Circus Town (1970)

[Music] we are proud to present for you the greatest amateur Show on Earth ladies and gentlemen I present to you [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] My Town Peru Indiana is proud of its circus history at one time we were the home of every major circus in the United States the circuses are gone now but the memories of the days when elephants paraded on these streets have stayed with us every year we celebrate that Heritage with a week-long circus Festival many of the Great circus performers who worked out of Peru retired here and they helped train our kids almost anywhere you look around town you'll find training the kids are amateurs who give up most of their summer to be part of the circus they're trained by men like Carl Salt who in his time was one of the world's most daring aerial performers he'll watch your knees when you roll over I was 6 years old when I sto the barnab and Bailey Circus and after seeing that I decided that's what I want to do my brother didn't want me to so I said well if you don't let me go run off and go so if you let me go you know where I'm at so she decided let me go yeah sure like the circus on the experience in it too looks good done this for 56 years because of his experience I feel that he's not going to tell me anything that I could do to get hurt or fall yeah now next trick be careful all right now three three swings one two hard done please go [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] Peru got it start as a circus town in 1884 when Ben Wallace who owned a stable here inherited one blind lion a train baboon and some other flea bitten animals from a circus which couldn't pay its feed bill today the heart of Peru is our circus building but basically we're a country Town surrounded by the rich Farmland of Central Indiana in may even before school is over some 300 kids from this small community of 15,000 come out for our [Music] [Applause] circus this is the first meeting between our performers and Vince dilman the new head trainer he's been in College circus at Florida State thing I could do right now just give you an idea of my philosophy of circus now circus is by nature a semih hazardous activity but it is not any more hazardous than the football team now one of the most important things that you can learn in any act that I teach and one of the things you'll have to learn is have to miss any trick that you do [Applause] the people who end up at the end of seven weeks able to work and act they going to be the ones not so much who have a natural talent but the ones who can follow directions the ones who have the desire to come out here every day always be here when they're supposed to practice and work natural Talent always helps but these other things are more important we'll teach you some tricks that you probably never even seen before some tricks that professionals don't do and some acts that professionals don't do this high casting act I'm going to try to put in it's a little bit dangerous if you're not careful and it's physically The Hardest Act that can be done in surface but you just didn't turn you had the height you can't turn a somersault and look at the catcher the whole time pick your legs up and look around with your head you didn't do that did you I saw you come straight up Vince once performed in high casting people here teach what they know our expert on tumbling for example Le is Colin Murphy he learned it right here in the eight years he's been a performer just tuck your head down and roll in a straight line try it there you go now try a back roll okay Jeff now try it again okay that's Jeff Hoover learning a backflip when you come back you look at me and that's his dad Jim who's a catcher for our flying traes the sideways use me as a guide as you come back all right Jim's an electrician by trade now you're looking over your shoulder look straight back at me whenever you're hanging from a trapas you put your hands on it like this and you wrap your thumbs like this can you see how I'm wrap thumbs everybody see the thumbs all right you always want them wrap the only people who ever hang with their thumbs on the top of the bar are Flyers when they make a hook out of their hands like this they don't want to have to unwrap their thumbs and let go they want to come off fast and when they come back they don't want to break their thumbs so they come back with their thumbs over the top but they're the only ones who have to hold on like that all the rest of you you want to be solid on the bar you hold on like this go ahead Lori good wrap your thumbs move your hands a little further apart it'll be easier okay now there you go you com of close okay now hook your legs over there now Point your toes you want to point it like I showed you down here okay now let go with your hands okay come up and grab the Trap wrap your thumbs again Point your toes feet together drop all right now the rest of you the reason why you always Point your toes when you're hanging by your legs that is not just because it looks better there's a practical reason for it and that is when your toes are pointed this muscle in the back of your leg makes a little ball and it's hard for a trap to slip over it Point your toe and feel the muscle on the back of your leg now if you have your toes hooked like you want to hang all this muscle back here is flat and it's easy to just slide right off the bar you'll hear me say Point your toes all summer long for a number of weeks now even before Vince arrived in town 12-year-old Susie Ryan has been working with her trainer Willie will know no swinging Willie was once world famous as a human Cannonball su's partner is Dan spand who's 14 be careful on this one we not going anywhere just take your sweet time my trainer is a very good teacher and he's patient we know when he's mad because he says very funny words in German that is good that sour right there your tra is going sideway it's turning your feet