THE "BLACK WIDOW"

Uploaded by zamperlarides on Feb 10, 2010
Antonio Zamperla S.p.A. in cooperation with Soriani S.r.l. is proud to present Giant Discovery 40, a new version of a popular spin & swing flat ride.

Black Widow pendulum swing debuting at Kennywood in 2012

By Brady MacDonald

Los Angeles Times staff writer

December 18, 2011

The new Black Widow pendulum swing coming to Kennywood in 2012 will fling riders through the air like pint-size passengers on an enormous spinning Frisbee.
The 90-foot-tall thrill ride is set to debut May 17 with opening of the West Mifflin, Pa., theme park for the summer season.
Riders will sit in 40 outward facing coaster-style seats as a counterclockwise-spinning circular gondola swings back and forth in a pendulum motion. At the ride's peak, the pendulum arm will reach 146 feet in the air at a 120-degree angle.
With their feet dangling, riders secured by over-the-shoulder restraints will experience upside-down inversions and moments of weightlessness as the rotating gondola whips toward the ground at nearly 70 mph.
Black Widow replaces Pitt Fall in the Lost Kennywood section of the park. Crews began dismantling the 1997 drop tower in early December.
I visited the Pennsylvania park during my road trip across America's Coaster Belt this summer and fell in love with Lost Kennywood, which features modern versions of classic amusement rides such as shoot-the-chutes and the wave swing as well as the park's 1918 Whip.read more at:http://www.latimes.com/travel/deals/themeparks/la-trb-kennywood-black-widow-12201119,0,5837320.story

Fir Real? Christmas Trees in Crisis

From The Wall Street Journal 12/16/2011

The Christmas tree industry is in turmoil, with sales of live trees trending down for 20 years, while artificial tree sales have risen. Valerie Bauerlein has details on The News Hub. Photo: Getty Images

Austin at Work: John Hanschen runs The Mighty Thomas Carnival

John Hanschen got into the carnival business in 1976. He owns the Mighty Thomas Carnival that spends winters in Cedar Creek.

By Ricardo Gándara AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

from: The Austin American-Statesman

Friday, Dec. 16, 2011

CEDAR CREEK,TEXAS — John Hanschen, owner of the Mighty Thomas Carnival, is hunkered down for the winter. In a warm office trailer, he's pondering early February, when he will hit the road again. Laredo's Presidents Day celebration will be his first stop. In all, he'll visit 40 cities in 10 states, setting up his carnival to the delight of families looking to get on the Super Shot free-fall ride or perhaps eat a corn dog that just seems to taste better because it's cooked at the midway.
"I miss the lights, the noise, the smells of the midway," he said.
But for now, on several acres on Texas 21, his 40 carnival rides are secured to the beds of tractor trailers. This doesn't mean he stops working. On the contrary, the three-month lull until carnival season gears up again is a strategic time. He's already attended the Rocky Mountain Association for Fairs in Billings, Mont.; safety training in Orlando, Fla.; and the North and South Dakota Association of Fairs convention in Rapid City, S.D.
"We go for training and see new rides and equipment and meet with clients. These shows are about maintaining relationships and sitting down with customers to talk about things we can do better," said Hanschen, who is in his 36th year in the carnival business.
The Mighty Thomas Carnival is a family affair. Hanschen, 60, is co-owner and full-time operator. Son Mike, 26, who has a business degree from Southwestern University, is a truck driver and handles a lot of the administrative work, such as payroll. Daughter Katherine and son-in-law Brandon Petree run the food operation of the carnival.
Hanschen is thinking about next year and how he can improve the business. "There is artistry in the operation of a carnival. You take a beautifully lit ride with thousands of lights, and you have to position it just right. There is nothing better than sitting in my office and looking out to the midway and seeing families smiling," he said.
The thrill rides that cost between $200,000 to $700,000 are only part of it. It is hard work to load, transport and unload machinery that can weigh several hundred tons. At any event, his caravan of big trucks hauling rides and travel trailers that provide housing for workers arrives a day or two in advance.
"It takes us a day to set up," said Hanschen.
The carnival is self-contained. One big truck carries the generators that provide power to operate the carnival. His annual budget for fuel — trucks and generators — is more than $400,000. read more at:http://www.statesman.com/life/austin-at-work-john-hanschen-runs-the-mighty-2036749.html

