Torp's Flea Circus

Tivoli park in Copenhagen stands as one of the last paradises of novelties and wonders. One of its main attractions in the 50s was Mrs.Torpe's flea circus. This being probably one of the last genuine shows of this kind as intended in the last two centuries, and today resting in obscure memorabilia.
The show was founded by William Torp in England in the 20s, probably inspired by some companies of the early 1900. After touring Egypt (poster above), M.me Else Torp established a permanent show at Tivoli in 1952, to sadly close it in 1956 "for lack of performers". It was replaced by a mouse show, it seems. Her son later toured with a similar show in a special trailer through the Usa coast to coast.
We are happy to offer you today a magnificent documentary film about Torpe's flea circus in his golden years at Copenhagen' s Tivoli park.

(photo courtesy from Torp's family website)

The obscures origins of "manualism"

With a tribute to the unique art of John Twomey.

It seems that all started in 1933, when a farmer named Cecill Dill traveled from Traverse City, Michigan, to Universal Studios in Hollywood to record his singular skill in a newsreel.

Mr.Dill claimed to play “Yankee Doodle Dandy” in a unheard form: by squeezing air thru his hands. He said to have started mastering his instrument by 1914.

Strangely, no traces seems to survive of this art during the golden age of vaudeville, music-hall and early TV. We have to wait the 70s and the arrival of John Twomey, who in 1974 took as a storm the millions of Americans watching Johnny Carson’s show, with his electryfying rendition of “Stars and Stripes Forever”. It is to Mr.Twomey that seems credited the definition of “manualist”, a term that now dignifies and indicates a profession still rare but today relatively practiced in some outskirts of the musical constellation.

Today we offers you the sight of Mr.Dill’s first performance ever of manualism, and an excerpt of the legendary Twomey’s act on Carson’s. But expect more to come in future.

A lesson in showmanship

Eric Brenn, or the mastering of porcelaine for entertainment purpose

Plate spinning is one of the most widely replied standards in showbiz, from small country circuses to far-east night club. But the act itself is an insidious and marvellous machine for thrill, timing, skills, comedy, audience involvement and all that makes great an act.
It is a lesson for the eternal adagio: no matter what you does in front of footlight, yourself is what really matters. Personality will always be the eternal secret.
Now, is difficult to find in the history a man better than Eric Brenn to make of this specialty a masterpiece of pure art.
Here is Eric Brenn in action at Ed Sullivan's in 1969:

The Man with X-Ray eyes

Kuda Bux, from India, was an unique act in the last century of inusual performances. He was able to read and write while wrapped as a mummy, or even drive a car. But he needed glasses to read his newspaper in normal conditions.





Half of the fascination of his internationally admired act was the ritual of meticolously obscuring his wiew with gauzes and napkins.
A deliciously mysterious blend of Esp, exotica, bondage, masochism, with a flavour of night-club fashion and a twist of sci-fi atmosphere, Kuda Bux was a sort of horror movie hero. It can be witnessed in the video below: even if not of the best quality, the relic preserves the entirety of his act.

Gifts from the Insects

One of the very first post subjects of our blog was the amazing Insects Circus, that we discovered few years ago on London's south bank (just few steps away from Astley's circus birthplace).



Later, two of the most succesful features of the blog were Koringa the reptiles' queen and Hadji Hali, regurgitator extraordinaire.
Now, Mark Copeland, Insect Circus Impresario, sends us two interesting findings about our two icons. We offer them to you readers, being also an opportunity for stimulating your curiosity to revive those past marvels, searching into our blog for: insect circus, koringa, hadji ali.

Dear Raffaele,

Having discovered your wonderful Novelties pages through an Insect
Circus google alert some time ago, I've been a big fan of your blog.
Thanks for including my museum amongst your wonders!

I thought you might be interested in the two attached pictures from my
collection.  The Koringa poster is not in great condition but is quite
rare. Also the photo is not wonderful as it is framed and difficult to
photograph as it's behind glass. It is from the Reco Bros Irish tour
of 1946. The other picture is a flyer for Hadji Ali when he performed
in London in 1936. I believe he died sometime that year...?

Looking forward to more of your Novelties as they appear,

All the best,

Mark.

Mark Copeland
Creative Director
The Insect Circus

Holidays on G-String

We imagine our initiated readers, being periodically exposed to our past bizarreries, often complaining the nowadays loss of inusual acts, strange performances, unthinkable talents.
Gone seems the times when words such daring, sexy, mysterious, hilarious, devastating were the brilliant faces reflecting the magic of a same, surreal perfectly cut diamond.
We saved for the holidays one of those pearls.
So we can introduce you to Miss Amy-G, the lady in the picture above. She is not an oddity of the past but a marvel of the presents. She lives with us.
Enjoy her unique talent on the video below.

Happy Holidays

The Charlivels

The golden days of the night-club era

Before the plethora of Eastern acrobats, wannabe magicians and outdated post-burlesque divas, the origins of the night-clubs were studded by outstanding showstoppers.
One of the very first of them, by the late '40s, was the "Charlivels" act. Valentino, Juanito and Charlie jr. (sons of the legendary clown Charlie Rivel), helped to open the way to variety acts in such places as Latin Quarter in New York, Ciro's at Hollywood and the very early Las Vegas lounges, without forgetting to grace european temples as Medrano, London's Talk of the Town, Copenhagen's Schumann, etc.
Here they are, in a tv show from the 60s (we posted the video in 2 parts).

But what they did in their act? Well, just everything.

See by yourself.