Driving around Tulsa today we passed by the Tulsa Fairgrounds. They have made significant improvements to the animal barns, etc. It made me a little sad not to see Bells Amusement park because the few times we went it was really fun. Now it’s a parking lot. Seems like more and more landmarks are being torn down for new development.
Anyway, we drove past the pavilion which is still the same and it got me thinking about circuses because the last time I was at the pavilion it was to attend a circus with Chris and Juliet. When Juliet first moved up here I made it a point to try and expose her to as much culture as I could. If you consider a circus culture. LOL So we were always planning small adventures, like to an animal park, to the casino, etc . The circus at the Pavilion in Tulsa as I recall wasn’t that impressive. The most impressive thing there was seeing one of the cute weathermen from a Tulsa tv station who was sitting nearby. I expected to be “dazzled” though I don’t know why since my prior circus experiences had been about as boring. With one exception!
The 1987 Kingfisher Circus which came through town. We were living there at the time and Chris was about 2 years old. My mom and I decided we would take him to the circus and so we talked about it, told him all the animals he would see etc. My sister Connie joined us and if memory serves me right we also took my nephew Jesse and niece Jenna. When we got to the circus, the first thing I noticed was how small the tent was. I hadn’t been to a circus since I was a kid and it was in Dallas and I remember that it was huge. We went inside and took our seat on the wooden bleachers which were so close to the center ring the people on the front row could put their feet in the ring. We moved up to about the 3rd row thinking if a tiger got loose we would not be the first people he ate..lol….and settled in for an afternoon of fun and excitement. Now you may wonder how I could remember details so vividly of a circus I went to 25 years ago. It had nothing to do with the circus but more to do with my mom and Connie and I who laughed uncontrollably through the entire performance, and for all the wrong reasons! It was a day I’ll never forget, etched in my memory. I can see my mothers smile and hear her laughter as I type this.
First up was the master of ceremonies who was dressed in a showy, sparkly suit that unfortunately was about 3 sizes too small. The pants were so tight that he had guy panty lines. LOL Not a pretty sight. He tried his best to sound upbeat and excited about what we were about to see but you could tell that he was probably wishing he were back in the circus trailer heading to the next small town. Enthusiastic was not a word to describe him. That was the first thing that got us tickled.
Soon, show began. I remember little Chris sitting perfectly still waiting for the tigers to appear. Instead the trapeze artist started the show. Underneath the center ring was a net, in case they fell. And I noticed that the net was tied not to a pole or anything that was stationary but to the wooden bleachers. Now these bleachers were not huge. They were like the bleachers you sit on a your kids soccer game. My mind was registering this when the first trapeze artist missed the hand grab of his partner and fell into the net. All of the bleachers moved forward when he fell, some more than others depending on how many people were sitting there and how much they weighed. 2nd uncontrollable fit of laughter by my mom and Connie and I. The kids were totally engrossed with the show.
We were so busy trying not to pee our pants that we hardly noticed the 2nd ring. It was about the size of a hula hoop. There in the ring was a juggler who was attempting to juggle. Now where they got this guy I don’t know but it was obvious that he hadn’t passed Juggling 101. He was pretty good with 2 balls; but as soon as he added in the 3rd he spent more time chasing the balls down than keeping them in the air. I told my mom that I was sure I had seen him on the street corner the day before with a “will work for food”sign.
The trapeze artist had climbed back up by this time and made the connection. I turned my attention to the 3rd ring in which 3 clowns were running around chasing each other. BORING! Chris was busy trying to climb into my lap as the clowns drew closer (why are kids so afraid of clowns) when another fall by the trapeze artist brought us a little closer to the ring as the ropes pulled our bleachers again. By this time my mom was hysterical and laughing so hard that she couldn’t breathe. Connie was busy trying to wipe the pop off her shirt which had spilled when the bleachers jerked forward and I was trying to steady 3 kids, hold onto my purse, and wipe the tears pouring down my cheeks from laughing so hard. I don’t remember the reaction of the others around us. I would like to think they were also laughing hysterically instead of glaring at the 3 women who were rocking the bleachers with their laughter.
The juggler gave up, the trapeze artists came down for a bow (1 out of 3 catches not bad) and the audience clapped enthusiastically though for the performance or for the fact that the bleachers would be stationary again I don’t know. The clowns had left the ring to go change into their next clown attire I suppose. I was just glad they left because several kids were freaking out the closer they came to the bleachers.
