Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Circus
Sat, Jun 19, 2010 (10:28 a.m.)
On Friday night at the Orleans Arena, a space occupied much of the year by a hockey rink and dim lighting was transformed into a classic three-ring-circus as Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey came into Las Vegas for the weekend. The show titled Barnum’s FUNundrum! included fireworks, midgets, elephants, baton twirlers, death-defying acrobats, punk clowns, stilt-walkers dressed as exotic birds, singers, dancers, contortionists and tigers, all in the first 15 minutes of the show.
Join the Discussion:
Check this out for a full explanation of our conversion to the LiveFyre commenting system and instructions on how to sign up for an account.
Discussion: 19 comments so far…
Comments are moderated by Las Vegas Sun editors. Our goal is not to limit the discussion, but rather to elevate it. Comments should be relevant and contain no abusive language. Comments that are off-topic, vulgar, profane or include personal attacks will be removed. Full comments policy. Additionally, we now display comments from trusted commenters by default. Those wishing to become a trusted commenter need to verify their identity or sign in with Facebook Connect to tie their Facebook account to their Las Vegas Sun account. For more on this change, read our story about how it works and why we did it.
Only trusted comments are displayed on this page. See all Comments »
Only trusted comments are displayed on this page.
More galleries
-
Snow Las Vegas!
February 21, 2019
-
Bishop Gorman's Noah Taitz
February 18, 2019
-
VGK Lose to Boston Bruins In Shootout
February 20, 2019
-
Rape Crisis Center Ribbon Cutting
February 19, 2019
-
Golden Knights Shut Out By Avalanche
February 18, 2019
-
VGK Lose to Boston Bruins In Shootout
February 20, 2019
-
Dave Keuning at the Bunkhouse
February 18, 2019
-
Dig This
February 18, 2019
-
Sen. Elizabeth Warren Visits Las Vegas
February 14, 2019
-
BOMA TOBY 2019 Awards
February 19, 2019
-
Golden Knights Defeat Predators, 5-1
February 16, 2019
-
Nevada Ballet Theatre's Mid-winter Program
February 16, 2019
-
Celia Luna-Delgado Justice for Families Press Conference
February 14, 2019
-
Las Vegas Country Club Dean Martin Statue
February 14, 2019
-
Maple Leafs Down Golden Knights, 6-3
February 14, 2019
-
Rain Run-off Flows Under Linq Garage
February 14, 2019
-
VGK Fall to Arizona Coyotes: 2-5
February 12, 2019
-
Engelstad Adoption Center Opening
February 12, 2019
-
2019 Swatch DRL Tryouts
February 14, 2019
-
Huntridge Circle Park Closure
February 11, 2019
- Locally owned and independent since 1950; Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service, best news website in the nation & DuPont Award for broadcast journalism
i can not believe that a newspaper as liberal as the sun would give any free press to this company.
they abuse animals.
Wow... still using the word "midgets." I'm sure more readers will be concerned about the animals rather than humans being called "midgets." Way to go Sun!
As far as the abuse allegations, there is so much more incriminating video than was shown on the InBusiness morning show this morning. Play fair as well, where was the Ringling spokesperson?
stevem,
they are actually very kind and loving to their animals. I know because I worked for Barnum and Bailey's Greatest Show on Earth.
Our elephant even had a friend coming along with us. It was the zebra that had absolutely no part to play in the circus except to be there for the elephant. We fed and tended, exercised and cared for that zebra just like family because he and our elephant were buddies.
Ringling even has its own special place to take care of older elephants and spends gobs of those circus bucks taking care of the critters in Florida.
Go ahead and bash away at those awful humans for bringing you an experience beyond your hum-drum waste-your-time-gamblin and boozin life.
Those who are so encapsulated by their self-abuse seem quick to finger others for a show they'll never forget!
free advertsising
free
LOL
LMAO
midget mind stuck in a magnificent galaxy of glory, clueless
How well does sores on caged cats look up close.
Please consider going to an animal free circus. Every major circus that uses animals has been cited for violating the minimal standards of care set forth in the United States Animal Welfare Act (AWA).
Here are 10 facts about circuses that use animals:
http://www.bornfreeusa.org/facts.php?p=4...
BigCatRescue.org is a great sanctuary that rescues exotic cats including those that were once in the circus.
Unfortunately there isn't much entertainment value for children in an animal-free circus. My 4yo niece wanted to see the elephants and didn't care about what was going on in between. Where else is she going to be able to see an animal like that?
