Archie Onri.

Archie Onri was a well known and respected American juggler who toured Australia briefly in 1917.

Archie aka Archibald O Brien, Archie O Brien or Archie Hanley was the son of Rosa Lee . Rosa was an equestrienne juggler who toured Australia with her family in Chiranis circus in 1880. After Australia the circus travelled to India. 

Archie Onri’s death certificate gives a date of birth of 1874, but it seems more likely that he was born in 1882. Rosa was in India in the early 1880s after the Australian tour, and Archibald O Brien, Archie’s father, performed in Australia in 1881. A baptismal certificate says that Archie was born in September 1882 in  Calcutta.  

Rosa, in the late 1880s, formed a theatrical double act called the ‘Sisters Onri’  with Adele Purvis Onri .The two women juggled objects between themselves whilst balancing on large spherical balls. It was a popular music hall turn.

Although billed as sisters, the pair were not blood related. Adele, born Carolina Adele Brown, was the daughter of a legendary British circus man, Henry Brown who died in 1902. Rosa was the daughter of another legendary British circus man Henry C Lee who died in Australia in 1885. Both women were born around 1862, and as relationships in circus were often adoptive, irregular or convenient, it is possible they grew up together. Regardless, their partnership as the Onri Sisters, juggling on globes, lasted at least 3 years.

 After the Sisters Onri broke up, Adele pursued  a solo career as a juggler and dancer on a globe and for a short time was tremendously popular.  Rosa also continued to perform, sometimes with other members of her family.

Young Archie probably spent much of his childhood either in the circus or the theatre. As he grew older he became part of the act. His circus background ensured that he had versatile skills, he could juggle, tumble, balance and  paint. Soon he was part of the Onri Troupe, a juggling group who passed various objects whilst balancing on globes.  In 1904 he appeared in the trades as a juggler of devil sticks. 

By 1906, the Onri Troupe, consisting of Rosa, her husband John or Jack Hanley, her brother, Robert Lee, 16 year old Leland, five year old Bessie, Archie and Archie’s partner, Dolly, was a regular attraction on the US vaudeville scene. They maintained a solid but not spectacular career touring the circuit. 

The family suffered the usual vicissitudes of vaudeville at the time, including unscrupulous employers. In 1907 Archie wrote a letter to Variety condemning the practices of a Cuban theatre manager who overcharged the family for their return fare, refused to pay them in the promised gold and cut their contract short. Archie accused the manager of ‘ ‘Contracting artists for from twelve to sixteen weeks he, discovering late that too many acts are on his hands will find fault…to unheard of extremes and try to cut the artist’s salary or close him on the instant’ Archie wrote the letter on behalf of his family and their fellow performers, the Kishi troupe, and it was published in December. The letter indicated that the young man was a confident and eloquent defender of his family business.  

Archie had already met his wife Gertrude (Dolly) Jenkins who accompanied him to Cuba.  Gertrude was an English dancer and instrumentalist, and the pair met while performing in pantomime, probably in England. In 1910 they had their first child, a daughter. The birth was announced in Variety Magazine. 

Shortly after returning from Cuba, Archie and Dolly developed their own act which involved scene painting, tumbling, banjo playing, juggling and devil sticking. They were regularly employed and reasonably popular. This was the act they brought to Australia five years later.

In 1917, Archie and Dolly travelled to Australia under engagement to the Tivoli Circuit. At the time Archie was 34 years old, standing 5 foot 6 inches with brown eyes and dark brown hair. The couple left San Francisco in April with plans for a six month tour. 

The Onris were following the path of many American entertainers who came to Australia during World War 1, but their journey was perilous. The United States entered the war in April 1917, just as the couple departed, and the threat of German u boats was a real danger. 

However, they arrived safely and Archie Onri billed as  ‘The Wonder Boy’, debuted at the Sydney Tivoli in May 1917. He opened the act with lightning oil painting, then proceeded to juggle and tumble on stage. The highlight of the act was a comedy turn with devil sticks.

A Sydney reviewer raved.

Archie Onri juggles with various things, plates, paints, pieces of furniture, billiard cues and sundry other articles. I doubt there is anything he could not do a turn with. When he started out to juggle the paints, I thought it was going to be a beautiful sunset… but it turned out to be a Devonshire landscape. Then he did some turns with three humorous pieces of wood  …The wonder boy is attended by Miss Dolly..(who) wears petticoats and lace.

One reviewer, however, had some criticism. They admitted that the audience liked the turn, but claimed it was ‘too diffuse’. Archie, they said, should stick to juggling and omit the painting.

After some weeks in Sydney, Archie and Dolly travelled to Melbourne in June.

Melbourne reviewers called the act ‘a very clever and attractive exhibition of novel juggling’. Charles Waller who saw Archie in Melbourne said, ‘this young American gave a potpourri of magic, sketching and juggling. He was good.’

It seems that Archie spoke more to the press in Melbourne, than he did in Sydney. He claimed that he had taught painting and drawing for two years in New York, before the lure of vaudeville became too strong. This claim was somewhat dubious. However, he was undoubtedly a talented visual artist and several of his drawings appeared in trade magazines during his career. Including the one below in 1920.

Archie also revealed that his grandfather died in Sydney, and that his father  was ‘a noted rider.’ He added that his mother had just retired after 48 years in vaudeville.  Archie also asserted that he was the originator of the ‘comedy devil sticks'. 

In Melbourne Archie and Dolly attended a party for a famous jockey. In early August they attended another party with the racing community. At the latter they were thanked for their support of the industry and Archie gave a speech on behalf of himself and other American performers.

In early August the couple returned for a brief time to the Tivoli in Sydney. Later that month they were advertised to appear in Brisbane but social and political upheaval disrupted their schedule.

