The All-Girl crew and I sailed to Papua New Guinea (PNG). One of the most exotic and dangerous places on earth. Of all the countries we visited over the years, PNG remains one of my favorites.
PNG remains the only country where the Customs Officials did not take our weapons upon entry. They told us to keep our guns aboard. We even had an offer to buy our weapons.
This is but one tale among many concerning PNG. 1932 was the first contact for 2 million stone age people living in PNG’s highlands. The last time I visited the highlands the tribesmen still came to town dressed only in a penis gourd, armed with bows and arrows.
Circus Bruno was a small operation that came to the highlands of PNG. The Ringmaster was also the Magician. The show was well attended and went smoothly until the “Sawing the Lady in Half” act.
Remember that Sorcery and Witchcraft are still strong in these stone age people. Not magic. The real deal. Chicken blood, death by pointing a bone kind of Witchcraft. There are laws formally outlawing Witchcraft in PNG. Legend has it that David Rockefeller’s shrunken head decorates a cave deep in the jungles of PNG.
Also, keep in mind that these stone age people had never seen a Magic Act.
When the Act began, the Lady was sawn in half to a great deal of her screaming. This was well received. Everyone was having a great time. Brutality is common in PNG. All were thankful it wasn’t them under the saw.
The trouble began when the Magician put the Lady back together again.
The crowd reacted in absolute terror. Everyone started chanting “Witch, Witch”. The old ladies were crawling out under the chairs to escape, dragging the children with them. The entire town emptied and was quiet for 3 days.
Then the tribes rioted. This is a very big deal in PNG. They stormed into town to kill the Witch. Bruno and the Circus performers barely made it out with their lives.
The tribes, having broken through security and a chain link fence at the airport, streamed onto the runway as the Circus flight was taking off ahead of them.
The animals from Circus Bruno were left behind and sold at auction. The most memorable among these was the elephant.