Difference between revisions of "Main Page"

From Circopedia

 
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<div style="font-size:165%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Welcome! ✫ Bienvenue! ✫ Willkommen! ✫ Добро Пожаловать!</div><div style="font-size:165%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Bienvenida! ✫ Benvenuto! ✫ 歡迎 ! ✫ Vítejte! ✫ Καλώς ήρθατε!</div><div style="font-size:165%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Üdvözöljük! ✫ Добре Дошли! ✫ Welkom! ✫ Ласкаво Просимо!</div><div style="font-size:165%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Velkommen! ✫ Tervetuloa! ✫ Дабро Запрашаем! ✫ Välkommen!</div><br/>
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<br><div style="font-size:175%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Welcome! ✫ Bienvenue! ✫ Willkommen! ✫ Добро Пожаловать!</div><div style="font-size:175%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Bienvenida! ✫ Benvenuto! ✫ 歡迎 ! ✫ Vítejte! ✫ Καλώς ήρθατ
<div style="top:+0.2em; font-size:110%;"> Circopedia was originally created with the support of the [http://www.bigapplecircus.com/ Big Apple Circus],<br />and has been inspired and funded by the [http://www.sdrubin.org/ Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation].</div>
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ε!</div><div style="font-size:175%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Üdvözöljük! ✫ Добре Дошли! ✫ Welkom! ✫ Ласкаво Просимо!</div><div style="font-size:165%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Velkommen! ✫ Tervetuloa! ✫ Дабро Запрашаем! ✫ Välkommen!</div><br/>
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<div style="top:+0.2em; font-size:98%;"> ''Circopedia was originally inspired and funded by the [http://www.sdrubin.org/ Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation]''.</div><br/>
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==In The Spotlight==
 
==In The Spotlight==
[[File:Rudy_Horn_at_Tower_Circus.jpeg|right|280px]]
 
===RUDY HORN===
 
  
Rudy Horn (1933-2018) was one of the best and most successful jugglers of the post-WW2 era; he was not only a great technician: It took a long time for his cup and saucers juggling routine on unicycle, which was his trademark and was unique in its time, to be emulated&mdash;principally by Chinese acrobats!
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===ALEXIS GRUSS, Jr.===
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[[File:Alexis_Gruss,_Jr.jpg|right|450px]]
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He had been called "Le seigneur des chevaux" ("The Lord of the Horses"): Alexis Gruss (1944-2024) was for many years France’s leading circus personality, a living legend and a true media star, as well as a distinctively innovative circus creator. He was also recognized as one of the greatest horse trainers of his time, both in the circus world and in equestrian circles.
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Alexis Jacques André Gruss was born in his parents' living trailer on April 24, 1944, in Bart, a French village near the city of Montbéliard, in the east of France, not far from the Swiss border. He was fourth generation of a circus family of Alsatian and Italian mixed origins. His father was Théophile André Gruss, better known as Dédé (1919-2003), a talented bareback rider who became not only a circus director, but also a popular auguste. Alexis’s mother, Hélène Maud (1919-2003), née Lautour, came for the world of traveling menageries.
  
He was born Rudolf Horn in Nuremberg, Germany, on February 14, 1933, in a circus family. His father, Rupert Horn, had worked as a strong man before appearing in a teeterboard act and eventually creating an aerial duet, the Duo Rupertis, with his wife, Brigitte. Rudy was initiated to juggling a little by accident, on Christmas Eve 1940. His father started juggling with three apples to entertain Rudy and his baby sister, and did a series of passes to Rudy, who showed an innate ability to catch and return the fruits; after ten minutes, he could juggle them by himself! His professional path was decided then and there.
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Alexis Gruss grew up in the Cirque Gruss-Jeannet, the circus co-owned and managed by his uncle, Alexis Gruss, Sr. (1909-1985), André Gruss, and their friend Lucien Jeannet (1902-1977), heir to a dynasty of traveling animal trainers; it was one of France’s premier circuses, variously known under the titles ''Radio-Circus'', ''Medrano Voyageur'', ''Cirque-Zoo Jean Richard'', and ''Grand Cirque de France''. There, Alexis, his brother Patrick (b.1950), and his sisters Bella (1948-2012) and Martine (1956-1994) were trained in all circus disciplines by their father and their uncle Alexis&mdash;who was to become France’s leading Equestrian Master.
  
Rudy went through the usual training of all circus children, starting with acrobatics, to which were added tap dance and, four hours a day, juggling practice with his father and his maternal grandfather, Benedikt Schiefer, the family’s juggler, who owned a small touring circus. In late 1942, Rupert Horn contacted the manager of Nuremberg’s WinterGarten Theater and suggested that he hired his son for the WinterGarten’s Christmas show. (Rupert had been drafted by the Wehrmacht, and although he was based in Nuremberg, he and his wife couldn’t work anymore.)
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In 1970, Alexis married Gipsy Bouglione (b. 1947), the daughter of Firmin Bouglione, Sr., a gifted tightwire artist and an outstanding juggler, who was to become one of the most versatile and brilliant circus artists of her generation. In 1969, after a very bad season, Alexis Gruss, Sr. left the Cirque Gruss-Jeannet to join the famous French comedian, actor, and amateur lion trainer Jean Richard, who had just opened his very own circus; two years later, Lucien Jeannet also called it quits.
  
