21 minute read
Beyond the Big Top Uncovering Sarasota's Cultural Riches and Family Roots
Photos and story by
KRISTINA FAY GRANT
Just over a year ago, I attended the International Food, Wine and Travel Writers Association annual meeting in St. Petersburg, Florida. As part of this confab, we could apply for pre- and post-fam trips to other Florida cities. I chose Sarasota, a city I had first seen in 1983, when my mom and I visited her brother, my uncle Fay, and his wife, Rose.
I’m proud to say that my uncle, whom I’m named after (see my expanded byline above), was one of the most famous trapeze artists of all time. He had a long and storied career with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. And like many in the Ringling Brothers circus family, Fay and Rose chose to make Sarasota their permanent home.
It was an absolute joy to explore this city that includes a series of barrier islands, known as “keys,” and their beautiful white sand beaches bounded by the Gulf of Mexico on one side and Sarasota Bay on the other.
It’s no wonder that nearly a century ago John Ringling chose Sarasota to be the winter home of his circus family, and that he and his wife, Mable, established an exquisite home and museum here.
Today, Sarasota is rich in its diversity of cultural offerings, including visual, performing and culinary arts – all of which have built on the legacy of Ringling’s empire.
So here’s my story on how Sarasota came to be known as Florida’s Cultural Coast, and how I came to discover more about my famous ancestor, my Uncle Fay Alexander.
Let’s go back a century in time and think about what the circus meant to America. In the 1920s, there was no television, no jet travel, no Internet, no “talkie” movies, no color film and very few books with photographs in color. When the circus came to town, often with an opening parade, it allowed people to see for the first time the wild animals of Africa – lions, tigers and elephants. Under the “Big Top,” kids of all ages were enthralled by high wire acts, dazzled by acrobats, and thoroughly entertained by the hilarious stunts and magic acts of clowns.
John Ringling, born in McGregor, Iowa, was the fifth of seven brothers (and the last surviving brother). Five of the brothers established Ringling Bros. World’s Greatest Shows and in 1907 they purchased Barnum & Bailey Circus from the estate of James Anthony Bailey. They merged the two circuses in 1918. In 1929 John Ringling purchased the only other circus empire, including Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, thereby creating a circus monopoly in the United States.
It was Sarasota’s mild winter weather that originally drew John Ringling and his wife, Mable, here on vacations in 1911. They purchased land the year before that, and in 1926 moved into their newly built Mediterranean-revival estate Ca’ d’Zan, Venetian for “House of John.” The Ringlings were instrumental in developing Sarasota, purchasing 66,000 acres of land east of town, and more in Bird Key, St. Armands Key, Lido Key and Longboat Key. In 1927 John Ringling made Sarasota the winter home for the circus, setting the stage for Sarasota’s legacy of arts and cultural pursuits.
The Ringlings traveled throughout Europe, not only to scout out artistic talent for the circus, but also to build a collection of art by Old Masters. Among the hundreds of Baroque-style paintings housed at their 21-gallery Ringling Museum are four Peter Paul Rubens masterpieces, plus pieces by Botticelli, van Dyke, Velasquez, Gainsborough and the list goes on.
By 1929, Ringling, who had also invested in railroads, oil and ranches, was one of the richest men in the world. But four years later, when stocks plummeted and his financial notes came due, Ringling had lost most of his fortune, having just $311 in the bank. He was able to retain his home, museum and entire extensive art collection, which, upon his death in 1936, he willed to the State of Florida. The State added a Circus Museum to the estate in 1948, and in recent decades, galleries focusing on Asian art, contemporary art, and modern and contemporary glass art have opened at the Ringling.
Another of Ringling’s legacies is the Ringling College of Art + Design, which asked to adopt his name because of the cultural influence of the museum and its collection.
Over the decades of the 20th century, hundreds of creative artists who performed under the Big Top called Sarasota home. So, too, did artists who created elaborate costumes and props for the Greatest Show on Earth.
