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Niffla



Registered: 06/09/08
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Loc: Texas
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Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good.
#24013787 - 01/16/17 05:05 AM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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After 146 years.
http://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/nation/2017/01/14/ringling-bros-circus-close-years/96608580/
Quote:
Ellenton, Fla. — After 146 years, the curtain is coming down on “The Greatest Show on Earth.” The owner of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus told The Associated Press that the show will close forever in May.
The iconic American spectacle was felled by a variety of factors, company executives say. Declining attendance combined with high operating costs, along with changing public tastes and prolonged battles with animal rights groups all contributed to its demise.
“There isn’t any one thing,” said Kenneth Feld, chairman and CEO of Feld Entertainment. “This has been a very difficult decision for me and for the entire family.”
The company broke the news to circus employees Saturday night after shows in Orlando and Miami.
Ringling Bros. has two touring circuses this season and will perform 30 shows between now and May. Major stops include Atlanta, Washington, Philadelphia, Boston and Brooklyn. The final shows will be in Providence, Rhode Island, on May 7 and in Uniondale, New York, at the Nassau County Coliseum on May 21.
The circus, with its exotic animals, flashy costumes and death-defying acrobats, has been a staple of entertainment in the United States since the mid-1800s. Phineas Taylor Barnum made a traveling spectacle of animals and human oddities popular, while the five Ringling brothers performed juggling acts and skits from their home base in Wisconsin. Eventually, they merged and the modern circus was born. The sprawling troupes traveled around America by train, wowing audiences with the sheer scale of entertainment and exotic animals.
By midcentury, the circus was routine, wholesome family entertainment. But as the 20th century went on, kids became less and less enthralled. Movies, television, video games and the internet captured young minds. The circus didn’t have savvy product merchandising tie-ins or Saturday morning cartoons to shore up its image.
“The competitor in many ways is time,” said Feld, adding that transporting the show by rail and other circus quirks — such as providing a traveling school for performers’ children— are throwbacks to another era. “It’s a different model that we can’t see how it works in today’s world to justify and maintain an affordable ticket price. So you’ve got all these things working against it.”
The Feld family bought the Ringling circus in 1967. The show was just under 3 hours then. Today, the show is 2 hours and 7 minutes, with the longest segment — a tiger act — clocking in at 12 minutes.
“Try getting a 3- or 4-year-old today to sit for 12 minutes,” he said.
Feld and his daughter Juliette Feld, who is the company’s chief operating officer, acknowledged another reality that led to the closing, and it was the one thing that initially drew millions to the show: the animals. Ringling has been targeted by activists who say forcing animals to perform is cruel and unnecessary.
In May of 2016, after a long and costly legal battle, the company removed the elephants from the shows and sent the animals to live on a conservation farm in Central Florida. The animals had been the symbol of the circus since Barnum brought an Asian elephant named Jumbo to America in 1882. In 2014, Feld Entertainment won $25.2 million in settlements from groups including the Humane Society of the United States, ending a 14-year fight over allegations that circus employees mistreated elephants.
By the time the elephants were removed, public opinion had shifted somewhat. Los Angeles prohibited the use of bull-hooks by elephant trainers and handlers, as did Oakland, California. The city of Asheville, North Carolina nixed wild or exotic animals from performing in the municipally owned, 7,600-seat U.S. Cellular Center.
Attendance has been dropping for 10 years, said Juliette Feld, but when the elephants left, there was a “dramatic drop” in ticket sales. Paradoxically, while many said they didn’t want big animals to perform in circuses, many others refused to attend a circus without them.
“We know now that one of the major reasons people came to Ringling Bros. was getting to see elephants,” she said. “We stand by that decision. We know it was the right decision. This was what audiences wanted to see and it definitely played a major role.”
The Felds say their existing animals — lions, tigers, camels, donkeys, alpacas, kangaroos and llamas — will go to suitable homes. Juliette Feld says the company will continue operating the Center for Elephant Conservation.
Some 500 people perform and work on both touring shows. A handful will be placed in positions with the company’s other, profitable shows — it owns Monster Jam, Disney on Ice and Marvel Live, among other things — but most will be out of a job. Juliette Feld said the company will help employees with job placement and resumes. In some cases where a circus employee lives on the tour rail car (the circus travels by train), the company will also help with housing relocation.
Kenneth Feld became visibly emotional while discussing the decision with a reporter. He said over the next four months, fans will be able to say goodbye at the remaining shows.
In recent years, Ringling Bros. tried to remain relevant, hiring its first African American ringmaster, then its first female ringmaster, and also launching an interactive app. It added elements from its other, popular shows, such as motorbike daredevils and ice skaters. But it seemingly was no match for Pokemon Go and a generation of kids who desire familiar brands and YouTube celebrities.
“We tried all these different things to see what would work, and supported it with a lot of funding as well, and we weren’t successful in finding the solution,” said Kenneth Feld.
A win for the animals -- but you gotta feel a little bit for some of the performers.
This is all some of these people know. I mean this circus shit was literally their life...do a show, board the train and head to the next one. And you don't get into this shit by accident. It's not just a paycheck to these people. I'm pretty sure people don't find themselves in hard times and then are like, "ah fuck, I need a job...maybe I'll just bite the bullet and head down to the circus for a job".
They lived for this shit.
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LogicaL Chaos
Ascension Energy & Alien UFOs