A couple of dog acts and a few pony riders came next and other than one of the ponies leaving a big pile of pony poop in the ring which was way too close the bleachers and pretty stinky, those acts were uneventful, cute and gave us time to recover from our laugh attack.
Soon the MC came out and asked everyone to be quiet and still because the tigers were on their way in and he didn’t want to startle them. Not the right thing to say to a bunch of people way too close to the ring for comfort. In came a crew of guys with a cage which they assembled in the middle ring. Now, maybe if I had seen a welding torch or something to indicate that the cage was gonna hold I would have felt a little better. When they anchored it to the ground with huge poles I felt a little better. Had they tied it to the bleachers I probably would have gathered the troops and headed out. When the cage was up, in came the tigers.
Now I am sure these tigers were fierce in their day and probably had a little bit of fight in them. I remarked that they must have come from the geriatric tiger rescue society as they came out of their cages. They definitely weren’t scary as they slowly came down their ramps and climbed up on their perches. The tiger trainer man came out in his sparkly too tight suit and I couldn’t help but think he had been coaxed out of a nursing home and promised fun and excitement as a circus performer. Chris who had heard the story of Little Black Sambo (I know, politically incorrect now but it was a good story and my mom could do the voices like no other) and he started talking about butter and pancakes. I don’t think these tigers could have ran in a circle fast enough to melt into butter like in the story.
The other rings were empty, apparently because the tigers were so dangerous. I remarked that they were empty because the tiger tamer was also the pooper scooper which sent my mom into another fit of laughter. I kept waiting for one to at least growl to get some excitement going but they were not only old but apparently drugged. Chris asked if he could ride the tiger and honestly, I think he probably could have! LOL They looked about as harmless as a giant stuffed animal.
The elephant (yes singular) was next. Now, I am not a fat snob. Truly, because I’m not exactly skinny myself. But when the elephant came out with the “fat lady” on its back instead of the usual pretty young girl in a sparkly sequined costume, it was almost too much for my poor mom and me to handle. She led the elephant around the ring. He went through the cones without knocking them over. Blew a spray of water into the air (just what we needed, elephant snot) which delighted the kids. When it sat down on command to wave at the audience and the fat lady almost toppled off backwards…well lets just say it was a sight much funnier than the clowns.
Now as for the clowns. I admit I did laugh when the horse which consisted of two clowns came apart and the butt was chasing the head. And I admit that me saying “well there’s a real horses ass” was probably inappropriate in front of the kids but at this point I was so amused at the spectacle of this “circus” that I just didn’t care. Jokes were a flying. My comedic talent went into full performance mode.
Soon the circus was over and it was time to go and I doubt if the experience even stayed in the memory of the kids. It has remained in my memory though as one of the best times I have ever had with my mom and Connie. My mom and I would laugh about it for years to come.....and every time I see a circus poster I re-live that afternoon 25 years ago all over again.
A couple of years after the Tulsa Pavillion circus, the real thing, the Barnum and Bailey circus came to Oklahoma City and Connie and Eric and Anna and Juliet and Chris and I went. It was a slick production. No geriatric tigers, no trapeze artist falling into nets tied to the bleachers, no pony poop and the girls on the horses and the elephants were as beautiful as their costumes. The MC was super enthusiastic and the performers, from the poodles to the jugglers were top notch. It was a sight to see. Pricey! WOW! I think the cotton candy cost more than the ticket to the Kingfisher circus. Worth it? Yes and some great memories for all of us. But given the choice to go to the Kingfisher Circus or the Barnum and Bailey circus again my choice would definitely be the Kingfisher circus. There is no circus on earth I’d rather see again, no experience that I wouldn’t want to relive more than that day at the circus with my mom.
There are some experiences in life that money just can’t buy. That was one of them. And I doubt any kid that saw the circus that day in 1987 gave a second thought to running away and joining the circus. We went back the next day, to watch the tent come down and to see the elephant one more time. Chris was still fascinated by seeing the tiger and for several weeks would keep repeating the phrase from the Sambo story “please Mr. Tiger, don’t eat me up”. No worries there kid. Those tigers probably had to have pureed food.
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