Circus! From Rome to Ringling

by Marian Murray

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358 pages, Hardcover

First published May 28, 1973

Reviews

[Jeffrey Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written in 1956 when the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus was in financial trouble and months away from ending their performances under the canvas big top, Marian Murray wrote this history of the circus. She covers a lot of ground from ancient history to the mid-20th century in how the circus acts have evolved over the centuries. The bulk of her work covers the period from Philip Astley's resurrection of the circus in the 18th century through 1956. She does not venture deeply into the material but skims the surface of a lot of related topics. There are times the book gets confusing, mainly by trying to keep the consolidations and buyouts in order, but there is nothing she could have done to unravel it better, that's just the way it is in circus history.

This is a great book for those who want a good briefing into the history of the "Greatest Show on Earth." The bibliography is quite extensive and there is plenty of room for further research into individual topics. Of course a lot has happened in the circus world since 1956, so it is not the end of the story, but she does a great job in bringing us up to speed from antiquity through the end of the big top era.