions — sadness, anger, frustration. I didn’t believe it possible it would no longer be around.”

He’s seen the Ringling circus more than 100 times, starting when he was 6 and lived in Brooklyn. His parents took him to Madison Square Garden. Many years he went three or four times, sitting in different sections to get a fresh angle on the acts. “I’d sit on the bottom, then I’d sit on the top, then I’d sit on the end,” he said. “Wherever I sat, it was amazing.”

But there are fewer people around who are captivated by lion tamers and wire walkers. Costs are rising — Ringling’s two troupes, known as the Blue Unit and the Red Unit, rumble from city to city on mile-long trains. And ticket sales are flagging. Opposition from animal rights groups led to the erasure of the show’s signature elephants last year.

Given those challenges, Ringling will play four more months, including a run in Brooklyn starting in late February. It will hold its final performance on May 21 at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, N.Y., on Long Island, before lapsing into memory...."

Dom Yodice, 70, at his home in Queens last week. When he was a boy, his family rode the subway to go see the Ringling circus every year, and he has seen more than 100 shows. Credit Vincent Tullo for The New York Times



Richard

 

[pedro47]

Dave, (ducking for the political backlash that is sure to happen. It's a joke, people. Laugh.)[/QUOTE]
I am laughing because I loved your joke. The real joke is how much the circus is charging for their last performance. Too much to repeat for a bunch of clowns ($312 for a good seat in a prime location).

 

[pedro47]

There is one fan that will surely miss this circus and that is train rail system across the USA. Can anyone name any other entertainment company that have uses the rail system liked this circus have for the past 146 years?