Today, the entire Ringling estate is operated by the State of Florida. Now called “The Ringling,” it includes the Ca’ d’Zan mansion, Bayfront Gardens, including Mable’s rose garden, and the Secret Garden where John, Mable and John’s sister, Ida Ringling North, are buried, the McKay Visitors Pavilion, the Museum of Art, and the Circus Museum.
Two weeks before my visit, I contacted The Ringling to see if they might have any records about my uncle and his trapeze act, The Flying Alexanders. They certainly did. In fact, a treasure trove of memorabilia had been donated just weeks before my visit and they were eager to share it with me.
Jennifer Posey, Curator of Circus, met me on the museum floor and took me on a tour that included Howard Tibbal's life work – an exact 3/4-inch-to-thefoot scale replica of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus as it might have looked from 1919 through 1938.
Finally, she took me to an exhibit that housed my uncle’s trapeze bar and photos of him in action.
Next we moved upstairs where Chief Archivist Heidi Connor joined us before three tables of materials that documented my uncle’s life. I was overwhelmed as I learned so much about this daring young man on the flying trapeze.
There were his leotards, his ornate belts and his tiny trapeze slippers, which resembled ballet slippers. I never realized how small my uncle was, probably just 5 foot, 2 inches, like me. But while small, the guy was built. I mean, he was ripped, with muscular shoulders and six-pack abs! There was a lengthy letter from Burt Lancaster in 1956, saying he wished Fay well and looked forward to meeting up with him and Rose soon. They had made the movie Trapeze together in Paris the year before and Fay had taught Burt and Tony Curtis to fly. There were posters and still photographs from the movie, The Greatest Show on Earth, for which my uncle had done a lot of the stunt flying. It starred Jimmy Stewart, Cornel Wilde, Charleton Heston, Betty Hutton and Dorothy Lamour, and was directed by Cecil B. DeMille, and won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1952. There were his Shriner’s Fez hats. And photos of Fay with Ed Sullivan, when he was on the show, presenting his friend Emmett Kelly with a Performer of the Year award.
There was a photo of the ceremony of Fay being inducted into the Circus Ring of Fame on St. Armands Circle. Tony Dow, who starred as Beaver’s older brother, Wally, on the Leave it to Beaver television show, was in the photo. Why was that?
Bill Powell, executive director of the Circus Ring of Fame, explained that Tony was a friend of David Nelson, of the Ozzie and Harriett Nelson family. My uncle taught David to fly. Bill said, “Those TV guys all knew each other,” and he suspects that my uncle may have given Tony a trapeze lesson or two. It was Tony Dow and his wife Lauren who paid for my uncle’s bronze plaque and induction ceremony.
Bill also called Fay his uncle. His mother, Gee Gee Engesseer, was Rose’s best friend and the gals had met as trick riders on horses and elephants; Fay later taught Rose trapeze and she became one of the Flying Alexanders.
I told Bill I had met his mother on my 1983 trip to Sarasota – Fay and Rose took me out to an elephant sanctuary for retired circus elephants; it was run by Gee Gee.
After Fay retired, he continued to work for Ringling’s Circus World, where he trained other aerialists. He also had a clown act for a time, and when Circus Circus opened in Las Vegas, he was the opening trapeze act.
After three hours perusing these archives, I was an emotional wreck. I had flown back in time, to my childhood, seeing my uncle perform, once under a Big Top tent, another at the Hollywood Bowl. He and Rose would wave directly to us in our ringside seats from their perch on high and then soar and twirl through the air. I remember when they’d visit us in their big travel truck, filled with gear and their German Sheppards, Max and Penny – how is it I remember these dog’s names some 60 years later? And now I know why he gave me that sweet doll from France –he bought it when he was over there making Trapeze.
With a continent dividing them, I don’t believe my mom and her brother saw each other after our trip in 1983, a trip made to cheer me up after two cancer operations when I was just 31. But
these two, who once supported their family by performing as the world’s tiniest acrobats on the vaudeville stage, kept in touch by telephone. Uncle Fay died in 2000; my mom in 2006. And now, here I was, delving into his life’s story, walking the streets where he lived, and wishing I had known this really nice man better. Hence, the tears came.
