CIRCUS COUPLE WED IN TEST

Permormers Stage Party for Pair

The girl with the iron jaw and the daring young man on the flying trapze pledged their vows

Friday--pledged them, appropriately enough, in the No.1 ring of the Clyde Beatty circus

with a lion's roar for a wedding march and footlights instead of candles

It wasn't one of your crying weddings, either.  Everybody, from the rapt audience of

roust-abouts, sideshow freaks, cloans, showgirls and animal trainers to District Judge Charles R. Mears,

who performed the ceremony, had a bang-up time.

The bride, who thinks nothing of hanging by her teeth high above the ground night after

night but shook with nervousness at standing before the judge, was Janice France of

Sioux City, Ia.

The bridegroom, a wiry little flyer, was George Voise of Saginaw, Michigan.

Animal Trainer Witness

Witnesses were Mr. and Mrs. Joe Walch, the former animal trainer who tactfully removed his gun from the pocket of his riding breeches before the ceremony.

Friends of the pair worked industriously before their arrival at the big tent to have

erverything tidy for the 11 am ceremony.  A red and yellow ring mat was spread over the sawdust in the No. 1 ring, and a table laid with a tasteful plastic cover to hold the piece deristance-a beautiful wedding cake with lions and tigers and elephants marching around the frosting.

There was even an univited guest--a quixotic character who was assisted out by a couple of stout orustabouts after hiding in the lion's cage.

The bridegroom shook so he could hardly get the ring on, but there was nothing

bashful about his reaction when the judge him "go ahead and kiss your birdge."  He did just

that, vigorously and lengthily, to the whooping, and hollering approval of the congregation.

Feast Follows Ceremony

A wedding feast of ice cream, strawberries and cake followed in the cookhouse.

The couple met in March when the show started on the road and took out their license application in North Bend earlier this month.

Their romance, however, was nothing novel to the circus--this is the ffth wedding since the show has been on tour.

"Seems like every time the show get to a place where they stay more than one day everybody get married,"

comment the press agent.

left

Bride Betty Franco, iron jaw girl with the Clyde Beatty circus, feeds a piece of cake to her new

husband, George Voise, trapeze permormer, as their friend the clown tries to get into the act. Couple

were married in No. 1 ring under the big top before circus friends.

right

Cake cutting was watched enthusiastically by spectators, from the sideshow acts at left to Judge Charles R. Mears (right), who performed ceremony Friday morning.  Wedding was fifth in the circus since it started the current tour, when bride and groom first met.  Story, page 7 ( see above)