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Wallendas
The Flying Wallendas is a circus act and group of daredevil stunt performers who perform highwire acts without a safety net. They were first known as ''The Great Wallendas'', but the current name was coined by the press in the 1940s and has stayed since. History Karl Wallenda was born in Magdeburg, Germany, in 1905 to an old circus family, and began performing at the age of six. While still in his teens he answered an ad for a "hand balancer with courage." His employer, Louis Weitzman, taught him the trade. In 1922, Karl put together his own act with his brother Herman, Joseph Geiger, and a teenage girl, Helen Kreis, who eventually became his wife. The act toured Europe for several years, and when John Ringling saw them perform in Cuba, he quickly hired them to perform at the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus. In 1928, they debuted at Madison Square Garden. The act performed without a net (it had been lost in transit) and the crowd gave them a standing ovation. In ...
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Karl Wallenda
Karl Wallenda (; January 21, 1905 – March 22, 1978) was a German-American tightrope walking, high wire artist. He was the founder of The Flying Wallendas, a stunt performer, daredevil circus troupe whose members performed dangerous stunts far above the ground, often without a safety net. Personal life Wallenda was born in 1905 in Magdeburg, Germany. His parents were Kunigunde (Jameson) and Engelbert Wallenda, and he began performing with his family at the age of six. The Great Wallendas The Flying Wallendas, The Great Wallendas were noted throughout Europe for their four-man pyramid and cycling on the high wire. The act moved to the United States in 1928, performing as freelancers. In 1947, they developed the unequaled three-tier 7-Man Pyramid. Karl Wallenda had the idea since 1938, but it took until 1946, when he and his brother Hermann developed it and had the right acrobats for it. ''The Great Wallendas'', a 1978 made-for-TV movie starring Karl Wallenda, depicts the act' ...
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Nik Wallenda
Nikolas Wallenda (born January 24, 1979) is an American acrobat, aerialist, daredevil, high wire artist, and author. He is known for his high-wire performances without a safety net. He holds 11 Guinness World Records for various acrobatic feats, and is best known as the first person to walk a tightrope stretched directly over Niagara Falls. Wallenda walked on a steel cable over Masaya Volcano in Nicaragua, his longest walk, on March 4, 2020. Wallenda is a 7th-generation member of The Flying Wallendas family, and he participated in various circus acts as a child. He made his professional tightrope walking debut at the age of 13, and he chose high-wire walking as his career in 1998 after joining family members in a seven-person pyramid on the wire. In 2001, he was part of the world's first eight-person high-wire pyramid. He performed with his family at various venues from 2002 to 2005, forming his own troupe in 2005. He performed with Bello Nock in 2007 and 2008 in a double vers ...
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Helen Kreis Wallenda
Helen Kreis Wallenda (December 11, 1910 – May 9, 1996) was a German-born trapeze artist and aerialist, best known as a key member of the original four-member Great Wallendas high-wire troupe. She was the wife of the high-wire artist Karl Wallenda, and together they performed daring acts without a safety net. Kreis was often the pinnacle of the Wallenda pyramid. Early life and career Kreis was born on December 11, 1910, in Germany. She joined the Wallenda troupe, led by her future husband, Karl Wallenda, at the age of 16. In 1928, she made her debut as the pinnacle of the Wallenda pyramid during a performance at Madison Square Garden, which earned the troupe a standing ovation that lasted for 11 minutes. The Wallendas traced their high-wire heritage back to the 1600s and were known for performing high-wire acts between skyscrapers, over canyons, and between speeding cars. Kreis and Wallenda married in 1935 and continued to perform together, along with other members of the Wall ...
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Mario Wallenda
Mario Wallenda (May 6, 1940 – April 12, 2015) was an American acrobat and highwire artiste, a member of ''The Flying Wallendas''. He was the adopted son of Karl Wallenda. He was paralyzed on January 30, 1962, when their trademark seven-person pyramid collapsed in the Michigan State Fairgrounds Coliseum Michigan State Fairgrounds Coliseum (also Hockeytown State Fair Coliseum) was a 5,600-seat multi-purpose arena in Detroit, Michigan. The coliseum, built in 1922, was part of the former Michigan State Fairgrounds until its demolition in early 202 .... References {{DEFAULTSORT:Wallenda, Mario 1940 births 2015 deaths American acrobats Place of birth missing Place of death missing The Flying Wallendas ...
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Tightrope Walking
Tightrope walking, also called funambulism, is the skill of walking along a thin wire or rope. It has a long tradition in various countries and is commonly associated with the circus. Other skills similar to tightrope walking include slack rope walking and slacklining. Types Tightwire is the skill of maintaining balance while walking along a tensioned wire between two points. It can be done either using a balancing tool (umbrella, fan, balance pole, etc.) or "freehand", using only one's body to maintain balance. Typically, tightwire performances either include dance or object manipulation. Object manipulation acts include a variety of props in their acts, such as clubs, rings, hats, or canes. Tightwire performers have even used wheelbarrows with passengers, ladders, and animals in their act. The technique to maintain balance is to keep the performer's centre of mass above their support point—usually their feet. Highwire is a form of tightwire walking but performed at much ...
