From Sideshow to the Big Top: The History of the Circus

A century ago, daily life ground to a halt when the circus rolled into town. Across America, banks closed, schools canceled classes, farmers left their fields, and factories shut down so that everyone could go to the show. But when Ringling Brothers recently announced that they would retire their elephants in 2018, it underscored the dramatic change taking place in the American circus today. Janet Davis is a professor of American studies at the University of Texas at Austin, and the author of The Circus Age: Culture and Society under the American Big Top. Today, she joins us for Please Explain: The Circus!