Rudy, who was only nine years old, was indeed very young, but he could fit in the "young prodigy" category: He juggled three balls, three clubs, five hoops, and ended with sending atop his head with his foot a saucer, a cup in the saucer, a spoon in the cup, and a piece of sugar to crown it all. The manager was reluctant at first, but he eventually caved in: As the war dragged on, good performers were increasingly hard to find. Thus, Rudy made his debut in 1942 in the WinterGarten’s Christmas Show in Nuremberg, adding to his act a little acrobatic routine and some passing that he performed with his grandfather: Young Rudy stopped the show! ([[Rudy Horn|more...]])
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Left under Alexis and his father’s management, the circus united forces in 1972 with Roger Lanzac, the iconic ringmaster of the French television show ''La Piste aux Étoiles''. Alas, Under the title ''La Piste d’Or'', the new venture didn’t meet with the success they had hoped for, and the show folded before the end of the season. At long last, Alexis convinced André that they should tour under their own name, ''Gruss''&mdash;but, after so many different identities, the title ''Cirque Gruss'' had no pull. By the summer of 1974, the family enterprise had reached the end of the rope....  ([[Alexis Gruss, Jr.|more...]])
  
==New Biographies==
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==New Essays and Biographies==
  
* [[Rudy Horn]], Juggler
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* [[Alexis Gruss, Jr.]], Equestrian, Circus Owner
* [[Albert Rebla]], Juggler
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* [[Alona Zhuravel]], Hand-Balancer
* [[Baptiste Loisset]], Circus Owner and Equestrian
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* [[George Carl]], Clown
* [[The Kornilov Dynasty]], Elephant Trainers
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* [[Cedric Walker]], Circus Owner
* [[Sergei Korolev]], Acrobat
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* [[The Aragón Family]], Clown Dynasty
  
 
==New Videos==
 
==New Videos==
  
* [[Larible_Troupe_Video_(1965)|The Larible Troupe]], Teeterboard Act (1965)
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* [[Flying_Gonzalez_Video_(2024)|The Flying González]], flying trapeze (2024)
* [[Oleg_Popov_Video_(1957)|Oleg Popov]], Clown (1957)
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* [[Gaston_%26_Roli_Video_(2017)|Gaston & Roli]], clown entrée (2017)
* [[Weidmanns_Video_(1965)|The Weidmanns]], Mixed Animal Act (1965)
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* [[Alona_Zhuravel_Video_(2019)|Alona Zhuravel]], Hand Balancer (2019)
* [[Elvis_Errani_Video_(2015)|Elvis Errani]], Elephant Act (2015)
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* [[George_Carl_Video_(1988)|George Carl]], clown entrée (1988)
* [[Flying_Mirrors_Video_(2015)|Flying Mirrors]], Flying Act (2015)
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* [[George_Carl_Video_(1979)|George Carl]], clown entrée (1979)
  
 
==New Oral Histories==
 
==New Oral Histories==
  
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* [[BAC_Blumberg_Video_(1977)|''For A Moment You Fly'']], The First Season of The Big Apple Circus (1977)
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* [[Durov_Documentary_Video_(c.2000)|Vladimir Durov Documentary]] on Russian Television (c.2000)
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* [[Dolly_Jacobs_Interview_Video_(2018)|Dolly Jacobs Interview]] at The Ringling (2018)
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* [[Pinito_del_Oro_RTE_Video_(1970)|Pinito del Oro's Interview]] on Spanish Television (1970)
 
* [[Eradze_Video_(2015)|Gia Eradze]]'s Interview on SSU TV (2015)
 
* [[Eradze_Video_(2015)|Gia Eradze]]'s Interview on SSU TV (2015)
* [[Rosa_Bouglione_Video_(2012)|Rosa Bouglione]]'s interview on Franch Television (2012)
 
* [[Circo_Price_Video_(2017)|A Short History of Madrid's Old Circo Price]], Documentary (1970)
 
* [[Anastasia_Dementieva_Video_(2017)|Anastasia Dementieva-Kornilova]] – Vadim Vernik Interview (2017)
 
* [[Freres_Knie_Video_(1962)|''Les Frères Knie'']], Documentary (1962)
 
  
 
==Circopedia Books==
 
==Circopedia Books==
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* [[Circopedia Books|Philip Astley & The Horsemen who invented the Circus]], by Dominique Jando (2018)
 
* [[Circopedia Books|Philip Astley & The Horsemen who invented the Circus]], by Dominique Jando (2018)
  
==A Message from the Editor==
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==A Message from the Founder==
  
''CIRCOPEDIA is a constantly evolving and expanding archive of the international circus. New videos, biographies, essays, and documents are added to the site on a weekly&mdash;and sometimes daily&mdash;basis. Keep visiting us: even if today you don't find what you're looking for, it may well be here tomorrow! And if you are a serious circus scholar and spot a factual or historical inaccuracy, do not hesitate to [[Special:Contact|contact us]]: we will definitely consider your remarks and suggestions.''  
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''CIRCOPEDIA is a constantly evolving and expanding archive of the international circus. New videos, biographies, essays, and documents are added to the site on a weekly&mdash;and sometimes daily&mdash;basis. Keep visiting us: even if today you don't find what you're looking for, it may well be here tomorrow! And if you are a serious circus scholar and spot a factual or historical inaccuracy, do not hesitate to [[Circopedia:Contact|contact us]]: we will definitely consider your remarks and suggestions.''  
  
