Bill Ballantine

Who was Bill Ballantine?

Bill Ballantine, a well-respected writer and illustrator of circus subjects, was also a professional clown. A prolific writer, Ballantine contributed circus and travel essays to major magazines. His many stories of circus life have delighted readers of such magazines as Collier's, Holiday, Harper’s Bazaar, Saturday Evening Post, True, Saga, and Seventeen, and as if all that essay writing weren’t enough to keep any sane man busy, Ballantine also authored 10 books, including three that are among the most thumbed copies on any circus fan’s shelf—Wild Tigers and Tame Fleas, Horses and Their Bosses'', and Clown Alley, which chronicles his years as dean of the Clown College.