Skip to main content

"Access to archival materials stored in LASR may be limited at this time."

Search the Special Collections and Archives Portal

The King Charles Troupe

"The King Charles Troupe, created by Jerry King, hails from The Bronx, New York. A unicycle buff all his life, Mr. King taught his young son, Charles, to ride a one-wheeler. Neighborhood kids soon demanded lessons and the unique basketball-unicycle act was born. The name of the troupe is a play on words of the son's name, Charles King. Word spread about the Bronx unicyclers and, in 1968, the guys auditioned for Irvin Feld on a sidewalk near Madison Square Garden. The producer was delighted with the act and welcomed them into Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. They performed with the circus for 18 years and had the longest run of any act during the Feld era of the circus." DBpedia