Video recordings with circus fire references

  • Raw footage from the fire site, from private collection.

  • Connecticut Public Television (CPTV)'s one-hour documentary program The Circus Fire - produced, written and directed by Rich Hanley - airs often on CPTV, and some libraries may still have VHS copies. Includes interviews with several survivors and archival footage of Hartford and the circus. Originally aired in 2000.

  • Disasters of the Century - Laughter Turns to Tears is a documentary program with a segment on the circus fire. This can be viewed online at FactualTV.com. DVD and download copies also available at the same site.

  • TV series Miracles had a 2003 episode titled Little Miss Lost which weaves a fictional mystery story around the 1944 circus fire and the unidentified Little Miss 1565. Here is a summary of the show at TV.com. DVD available at Amazon.com

  • Circus Colossus: Films of the Late William H. Judd is 45 minutes of home movies from several Connecticut appearances of the RBB&B circus between 1939 and 1956. Here is a clip showing the circus unloading in Hartford on July 5, 1944 - one day before the fire.

  • The Life of Reilly is a 90 minute program featuring Charles Nelson Reilly telling stories and anecdotes to an audience, including his experience at the circus fire. Copies available for purchase at www.charlesnelsonreilly.com.

    • Here's a clip of the circus fire part:

  • Charles Nelson Reilly on Theater Talk, April 18, 1997, briefly discussing the fire.

  • Ruth Hummel interviews circus fire survivor Kenneth Gnazzo:

  • TV News footage from local Connecticut channels about the 60 year anniversary and plans for the memorial.

  • Footage shot at the Circus Fire Memorial dedication ceremony - walking along the path and viewing each of the plaques.

  • Complete footage from the Hartford Circus Fire Memorial Dedication Ceremony, July 6, 2005.

  • TV News footage of Hartford Circus Fire Memorial Dedication ceremony:

  • Amateur film footage from under the big top when the tragic fire began in Hartford, July 6, 1944:

  • Workers hang banners advertising the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey circus coming to Hartford, Connecticut on July 5th and 6th, 1944. The July 6th performance would be cut short due to fire in which 168 people were killed:

  • Footage from the State Armory where the victims of the 1944 Hartford circus fire were taken for identification:

  • Amateur film footage of the big top in flames, Hartford, Connecticut, July 6, 1944.:

  • Amateur film footage of the big top in flames and collapsing, Hartford, Connecticut, July 6, 1944.:

  • Video compilation of footage shot at the site of the Hartford Circus Fire, July 6, 1944.:

  • Video footage showing the aftermath and destruction of the Ringling Brothers & Barnum and Bailey circus, July 6, 1944, in Hartford, Connecticut:

  • Stewart O'Nan talks about his book The Circus Fire: A True Story at the Connecticut State Library, July 6, 2000. The author reads passages from his book, and responds to questions and comments from the audience, which included Mr. William Epps and other survivors of the fire. Watch this 79-minute video online at the C-SPAN Video Library.

www.circusfire1944.com

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