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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: Niffla]
#24013815 - 01/16/17 06:01 AM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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Those poor performers! Where will i see tigers and lions do crazy shit now?! 
i wonder what the performers will do now....
Sucks cause there was a Ringling bros show recently and i missed it
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psilly the kid
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: LogicaL Chaos]
#24013986 - 01/16/17 08:20 AM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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My brother says "good............fucking clowns"
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Herbologist
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: psilly the kid]
#24014021 - 01/16/17 08:33 AM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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Im just happy for the animals. Entertaining humans for 146 years.
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Prisoner#1
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: psilly the kid]
#24014221 - 01/16/17 10:10 AM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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Quote:
Herbologist said: Im just happy for the animals. Entertaining humans for 146 years.
Quote:
psilly the kid said: My brother says "good............fucking clowns"
you damn liberals are all the same
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Herbologist
Grrratata


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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: Prisoner#1]
#24014226 - 01/16/17 10:12 AM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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-------------------- Shroomery Law: Don't piss off the leftist mods & their friends!
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tyrannicalrex
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: Herbologist]
#24014266 - 01/16/17 10:30 AM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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Back 2005-2006 I dated Barnum's great great grandson in Fla. He was a real (circus) bear!
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arago
Mr. Wind Up Bird



Registered: 02/07/06
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: tyrannicalrex]
#24014417 - 01/16/17 11:32 AM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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I grew up in their winter home. My buddy's dad was the catcher on the trapeze. He taught us hella gymnastic stuff. The Wallendas lived just down the street. And John Ringling disassembled a.Renaissance theatre in Italy and rebuilt it in Sarasota. + he had an awesome art museum.
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goldcaphunter
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: arago]
#24014889 - 01/16/17 02:21 PM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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Das sad
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abltsandwich
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: Niffla]
#24014905 - 01/16/17 02:29 PM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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When I heard about this, I thought it was wonderful news. Too bad justice for the animal abuses will never be doled out, but it's nice to see everyone working for them out of a job and with limited skill sets making it difficult for them to find a good job elsewhere.
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WeAreMushroom
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: abltsandwich]
#24014931 - 01/16/17 02:43 PM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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I don't feel like having animals perform is right, but I don't see why they can't head down to the nearest festival and pick up some really amazing humans.
I've seen spun out humans at festivals juggle like 20 LED balls at one time, I've seen people hooping with like ten different hoops all over their bodies, I've seen fire dancers building human pyramids and whipping balls of fire just inches from each other's faces...
There's plenty of amazing stuff mans can do that they could've replaced the animal cruelty with. 
I'm glad they're making sure the elephants and tigers and lions are happy where they go. Humans can volunteer to join the circus if you feel like that's your calling, but those poor animals didn't volunteer for shit.
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LuSiD enthusiast
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: tyrannicalrex]
#24014945 - 01/16/17 02:49 PM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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Quote:
tyrannicalrex said: Back 2005-2006 I dated Barnum's great great grandson in Fla. He was a real (circus) bear! 
Huh.... i always figured the circus family would be more of a family of twinks...
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tyrannicalrex
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: LuSiD enthusiast]
#24014968 - 01/16/17 02:57 PM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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Quote:
LuSiD enthusiast said:
Quote:
tyrannicalrex said: Back 2005-2006 I dated Barnum's great great grandson in Fla. He was a real (circus) bear! 
Huh.... i always figured the circus family would be more of a family of twinks...
LOL, he isn't in or related to the circus, he is only related by blood. I think he is in real estate actually. He didn't get anything from the family. He built his own business. I asked him about it.
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5150
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: LuSiD enthusiast]
#24015022 - 01/16/17 03:14 PM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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Now if we can shut down SeaWorld,watch "blackfish"
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Thayendanegea
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: 5150] 3
#24015056 - 01/16/17 03:29 PM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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Really sad to see that go...it is a piece of Americana. What exactly were they doing to the elephants that put all the tree huggers up in arms....the article says that they actually one the court case against the humane society.
I see no problem with using elephants that are born and raised in captivity to perform as long as they are treated ok....why is that any different than a field trial at a dog show? Just seems petty to me...fucking millennial hippies. ....at least they have their virtual reality games to play with.
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zZZz
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: WeAreMushroom]
#24015069 - 01/16/17 03:32 PM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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I went to a few of their shows when i was a kid, twas pretty entertaining stuff from what i remember. Did feel bad for the animals tho even at that age and time. U could just see it in their eyes..
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Dark_Star
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: Thayendanegea]
#24015080 - 01/16/17 03:34 PM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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Quote:
Thayendanegea said: Really sad to see that go...it is a piece of Americana. What exactly were they doing to the elephants that put all the tree huggers up in arms....the article says that they actually one the court case against the humane society.
I see no problem with using elephants that are born and raised in captivity to perform as long as they are treated ok....why is that any different than a field trial at a dog show? Just seems petty to me...fucking millennial hippies. ....at least they have their virtual reality games to play with.
^^^^this. The pussification of America continues....
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WeAreMushroom
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: zZZz]
#24015094 - 01/16/17 03:38 PM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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Quote:
zZZz said: I went to a few of their shows when i was a kid, twas pretty entertaining stuff from what i remember. Did feel bad for the animals tho even at that age and time. U could just see it in their eyes..

This. I saw Ringling Bros. Circus with my family when I was a kid. What really stood out to me was the clowns and the sad looks on the faces of the animals. I just got the vibe that they weren't enjoying the performance. 
Maybe I'm a pussy or whatever but it's what I remember about being at the circus..
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Crazy_Horse
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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: 5150]
#24015107 - 01/16/17 03:42 PM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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Quote:
5150 said: Now if we can shut down SeaWorld,watch "blackfish"
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PatrickKn


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Re: Ringling Bros. Circus to shut down...for good. [Re: Thayendanegea]
#24015146 - 01/16/17 03:54 PM (7 years, 14 days ago) |
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Quote:
Thayendanegea said: Really sad to see that go...it is a piece of Americana. What exactly were they doing to the elephants that put all the tree huggers up in arms....the article says that they actually one the court case against the humane society.
I see no problem with using elephants that are born and raised in captivity to perform as long as they are treated ok....why is that any different than a field trial at a dog show? Just seems petty to me...fucking millennial hippies. ....at least they have their virtual reality games to play with.
The "Tree Huggers" were probably up in arms over their less than perfect living conditions and training methods shown in some videos. It's not like that was stopping the show though, so your judgement is a bit misplaced in my mind.
People not buying tickets is what ended the show. If people stopped buying tickets because they didn't agree with the animal's living conditions, then so be it - that's their opinion of it and they voted with their wallets so to speak. Where were the people who didn't care about all that? Why weren't they buying tickets in droves?
Edited by PatrickKn (01/16/17 04:11 PM)
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