Charlie Rivel
From Circopedia
Clown
By Raffaele De Ritis
Charlie Rivel (José Andreu Lasserre, 1896-1983) is one of the few clowns that have truly reached international star status, quite an exceptional feat when one considers that it happened mostly in an era when radio, movies, and television dramatically eroded the impact of live entertainment. Like the Fratellinis and Grock before him, Rivel was a beloved performer all over Europe, feted by royalty and popular audiences alike. He inspired paintings, novels, movies, and plays, his image was replicated in dolls and other souvenir items, and he received every possible honor and accolade. Charlie Rivel's career spanned eighty-two years, and took him from rags to riches. Deftly blending a flair for public relations, superb artistic skills, and a talent for pantomimeA circus play, not necessarily mute, with a dramatic story-line (a regular feature in 18th and 19th century circus performances)., he developed a totally original clown character that stands today as one of the twentieth century's greatest circus icons.
Origins
The son of a cabinet maker from Barcelona, Spain, Charlie's father, Pedro Jaime Andreu Pausas (d.1957), left his home in the 1880s at the age of fifteen to follow a circus, Circo Milá, where he began performing a trapeze act. Pedro later joined another circus, Circo Alegría, where he married a French acrobat, Marie-Louise Lasserre Seguino. Spain had fallen into hard times then, and in order to survive, the new family went on to perform in the village squares of Catalonia to get closer to the French border, across which they hoped to find better jobs some time.
They were traveling and living in a hand-drawn wagon when Marie-Louise gave birth to José (the future Charlie) during a halt in Cubelles, a village near Barcelona. Surviving as best as they could for three long months, they finally reached France and found an engagement in the small Cirque Dusoulier. This was the first circus ring little José stepped into, appearing at age two in his father's risley act. The following year they were with the Cirque Caignac, where José performed a solo parody of a strong man act, and began to work in a hand-to-handAn acrobatic act in which one or more acrobats do hand-balancing in the hands of an under-stander. balancing act with his elder sister, Neña (Maria Luisa Andreu, 1897-1915), sometimes dressed as a girl—which made the act look more impressive to agents and directors.
The Cirque Caignac was destroyed by a storm in 1904, and the Andreu family went again to perform in village squares—José doing acrobatic dancing, perch-poleLong perch held vertically on a performer's shoulder or forehead, on the top of which an acrobat executes various balancing figures. balancing, and a hand-balancing act—before joining the Cirque Caron in Grenoble. There, José learned trickAny specific exercise in a circus act. riding, and began to play the guitar, the violin, and the mandolin. The Andreu family went afterward to other small circuses, where José appeared in a balancing trio called Los Pepitos with his sister Neña and his brother Polo (Paul, 1899-1977). It is probably in 1905, at the circuses Zanfretta and Lambert, that the three siblings began working on their standing-frame flying trapezeAerial act in which an acrobat is propelled from a trapeze to a catcher, or to another trapeze. (See also: Short-distance Flying Trapeze) act, with Neña as the catcherIn an acrobatic or a flying act, the person whose role is to catch acrobats that have been propelled in the air..
The following year, in 1906, José got a first taste of clowning, replacing one evening the house clownGeneric term for all clowns and augustes. '''Specific:''' In Europe, the elegant, whiteface character who plays the role of the straight man to the Auguste in a clown team., Carleto, at the side of his director, Monsieur Lambert. Meanwhile, three other brothers were born: René (Renato, 1903-1976), Marcel (Celito, 1906-1970), and Roger (Rogelio, 1909-1991), who would soon become part of the family acts.
Finally accepted by a talent agency, the Andreu family began to work regularly in French circuses. In 1910-1912, they appeared in several minor variety theaters in Paris, and on the stage of various Italian theaters. In 1913, during an engagement with the French Cirque Alphonse Rancy, they performed for the first time in their native Catalonia, at Barcelona's Tivoli, before opening their own Circo Reina Victoria in 1915. José performed his first clown entrée(French) Clown piece with a dramatic structure, generally in the form of a short story or scene. in the new family circus, under the name of Boby, with his brother Polo.
The Andreus's new circus venture lasted about ten years, alternating episodically with foreign contracts for the family acts. The main act of the family remained their standing-frame flying trapezeAerial act in which an acrobat is propelled from a trapeze to a catcher, or to another trapeze. (See also: Short-distance Flying Trapeze) act, in which José started developing a comic character; their second act was a large risley presentation (a widely popular specialty of that time), which included their father and another catcherIn an acrobatic or a flying act, the person whose role is to catch acrobats that have been propelled in the air..