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Hartford Circus Fire
A circus fire occurred on July 6, 1944, in Hartford, Connecticut, killing at least 167 peopleStewart O'Nan, ''The Circus Fire: A True Story of an American Tragedy''; Anchor, 2001. and leaving more than 700 injured. It was one of the worst fire disasters in United States history. The fire broke out during an afternoon performance of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus that was attended by 6,000 to 8,000 people. It was the deadliest disaster ever recorded in Connecticut. Background In mid-20th century United States, a typical circus traveled from town to town by train, performing under a huge canvas tent commonly called a "big top". The Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus was no exception, but stood out as the largest circus in the country. The circus had been experiencing shortages of personnel and equipment as a result of the United States' involvement in World War II. Delays and malfunctions in the ordinarily smooth order of the circus had become commonp ...
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Shrine Circus
The Shrine Circus is a circus founded in Detroit, Michigan on Woodward Avenue in 1906. It travels to roughly 120 cities per year in the United States and a separate unit travels to about 40 in Canada. It is affiliated with the former Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, now Shriners International. History The circus was originally a one-ring affair, but by 1925 it had grown to three rings. Despite now traveling to many cities, the Detroit affair is still the largest. In 1996, it ran for 17 days with 40 performances making it not only the oldest Shrine Circus, but also the most attended. The most famous venue to host the circus is the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California, where the Southern California Shrine Circus takes place. By the 1920s Shrine Circuses were being conducted throughout the country, and each year additional Shrine Centers introduced circuses to their communities. The first Shrine Circus each year is usually in Flint, Michigan, each ...
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Today (U
Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * The current day and calendar date ** Today is between and , subject to the local time zone * Now, the time that is perceived directly, present * The current, present era Arts, entertainment and media Newspapers and websites * ''Today'' (Indian newspaper), a defunct afternoon newspaper * ''Today'' (Jintian), a Chinese literary journal co-founded by Huang Rui * ''Today'' (Singapore newspaper), a Singapore English-language digital news publisher * ''Today'' (UK newspaper), a defunct national newspaper in the United Kingdom * ''Today'', a Filipino newspaper that was merged with the ''Manila Standard'' resulting in the '' Manila Standard Today'' * ''Florida Today'' or ''Today'', a U.S. daily newspaper * ''Today Newspaper'' (Gambia), an independent newspaper in the Gambia, West Africa * Today Newspapers, a defunct newspaper chain in Texas, United States * '' Today, the new John Bull'', a defunct British magazine * , an online newsp ...
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Condado Plaza Hotel
The Condado Vanderbilt Hotel is a historic luxury hotel built in 1919 and located on Ashford Avenue in the district of Condado in San Juan, capital city of the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2008. The hotel was designed by the architectural firm Warren and Wetmore, who also designed New York's Grand Central Terminal. It was built by the Vanderbilt family and it marked the beginning of high end tourism in Puerto Rico.Flores, Ronald. "New Hotels on the Horizon". (February/March 2009) ''¡Qué Pasa!''. Puerto Rico Tourism Company. History Early years Construction of the Condado Vanderbilt Hotel was begun in 1917 by Frederick William Vanderbilt, the son of William Henry Vanderbilt. He selected the prominent architectural firm of Warren and Wetmore, which had designed New York City's Grand Central Terminal, as well as the Biltmore, Commodore, and Ambassador Hotels. On 16 October 1919, the hotel, having cost a million dolla ...
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HIV/AIDS
The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, preventable disease. It can be managed with treatment and become a manageable chronic health condition. While there is no cure or vaccine for HIV, Management of HIV/AIDS, antiretroviral treatment can slow the course of the disease, and if used before significant disease progression, can extend the life expectancy of someone living with HIV to a nearly standard level. An HIV-positive person on treatment can expect to live a normal life, and die with the virus, not of it. Effective #Treatment, treatment for HIV-positive people (people living with HIV) involves a life-long regimen of medicine to suppress the virus, making the viral load undetectable. Treatment is recommended as soon as the diagnosis is made. An HIV-positive person who has an ...
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Aerialist
Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most often performed in acro dance, circus, gymnastics, and freerunning and to a lesser extent in other athletic activities including ballet, slacklining and diving. Although acrobatics is most commonly associated with human body performance, the term is used to describe other types of performance, such as aerobatics. History Acrobatic traditions are found in many cultures, and there is evidence that the earliest such traditions occurred thousands of years ago. For example, Minoan art from contains depictions of acrobatic feats on the backs of bulls. Ancient Greeks practiced acrobatics, and the noble court displays of the European Middle Ages would often include acrobatic performances that included juggling. In China, acrobatics have been a part of the culture ...
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