Underneath the glaring lights of the infamous big top, old-school circus life ran amok with infinite wonders. At any given show back in the day, you could see fearless trapeze artists leaping through the air to actual lion tamers or someone with a singing voice that seemed to come from another world entirely. We rounded up some of the most fascinating old-school photos capturing the chaotic spirit of circus life that we could find.
1. This Is Francesco Lentini, the Italian-American circus performer was born with 3 legs and 4 feet.
Quite a stoic pose, good sir.
2. 1924 Ringling Brothers and Barnun & Bailey.
Looks like one big happy family.
3. Circus performer Jimmy Armstrong having a break.
The shifts can be long and feel like they’re completely endless.
4. Lion tamer and animal trainer Jack Bonavita poses with his lions.
If you thought you had a photo that you flexed in, you never saw this guy do his thing.
5. Two small children watching a circus performer practicing on a tightrope, Sarasota, Florida.
That poor dog is missing the show.
6. Circus performer Lewis Wiser.
You just know that this guy has some wild tales to tell.
7. George Moore aka The Living Skeleton and Fred Howe aka The Fatman
Seems like there could be a bit of a mismatch at play here.
8. Marilyn Monroe rides an elephant for the intro of a circus act at Madison Square Garden.
There goes Marilyn Monroe, making something look graceful yet again.
9. Circus performer, Gilbert Tracey.
This lad is utterly unfazed.
10. A performer backstage at Ringling Brothers circus in Baltimore, Maryland, 1966.
A solid window of time to catch up on the times.
11. Legendary clown, Frank Slivers Oakley, famous for his One Man Baseball Game.
Playing an entire game of baseball against yourself is no easy feat.
12. A circus hippo pulling a cart in 1924.
That hippo looks like it’s completely over it.
13. Lionel the Lion-Faced Man was a popular sideshow attraction at the Barnum & Bailey Circus.
At least he’s fully embraced the fit.
14. Ella Harper suffered from a medical condition that caused her knees to bend in the opposite direction.
That had to have been tough, but it looks like she did what she could to make the most out of it.
15. Rare photo of a lion in a sidecar at a wall of death carnival attraction at Revere Beach.
A tough day on the job, for sure.
16. A circus performer in Germany c.1930.
To say that there’s something seriously sinister lurking behind her eyes would be a vast understatement.
17. A circus performer practices her routine in the ’60s.
Practice really does make perfect.
18. Michael Davis, as a clown at Ringling Brothers Circus (1974).
One of the most friendly elephants that I’ve ever seen.
19. An equestrian/acrobat for Barnum & Bailey Circus.
The balance that she achieved is nothing short of superhuman.
20. An Iron Woman circus performer in 1905.
Just a little bit of a flex, and totally understandable.