The good news is that this year the Ringling Bros. circus, now operated by Feld Entertainment, is back after a seven-year hiatus. It opened Sept. 29 in Louisiana, then moves to the upper Midwest and the East Coast. But it will come to California next year. I may just have to go!
Art Ovation
It’s hard to know exactly where to start in describing Sarasota’s vibrant arts scene, so I suppose I should start with my hotel, aptly called Art Ovation, an Autograph Collection hotel.
This boutique property is located in Sarasota’s Arts District; the Sarasota Opera House is two blocks away, and the Florida Studio Theatre (one of five intimate FSTs in the city) is across the street, offering improv on Saturday nights. Trendy boutiques, cheese shops and upscale restaurants abound in the area and Main Street is within a short walk.
The lobby is a gallery offering rotating art exhibitions and original art is found in each guestroom. My guestroom also challenged me to bring out my inner artist, with a sketchbook and coloring pencils and even a ukulele. Alas, I refrained, preferring to spend a late night in the lobby gallery, enjoying a nightcap while listening to all my favorite rock classics performed live by a pianist possessing a beautiful voice. For more energetic music, the Perspective Rooftop Pool Bar features a curated music soundscape to accompany a Mojito and the panoramic views of Sarasota Bay.
As I mentioned, the Sarasota Opera House was nearby our hotel, and I put in a call to an old friend, Stephen Baker, who used to live in Coronado and was a former marketing director at the San Diego Symphony. An accomplished pianist, Steve also worked for Steinway Pianos for a spell, but for the past five years he’s been the marketing director for one of the finest operas in the south, the Sarasota Opera. He kindly gave us a tour, including the back of the house, showing us a portion of the opera’s extensive costume collection of 50,000 items from more than 135 opera productions. It’s one of the largest costume collections in North America, which are regularly rented out to other production and film companies. The opera hosts a fall season and a five opera winter season; this February it kicks off with Georges Bizet’s Carmen The Opera House itself is quite historic. Built in 1926 in a Mediterranean Revival style, it hosted performer Will Rogers and the Ziegfeld Follies in its earlier years. The opera house was renovated in 2008, all seats replaced, public spaces and original décor elements brought back to their former glory, and its orchestra pit doubled in size.
Art Ovation is also just across the John Ringling Causeway Bridge to St. Armands Key, and St. Armands Circle, which was the vision of John Ringling who purchased the key in 1917. He designed a luxury development of residences and upscale shopping that would radiate from a Central Park roundabout. Never did he guess that the roundabout would one day become the Circus Ring of Fame, showcasing
stories of legendary circus performers. Ringling’s crews dredged canals, built seawalls and installed sidewalks and streets lined with rose-colored curbs. Ringling also donated 30 Italian statues from his personal collection that still adorn the streetscape today. When he built a causeway in 1925 to join the key with the mainland, Ringling used circus elephants to haul huge timbers.
Today, St. Armands Circle features 100 boutiques, 30 restaurants and confectionaries, making it a perfect setting to shop, eat and then relax at one of nearly a dozen day spas and salons. Note to self: Yes! On my next visit.
Our group enjoyed a wonderful lunch on the Circle at Crab & Fin restaurant, which has been a fixture there since 1978. We shared oysters on the half shell, but we also went mainland. I had an organic chicken salad croissant and one of my travel buddies opted for a southwest steak wrap. But Crab & Fin is also on my list for a return visit, next time for dinner. That Caribbean yellow fin tuna looks awfully good!
Seafood, Rum, Beer and Ice Cream. It was a good day.
