Lottie Brunn juggles in the backyard of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus during the 1949 season. Illinois State University’s Special Collections, Milner Library.
FROM A RECENT ISSUE OF BANDWAGON
From the center ring of Ringling Bros. to the world’s great stages, discover the extraordinary woman whose speed and precision made juggling history.
Lottie Brunn — Queen of Jugglers
By Alan Howard
Volume 68 • Number 4 • 2024 • Pages 6–19
Introduced as “The Greatest Girl Juggler of All Time,” she was the only woman juggler ever to have appeared alone in the center ring for Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. Lottie Brunn was a sensation, her years with the Ringling show merely a small portion of an international career that spanned more than six decades.
Lieselotte Brunn was born in Aschaffenburg, Germany on October 12, 1925. Growing up, she was known as Lotte; the spelling changed to “Lottie” years later, and she stayed with that name the rest of her life. Her start in juggling came at age twelve, thanks to watching her brother, Franzl (later changed to Francis), who was three years older. Their father, Michael Brunn, was a three-time German national diving champion who had learned how to juggle while in a French prisoner of war camp. He taught Franzl, who in turn taught his sister.
“My father always liked circuses,” remembered Lottie. “He took us to see shows when we were kids, but he never thought about us doing a juggling act. Papa and Francis always thought they’d do something with the trampoline, because they both already did the diving. But then my father saw Rastelli.” While he did not do much juggling himself, Michael passed the skills on to his children.
The complete article is available to members of the Circus Historical Society through the members-only Backyard.