Bird Millman
| Bird Millman | |
|---|---|
Millman raising war bonds in 1917
|
|
| Born |
Jennadean Engleman October 20, 1890 Cañon City, Colorado, U.S. |
| Died | August 5, 1940 (aged 49) Cañon City, Colorado, U.S. |
| Occupation | Tightrope walker |
| Employer |
Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus Florenz Ziegfeld |
| Spouse(s) | John C. Thomas Joseph Francis O'Day |
| Parent(s) | Dyke F. Engleman and Genevieve Patton Engleman |
Bird Millman O’Day (October 20, 1890 – August 5, 1940) was one of the most celebrated high-wire performers of all time. During the “Golden Age of the American Circus,” she was a premiere attraction with the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus.
Born Jennadean Engleman in Cañon City, Colorado, as a child, Bird traveled in mud shows (small circuses) with her parents, Dyke F. Engleman and Genevieve Patton Engleman. In 1904, the Millman Trio entered big-time vaudeville, playing such destinations as Keith's Union Square and Hammerstein’s Paradise Roof Garden. At one point Bird was dubbed, perhaps ironically, "the Eva Tanguay of the Wire."
At Berlin's Wintergarten Theatre, Bird gave a command performance before the court of Kaiser Wilhelm II. Upon her return to the United States, her act became Bird Millman & Co., adding the New York Hippodrome and the Palace Theatre (Broadway) to her list of credits. One of the troop’s new members, Fern Andra, did not return after a brief European tour; later, she resurfaced as a star of German silent film.
In 1913, Bird became a center-ring performer with the Barnum and Bailey Circus, where she remained after its merger with the Ringling Brothers Circus. In the seasons of 1919 and 1920, the side rings were vacant during Bird's performance; such singularity was reserved for the circus’s greatest stars. Bird's peers were equestrienne May Wirth and aerialist Lillian Leitzel, the latter widely considered the greatest circus star of all time. Bird spent the circus’s off-season on Broadway, appearing in The Ziegfeld Follies of 1916 and in several editions of Ziegfeld’s Frolics.
...
Wikipedia