Bailey Circus Tickets

Are you a big circus fan? The locals of an area all over the world have always looked forward to Circus days. Poems, novels and movies have focused on circus themes describing the adventures and fun involving circus characters. Though traditionally, entertainments like circus and carnivals have always filled any vacuum in the days when cinema, cable TV and computer games were not the chosen media, yet even now showmen have managed to carry circus fun to the present times infused with a new spirit. It is definitely not easy to keep the old traditions alive due to the competition in the shape of other entertainments offered in today's world! Barnum & Bailey Circus is one which has survived more than a century bringing home the best of fun even though it has faced some minor hiccups in between.

Barnum and Bailey were two great showmen who ran two separate circuses. Initially, a Circus was run by William Cameron and Dan Castello based in Wisconsin, and then the owners sought for Barnum's name and financial support to their venture. It was thus called P.T. Barnum's Great Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan, and Hippodrome. Those days another circus 'Cooper and Bailey Circus' was being run by James Anthony Bailey along with his partner. Bailey and Barnum were two competitors. Bailey knew how to grab the market and his show presented a baby elephant Little Columbia in one of the events that made his show stand out. The two men had great respect for each other and they combined their shows in 1881 with a new name Barnum & Bailey Circus.Barnum & Bailey Circus became a great success in 1882, especially with the act of Jumbo presented as the world's largest elephant. With the death of Barnum in 1891, Bailey acquired the whole circus. He ran many successful tours including the one that began in 1897 across Europe and finished in 1902. Another landmark came when Ringling Brothers Circus and Barnum & Bailey Circus merged with The Ringling brothers becoming the owners in 1907. However, the two circuses still ran separately before finally getting their act together in 1919.

Bailey's merger with the Ringling Brothers made them present their shows in new areas, like the grand show presented in west of the Rockies for the first time in 1905. Bailey died the next year and the Ringling Brothers became the sole owners of Barnum & Bailey Circus.

After acquiring Barnum & Bailey Circus, The Ringling Brothers ran the two shows separately till 1919. In March 1919, the combined shows of both circuses were unveiled at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The circus remained a huge success through the 1920s. The great depression in the 1930s had a great impact on the economy thus affecting the circus as well, but the show still remained in business somehow. The next generation of the owners kept the ball rolling for several decades. During World War II, President Roosevelt granted a special concession to the show to use the rails even when free travel was limited. In July 1944, a big fire erupted in the circus performing at Hartford and killed more than 100 people. The incident is still counted as one of the big fire disasters in the history. Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus, termed as The Greatest Show on Earth had to face many claims against it and it took ten years to pay off these claims due to which the circus had to shelve all profits.

After WWII, the nation enjoyed prosperity yet the concerned circus people were not blessed with the same as the costs were overriding. Due to movies and televisions, the tastes of the people grew out of circus performances. Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus gave its last performance under the big top in Pennsylvania in July 1956. In 1957, the show was turned from a tent show to an indoor location.

The show was revived again. In 1967, three men with backing from the founder of Blum Capital purchased Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus from North and the Ringling family interests. The new owners started making improvements in the show. Apart from this, they set up the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College since 14 of the professional clowns were still with the organization.

The current situation of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus is quite different. In 2009 the circus is going on Red Tour titled Zing, Zang, Zoom which presents odd-numbered editions of the show from the previous years. It highlights illusions consisting of a disappearing elephant. The circus pays great attention to animals' health and welfare and meets all requisites for animal welfare.The magic of circus will overthrow you, so get Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus Tickets!