American Circus Posters
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -- West Springfield, Mass.
LIONS AND TIGERS AND BEARS -- OH MY!
CLOWNS, BIG TOPS AND HISTORY -- STOP BY
American Circus Posters, featuring legends of the American Circus as well as the circus in its prime, will be on display this year at The Big E, Sept. 12-28, 2008.
The exhibit, located in the New England Center, will endeavor to convey the size and scope of the American circus at its peak when multiple trains were used to transport large shows and when big tops had seating for as many as 12,000 spectators.
Spectators will be exposed to circus legends such as the wild animal trainers Clyde Beatty, Terrell Jacobs, Mabel Stark and Gunther Gebel-Williams; clown Lou Jacobs; the Hanneford family riders; and aerialist Lillian Leitzel. New England based shows will be represented for poster viewers to enjoy. These shows include the Downie Bros., Sparks and Barnum & Bailey.
Two of the greatest and most highly promoted animals of all time - Gargantua the Great and King Tusk - will be seen in the posters as well as unique images of baseball playing elephants and somersaulting automobiles.
The exhibit is curated by Greg Parkinson, former director (1985-2001) of Circus World Museum in Baraboo, Wisconsin, who brings his private collection to The Big E which includes the Chris Berry collection from Washington, D.C., as well as other select lithographs from private collections from across the country.
Join us for The Big E, New England's Autumn Tradition, Sept. 12-28, 2008, in West Springfield, Mass. For more information, visit TheBigE.com or call the Info Line at 413-205-5115.
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