Rodeo ride where man fell to death won't return in 2012

But carnival operator will be back

By CINDY GEORGE, HOUSTON CHRONICLE

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo COO Leroy Shafer stands behind Ray Cammack Shows despite the death of a rider on the Hi Miler roller coaster on March 20.Photo: Johnny Hanson / Houston Chronicle

The Hi Miler roller coaster, from which a Houston man fell to his death at this year's rodeo, will not return in 2012.
But the Arizona company that owns the amusement will be back to run next year's midway of rides and games, Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo COO Leroy Shafer confirmed.
The rodeo official lauds the reputation of the coaster's owner, Ray Cammack Shows, but a federal investigative report into the death of Brian Greenhouse faults the company, saying it misrepresented the portable ride's safety record and failed to document or release previously reported malfunctions.

With the Hi Miler roller coaster in the background, Dion Louw, of Ray Cammack Shows, packs up in March. A 47-year-old man died on the ride that month.Photo: Johnny Hanson / Houston Chronicle

If the 47-year-old fell because the safety latch on his seat came loose, it would not be the first time a restraint malfunction was reported to the ride's attendants, carnival officials or rodeo personnel, according to the report from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
In an 843-page investigative report, the commission made troubling discoveries about the ride, its safety record and oversight:
In the last two years, there were at least eight reports of restraints moving out of place. A list of previous lap bar complaints provided to federal investigators by Ray Cammack Shows reports only three incidents.
There were four previous reports of restraint malfunctions at the 2011 rodeo, including one the same day Greenhouse fell.
When patrons tried to report lap bar problems, some of the ride attendants didn't seem to understand English.
The ride was dismantled before the federal agency started its probe two days after the fall.
The initial report to Texas amusement regulators reported the fatal fall as an injury - not a death.

A federal probe found previous complaints about the Hi Miler's restraints.Photo: Mayra Beltran / Houston Chronicle The roller coaster's safety became the subject of a Houston-based wrongful death lawsuit after Greenhouse plunged 30 feet to his death on March 20. Greenhouse, an AT&T supervisor and father of a young son, died from multiple impact trauma, including internal head injuries.
His survivors have sued the carnival company and the rodeo, claiming that Greenhouse fell because the seat locking mechanism became unlatched during the ride. The lawsuit also contends that the death was caused by preventable operational and mechanical errors.
"I think it's very telling that while (Ray Cammack Shows) is coming back, they're not bringing the ride back. If their contention is that there's nothing wrong with the ride, then why aren't they bringing it back?" said Tony Taft, one of the lawyers representing Greenhouse's survivors. "To be on notice of a history of problems with this roller coaster and to bring that same outfit back to Houston, it kind of shows little regard for the safety and welfare of the citizens."
Ray Cammack Shows defended the Hi Miler but said returning with the ride would amount to a distraction at this year's rodeo.read more at:http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Rodeo-ride-where-man-fell-to-death-won-t-return-2409972.php#photo-1945527

Bob Barker funds new home for former circus elephants

By Tim Sandle

from: www.digitaljournal.com

December 19, 2011

Toronto - Bob Barker, the former host of the television show "The Price is Right", is offering to pay for the relocation of three ex-performance elephants from the Toronto Zoo to a California sanctuary.

According to The National Post, three African elephants located at the Toronto Zoo desperately require a home after the Zoo and Toronto City Council officials announced in October that they could no longer care for them. The Zoo has said that the elephants must be re-housed by April 30, 2012.

