17. More changes to the show and the management of the company
In 1959 Ringling Brothers extended the season in which it would remain in winter quarters and relocated them to Venice, Florida. The expenses of travel meant that the circus could not spend the entire season on the road, and the decline of rail traffic in the United States meant that much of it needed to be moved by truck rather than train. Circus performers were also finding additional places of employment, including nightclubs and televised variety programs. Throughout the 1960s circus attendance continued to decline. John Ringling North attempted to introduce new types of acts, including hiring choreographer George Balanchine to create a ballet to be danced by the circus elephants. Igor Stravinsky composed the score, entitled Circus Polka.
When John Ringling North decided to sell the circus, which had been under the control of the Ringling family for eight decades, he approached Arthur Concello, who indicated that he didn’t care as long as he received his promised percentage. North sold the circus to Feld Entertainment, which had obtained complex financial backing for the deal, in 1967. The flamboyant Irvin Feld held a ceremony to commemorate the sale at the Colosseum in Rome, with appropriate fanfare and hype. Feld immediately removed the remnants of what had been known as the “freak” show, and introduced new acts and performers with an eye on making the circus more family friendly. He also began to consider the increasing volume with which was heard the voice of animal activists protesting the use of animals as entertainment.