Dick
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Wednesday, January 30, 2008 6:42:49 AM
Just received word that Paul Miller passed.
Another Legend leaves Us!
My condolences to Buddy and all the Miller Family.
Dick Dykes
"Flash is Cash"
Trucker090
Wednesday, January 30, 2008 6:27:38 PM
Condolences and R.I.P
<h5>"If you cant run with the BIG dogs stay on the porch"</h5>

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Thursday, January 31, 2008 1:32:17 PM
Circus Owner Relished A Wild Ride
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By LAURA KINSLER, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 31, 2008

WESLEY CHAPEL - Paul A. Miller's scrapbooks overflowed with photos of future presidents, Supreme Court justices and a gorilla named "Joe."

Miller, of Wesley Chapel, a circus owner who wanted to bring joy to dying children and thought the show should be free to all, died Tuesday. He was 87.

He made Tampa his home after serving here in the Army during World War II. The Indiana native founded Paul A. Miller's Wild Animal Circus in the mid-1950s.

"He was one of the first to combine carnival rides with circus entertainment and transported the show around the nation on four semis," son Lyle recalled. "We didn't travel by train, so we could go to places that had never had a circus before."

He called it the "Greatest Free Show on Earth" because he made enough money from rides, caramel corn and 10-cent wieners to support the circus, Lyle Miller said.

He would travel by Cadillac, often with a couple of chimpanzees - and on rare occasions, a baby elephant - in the back.

Miller set up his portable stage, full orchestra and performing horses on Franklin Street while Japanese acrobats swung through the air between the downtown rooftops. He also took the show to the backyard of a little boy in Tuscaloosa, Ala., who was terminally ill.

He brought clowns, animals and acrobats to hospitals and would continue to work on behalf of the Children's Miracle Network for most of his life.

"He was in Savannah the day JFK was shot," Lyle Miller said. "They considered canceling the show, but he said we needed it now more than ever."

A photo of then-former Vice President Richard Nixon peering through a lion cage adorned Miller's office wall. He was a strong believer in civil rights and once hired an up-and-coming young lawyer, Thurgood Marshall, to represent him in a legal matter.

Miller also loved music, and often brought acts on tour with the show.

One summer, Miller organized a city-by-city singing contest in which the audience voted for the winner, who got to record a song in a Nashville, Tenn., music studio.

Miller retired from the circus life in 1970, but he never left show business.

"He always had the most beautiful smile," said his wife, Betty.

PAUL A. MILLER

BORN: May 5, 1920, in Madison, Ind.

DIED: Jan. 29, 2008, in Dade City

SURVIVORS: Wife, Betty; sons Paul "Buddy" and Lyle; stepson Rick Sergeant; stepdaughters Debbie Armstrong and Penny Cottrill

SERVICES: Visitation begins at 10 a.m. and a memorial service is at noon Saturday at MacDonald Funeral Home, 10520 N. Florida Ave., Tampa. The burial will be at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell.

MEMORIAL GIFTS: Hernando-Pasco Hospice or the Alzheimer's Association

kiddie ride red
Thursday, January 31, 2008 2:58:55 PM
I seem to recall seeing Paul Miller's name in ads in the Billboard and early issues of AB quite frequently. A fellow named Frank Bauersfield would offer a cash reward for his current location, payable when Bauersfield arrived on the lot. I was just a naive young fool then but I got the impression that Mr. Bauersfield was not a fan.Hopefully Mr. Miller will now rest in peace.[8)].
john777
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Saturday, February 2, 2008 5:04:37 PM
good bye to another great showmen
rest in peace paul
gabby mills
with it and all for it
john 777

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