The three elephants formerly worked in a circus and are called Toka, Thika and Iringa. According to CBC News the elephants will be moved to Galt, Calif., called ARK 2000. However, relocating elephants is expensive and the distance between Toronto and the elephants planned new home is some 2,500 miles.

In response to the plight of the elephants, the former host of the CBS television program "Price is Right", Bob Barker, has offered to fund the transfer of the elephants from Toronto to a sanctuary in California.

Mr. Barker made his proposal on the website of the Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS). Quoted on the PAWS website, Mr. Barker explained his actions: "I do not want the transition of the elephants to be hampered in any way. I want them to have the most efficient and humane transition to their new home.

" Bob Barker also stated that he wanted the elephants moved as soon as possible due to the harshness of the Canadian winter.

As CTV News quoted Mr Barker, he does not think that Canada is a suitable country for elephants. Bob Barker (born Robert William Barker) in 1923 hosted the "Price is Right" between 1972 and 2007, which made it one of the longest running game shows. Barker also hosted the game show "Truth or Consequences".

Aside from being a television personality, Barker has publicly been very pro-animal rights and is a vegetarian. In 2004 Barker donated $1 million to Columbia Law School to support the study of animal rights. By taking up the cause of the elephants, Barker has carried on with his long history of animal welfare work. Bob Barker's campaign has also captured the imagination and support of the general public.

This has included a website and a petition. Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/316394#ixzz1h710wT5kDec 19, 2011

Circus weds drama

Above and below — Scenes from the show in Kozhikode by the NSD team

from: deccanchronicle.com

December 19, 2011

By Kevin Kishore/ DC/ Kochi

For the last three days, those who went to see the Grand Circus at the tent opposite Kozhikode beach were in for a surprise.
Once the regular show was over, they watched a new art form, an amalgamation of circus and drama, performed by 26 students of Delhi’s National School of Drama.
Not many among the audience realised that it was the first time such a show was being staged anywhere in the country.
“Such experiments are happening in other parts of the world. Sadly, in India, we had never explored the possibility of combining theatre and circus,” says Abhilash Pillai, assistant professor of NSD, the brain behind the inititative. The three-day performance came at the end of a 40-day camp that saw NSD artistes working closely with the circus artistes for 40 days.
Abhilash had been toying with the idea of combining circus and drama for a few years and had approached many a circus owner in the country but nobody had time for such experiments except the owners of the Grand Circus in Kozhikode, which has a long tradition of circus.
“The demand came from the students themselves. Bored of doing the same kind of projects every year, the students wanted a new platform where they can experiment and learn something new,” says Abhilash Pillai.
“The students lived with the circus artistes in a bid to learn not only their techniques but also understand their way of life. While we focused on teaching them certain technical aspects and acting, the students learnt several circus skills,” says Abhilash.
“I was never so close to a circus camp. I now understand how difficult it is to be a circus artiste,” says NSD student Bandana Rawat.
“The adventures that the circus artistes do are something we have to respect. Considering their poor living conditions, something must be done to promote the art form rather than stifling it with stringent laws,” she says.
Says Amita Sharma, another student, “Though it was a bit frightening and risky, it was great fun learning something new.
In fact, Amita had suffered bruises on her body. “The daily routine of gymnastics and acrobatics has tired me physically but not mentally. Working with these people was really awesome.” The NSD team plans to organise a show in New Delhi soon.

Mass Grave of Circus Train Wreck Victims

Field Reveiw

bythe team at www.RoadsideAmerica.com

Columbus, Georgia--A large tombstone shaped like a rectangular tent memorializes people killed in a horrendous circus train wreck 6 1/2 miles east of Columbus in 1915.
It was mid-afternoon on a straight stretch of track when the Con. T. Kennedy Carnival train ran head-on into a passenger train that shouldn't have been there. The metal cars of the passenger train withstood the impact, injuring only a few. But the wooden cars of the circus train telescoped into the engine, caught fire, and burned to ashes most of the animals and one or two dozen circus people.
The tombstone doesn't say exactly how many circus employees died (news reports claimed 24 died, later accounts put the number at 15), or even if they're buried underneath it. Maybe the mixed-up ashes of the train, the animals, and the people were shoveled here and the tombstone set on top as a kind of general memorial.
Mass Grave of Circus Train Wreck Victims