Charlie and The Rivels
In the late 1910s, circus and variety shows were invaded by parodies of Charlie Chaplin, whose extremely popular movie character, the Tramp, had become a customary comic addition to specialty acts in need of a comedy boost. José, who already used comedy in his trapeze act, introduced his Charlie character in 1916. To distinguish their trapeze act from the Andreus's risley act on the bills, the family titled it Charlie and The Rivels (Charlot et les Rivels in France). As legend has it, they found the name, Rivel, by assembling casually letters from the alphabet. From then on, José Andreu would be known as Charlie Rivel.
On January 15, 1920 in Valencia, Spain, Charlie married Carmen Busto, a performer in his family's circus. She was the daughter of an equestrian clownGeneric term for all clowns and augustes. '''Specific:''' In Europe, the elegant, whiteface character who plays the role of the straight man to the Auguste in a clown team., Gregorio Busto. During a tour in Morocco, Charlie became Boby again, playing the augusteIn a classic European clown team, the comic, red-nosed character, as opposed to the elegant, whiteface Clown. to his brother René, the white-faced clownGeneric term for all clowns and augustes. '''Specific:''' In Europe, the elegant, whiteface character who plays the role of the straight man to the Auguste in a clown team., in the clown act René usually did with their brother Polo. Since Charlie had a gift for comedy, they decided to form a clown trio, in the fashion of the very successful Fratellini brothers, the shining stars of Paris's Cirque Medrano. Their father helped them develop an entrée(French) Clown piece with a dramatic structure, generally in the form of a short story or scene. that made good use of their exceptional acrobatic skills. It became the brothers' second act.
The success of the Rivels' comedy-trapeze act coupled with the Andreu clown trio propelled them into big-time circuses and variety theaters: The London Coliseum in 1923, and the Cirque d'Hiver in Paris the following year, where they were a sensation with the Parisian savvy circus audiences. Bertram Mills' Circus at London's Olympia quickly followed. During his stay in London, Charlie is said to have won a competition of Chaplin impersonators at the Royal Albert Hall (which is plausible since his Tramp character was eerily similar to the original). The event, true or false, started the oft-heard tale that he had outdone Chaplin himself during the competition—an unlikely occurrence, since Chaplin didn't visit Europe in those years.
The Rivels were allegedly sued by United Artists for using the Chaplin movie persona without permission (perhaps too well and too successfully, for there were hundreds of Chaplin impersonators in the business). Charlie consequently performed his trapeze act as a generic drunk character. In any event, the Rivels continued to work in the most prestigious houses: Cirque Medrano in Paris (1925), the Scala in Berlin (1927), Cirkus Schumann (1928), etc.
Their Andreu clown trio quickly began to gain preeminence over their Rivels trapeze act. Although they were clearly inspired by the Fratellinis's trio structure, the Andreus had the advantage of their acrobatic talents, and they were soon recognized as one of the best clown trios of the time. René was the whiteface clownGeneric term for all clowns and augustes. '''Specific:''' In Europe, the elegant, whiteface character who plays the role of the straight man to the Auguste in a clown team.; Polo was the first augusteIn a classic European clown team, the comic, red-nosed character, as opposed to the elegant, whiteface Clown., or contre-pitre; and Charlie was the second augusteIn a classic European clown team, the comic, red-nosed character, as opposed to the elegant, whiteface Clown.. They had a perfect alchemy together and showed great originality. They had two main entrées in their repertoire: an egg routine, and their famous acrobatic sketch, The Little Bridge, in which they tried to build (with success eventually) what is known in circus acrobatics as a bridge—a sort of moving human bridge.
Their clown act could easily last up to thirty-five minutes: clowns, in the European circus, are often the stars of the show. Charlie, like Albert Fratellini, quickly became the central figure of the trio, and like him developed a very strong, eccentric character with a powerful, exaggerated makeup and costume. Charlie's signature red hair, large square red nose, long red T-shirt, oversized black shoes, and childish behavior became a familiar image all over Northern Europe.
In 1930, the trio embarked on a one-year South American tour, before returning to the vast German circus and variety circuit. But the working atmosphere between the siblings had deteriorated. Charlie, the most identifiable of the brothers, was the star of the trio, and he knew it. The clown Grock, who had left his famous partner and mentor, Antonet, was becoming a major star on his own on the variety circuit. In 1935, at the Circus-Varieté Schumann of Frankfurt, Charlie decided to leave his father and brothers, and to build up his personal career with his sons and his wife.