 
:'''Dominique Jando'''
 
:'''Dominique Jando'''
 
:Founder and Curator
 
:Founder and Curator

Latest revision as of 23:46, 1 May 2024


Welcome! ✫ Bienvenue! ✫ Willkommen! ✫ Добро Пожаловать!
Bienvenida! ✫ Benvenuto! ✫ 歡迎 ! ✫ Vítejte! ✫ Καλώς ήρθατ ε!
Üdvözöljük! ✫ Добре Дошли! ✫ Welkom! ✫ Ласкаво Просимо!
Velkommen! ✫ Tervetuloa! ✫ Дабро Запрашаем! ✫ Välkommen!

Circopedia was originally inspired and funded by the Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation.

In The Spotlight

ALEXIS GRUSS, Jr.

Alexis Gruss, Jr.jpg

He had been called "Le seigneur des chevaux" ("The Lord of the Horses"): Alexis Gruss (1944-2024) was for many years France’s leading circus personality, a living legend and a true media star, as well as a distinctively innovative circus creator. He was also recognized as one of the greatest horse trainers of his time, both in the circus world and in equestrian circles.

Alexis Jacques André Gruss was born in his parents' living trailer on April 24, 1944, in Bart, a French village near the city of Montbéliard, in the east of France, not far from the Swiss border. He was fourth generation of a circus family of Alsatian and Italian mixed origins. His father was Théophile André Gruss, better known as Dédé (1919-2003), a talented bareback rider who became not only a circus director, but also a popular augusteIn a classic European clown team, the comic, red-nosed character, as opposed to the elegant, whiteface Clown.. Alexis’s mother, Hélène Maud (1919-2003), née Lautour, came for the world of traveling menageries.

Alexis Gruss grew up in the Cirque Gruss-Jeannet, the circus co-owned and managed by his uncle, Alexis Gruss, Sr. (1909-1985), André Gruss, and their friend Lucien Jeannet (1902-1977), heir to a dynasty of traveling animal trainers; it was one of France’s premier circuses, variously known under the titles Radio-Circus, Medrano Voyageur, Cirque-Zoo Jean Richard, and Grand Cirque de France. There, Alexis, his brother Patrick (b.1950), and his sisters Bella (1948-2012) and Martine (1956-1994) were trained in all circus disciplines by their father and their uncle Alexis—who was to become France’s leading Equestrian Master.

In 1970, Alexis married Gipsy Bouglione (b. 1947), the daughter of Firmin Bouglione, Sr., a gifted tightwireSee Tight Wire. artist and an outstanding juggler, who was to become one of the most versatile and brilliant circus artists of her generation. In 1969, after a very bad season, Alexis Gruss, Sr. left the Cirque Gruss-Jeannet to join the famous French comedian, actor, and amateur lion trainer Jean Richard, who had just opened his very own circus; two years later, Lucien Jeannet also called it quits.

Left under Alexis and his father’s management, the circus united forces in 1972 with Roger Lanzac, the iconic ringmaster(American, English) The name given today to the old position of Equestrian Director, and by extension, to the presenter of the show. of the French television show La Piste aux Étoiles. Alas, Under the title La Piste d’Or, the new venture didn’t meet with the success they had hoped for, and the show folded before the end of the season. At long last, Alexis convinced André that they should tour under their own name, Gruss—but, after so many different identities, the title Cirque Gruss had no pull. By the summer of 1974, the family enterprise had reached the end of the rope.... (more...)

New Essays and Biographies

New Videos

  • The Flying González, flying trapezeAerial act in which an acrobat is propelled from a trapeze to a catcher, or to another trapeze. (See also: Short-distance Flying Trapeze) (2024)
  • Gaston & Roli, clown entrée(French) Clown piece with a dramatic structure, generally in the form of a short story or scene. (2017)
  • Alona Zhuravel, Hand Balancer (2019)
  • George Carl, clown entrée(French) Clown piece with a dramatic structure, generally in the form of a short story or scene. (1988)
  • George Carl, clown entrée(French) Clown piece with a dramatic structure, generally in the form of a short story or scene. (1979)

New Oral Histories

Circopedia Books

A Message from the Founder

CIRCOPEDIA is a constantly evolving and expanding archive of the international circus. New videos, biographies, essays, and documents are added to the site on a weekly—and sometimes daily—basis. Keep visiting us: even if today you don't find what you're looking for, it may well be here tomorrow! And if you are a serious circus scholar and spot a factual or historical inaccuracy, do not hesitate to contact us: we will definitely consider your remarks and suggestions.

Dominique Jando
Founder and Curator