Address:1000 Victory Dr., Columbus, GA

Directions:In Riverdale Cemetery, on the south edge of the city. At the junction of US 280/Martha Berry Hwy and 10th Ave., turn north onto 10th Ave., then immediately turn right into the cemetery, just before the Antique Mall and Flea Market. The road into the cemetery runs straight, but immediately bend right instead, and then take the first left. The grave will be a few hundred feet along this road, on the right.

HERB HEAD, JR.

FROM: BILL PRICKETT

Here are two photos taken Aug 1994

#2. Herb Head and Nancy Howell

Herb Head, Jr., went to the big lot in the sky 12-15-11. Herb played the American Steam Calliope in the Milwaukee Circus Parades for 35 years as well as the Organ in Al Ringling Theatre in Baraboo and at the Henry Ford Museum.

Herb also built an amazing circus 1" to 1 ft. scale that he and his family and friends would set up outdoors in his back yard one day each summer, since the 1930's. This circus grew to 12 flatcars, 50 wagons, 5 stock cars and 7 coaches.They would unload the flatcars, erect the tents, move the equipment ,etc., and tear down at the end of the day.

World Museum in Baraboo,WI. #1. Herb Head, T.J. his grandson, and Herb's son

Miniatur Wunderland *** official video 2012 *** largest model railway / railroad of the world


Uploaded by MiWuLaTV on Nov 28, 2011
The official video about Miniatur Wunderland Hamburg, the largest model railway in the world, and one of the most successful tourist attractions in Germany. On the 1.300 m² large layout, far more than a thousand trains, aircrafts, cars and ships move about. A wonder of the world in miniature.

Peace On Earth. Classic Christmas cartoon.

MGM 1939.

Shawn Marren: The human cannonball

Human cannonball Shawn Marren in his cannon outside the Westchester County Center in White Plains before a performan of the Royal Hanneford Circus. / Xavier Mascareñas / The Journal News

By Karen Crokefrom: www.lohud.com

Dec. 16, 2011

Hurtling through space at 70 mph sheathed in a skin-tight blue suit emblazoned with lighting bolts is child’s play for Shawn Marren.

The 26-year-old circus performer, and father of toddler twin boys, makes a living being shot out of a cannon.“It’s so exciting,” he says.Marren wasn’t born a daredevil. He was a college trumpet major before, literally running off to join the Royal Hanneford Circus — much to the dismay of his mother.“My mother came to see my first shot and she was distressed,” he says. “All she said was, ‘How did I raise a cannonball?’

”At show time, Marren is all business, checking, double-checking and triple-checking harnesses, nuts, bolts, cables and his calculations. “You don’t want to hit the ceiling,” he says, matter-of-factly.What’s not to like?“It’s the best thing ever. When I’m in the air, to hear kids go ‘whoooo,’ that’s cool. To see all the faces? I’m giving them something they’ve never seen before.”

Catch him in 2012: The Royal Hanneford Circus returns to the Westchester County Center Feb. 18-20.

