Circus clown of George M. Cohan. He was also one of the main models for "Uncle Sam". With changes in circus and popular culture after the Civil War, his legendary talents under the big top have gradually slipped into almost total historical obscurity; biographer David Carlyon (2001) called him "the most famous man you've never heard of". While Dan Rice's talking and singing clown was taking America by storm, a new type of clown was emerging on the British pantomime stage, one that would have a more lasting influence on contemporary American circus clowning. George Lafayette Fox was America's first great "whiteface"
The Big Circus featuring family patriarch Zach Colino (Gilbert Roland) and newcomer Tommy Gordon (David Nelson), as well as ringmaster Hans (Vincent Price) and clown Skeeter (Peter Lorre). Unknown to Hank, his little sister Jeannie (Kathryn Grant) has held a lifelong ambition to fly on the trapeze and has been secretly training with the Colino act for the past year. An unknown saboteur sets a lion loose at a party thrown to celebrate the start of the circus season, terrifying the VIPs in attendance until Hank manages to capture it with the help of Colino. Helen accuses him of staging the incident for