InsaneJournal

the glossary.

Like most travelling communities the circus has a language all of its very own. A full glossary can be found both here and here but the terms below will be the most important and widely used in the game.

Spec or Spectacle: Originating in the late 1880s, this is a lavish spectacle using up to thirty people and animals, many of whom might be employed for this sole purpose. Show girls, Bally girls, menage horses, clowns etc. might all take part. Some of the spectacles are so huge that all the back side seating has to be left out. The whole thing cuts way down on profits but each circus owner attempts to out do his competitors. Ringer: A substitute person or animal passed off on the unwary as the person or animal they expect to see. All the big name circus stars have understudies ready to go on in their place. Redlighting: A common practice wherein a worker is tossed off the moving train in the middle of the night because the Boss either can’t or won’t pay them. Roustabout: A circus worker, labourer. Advance Man: The person responsible for going ahead of the show and arranging food for the animals, land for the tent to be put up on etc. They also normally grease the palm of the local law enforcement to ensure a smooth stay. The Monday Man: The (rather shady) person responsible for selling stolen clothes in each town. So called because traditionally a person’s washing went up on a washing line on a Monday. These days they get their clothes from second hand stores and sell them on. John Robinson: A much shortened circus performance. Orders to give a 'John Robinson' are rarely given but storm warnings or an extra long jump to 'Tomorrow's town' might warrant a cut in running time of the performance. Jonah: Term used to describe someone who will almost certainly bring bad luck to the show and everyone around them. Mothers watching their children perform are almost certainly a Jonah. Natives: The locals of a town. Office: The carnival office wagon or trailer. (The circus office wagon is always referred to as the 'Red Wagon' or 'The Wagon', regardless of the color the wagon is actually painted). One Day Stand: Most circus dates are of a day's duration due to the advent of travelling by train. The exception to this is larger towns such as Boston where circuses might stay up to a week. Shill: One who pretends to play a game, or to buy a ticket to an attraction, in order to entice others to join or follow him. Without a good 'shill', an entire 'tip' may stay perfectly still after an 'opening'. All with the cash in their hands, and not one of them will 'break' for the ticket boxes, unless some brave soul leads the way. 'Shills' fill the need for brave souls. Sunday School Show: A clean show. No crooked games, no dirty 'gal shows', no other illicit activity tolerated by the show owner ie. not our circus. Wild Cat: Book and play into new territory on very short notice due to problems on the old route. Droughts, strikes, layoffs, epidemics, etc. can force a route change. The latter is the usual cause of sudden changes that result in 'wildcatting'. For instance, in the mid Twenties, Ringling Barnum was caught by a Hoof and Mouth Outbreak in Texas. The show had to 'blow' its route and 'wildcat' into new smaller towns all over the state for several weeks. Had the epidemic hit before show got into the state, Texas dates would have been canceled and show would have 'wildcatted' into other Southern towns in place of them. Bally Broads, Bally Girls: Woman and girls who sing and dance in the circus spectacles. These girls may also work in the Aerial Ballet, ride menage horses, appear in the posting art creations number and are 'generally useful' throughout the entire performance. Use of this term probably came from the employment of real ballet girls and dancers in the great circus spectacles of 1880 to 1910. Bally broads tend to remain with the show for many seasons working in a featured act and often marry a staff member of the show. Back Yard: "Off Limits" to the general public. Dressing rooms, ring stock tents (padrooms), wardrobe and costume departments, doctor's wagon, tailor's wagon and performer's rest areas were all located in the back yard of the railroad transported circuses. On some shows, the performing animal cages and dens are all located in the back yard area. When lot layout requires, the cook house, the blacksmith shop, the baggage horse tents and other departments are spotted in or near the back yard. Gimick: A trick used to win. The mechanical device used to control crooked games. "Stars and Stripes Forever": The band reserves this Sousa march as a signal that an emergency has come up, calling for the clowns to come running out, directing public attention away from the emergency, or for the audience to be evacuated. Basically if the march gets played, everyone hauls ass to the big top to help. Trouper: Someone who has spent at least one full season with the circus. Water Wagon: The water wagon circulates around the lot dispensing water for numerous uses: filling water buckets for performers to wash in, watering the animals, spraying the ground to keep the dust down, filling the drinking-water barrels placed around the lot (they have blocks of ice in them and a tin cup on a chain), and hosing down the elephants.