The Greatest Show on Earth
The Greatest Show on Earth refers, of course, to the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey
Circus, but it also refers to an Academy Award-winning movie, much of it fi lmed in Sarasota in
1951.
With a cast of thousands and directed by the great Cecil B.
DeMille, life was exciting in Sarasota during the six weeks that the
production company was in town. Residents may have bumped
into Jimmy Stewart, Charlton Heston, or Betty Hutton while
walking down Pineapple Street. Hollywood mania was palpable
in Sarasota as the buzz snowballed throughout the town.
The production was a once-in-a-lifetime experience
for Sarasota. In addition to the worldwide publicity, local
businesses earned some of the $22,000 a day the movie cost
to make, and the townspeople were treated to six weeks
of glitz, glamour, and even an old-fashioned circus parade
through downtown.
Many locals were cast as extras in the big-top scene which
took 3,000 people who were paid 75 cents an hour and a box lunch
to fi ll up one end of the tent. The fi lm earned two Academy Awards for Best Picture
and Best Story, and was nominated for Best Costume Design, Best Director and Best Film
Editing. The Golden Globe gave it an award for Best Cinematography, Best Director, and Best
Dramatic Motion Picture. It also did well at the box offi ce. Reported to have cost $4 million, the
production drew in $36 million.
The Sarasota Opera House, which is now home to a vibrant opera company, was the
location for its Florida Premiere. The Opera House was decked out like a circus tent, a
spectacular setting that gave locals another opportunity to ogle at Hollywood’s brightest stars.
“The Greatest Show on Earth” isn’t the only time the circus in Sarasota caught the eye of
Hollywood fi lmmakers. In 1978 a made-for-TV movie, “The Great Wallendas,” documented the
Flying Wallendas who still call Sarasota home.
66 GASPARILLA MAGAZINE • May/June • 2021
Left: Sarasota Big Show tent
Center: Ringling Circus clowns.
Right: Elephants performing at
the circus big top.
Circus performers.