 On August 2 1917, a large number of railway and tramway workers walked off their jobs, this soon spread to a general strike across the east coast of Australia. The stressors of war, increasing inflation and political division due to conscription debates led to a widespread walkout by working people across several industries.

This impacted  the theatres too. Joe Willard who was also on the Tivoli bill described the conditions in a letter to American Variety in 1917. Transport was at a standstill, food was scarce and some theatres had closed. The Tivoli was open, but acts were being paid half their salary. 

Archie and Gertrude were engaged to perform in Brisbane. They were advertised as appearing there. However, there was little coverage of their performance. It seems that due to the strike and cut in pay, either they, or Tivoli management decided to cut the tour short.  By September they were in Hawaii, on their way back to the US, where they began performing almost immediately. Their six month contract was not fulfilled.

Archie and Dolly continued to perform and remained active members of the International juggling and vaudeville communities. Various members of the ‘Onri’ family performed with them or as solo acts and the name ‘Onri’ became common in vaudeville circles.  In 1921 Archie proposed an International Juggling Association. The proposal was supported by many jugglers including Rosa Onri, and Adele Purvis Onri.  (more about that in David Cain's excellent article)

Archie Onri was a significant member and leader of the International juggling community for most of his life. He passed away in New York in 1944. 

Harry Tsuda in Australia 1916-17

  

 

Harry Tsuda was an exceptional equilibrist and balancer who toured Australia in 1916-1917, as one of many American performers who came during the early years of the war.  Harry seemed assured and confident in all he did. This was necessary due to the incredible balancing feats he performed. He gave candid and probably not quite candid interviews to the press and certainly lived up to the reputation of his famous mother, the notorious Adele Purvis Onri.

Harry claimed 1885 as his date of birth on his passport and the place as San Francisco. The same passport had a hand written note which said ‘My father died when I was three and I am unsure if he was a citizen’. Sometimes Harry said he was born in Japan, but usually he gave the US as his native land.

Harry said in interviews that his father was a rich man from Tokyo who sent him to university in the US. After trying  to complete degrees in dentistry and engineering, the pull of athletics was too strong, and he decided on a vaudeville career. This could have been true, but it is hard to reconcile with the fact that he performed in London in 1902, as little Tsuda.

Whilst in Australia, Harry also talked about his mother, Adele Purvis Onri. She was the daughter of well-known English circus proprietor Henry Brown, and performed around the world doing a serpentine dance and juggling on a spherical ball. Harry recalled that he gained his ability to smile while performing difficult feats due to Adele’s coaching. She would stand on the side of the stage harassing him as he balanced, with heckles such as ‘ Look at that face, surely he’s been to a funeral’ ‘ I suppose he just can’t smile’.  As a result Harry spent hours in front of a mirror practising smiling whilst balancing on a sphere. A modern interpretation might be that Adele was a bullying stage mother, but it was probably an acceptable practice considering vaudeville and circus culture at the time. 

Harry performed with Adele in London in 1902-03 and also in the United States in 1906-07. Soon he began a solo professional career as Tsuda, the Japanese balancer. His act evoked applause, gasps and shock. He thrilled every audience that saw him.

 In Australia, a Melbourne newspaper gave an in depth description of his act;

Tsuda places a large white sphere on top of a table, climbs on the sphere, drags up a chair, climbs on it, takes up another chair surmounts it, and then begins to do all sorts of difficult acrobatic feats… bringing his work to a climax by balancing himself head down from the top of a swaying pile while he picks up a handkerchief with his teeth.

According to newspaper accounts ‘ He was ‘as much at home head downwards as most people are in a normal attitude’. His daring feats had audiences holding their breath and cheering wildly when he safely returned to stand on the stage.

Harry arrived in Australia, at the invitation of Ben Fuller, in July 1916. He opened in Sydney then proceeded to Melbourne where he was ‘loudly applauded.’ By September he was in Perth and described as ‘a past master at making you hold your breath’ . Harry’s act was  different for Australian audiences and this ensured his popularity. He gave several interviews and in one he addressed some of the issues of contemporary society.

 It was sixteen years after Federation and the White Australia Policy was a plank of the new constitution .Australia was at war, and there was a rising fear of an ‘Asian invasion’.

Harry was very intelligent and addressed these fears and whilst doing so subtly played the racism of his white audiences.

‘ I think it can be claimed with all sincerity that the Japanese are thoroughly in sympathy with British institutions and ideals… I can assure you the thinking Japanese are not anxious to transplant Japan into either California or Australia but seek only to broaden their own views in order to continue  the enlightenment of their countrymen.’

This is a rare instance of an Asian performer speaking on the issue of race at the time.  

Harry’s tour coincided with the tour of juggler Archie Onri, who was engaged on the Tivoli circuit.  Archie may have been a relative of Adele, but neither man acknowledged this, although they performed at least once  in the same city at the same time.

In December 1916 Harry went to New Zealand and remained there until February 1917. In March he reprised his act in Sydney and performed in regional areas of the state. In April he was described as a ‘very small Japanese’ who performed ‘one of the most novel and exciting turns presented in vaudeville.’

In May he returned to Melbourne and in June was in Queensland where ‘his principal act of balancing two ordinary chairs on a sphere at hair raising angles and then balancing on the backs of each by his hands with feet in the air simply brought down the house.’

After almost a year in Australasia, Harry returned to the United States. He told Australian reporters that a dramatic role was waiting for him, but he soon resumed the balancing act.

Harry maintained a solid vaudeville career in the United States and continued in balancing until 1926. In October that year he was performing for a small independent circuit in Pennsylvania when he fell. He died in hospital a day later from a broken neck. 

Harry was a well liked and extremely skilled performer who was very popular in Australia. His photograph is a reminder of this extraordinary artist’s visit during the trying years of World War one.