My birthday was 16 days before Easter in 1954.

Easter in New York meant many things. One of the biggest was the arrival of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus to Madison Square Garden, which was then on 8th Avenue and W. 50th Street in Manhattan.

I remember going for the first time when I was six. You walked through the menagerie with the people seen as curiosities. It seemed exploitive and cruel, especially to a kid with weight issues.

But the big attraction was the animals performing tricks in the three rings of the Garden. It smelled a little funky, but people seemed to enjoy it. And besides, it was a tradition; parents take their kids to the circus.

Or maybe not.

Ringling Bros. had management issues and various problems. People were revolted by the way other people were put on display. And concern about treatment of animals turned people off.

Competition came from circuses that focused on spectacular acrobatics – something that had also been a part of the Ringling shows – such as Cirque de Soleil and the Big Apple Circus.

The biggest circus in the world stopped touring in 2017. It is trying to make a comeback, sans animals.