I absolutely do not condone animal abuse of any kind..but I've seen worse things that humans have done to helpless animals on Animal Planet.
Replying to kvg2009..What you and your niece don't see at the circus is what goes on behind the view of the public. As for seeing an elephant or other exotic animals try a zoo funded by tax payer dollars.
and where would there be a zoo like that around las vegas?
Wow! Enslaved animals and midgets too? WooHoo!
WTF? Is this a reprint from archives or what?
Those of us whacking away at the circus, poiting out how awful circus acts can be, are reminiscent of hippies telling farmers that they are really bad people because they profit from sharing their harvest, use fossil fuels to harvest solar energy produce, and don't care about the soil!
The circus babies their critters like the farmers tend their topsoil. Go to the circus before you whack 'em. See the joy; feel the love.
Enslaved animals! What, Republicans? Meat eaters? Oil dependent non-walkers? TV addicts? Smokers? Drinkers? Posters? Goof balls getting paid to post? Goof balls pissing away their lives looking at a flat screen like wasted hippies gathered around the lava lamp: 'Wow, did u see dat blob go up?'
Please do not attend or support circuses that use animals. In doing these we are keeping the slave trade alive and well. Here are some facts about Ringling Brothers: In 2009, PETA recorded Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus employees for many months and in numerous U.S. states. Eight employees, including the head elephant trainer and the animal superintendent, were videotaped backstage repeatedly hitting elephants in the head, trunk, ears, and other sensitive body parts with bullhooks and othercruel training devices just before the animals would enter the arena for performances. (A bullhook is an elephant-training tool that resembles a fireplace poker.) A tiger trainer was videotaped beating tigers during dress rehearsals. Footage from the investigation can be viewed at RinglingBeatsElephants.com. Former Ringling employees have reported that elephants are routinely abused and violently beaten with bullhooks. In December 2009, PETA released dozens of photographs taken by a retired Ringling trainer named Sam Haddock. The photos reveal the violent training methods used on baby elephants at Ringling's Polk City, Florida, training center. The photos, which are available at RinglingBeatsAnimals.com, depict baby elephants bound with ropes and wrestled into physically difficult and uncomfortable positions by several adult men. According to Haddock's notarized statement, the elephants scream, cry, and struggle as they are stretched out, slammed to the ground, gouged with bullhooks, and shocked with electric prods. According to him, these violent training methods are the only way an elephant can be trained to perform in circuses.
only a shill for this company would defend it. the videos are EVERYWHERE of trainers and handlers abusing elephants.
only a moron would call ME a moron or a "hippie"...something i am clearly not if you've read ANY of my posts in the last 2 years on this site...for pointing out the reality that you want to hide from.
conservatives love animals as much as anyone else.
this company hurts animals. period.
A concern for animals is not unique to dems or reps. Rush Limbaugh stumps for the Humane Society and Bill Maher for PETA.
But a lack of concern for animals IS unique to idiots! This type of entertainment (animals and midgets?) is moronic and, thankfully, more enlightened people are coming to understand this, and the ones that don't are dying off!
Ok
I didn't know about these people doing these things. Back in the day when I worked the circus, it was NOT this way as far as i could know.
Bucolic comes to mind - the tending of critters, an old-time black and white photo of friends of different species playing for fun and gentle entertainment. That was my world.
Why in the hell are those guys beating the elephants? Elephants are such playful, powerful and amiable beasts.
Thank you my friends for persisting in your defense of critters. I am with them, for being an elephant in the wild, not in a cage. Not in a human zone, but an elephant zone.
When I was 16 I saw a little brick hut outside this ante-bellum mansion I worked on. I went in and touched those rusty chains embedded in the walls. Let my elephants go!
It's Feld Entertainment now. They do Disney on Ice and all kinds of fancy productions, but they still do Ringling and apparently are doing it mean. Terminate their inhumanity!
BTW, back in the day, the CLOWNS were the stars of the show for the adults and the elephants of course, for the kids.
And we had the best bunch of musicians! And the Europeans, mostly from Bulgaria, were such party animals. Beer guzzlers and howling late night singers!
Nobody could have gotten away with this kind of animal abuse on our tour. But it was different back then.
airweare... I noticed that post-Gunther Gebel-Williams and his son's era is when Ringling started having problems with the animal abuse. Notice I didn't use the term "allegations" of animal abuse. From those videos it is clear abuse is present these days. I did see the show last week and it was entertaining from start to finish.
Bring back the freaks in the side show.