your foot has to come straight up not sideway all right together Up Lift It yeah this is better that's is good Mr wilmo has scrapbooks and he tells us what he used to do and how he was shot out of a cannon I'm leaving the mouth of the cannon at least 100 m hour the lift up was so great that I black out at all times when I was shot they are very lucky to have professional sh here otherwise in my estimation it would be impossible to put a circus together with good [Applause] weeks and now featuring in the center Ring The Fabulous fan Ryan double tra featuring Dan fandal and Susie Ryan I like being up high it's lots of fun cuz when you look down it just looks real far d [Applause] [Music] my mom's eyeballs are sticking out she's just looking at she never blinks her eyes when Susie's up there in the air I'm scared scared to death the whole time my stomach is in knots they're still just kids they still can slip and they still can fall [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] the scariest part of my act with Dan is the tow hang and people are staring at you and they they go it just scares me the people scare me more than the trick [Music] [Applause] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Applause] rehearsal for the circus involves almost every family in Peru instead of swing sets we have trapezes in our backyard even Housewives with no prior circus connections take on some of the responsibility for training can anyone Smile Smile flowers wave atam dingling wave at the audience like they're all your mothers and [Music] dads dingling Mom and Dad's over there let's wave at them okay now Timmy I want you to take your hat off now and wave at your mom and dad they're over there at that place you know that's the audience I can't see them well you better look our circus band includes Don grubs the city editor of the per Tribune Jim Samson the Basse player is a factory Foreman Charlie Gro on clarinet is in the restaurant business and band leader Tom Gustin teaches music at the junior high [Music] [Applause] school it takes all kinds of skills to put a show together come up and they reach a position Tom hyene was once sir Oliver Boliver in professional circus doing tricks from the the back of a moving horse incidentally Tom now runs a camera shop here in town like this now main thing is to get a good clean bounce then later on you'll start getting in [Applause] stuff well that's how you blow them I mean you just don't exactly do them like that if you do why try and get up and get out of it the best way you can but when you blow it you might as well smile cuz it's done done man Kathy Hoover at 11 is a veteran of our circus she starred in last year's show I was 6 years old when I first performed in the circus my dad started me he saw some of the tricks and just started me out because he thought it would be a good thing to do got a smile the house is your audience so a big smile just as soon as it warms up and we can work out why we set the traes up out in the backyard and we start working you're the one that's got to sell the ACT you got the smile that's what sells it I never knew I had to fill it when a circus movie is on I'll sneak down from my bed when I have to go to bed and I'll look at the TV and see some tricks that they do and then I'll go out of my trap and do them she's good at that she surprises me quite often with these little things that she picks up from watching different people on TV than goodness okay try your toes okay place them firm place them firm not a girl can you take one off not used to that yet okay that's better much better feep back lift now you're looking better okay this year we have three new flyers and the new kids have to learn the feel of flying through the air uh building up their muscles their arm muscles their grip uh learning how to swing on a bar and these are basically the things that we try to teach them before we go up high in the air with the flying rig okay now grab the bar all right I've got you you hang on the car this time when you drop off you drop off when I call it or you're going to get hurt okay Gra the bar okay get your legs off the bar there you go all right now beat your legs back and lift that a girl throw them out in front back no too early too early okay now at your height drop now got it girl okay you've been here before show them how to do it okay Arch a little higher pump hard throw them legs up high shoot up there I just feel great when Kathy's up there way out out a girl when she got her arm hurt and it put her out of the show I was heart sick I was on a balancing pole and I slipped and I fell and the next thing I knew is up in the hospital and the doctor said I couldn't use my arm for 6 weeks and it just made me so [Music] disgusting first I want to tell you Cathy that this is not the happiest job I ever did because I'm sure so sorry that you got your arm hurt a former circus painter who's now our circus historian art John's decided to help cheer up Kathy the circus used to come home after traveling all summer and the wagons would need all kind of work on so they would come into the winter quarters out here east of Peru and it was known as the Hagen back Wallace winter quarter the winter quarters was a great great place I mean the buildings out there were enormous they housed 30 and 40 elephants and three hippopotamus now this is all in one barn with the hyenes and all kind of animals they were all I'd say 40 or 50 Lions and tigers and lepers and fumas and all kind of cat animals you see camels out on the hills and the field full of zebr when Peru had six great circuses in this town I did the go leaf on the cages if it was a hippopotamus in the wagon you'd paint a big picture of a blood sweating hippopotamus or if it was lions and tigers you'd paint lions and tigers on the side of it then the name of the show went on a sideboard up on top Cy now that's the way we used to take and fix up every little corner of a circus [Music] wagon