The Andreu-Rivels
After Charlie Rivel had left them, his brothers continued to work in German variety theaters with the same acts, and with no less success. Celito replaced Charlie in the flying trapezeAerial act in which an acrobat is propelled from a trapeze to a catcher, or to another trapeze. (See also: Short-distance Flying Trapeze) act and the clown entrée(French) Clown piece with a dramatic structure, generally in the form of a short story or scene., and the younger Rogelio joined the act too in 1937. Then, it was the turn of Polo to leave the family acts in 1941. He worked for a time with the well-known French clown Alex Bugny, then with Andreff and Comotti at Circus Knie in 1943, before teaming again with Alex Bugny and finally embarking onto a solo-clown career with the help of his sons.
After WWII, René, Celito, and Rogelio continued to present the traditional Andreu-Rivels acts in major European circuses: Hagenbeck, Williams, Scott, Strassburger, Pinder, Amar, etc., including several return engagements with Circus Knie in Switzerland. There, in 1952, Celito did, in front of an appreciative Charlie Chaplin, the Tramp parody on the trapeze that had given his brother Charlie his name.
After his death, Celito was replaced by the Portuguese clown Fernando Marquez. Then, in the late 1970s, René and Rogelio Andreu-Rivel opened their own Circo Rivel in Spain, with their many children and the Dubsky family. And in the 1990s, Rogelio opened the first circus school in Barcelona, which is still active today.
Charlie Rivel and WWII
In the 1930s, there were two identical Andreu-Rivels troupes in the business, both performing a clown entrée(French) Clown piece with a dramatic structure, generally in the form of a short story or scene. and a comedy trapeze act: one was the original Andreu family's; the other was Charlie's, who had replaced his brothers with anonymous partners. Like Grock, whose various partners were always anonymously billed as "Grock and Partner", Charlie made sure that he was the only star of the act.
Charlie Rivel was not easy to work with, and he changed partners often during these years: Paul and Alfredino, the Duo Reos, the clowns Pauli and Johnny. Charlie and his wife, Carmen, had four children, Paulina (born in Barcelona in 1921), Juanito (Jorge-Juan, born on a ship sailing between Valencia and Palma in 1922), Charlie Jr. (born in London in 1925), and Valentino (born in Brussels in 1927). Charlie's children performed in a third family act, The Charlie Rivel's Babies.
Now a wealthy star, Charlie Rivel bought a large house in Chenevières-sur-Marne, near Paris. Yet, he worked mostly on the German variety circuit, which proved a very lucrative market to him, between engagements in Scandinavia; with Bertram Mills' Circus at London's Olympia; and another South American tour in 1936.
After the Nazis had seized power in Germany, and even during WWII, Charlie Rivel was still one of the biggest draws in the top German variety theaters: Wintergarten, Apollo, Scala, and Plaza. In Berlin, he starred in a movie directed by Wolfgang Staudte, Akrobat Schööön! (Charlie's catch phrase in the Little Bridge entrée(French) Clown piece with a dramatic structure, generally in the form of a short story or scene.), released in 1943, in which he showed a genuine screen talent. But a telegram that Charlie had sent to Hitler for his birthday in 1942 would later became the subject of wild speculations. Like many traveling performers little acquainted with the arcane of international politics, Charlie Rivel had been dangerously naïve.
After the Allied victory, Charlie had to sneak out of Germany, and he found refuge in his house near Paris. Shunned by agents and directors in the immediate postwar years, he went into a long depression ("Who can laugh now," he wrote, "after so much tragedy?"). He would not return to the ring until 1952.
The Comeback and the Making of a Living Legend
In the 1950s, the concept of a clown as a celebrity was beginning to look like a thing of the past. Grock himself decided to retire (not before launching a long series of farewell tours), and eventually, Charlie Rivel remained the sole true international clown star of the post-war era.
Back in the ring in 1952, Charlie performed principally in Germany and Scandinavia with a renewed success. His old acrobatic clown entrée(French) Clown piece with a dramatic structure, generally in the form of a short story or scene. was revived with two new partners: Armand Miehe as his contre-pitre, and Bernhard Brasso as his whiteface clownGeneric term for all clowns and augustes. '''Specific:''' In Europe, the elegant, whiteface character who plays the role of the straight man to the Auguste in a clown team.. The new version started with a musical routine involving a chair and a guitar, followed by the Little Bridge acrobatic routine, and ending with the parody of an opera diva (the routine would be eventually known as Maria Callas). They also revived the flying trapezeAerial act in which an acrobat is propelled from a trapeze to a catcher, or to another trapeze. (See also: Short-distance Flying Trapeze) act, with Charlie as a drunk in tuxedo and top hat.