FROM CASEY GIBBS-

[2011年春节联欢晚会 HQ] 11 - 魔术 - 年年有鱼

Video star: The name is Twinkles and she doesn’t always wave

By Jeff Chew

Peninsula Daily News

SEQUIM — Trying to make a drowsy 700-pound Kodiak grizzly bear wave its paw at you in the dead of winter is next to impossible.
They are supposed to be hibernating, after all.
But when one of Olympic Game Farm’s grizzlies — many of which are retired film or circus performers — gave a video-recording visitor a quick, cute, human-like wave a year ago in June, it became an overnight sensation last week on YouTube.
The seven-second clip of Twinkles, a 20-year-old female grizzly that was born and raised on the farm, went viral on the Internet, with more than 2.8 million views by Saturday night.
U.S. morning television talk shows, British TV and Internet news sites picked it up around the world.
It can be seen on YouTube.com at http://tinyurl.com/pdntwinkles or by going to YouTube and typing “waving bear” in the search field.
“It’s kind of crazy,” said Robert Beebe, president of the game farm at 423 Ward Road, on Friday.
It was Tuesday morning that Beebe and Jamie Pate, game farm tour manager, learned about the video when a French newspaper called them.
“They asked us if we knew about it, and we didn’t,” Pate said.
The television show “Inside Edition” called next.
“The first day, it looked like there were 350,000 hits on YouTube,” Pate said.
“The next morning, there were about 750,000, and then Thursday, there were more than a million.”
It aired on ABC TV’s “Good Morning America” and early Tuesday was posted at Yahoo.com and America Online and its news website, The Huffington Post.READ MORE AT:http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20111218/NEWS/312189990/video-star-the-name-is-twinkles-and-she-doesn-8217-t-always-wave

Ringling Bros. Presents DRAGONS Act Night at Winter Quarters



Uploaded by ringlingbros on Dec 17, 2011

Glenn Close goes to the big top;

Guest Ringermaster at Big Apple Circus

Glenn Close-Credits: (Getty Photo).

Jodi Jill, National Celebrity Headlines Examiner

From: www.examiner.com

December 17, 2011

Glenn Close had to deal with a circus atmosphere on Saturday, but it was for a good reason. The actress was at Damrosch Park in Lincoln Center for a special reason as she was honored as guest ringmaster of the Big Apple Circus. Standing under the big top and wearing a top hat along with a ringmaster coat, the moment to introduce the acts was left for Glenn Close and her husband Dude who stood in the main ring.
According to the Big Apple Circus, the acts seen at the venue come together that cover traditional circuses and more comtemporary shows. From jugglers to clowns, there were performances given by people. Of course there were animals to see as well as spirited horses, playful dogs, and a porcupine are all part of the show. The performance also included trapeze flyers that dare the sky to amazing the fans.
Performing in the New York City area for two and a half months, the Big Apple Circus has many fans in the New York City area. Sharing the joy of the circus experience with the youngsters, the parents come from around the region to enjoy a moment under the big top. With Glenn Close leading the show it was an added benefit.

Circus on Ice, skating popular at water fest

Lily B. Libo-on

From: Khaleej Times Online

17 December 2011

Thousands of visitors are trooping in daily to Al Majaz Park to watch the world famous ‘Circus on Ice’, hosted for the first time in the region.
Thousands of visitors are trooping in daily to Al Majaz Park to watch the world famous ‘Circus on Ice’, hosted for the first time in the region.
A unique presentation invented in Russia, the show offers all the fun of regular circus with the added excitement of impossible performances taking place on ice.Performed by a team of 35 artists, Circus on Ice, which is being featured at the Sharjah Water Festival 2011 has received world-wide acclaim. the circus is performed daily from 8.30pm to 10pm.Mohammed Ali Al Noman, Director-General of Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA), said that Sharjah has been keen to add new shows and features to the water festival every year.
“And the chief attraction and crowd-puller this year clearly is the ‘Circus on Ice’ that runs up to December 23,” he said.Yana Schevchenko, Director of the Circus on Ice, said that the show has some very complicated combinations of acrobatic jumps over the skipping rope, jugglers with Indian clubs, illusionists, equilibrists on unicycles, aerial gymnasts and choreographic compositions.Skating on ice with special light-and-sound effects mixed with colours and smoke, two performers skating on ice as they change more than 10 dresses within minutes accompanied by foot-tapping music and the performance using fire rings have amazed kids and families alike.
Al Noman said that the Sharjah Water Festival opens daily at 4pm at Al Majaz Park and runs until midnight. More than 20 shows are on offer, including an Irish Dance Show, Yo Yo People, The Colourful Boxes show, Pets Magic and Skating on Ice.