and now you want me to sign my name on his Cy yes if you do all right I'll just put it right here thank you so much [Music] art let's go run one one lift up that's it practice started in may now it's the middle of June and training becomes more demanding the show is less than a month away okay the next victim very good when you have a low swing in the hands like that it's all up to you to get them back right okay Diane I want you to try a straight jump you fall into the mat you want to land on your thigh or on your back don't land standing up if you can help it don't land on your hands [Music] the ACT is called Low casting kids often graduate from it to the Flying trapes okay get ready for the half turn quicker so that you can get off and get press sooner one of the most difficult things to do when you teach a circus act is to explain to a person who has not done something before what it should feel like for them to do it in my case I've worked many of these acts and I've done enough of the tricks so that I can tell them what it felt like for me and they can try to get the same feeling when they do it themselves circus as an amateur activity is exactly like any kind of education where you get exactly out of it what you put into it okay now the I would not recommend anybody trying to learn any circus act on their own because they might get seriously hurt sty all four of you sty put your foot on your kneecap see how Deb this put it on the kneecap not above or below or something like so many of you do the anchors Act is new this year it's trained by Nancy Maguire who performed in our first Community circuses and by Betty haini Betty is Tom haj's wife girls watch what Chris he does remember everything is as graceful as a swine no not kidding and no Giggles swans don't giggle see how she's staying real smooth and So Graceful and looks so pretty if you all do that it would look 100% better so when we tell you to smile and a style it's important because it makes half the trick make sure you get up over three teams are involved in cetta doio this is 10-year-old April Cardon okay you got out there andau it doesn't make any difference if you make a mistake once in a while as long as you catch it turn around sty to the audence Stephanie stalberger is trying the difficult backflip she's only 11 okay you got to look right up at the audience and style and smile look happy our youngest featured performer 6-year-old Elaine gartland you got a spider in the back they go over too far now down all right good good good what okay try to throw up evenly okay get her down fast now and then you come out and style don't don't forget to come out and style all right fine the flying traas the most challenging act in the circus that's Jackie Ryan Susie's brother he's trying out for flying for the first time this year it wasn't too bad competing for the girls place in the flying trap be are Debbie Garing 15 and her sister Jenny 13 only one will make the ACT I think Jenny would feel pretty bad if she didn't make it and I made it and I would have the same feeling too when I'm up there the net looks like it's an inch away from the ground then when you finally swing out and you let go it seems like if I'm going to hit that net I'm going to just plop all over the ground you know I can imagine myself just FL you want to just look at that one stay looking down toward the net on that cuz the catcher is going to be underneath you and when I'm looking down and I come towards the catcher I'll see The Catcher And I'm looking down you don't let go to the bar when you see the catcher yeah okay the Flyers are a close-knit group they often meet in the evening to discuss practice and the whole town roots for them okay let's stay out there we got any more spot our most experienced flyer is Joe Kelly who's from a circus family his grandfather is Emma Kelly the famous clown I guess I got my flying abilities from my grandmother's side and we do have about seven flyers in our family tree I've only flown to one catcher and that's Mr Jim Hoover and we've had some very close catches on all sorts of different tricks we've CAU him by the elbows and slid down we've caught him by fingertips and worked from there and there's no other catcher I would trust I think Joe Kelly is an exceptionally good flyer he's not scared of any trick sometimes he just scares me the most difficult trick in our circus is the double somersault Joe has been trying it for 2 years but has never made it good time [Applause] the last couple you missed because you were breaking that into the net you already decided you weren't going to catch the shick before you even got R you got enough height and enough Spin and enough power to throw shickles but you'll never do it in a million years if if you let yourself get all sted out every time you do something wrong on a double well I just got to think about that well that's just the way it is you just can't go that way teach to Triple as far as my hands and everything it's really kind of hard because I'm you know thinking about zillion things well it's hard because you threw them to the net for two years years because you didn't have you knew that you by the time you got halfway through last year you knew you weren't going to catch any doubles right and you just started going to the net so you're saying that it's more like a barrier in my mind right one more time all right let's catch this one Joe do some work in the beat spot youve got to beat full and you got to get into a tight tuck we're going to do one more Jim are you all right yeah okay please be silent for the double somersault good time [Applause] that's what Joe used to cat his double last night he got a good did he catch he caught two of them both two in a row oh Jeff two in a row mhm Sandy Ferguson is the granddaughter of Clyde who was one of America's great animal trainers Sandy wanted to work an animal act this year but settled for Rolling Globe style St lower this hand and then