Well enjoy them creepy or not ........
Vintage Images of the Circus in Its Heyday
Ladies and gentlemen! Come one, come all! Step right up to the wonderful world of vintage circus images! We’re stepping back in time to explore the golden age of a classic American pastime: the circus. From majestic acrobats to charming (and slightly creepy) clowns, the circus holds a certain nostalgic charm of a bygone era. We’re exploring the way things once were and how they’ve changed over the decades of entertainment. So, without further ado, let’s dive right in. These vintage circus photos are a sure ticket to a thrilling good time.
A Moment of Downtime
This vintage circus photo of two performers is as sweet as it is fascinating. Circus performers almost always worked long hours to train, practice, and perform for delighted audiences across the country. This photo captured a moment of downtime for a clown and a “bally broad,” or a woman who worked as a dancer and performer in the circus.
The woman is all glammed up, ready to perform that day’s set. The man dressed as a clown is also in full costume, as we can see from his full face of makeup. The woman seems to be taking notes while the clown looks on with a smile on his face. We can’t help but wonder what the relationship was between these two. Oftentimes, performers would fall in love with fellow performers and travel together as married couples.
Stretch It Out
Contortionists have always been a source of fascination and delight for many people. That’s why these extra-flexible performers are perfect for the circus! This vintage image of a contortionist shows just how flexible they had to be to draw in the crowds. This performer is bent completely backward to the point where his head is touching the back of his thighs.
We know that morning stretches are great for the body, but this is on a whole other level. The man is dressed in his full circus costume, which looks a lot like something we’d see at a modern-day circus. He’s wearing a flexible one-piece that allows plenty of movement. Perhaps the black-and-white stripes give the illusion that his body is longer.
A Very Special Guest
This vintage photo has a slightly disturbing air about it. Maybe it’s the fact that this man’s ventriloquist dummy has an extremely creepy face. We know you were thinking the same thing! Although this puppet looks pretty off-putting by today’s standards, it was a pretty common sight at Victorian-era circuses.
Ventriloquism has been around for hundreds of years, but the Victorian era is when the art form really took off and became popular in circus acts. Ventriloquist puppets were often comedic and silly, representing the ventriloquist with exaggerated features. Can you spot any resemblance between this man and his puppet?
Who’s Following Me?
Humor from the 19th century and early 20th century was certainly more macabre than what we consider funny today. This vintage photo of a clown shows a pretty unique circus act that probably wouldn’t be too popular with little kids today. This clown built a contraption that made it appear as if a skeleton was walking right behind him.
There’s nothing more lighthearted than being reminded that death is always right behind us, right? If we’re being honest, we have to admit that this costume is extremely well done. Considering that this circus performer didn’t have access to fancy special effects, modern technology, and pre-made costumes, we think this is pretty creative and original. We still have a feeling he wasn’t a fan favorite with kids, though.
Felix Adler, The “King of Clowns”
Some kids are genuinely afraid of clowns. However, the little girl in this 1949 photo doesn’t seem intimidated by circus clowns one bit. She probably ran right up to the Jell-O clown to see what kind of delicious treats she could get from him. It was a different time, that’s for sure.
The clown in this vintage photo was played by Felix Adler, a famous clown who performed with the Ringling Brothers Circus from 1919 to 1946. He later went on to play the Jell-O clown, which he played up with his distinctive appearance. If you look closely, you can see that his hat resembles a Jell-O mold. Adler was so famous at the time that he was coined the “King of Clowns.”
The Stuff of Nightmares
Are you a fan of clowns? If they kind of scare you, you’re not the only one. Although the “creepy clown” stereotype didn’t become mainstream until the 1980s and ‘90s, there’s no denying that vintage clowns look extremely terrifying. This vintage photo of a Ringling Brothers clown sitting in a dressing room chair is straight out of a nightmare.
First off, where are his eyes?! Maybe it’s the black-and-white nature of this vintage photo, but it looks like this clown has two black holes instead of regular eyeballs. There’s nothing friendly about this clown. Maybe the photographer just caught him on an off day and he didn’t feel like acting jolly. Whatever the reason, we can’t unsee it.
Here’s a… Pet Bear?
Bears were pretty popular circus animals back in the day. They were often trained to “dance” for audiences and underwent a lot of mistreatment. This photo is supposedly of a man and his circus bear, but something seems kind of off. Your eyes are not deceiving you. That’s not a bear at all. That’s a full-grown man in a weird bear suit.
We’re not sure what the reason for this fake bear costume is, but we don’t think it fooled anybody. Maybe this particular circus couldn’t afford a real bear to join their act. Whatever the reason, a guy dressed as an unconvincing bear was at least a little more humane than having a real-life bear performing in the circus.
In the Lion’s Den
Vintage circus acts delighted and entertained huge audiences with their spectacular feats and dangerous acts. Circus performers would often perform with real wild animals under the big top, for better or worse. This photo is a little odd because the clown in this photo is facing off with what is very obviously a human dressed like a lion.
If this guy’s costume looks too realistic, that’s because it is. He’s wearing a taxidermied lion head that covers the top half of his body. There’s no way that headdress was easy to move around in! It’s safe to assume that this was a comedy act. If you look closely enough, you can see the delighted faces of the audience in the background.
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