I'm a Carny, Ask me anything.

None of that is true, and f there are shows that treat their staff like this then maybe it's time for the business to entirely dissolve.

Wow!

I am blown away that this has made it to twelve pages, you guys are incredible!

It got to twelve pages because you managed it so well with your attention and timely responses. You did not neglect your thread and your answers were interesting and prompt.

When does your touring season start in the spring?

Is everything in storage covered with snow right now?

Does it stay in trailers in some lot somewhere or do you have a warehouse for indoor seasonal storage?

Last Edited by Vision Thing on 02/18/2018 01:42 PM

When I was in high school I dated a guy who was a carny at a local amusement park. He was also in high school and a year older than me. He eventually broke up with me on Thanksgiving day and joined the army soon after. Broke my heart.

Hey, Sorry for the Delay, Thought thread was dead lol.

Okay let me break down that question so I can answer in points if that is okay.

1) Season Start?
I go out at some point in March but this time of year I am usually either traveling with my own equipment down south or with someone else's. Within the last year-ish visas have been much harder to get and the border guards have gotten a little crazy for comfort so this year I decided to stay in Canada, with the exception of a few spots but only to work instead of going with operation.

2) Snow Covered?
Umm, yeah pretty much until a few days ago, now it's all in a flood path so we'll see how this all plays out.

3) Storage Solutions?
So anything that can take the winter without an issue stays outside after getting the winter touch-ups (Paint, repairs other upgrades).
Anything that can't hold up to to the season stays inside so these are like your German, Italian, Finish rides, they are a bit more sensitive than american rides so climate control ends up being important.

I'm sure It all worked out for the better,

Cheers!

Dude: "This" didn't get to 12 pages. YOU got it to 12 pages.

Nah man, we all got it to 12 pages!

Teamwork, lol

Back in the 60's, all the carnivals had a Side Show that I went to. I remember my Dad putting in a nickel in these Peep Boxes and I could look at a miniature scene of some sort of doll house debauchery. My Dad got such a kick out of watching me look into the box through the viewer, the light would come on, and a little mechanical motor would move a little figure of a woman supposedly taking off her dress, or things like that. LOL!

Man, I miss my Dad so much.

I can imagine, The loss of a parent regardless of how long ago never seems to heal properly, I feel for you.

Regarding peepshows, I recently saw a few up for sale in a BookFace group I fallow, Carnies R Us should you be curious.
Would be quite the item to have in your ManCave or wherever.

Just saw that someone has set up a GoFundMe for a Carnival documentary in Canada as well, wonder if they are in here or if the timing was coincidental.

There's a ton on YouTube.
There's also a fascinating video on America's Last Railroad Carnival: Strates.

They interview the Carnival Trainmaster. Very interesting. I couldn't stop watching it!

Have you ever seen the bearded Lady Naked?

Very real ones anymore. Most are just fat soyboys with makeup.

I saw a real one back in 1962. For an extra 50 cent she showed me her tits. They were huge and hairy too

Okay, this railroad thing looks awesome, thanks!

I never thought for a minute I'd sit there and watch a simple video cam on a guy standing next to a train track talking for almost an hour....But it really is interesting. Loading up carnivals in semis in one thing, as OP will attest to. But using a train is another beast entirely.

Naturally...You're in Romania. Many Romanian women have a hormone imbalance called, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS)

They have a Really unique show, lke super impressive and that ti's stil rail driven is even more impressive.

people do in on the rides after park closes? i heard the bouncey castle is the worst

I have a hard time understanding (in this day-and-age) how a carnival can actually turn a profit? All things aside: With labor, travel, maintenance, insurance, etc.

Do any of them anymore actually make money?

I mean, let's be real here, there's no publicly traded carnival corps...Right?

That Train Master video is rather shocking.

I absolutely Second that,
Logistics are a fuckin nightmare on roads, I cant even imagine the kind of headache it would be incorporating rail back into it.
That said, these guys are awesome!

Inflatables deflate and get tucked for the night so no bangin in the bouncy castle lol.
yeah, people have fun where they can, I mean after hours it's just a park with complicated benches right?

There are many Profitable shows, to put it simply if you dont make money you don't move.

Regarding publicly traded companies I'm not sure about that but NAME is the biggest in North America and they are a holding of Ticketmaster who with NAME and their route have found a lovely way to control the whole Fair/Ex entertainment experience.

I mean, in all honesty I don't really chat with show bosses often, I don't really get along with many of them as we see different sides of the business, they just want their cut from what I make. I do make a profit though every year and when that stops I stop, simple as that, I'm not running in the hole.

I'm curious though why you would think there isn't money to be made?

I guess my point was, on the whole. The entire. Example: Maybe the games make money to offset a loss on the rides (Just thinking out loud here). I'm guessing Midway food is owned by the Carnival, where as Main Street is more local vendors and that profit goes to the county or whomever is promoting the Carnival. So the designated income sources goes into the accountants calculator.

Also:

Because of bureaucracies, government intervention, taxes, trends...I mean insurance alone kills countless small business. Especially in business where "risk of life and limb" is more prevalent.

We might be talking about two separate things here.

I'm under the assumption that the games are under the same entity as the rides, as are the Midway concessionaires.

Even in that video of the Train Master he goes into some detail about nightmare logistics of obliging the government as-well-as the track (Amtrak) line owners. And ultimately, all that means, money.

Hence: My curiosity about, profit.

Okay so some games are owned by the shows others are not, every show is a little different.

What I would say is think of this for a second, lets use NAME/Conklin's Polar Express (Mack Super Himalaya) as an example.

20 Cars 4 People/Car (Max4 Generally 2) LRU (Load, Run, Unload) 4min

Assuming 3 People per seat average and full loads every 4 minutes so like a normal saturday

@5 Tix/person thats 4500 Tickets/hour

A Saturday assuming 10:00-00:00 being busy and constant would be 63,000 tickets.

One Ride, one day, 63,000 tickets.

obviously this would be a best case scenario kinda thing but if you have a midway loaded with rides and humans, the rides are making their money, games really just pay to get the rides down the road.

Dude: I love ya! But, you're using "fuzzy" math here...In a way.

You're talking the total, ideal. Your scenario is blatant optimism. With all due respect, Sir. I didn't even bring up inclement weather, Mid week attendance, or such.

But I am ecstatic and very happy to know that somehow you frickin' guys and gals are able to keep the Carnival on the road generation after generation.

I mentioned that above but yeah, it's a little scary when you think about the amount of that is at play on the midway at any given time.

But yeah, tbh I can see the end coming in some runs but I think we are here to stay for a few generations to come.

I'm sure somewhere in this thread it talks about games to play and games not to play. I mean, dropping a hundred bucks to win a kewpie doll is just plain stupid.

How do we really increase our chances?

And, can a carnie be bribed?

Thank you.