just stick your foot on top of that but the first time you don't Arch wh on that never Stacy hardle Road is 15 last year she was an outstanding performer on web this year she's teaching the ACT St put your whole foot on that's better go it's a long time hanging up there keep Arch stbg look at your web okay slow them down okay down upside down judge your distance come on down a little bit farther you got to learn to judge your distance for that too all right St you're okay I'm I do you'll know it's your fault I'll tell you about it okay Colin Murphy began in the circus as a 10-year-old now at 18 he's both a performer and a trainer and the younger kids really look up to him I started in the circus as one of the Three Little Pigs I had a big papier-mâché head that fit over my own head and I got to carry the brick I was a smart little pig sometimes after practice when it's a real hot day usually on a Saturday we'll haul ourselves out to a swimming pole [Music] [Applause] [Applause] on a wi way up in the air giv all the audience a terrible they all gri their seat as I begin to s CLS are my companions danger is my way I love there's [Music] Dr ground the little girls counting on me but that's okay crows are my companions danger is my [Music] [Applause] I in the week before the circus there's much to be done the ladies try to keep the trainers out of wardrobe otherwise they'd never complete the costumes they [Music] say the Flyers take care of the net themselves by this time they've come to know it pretty well and all of the kids pitch in to help spread sawdust we're getting pretty close to Showtime now now first of all let me say that this is a Ness rehearsal we're going through the whole show if we can it might run as late as 12:01 I'd like to get out of here by about 11: I doubt if we will it would be nice we don't have a dress rehearsal something might happen to the costumes so this rough run through is our last rehearsal before the circus and everyone is uptight Willie said he want him put in a second one where's Willie Willie I told you a million times leave a low guide off tight get rid of it come on you got to help put that Highwire up you've only got two minutes to get a Highwire up and remember all the way and smile even if it hurts that's just stand up and sty hurry up okay Colin you're going to wear shoes in a show right I've got them I just didn't wear them tonight cuz they were my costume soon as you can grab him he'll take you all right go ahead off okay come on now step down there you go it's c [Applause] okay hey that's fine okay now go back to the other ones [Applause] and quick quick it's going to fall you hurry [Applause] you see if you do five time that's [Applause] good now all you've got to do Teresa is when they say go you jump as far as you can out if you jump up you won't help them if you jump down you won't help them you jump straight out try to get up there in that bar up there and grav will take you down you don't worry about getting down you just jump straight out let's see how far you can leave [Applause] racer swing them get start swing looks real nice time it really looks good all [Applause] time down at the other end you're too fast you're too early hey Tom you'll have to tell them how to hang the anchors see how that got them hanging oh ready there one one one swing this trick is not going to be high because it cuts the swing down if if she's too high monkey okay down everything down yeah what happen and you got no practice they didn't practice for 3 Days couldn't get in the ring okay we still need light on the catcher he's got no way to see what's going on relax don't take such a big pipe and then beat back full okay rough run through this year was just that really ref and first performance days away the true was a disgrace girls who were nominated Lisa [Applause] Downey the performers have nominated their choices for king and queen of the circus to Ryan Kathy Hoover Debbie [Applause] Garing there will be no election hearing but there will be a secret ballot and the winners this year's king and queen will preside over one mattine and six evening performances boys Colin [Applause] Murphy joelly ladies and gentlemen children of all ages the king and queen of the festivy ho and Joe [Applause] Kelly king and queen ladies and gentlemen [Applause] and now it's time ladies and [Music] [Applause] gentlemen in all three rings the neck Loop trained by WW wio [Applause] [Music] n [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] la la [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] ladies and gentlemen in the Center ring High casting [Applause] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] la [Applause] [Music] la [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] and Now ladies and gentlemen I present to you theuse circus clowns we have clowns of all ages from 6 years old yes ladies and gentlemen we even have a great great grandmother the clowns are here the [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Applause] and now the Final Act of the evening the Peru circus flyer Joe Kelly John Ryan Jenny Garing and Peter Jim Hoover ladies and gentlemen the flying traes la [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] and now Joe Kelly will attempt a double somersault ladies and gentlemen this is a very difficult feat one that he has never accomplished during a performance [Applause] [Music] [Applause] ladies and gentlemen Joe Kelly will try the double [Applause] again [Music] 2 e [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] stop crying I want to thank each and every one of you guys hey man you're the [Music] greatest kids for eight years in this show going on this n one and believe me I say it from my heart you kids are the [Music] greatest if might have to be 120 years old I'll see every circus from now [Applause] on guys's here for King Jo Kelly and Kathy [Applause] Queen is that for jny and John Ryan the circus [Applause] [Music]