Women of the American Circus, 1880-1940

by Adams, Katherine H.; Keene, Michael L.

• ISBN13: 9780786472284
• ISBN10: 0786472286
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-10-18
• Publisher: McFarland Publishing

Summary

In the years from 1880 to 1940, considered the glory days of the American circus, between a third and a half of the cast members were women, a large group of very visible American workers whose story has never been told. In this book, drawing on diverse sources such as diaries, autobiographies, newspaper accounts, films, posters, and route books, the authors first consider the popular media's presentation of these performers as unnatural and scandalous--as well as romantic and thrilling. the book next moves to the stories told by circus women, which contradict and complicate other versions of their lives. Across America in those years an array of acts featured women, such as tableaux, freak shows, girlie shows, tiger acts, and aerial performance, all involving special skills and means of communication with an audience. By beginning with representations of women as circus performers and then moving to the performances themselves, this book offers a unique and fascinating view of what it meant to be an American woman at work.

Author Biography

Katherine H. Adams is a Hutchinson Distinguished Professor of English at Loyola University New Orleans. Michael L. Keene, is a professor of English at the University of Tennessee Knoxville.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. vi
Preface	p. 1
Introduction	p. 2
Media Depictions: The Stories Told About Circus People	p. 19
Circus in the Established Media: Unnatural, Scandalous, Perilous	p. 21
Circus by Press Agents: Contradictory Extremes	p. 28
Circus Books for Children: Gendered Romantic Dreams	p. 36
Romanticized Books for Men and Women	p. 43
The Complexities of Filmic Representation	p. 52
Circus Depictions: The Stories Circus People Told	p. 59
Separation and the Status of Other	p. 63
Entering a Circus Career	p. 67
Behavior Rules for Women and Their Contracts	p. 74
The Rigors of Practice	p. 78
Life on the Road and Rails	p. 83
Scanty Dress	p. 85
The (Difficult) Road to Success	p. 89
Between pages 92 and 93 are 8 pages containing 8 color plates.
The Circus Comes to Town	p. 93
The Power of the Poster	p. 95
The Unloading and the Parade	p. 103
To the Menageries, Games of Chance and the Sideshows	p. 106
Into the Dressing Tents	p. 111
The Big Show / The Circus Gaze	p. 115
Late-Night Girlie Shows	p. 120
Circus Women Ranked and Seen	p. 123
Ballet Girls	p. 124
Statuary/Tableaux Artists	p. 129
Mostly Stationary Freaks	p. 132
The Silent Assistant and the Magic Act	p. 148
Equestrians	p. 152
Trainers of Wild Animals	p. 158
Aerial Artists	p. 170
Bike/Car Tricksters	p. 176
Sharpshooters	p. 179
Clowns	p. 183
Circus Managers/Owners	p. 188
Toward the End of a Career	p. 191
Conclusion	p. 193
Works Cited	p. 195
Index	p. 205
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.