Sideshow manager Roger Boyd Jr. is the son of circus elephant trainer and ringmaster Roger E. Boyd Sr. and former vaudevillian Garnette Boyd. Roger was born in Lebonon, IN. in 1951 while his parents were working with a medicine show in that area.
Roger comes from a long line of showfolks, his mother Garnette and his grandmother Pearl Fancher Davis were dancers and performed a "sister act" in Vaudeville. His grandfather Don D. Davis was a vaudeville producer and carnival owner and Roger's great grandfather John "Doc" Fancher was a stage illusionist and medicine show operator.
Boyd's first job on a circus was working in his father's sideshow as a knife thrower at age 8 on the Duke of Paducah Circus. He then performed tight wire and juggling on Bob Snowden's version of the King Bros. Circus. Roger continued his circus acts until age 13 when he was seriously in by a chimpanzee, the hand injury ended his big top career.
He then began selling tickets on the sideshow for several years then became the "inside talker". In 1973 he became sideshow manager of the Clyde Beatty Cole Bros. Circus. In 1974 while working on the CBCBC he met and married Marina Diaz who was performing with her family's act "The Diaz Sisters". In 1975 Hoxie Tucker persuaded the couple to join the Hoxie Bros Circus where Roger managed the sideshow and Marina was featured in the big show performing her "Hair Hang" act. Roger and Marina remained with Hoxie for many years and while on the show their son Marcelo was born.
After Hoxie Roger framed a sideshow and took it out with the "Drew Expositions".
In 1986 Roger and Marina started the "Boyd Family Circus", a small circus which played fair dates in the Eastern United States. |