On another day of our tour, our group met up in the heart of Sarasota, on Main Street, for lunch at Duval’s: Fresh. Local. Seafood. (Yes, that’s the official name, with all those periods.) The restaurant received Sarasota Magazine’s Readers’ Choice Award for Best Seafood Restaurant, Best AllAround Restaurant, Best Sandwich (for its famous Po’ Boy), Best Lunch, and Best Takeout. I ordered the classic fish and chips and found them light, flavorful and crunchy. As we left the restaurant, I glanced at the building across the street that still bears the Kress insignia on its crest. Built in 1932 in Art Deco sign, the S. H. Kress retail store was a fixture here, as it was in many eastern and Midwest towns I’ve visited.
I then remembered that my uncle told me that during the making of The Greatest Show on Earth in 1951, director DeMille arranged for the filming of a circus parade – it went right down Main Street, past the Kress building. And guess where the world premiere was held? The Sarasota Opera House! Charleton Heston and Dorothy Lamour were in attendance and I’ll bet my uncle Fay was there, too!
Our next stop was Siesta Key Rum Distillery. Founded in 2007, the distillery offers free tours and better yet, free rum sampling. I tasted the spiced rum, coffee rum, silver rum (a good choice for a base of most cocktails) and my favorite, which is also the fan favorite, toasted coconut rum. It’s best enjoyed over the rocks or with a splash of pineapple. All the rums were tasty, not surprising when you learn that the rum is infused with real food ingredients, such as real Columbian coffee, not flavorings. You can find Siesta Rum at Total Wine in San Diego.
At Element: Steak. Seafood. Pasta. (a sister property of Duval’s hence those periods in the name) we enjoyed charcuterie, oysters on the half shell, and a tasty marinated watermelon salad. My entrée, an oh-so-tender short rib, was served over braised onions and homemade linguini. All their pastas are made in-house, which is apparent when you bite in. This was a great evening – Element has a wonderful, elegant ambience and friendly, attentive and not obtrusive wait staff.
After dinner, we walked through the downtown, taking in the brightly lit sculptures and stopped in at 99 Bottles. This taproom and bottle shop opened in 2019 and was recently named by Wine
Enthusiast as one of the best taprooms in the country. Thirty-four craft beers are always on tap and there is a wide selection of bottles and cans on the shelves. It was bingo night here and a handful of neighborhood regulars were having a great time.
A perfect end to the evening was a visit to Rise & Nye's (now called RiseUp Café) where some of the best ice cream I’ve ever tasted was scooped up for me by a friendly staff, all of whom are developmentally disabled. The watchwords for this shop: Inclusion. Jobs. Dignity. I was pleased to meet co-owner Beaver Shriver (he’s Maria’s cousin), principal of the Shriver Group, and Neko Doodle Dog (support staff).
Oh those white sand beaches!
Our travel writer group went over to Lido Beach for a tour of the new Drift Restaurant & Bar, where the view from this eighth-floor eatery showcases why vacationers head to Sarasota. Then we jaunted over to Longboat Key Resort, where we enjoyed cocktails on the beach and I finally got a chance to drop my toes into the warm (and sparkling clean) waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
The Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium
The Mote is one of the country’s leading marine research facilities. Now, I know that San Diegans probably aren’t going to rush to Sarasota to view a marine aquarium; after all we’ve got SeaWorld and the Scripps Aquarium. But I must say I was glad our tour included to the Mote Aquarium, and I encourage you to visit!
Mote first opened in 1955 (nine years before SeaWorld) in Placida, Florida, as the Cape Haze Marine Laboratory. It moved to City Island, Sarasota and was renamed after William R. Mote, a major benefactor. Today Mote conducts research on seven continents. You won’t find any thrill rides at Mote, but you will find exhibits and research projects focused on understanding the population dynamics of manatees, dolphins, sea turtles, sharks and coral reefs and on conservation and restoration efforts related to these species and ecosystems.
The Sarasota Art Museum/ Ringling College of Art + Design
In 2003 a group of Sarasotans got together to ponder how they could enrich their city’s cultural landscape with a contemporary art museum. After dialoging with community, education and arts leaders, the Sarasota Art Museum was born, as a partner with Ringling College of Art + Design.