Meanwhile, Charlie's sons had sailed to the United States in 1947, where they performed a remarkable acrobatic act as Les Charlivels, which quickly became one of the greatest nightclub acts of the era. Daughter Paulina married Albert Schumann, of the illustrious Cirkus Schumann, and embarked onto an outstanding equestrian career.
Charlie Rivel had worked mostly in Northern Europe when Spanish impresario Juan Carcellé decided to bring him to his native country, where he was virtually unknown. In 1954, Carcellé made him the star of one of his Circo Price Spanish tours, efficiently working the press into creating for Charlie a true fan following. This enticed the Spanish national television to produce a program about Charlie Rivel in 1962, and his birthplace of Cubelles to name a street after him the following year. Thus began a long period of honors and awards in Spain, Germany, and Scandinavia where Charlie Rivel was becoming a living legend. Film director Manuel Esteba made him star in a Spanish movie about him, El aprendiz de clownGeneric term for all clowns and augustes. '''Specific:''' In Europe, the elegant, whiteface character who plays the role of the straight man to the Auguste in a clown team. (The Clown Apprentice, 1968).
The Solo Years
Charlie's work gradually shifted from the clown trio format to solo work. Leaving forever his flying trapezeAerial act in which an acrobat is propelled from a trapeze to a catcher, or to another trapeze. (See also: Short-distance Flying Trapeze) act, he began developing from his original material two pieces that would become clowning classics: his musical entrée(French) Clown piece with a dramatic structure, generally in the form of a short story or scene. with chair and guitar, and his parody of an opera diva. He was assisted in the ring by his son Juanito, and later, after Cirkus Schumann had ceased to exist, by his daughter, Paulina. Those two sketches remain masterpieces of clowning, among the few that are impossible to replicate.
Charlie Rivel published his autobiography in Denmark in 1971, under the title, Stakkels Klovn (Poor Clown), which was immediately published in several languages. In 1972, he appeared as himself in a sequence of Federico Fellini's film, I Clowns. In December 1974, he was the very first recipient of the Gold Clown award at the 1st International Circus Festival of Monte Carlo. He was seventy-eight years old.
His career was reaching an end. He continued to work in carefully selected events, or for limited engagements in prestigious circus buildings such as Munich's Kronebau, Madrid's Circo Price, or Copenhagen's old Cirkus Schumann, which had become Cirkus Benneweis. He also appeared on television in Sweden and Spain, either as guest, a host, or as the subject of movie shorts and documentaries.
In 1979, Charlie's son Juanito started his own clown career at Circus Knie, where he revived the Andreu-Rivels's legendary Little Bridge entrée(French) Clown piece with a dramatic structure, generally in the form of a short story or scene. with Gaston Hani and Rolf Knie Jr. Charlie's wife, Carmen, passed away in 1972; ten years later, he married Margarita Camas in Barcelona: he was eighty-six. That same year, in 1982, he accepted to travel to Madrid to perform with the famous Circo de Los Muchachos, a remarkable children's circus whose performers were young orphans. It would be his last performance. In his later years, Charlie Rivel had been plagued with respiratory ailments, and on July 26, 1983, he passed away at the hospital of St. Pere de Ribes. The following morning the shops of Stockholm displayed in their windows photographs of the great clown surrounded with flowers.
Statues of Charlie Rivel have been unveiled in Munich (near Circus Kronebau), Barcelona, and Cubelles.
Image Gallery
The Andreu Rivels with Charlie's children, Juanito and Paulina (c.1930)]]
Charlie Rivel uttering his catchphrase, "Akrobat, Schööön!" (c.1960)
Charlie Rivel in his chair and guitar entrée(French) Clown piece with a dramatic structure, generally in the form of a short story or scene. (c.1975)
Charlie Rivel Playing the Guitar (c.1975)
Suggested Reading
Sebastià Gasch, Charlie Rivel, pallasso català (Barcelona, Ed.Alcides, 1962)
Charlie Rivel, Stakkes Klovn (Copenhagen and Stockholm, Nordisk Forlag a.s., 1971)
Charlie Rivel, Poor Clown (London, Michael Joseph, Ltd., 1973)
Josep Vinyes Sabatés, Charlie Rivel (Barcelona, , Thor, 1983)
Jordi Jané, Charlie Rivel (Barcelona, Generalitat de Catalunya, 1996)
External Links
Charlie Rivel Museum in Cubelles: http://www.cubelles.cat/content/view/2491/8/
Charlie Rivel Tribute Album: http://www.clownplanet.com/fotoshtm1/rivel.htm
Andreu-Rivels Tribute: http://www.andreu-rivel.com
Benny Schumann: http://www.schumann.dk/real/historie/?lang=en
