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Now in paperback: Carlyon's "masterful work of cultural and theater criticism" "--Publishers Weekly," (starred review)

Tabla de contenidos provista por Syndetics

• Foreword(p. xi)
• Preface(p. xiii)
• Acknowledgments(p. xvii)
• Prologue(p. 1)
• Part 1 A Perfect Rush: 1823--1847
• 1. Home, Sweet Home(p. 11)
• 2. Go West, Young Man(p. 22)
• 3. Learned Pig, Learning Dan(p. 32)
• 4. "Circus"(p. 39)
• 5. Clown to the Ring(p. 51)
• Part 2 One-Horse Show: 1848--1852
• 6. Spalding and Spicy Rice(p. 65)
• 7. Reading, Not Acting Clown(p. 82)
• 8. Foreclosure(p. 94)
• 9. One-Horse Story(p. 108)
• 10. Like a Phoenix(p. 120)
• 11. Alternating Ringmasters(p. 128)
• 12. Curses, Foiled Again!(p. 136)
• Part 3 The Great American Humorist: 1853--1856
• 13. The Barnum of New Orleans(p. 145)
• 14. See the Elephant(p. 157)
• 15. People's Choice(p. 167)
• 16. $100,000(p. 176)
• 17. Bearded in His Den(p. 182)
• 18. Dan Rice's Great Show(p. 189)
• 19. Servis Renderd(p. 196)
• 20. Hey, Rube!(p. 204)
• Part 4 "Something Higher": 1856--1860
• 21. Cabinet of Curiosities(p. 217)
• 22. Genius for Fun(p. 223)
• 23. Excelsior!(p. 231)
• 24. Daniel McLaren(p. 246)
• 25. Grammatical Assassin?(p. 256)
• 26. The End?(p. 267)
• 27. Ring Cycle(p. 275)
• Part 5 The People's Candidate: 1860--1867
• 28. House Divided(p. 287)
• 29. Southern Sympathy(p. 296)
• 30. Union, Alias Peace(p. 307)
• 31. A Muted Voice(p. 319)
• 32. "Colonel" Rice(p. 328)
• 33. Rice for President(p. 343)
• Part 6 Reverse of Success: 1868--1883
• 34. Folly to Fight(p. 355)
• 35. Paris Pavilion(p. 366)
• 36. Is Life Worth Living?(p. 375)
• Part 7 Old Uncle Dan: 1884--1900
• 37. More Fun Than You Can Count(p. 387)
• 38. Snake Oil(p. 396)
• 39. Honest Abe's Uncle Sam(p. 405)
• Notes(p. 417)
• Bibliography(p. 465)
• Permissions(p. 487)
• Index(p. 489)

Reseñas proporcionadas por Syndetics

Library Journal Review

Dan Rice, a 19th-century American circus entertainer, was one of the country's first nationally known humorists. He climbed from poverty to wealth and celebrity, leaving New York and finding success in the Midwest and South. First-time author Carlyon has fashioned the first scholarly account of Rice, which is both a biography and a historical account of circus life in the 1800s. A former clown with the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus who also holds a Ph.D. in theater, Carlyon brings a unique perspective to the task. He organizes the book chronologically, recounting in detail Rice's successes, failures, struggles, and adventures. At times, Carlyon's fascination with his subject overshadows his critical eye, and the generalist may be overwhelmed. Still, this is a well-researched and informative study that will delight connoisseurs of American theater and entertainment. Recommended for larger public libraries, academic libraries, and specialized Americana collections. David Potash, Baruch Coll., New York (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Publishers Weekly Review

Except in the works of political commentators, clowns and presidents hardly ever inhabit the same body. But Dan Rice perhaps the premiere clown and showman of 19th-century America was also a presidential candidate. This wonderfully appealing and constantly fascinating biography is not only a perceptive examination of Rice's life and times, but a serious and deeply researched look at the complex intersections among popular culture and politics, and the birth of a unique American character in the years before and after the Civil War. Born in 1823, Rice joined, as a dancer and jockey at the age of 13, the transitory, not very respectable world of traveling shows, and ran a "learned pig" routine in small towns (the pig could tell time and ascertain the character of audience members). He eventually made a name doing "nigero singing and dancing" blackface and by the 1850s became a major producer of popular circus events. By 1864 he was running for public office and ran for president in 1868. Carlyon, who has been a clown, actor, director and playwright and holds a Ph.D. in theater as well as a law degree from Berkeley, places Rice firmly in the spectacle of 19th-century popular culture. Covering such diverse topics as the Astor Place riots (which were caused by rival performances of Shakespeare), the birth of the clown as an American type who commented on politics, the sexualization of popular entertainment, the appropriation of African-American culture for white audiences, the regendering of popular culture after women's suffrage and many others, Carlyon has produced a masterful work of cultural and theater criticism that advances the literature as well as it entertains. (Dec.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Booklist Review

Dan Rice (1823-1900) was a pioneer in the American circus, a nationally beloved clown and humorist; people flocked from all over the country to see his circus shows and hear his songs and stories. Why is it, then, that none of us have ever heard of him? According to Carlyon, the rise and fall of Dan Rice pretty much paralleled the cultural evolution of the circus from a form of entertainment in which audiences participated, shouting back at the performers, to an event that audiences merely watched. Dan's singular talents--his ability to use audience feedback to shape a performance--were suddenly no longer useful to him. When Americans decided the circus was "lowbrow," when audiences felt it uncouth to join in, they decided that performers like Rice were an embarrassment to "civilized" culture. Rice fell into bankruptcy and, finally, obscurity, and the American circus has never been the same again. This is a compassionate and moving biography and an incisive look at a neglected aspect of American popular culture. --David Pitt

Notas de autor provistas por Syndetics

After graduating from Clown College, david carlyon toured three years with Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus. He has since worked as an actor, director, playwright and university professor. He was in the Army, has a Ph.D. in Theatre from Northwestern University, and holds a Berkeley law degree. He lives in Larchmont, NY with his wife and two sons