And where to build it? How about repurposing the former Sarasota High School, which had stood vacant for years?
I love the fact that the stately, brick Collegiate Neo-Gothic high school, circa 1926, didn’t succumb to the wrecking ball, but instead was adaptively repurposed to be an art museum, complete with 20-foot high walls. It was funded with $30 million in private funding. Well done, Sarasota!
Today, the museum has 15,000 square feet of dedicated exhibition gallery space, a Bistro, Shop, auditorium for educational events, performance and film, a sculpture courtyard and extensive grounds and facilities. The museum is known as a “Kunsthalle,” a German word meaning an art museum without a permanent collection. Instead, the museum hosts traveling exhibits that display for approximately four months each. So, if you’ve visited the museum once, you should visit again, and again! You’ll always see something new!
Ophelia’s on the Bay
On our last night we gathered at Ophelia’s on the Bay, another Sarasota Magazine Reader’s Choice favorite for Most Romantic and Best View restaurant. Located on Siesta Key, the restaurant features bayside seating overlooking Little Sarasota Bay and preserved mangrove islands, but you can also take in the scenery if you sit inside and gaze out the floor-to-ceiling glass walls. Service is attentive here, and the food, well, it’s divine. Menus are printed fresh each day to keep pace with the freshest ingredients. I started with Bluefish
Tuna Tartare “Nachos” and Eggplant Crepes. My entrée was seared New Bedford Scallops, each served with a dollop of caviar. For dessert, we passed around the Reverse Black Forest Cheesecake and Key Lime Pie. Anyway, you get the picture… Ophelia’s is quite special!
IF YOU GO
Visit Sarasota –Beaches and Beyond
The Official Visitor Guide to the area, funded by the Sarasota County Tourism Development Tax. You’ll find itinerary ideas, events, hotels, restaurants, and attractions –everything you need for a beautiful fun-and-sun-filled stay. www.visitsarasota.org
Restaurants
• Duval’s: Fresh. Local. Seafood 1435 Main Street www.duvalsfreshlocalseafood.com
• Element: Steak. Seafood. Pasta. 1413 Main Street www.elementsrq.com
• 99 Bottles 1445 2nd Street www.99bottles.net
• Crab & Fin 420 St. Armands Circle www.crabfinrestaurant.com
• Drift Kitchen & Bar Eighth Floor, Lido Beach Resort 700 Benjamin Franklin Drive www.opalcollection.com
• Ophelia’s on the Bay 9105 Midnight Pass Road www.opheliasonthebay.net
• Rise Up Café (formerly Rise and Nye’s) 1534 State Street www.riseupcafes.com
• Toasted Mango Café 430 N. Tamiami Trail www.toastedmangocafe.com
Attractions & Museums
• Circus Ring of Fame
Central Park/St. Armands Circle www.circusringoffame.org
• Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium
1600 Ken Thompson Parkway www.mote.org
• The Ringling Museum of Art
Circus Museum, Bayfront Gardens, Ca’ d’Zan 5401 Bay Shore Road www.ringling.org
• Sarasota Art Museum/Ringling College of Art + Design
1001 South Tamiami Trail www.sarasotaartmuseum.org
• Sarasota Opera
61 North Pineapple Avenue www.sarasotaopera.org
• Siesta Key Rum Free tours and tastings 2212 Industrial Blvd. www.siestakeyrum.com
• St. Armands Circle
Find a complete listing of shops, restaurants, services and events on the website. www.starmandscircleassoc.com
Accommodations
• Art Ovation Autograph Collection
My creativity soared at this artfully inspired, chic property! 1255 North Palm Avenue www.artovationhotel.com
• Lido Beach Resort
Contemporary resort, with many rooms including kitchens on the sugar-sand beaches of Lido Key. 700 Benjamin Franklin Drive www.opalcollection.com
• The Resort at Longboat Key
This luxury hotel has been recently renovated top to bottom; located on 410 secluded acres on a barrier island on the Gulf of Mexico
www.opalcollection.com
