Flashback

 

A Dreamer Recalls The Early Days of the IJA

by Art Jennings , IJA Founder

 

I organized the IJA to try to end the animosity and petty jealousy between my many professional juggling friends and contemporaries. I was convinced that the art of juggling would die if these feelings could not be resolved. This was a time before TV, and the only venue for juggling was live shows. But we all realized their time was fast declining!

 

The best source of professional quality juggling clubs at the time, Harry Lind, was almost kept a secret. He would not make clubs for you if you were not recommended by a professional juggler he knew!

 

The same was true as to the source of lacrosse balls. That's one reason so many of the early ball jugglers used tennis balls.

 

A few of us tried to organize in 1946 at the I.B.M. convention in St. Louis. I have a photo of Lou Meyers on which he wrote, "...with memories of the first juggler's

convention, St. Louis, 1946."

 

But in 1947 I was an officer in the locaI I.B.M. Ring #13, which was chosen to sponsor the 1947 I.B.M. convention in Pittsburgh. As such I decided to hold a "juggler's session" during that affair and advertised it in several issues of the Linking Ring magazine.

 

Our meeting was held in the ballroom of the William Penn Hotel, the site of the convention. One of the Chiesa brothers showed up and juggled nine rings made of 1/4" plywood wrapped with adhesive tape. The other did eight rings while bouncing a ball on his head and spinning one on his leg. Ahhhh... memories! The old ones seem fresher than the recent ones!

 

It was from this session that the I.J.A. finally became a reality. The logo had been designed and the first draft of the constitution and by-laws were written at least a year before that. I needed those items to help sell the idea of the organization to others. (I still have the original drawings of the logo and the typewritten and pencil-corrected draft of the constitution and by-laws! )

 

No doubt I became a pain in trying to push the idea to my friends at every opportunity. Even my closest juggler friend, Bobby May, was not convinced that the idea of "sharing the secrets" of juggling was a good idea. Bobby did not become a member for quite a long time, though he did attend many of our early picnics and get-togethers.

 

But I was in an good position because my act was basically a comedy act that used juggling simply as a thread. Juggling for me was a means to an end rather than an exhibition of skill. As such it was not a "threat" to other jugglers.

 

When we retired from the meeting to a local coffee shop for our business meeting to actually create the IJA, we were guided by Robert's Rules, which said that we needed eight charter members. We found eight bodies, but only four could be called "professional vaudeville jugglers."

 

Two students, Bernie Joyce and Eddie Johnson, became "founding members" despite the fact that neither of them had ever attended a magic convention before, nor were they much more than "beginning jugglers."

 

Dr. Baldwin, another of our charter members, did not juggle even three balls! He

was a close friend and also my personal and family physician. But he was also secretary of the International Brotherhood of Magicians, and therefore well-versed in the legal aspects of such organizations. He provided the expertise that guided the writing of the constitution and by-laws.

 

He, along with Doc Crosby and several others shared with me the expense of getting this "dream" going. Doc Crosby, a practicing naturopath and friend of Harry Lind, was a decent club juggler and made his own clubs. He was well respected in Jamestown, N.Y., and could be considered a "mover and shaker in the community. He was truly vital to our early success.

 

For that matter, without the help of Roger Montandon and his mailing list we would most likely not have succeeded. The first few years the annual dues were $1, and that included the membership card and a monthly newsletter!

 

But things worked out and the organization slowly gained momentum and membership. My home in Pittsburgh became the lJA's unofficial home, and its doors were always open to jugglers passing through town.

 

The list of those who shared our home during that "golden age" was a "Who's Who" of jugglers of the time. How many passing acts juggled in that kitchen and how many "dings" were inflicted in the ceiling of that wonderful house? What wonderful tales that home could tell!

 

I recall Bobby May, Val Setz and George Lerch. It was George who introduced me to and taught me slack wire. I still think of that as the ultimate skill for a human! To juggle on a swinging wire... what a feeling of ecstasy!

 

There were John Behan, Violet Carlson, The Belmont Brothers, Charles Carrer, and Mel Ody, with whom I did a double for a short time. Another, George De Mott, contributed tremendously to our fledgling organization. And Wilford DuBois! What a delightful gentleman!

 

The Jacksons, Bobby Jule, the Willys, the Banfords, the Barnards, Toscanelli and Pryde Shannon... What fun Pryde and I had with our pseudo-feuds at the early

conventions! Eddie Tierney sat on a chair in the kitchen and juggled five Lind clubs flawlessly. And there was Howard Nichols, who did a hoop act on a par with Bob Bramson. And who can forget "The Great Maxmillano Truzzi?"

 

All those wonderful friends who were so much a part of making the dream a reality. George Barvin and Stu Raynolds were indispensable. Stu and I briefly did a couple of double acts. For a short time we were "Happy Dayze and Grandma," with Stu dressed as an old lady behind me, topping everything I did while sitting in a rocker!

How blessed I have been! My alleged mind is flooded with such wonderful memories. The list goes on and on. During one of my last conversations with my beloved father he told me, "Son, treasure and keep the memories, they may be the only treasures we will take with us into the unknown future."

 

It's time I close this epistle. It's time I pour myself a small glass of my favorite bourbon, sit quietly and enjoy the reverie and relive and cherish the memories of a very full and wonderful life. Thanks to all IJA members for their dedication and efforts toward making my "crazy dream" come true. I owe so much to so many. My cup runneth over!