A month ago I challenged eJuggle readers with 50 trivia questions regarding juggling history. A surprising number of readers sent in answers, which was encouraging. The top three finishers were: 3rd Place – Ethan Brain with 42 correct, 2nd Place – Olivier Caignart with 43 correct, and 1st Place – Thom Wall with 44 correct. Congrats to Thom Wall for winning. We had quite a number of other participants who were just behind these three. I hope that all who participated learned quite a lot about juggling history and enjoyed the process. Perhaps we’ll do another trivia contest in a year or so and have a different focus.
1. Who was the first juggler to use three hats of differing colors so that the audience could follow the action better?
King Repp (1920s)
2. Who was the first juggler to use shaker cups?
Meneses (Juventino R, Meneses) (1920s)
3. Who was the first juggler to manufacture shaker cups specifically for juggling rather than just modifying regular shaker cups?
John McPeak
4.Who was the first juggler to juggle six boomerangs?
Charles Bradna (1910)
5. Who was the first juggler to put on a full-length one man juggling stage show?
Joseph Rosani (1900)
6. Who was the first juggler to juggle large flags?
Joseph Rosani (1900)
7. Who was the first juggler to juggle 7 clubs?
John Breen (1910)
8. Who were the first two jugglers to perform 7 club cascades (not passing, but solo)?
Mitica Virjoago / Jack Bremlov (1973) Virjoaga trained Bremlov and it’s believed that they performed it in a circus at the same time.
Mitica Virjoago
Jack Bremlov
9. Who was the first juggler to flash 11 rings?
Albert Petrovski (1963)
10. Who was the first juggling duo to pass 7 club one count back to back?
Jay Gilligan and David Cain (1994) Click here to see video.
11. Who was the first juggler to kick cups and saucers up to his or her head?
Ferry Mader (1906)
12. Who was the first juggler to kick cups and saucers up to his or her head on a unicycle on a slack wire?
Dieter Tasso (1950s)
13. Who was the first juggler to juggle 3 rings with one hand, spin a ball on his or her finger of the other hand, and spin a ring on one leg while holding a ball on a mouth stick and balancing a ball on a head pedestal?
Angelo Piccinelli (1930s)
14. What juggler patented the first electrically lit juggling clubs?
Morris Cronin ((1897)
15. Who was the first juggler to do the cups and spoons trick?
Cartella (1910s)
16. What juggler currently holds the world record for the cups and spoons trick (most spoons in most cups)?
Chuck Clark (2015)
17. Who was the first juggler to flash 11 rings throwing them all from the hands (no holster, mouth hold, crotch hold, etc.)?
Nikolai Gerasimov (2000s) Click here to see video.
18. Who was the first juggler to juggle five clubs while balancing upside down?
Andre Reverho (1930s)
19. Who was the first juggler to perform a 9 plate flash?
Frank Le Dent (1908)
20. Who was the first juggler to use a prop stand that launched props to him or her?
Bobby Jule (1950s) Click here for video.
21. Who was the first juggler to do the gag of catching a ping pong ball balance on the nose?
Bobby Jule (1950s) Click here for video.
22. Who was the first juggler to balance a glass fish bowl on the foot and balance a glass fish bowl on a mouth stick and then switch the two bowls?
Massimiliano Truzzi (1930s)
23. Who was the first juggler to do the trick we know as Albert Throws?
Morris Cronin (1890s)
24. Who was the first juggler to bounce 8 balls off of a drum?
Kathi Gultini (1920)
25. Name the juggler who regularly performed his entire act while standing on top of a moving car.
Studley Foster (1960s)
26. Name a female juggler who died as a result of a juggling trick gone wrong.
Paula Deluca (1936)
27. Who was the first juggler to perform a five club, five up 360?
Evgeni Biljauer (1970s) Click here to see video.
28. Who was the first juggler to juggle 5 clubs?
Ben Mowatt, Jr. (1900s)
29. Who was the first juggler to perform 5 club back crosses?
Alexander Kiss (1950s) Click here to see video.
30. Who was the first juggler to perform pirouettes / 360s with cigar boxes?
Peter Elliott (Woodrow) (1950)
31. Who was the first juggler to perform kick ups with clubs?
Ollie Young (1890s)
32. Who was the first juggler to perform back rolls with four hoops?
Howard Nichols (1920s) Click here to see video.
33. Who was the first juggler to bounce five balls off of a drum while doing a head stand?
Bobby May (1930s)
34. Who was the first juggler to compete in the IJA Stage Championships in their modern system (on stage and receiving both technical and performance scores)? This was not the first winner, but the first person to compete in the modern system.
Alan Howard (1979)
35. Who was the first female juggler to win an IJA Numbers Championship gold medal?
Merry Spahr (1995)
36. Who was the first juggler to win the Rastelli competition in Bergamo, Italy?
Edoardo Raspini (1962)
37. Who was the first juggler to perform a backward roll / somersault while spinning a ball with each hand and with a third on a mouth stick?
Rudy Cardenas (1940s) Click here to see video.
38. What juggling troupe originated the Restaurant Juggling genre?
Price Brothers (1850s)
39. Who was the first juggler to perform a 9 ring flash while balancing a ball on a head pedestal and spinning a ring on his or her leg?
Italo Medini (1943)
40. Who was the first juggler to balance three balls in a non-spinning stack, just holding the bottom ball?
Enrico Rastelli (1920s)
41. What is the following type of club often called?
Skeleton Club
42. Who was the first juggler to sell hollow wooden clubs?
Edward Van Wyck (1895)
Van Wyck clubs
43. Who was the first juggler to flash 10 rings while balancing a head pedestal and spin a ring on the ankle while standing on a slack wire?
Alberto Sforzi (1970s)
44. Who was the first juggler to accomplish a flash of 9 ball back crosses?
Ty Tojo (2015)
45. Who was the first juggler to juggle while bouncing a ball on a platform atop of a pole balanced on his or her head?
Youri Borzykine (2000s) Click here to see video.
46. Who was the first juggler to juggle 6 clubs in splits (three pairs of clubs in columns)?
Ernest Montego (1950s) (There is no known photo of Montego doing the trick.)
47. Who was the first juggler to perform the picture frame slide trick?
Chinko doing Salerno’s Picture Frame trick
Salerno (Adolf Behrend) (1890s)
48. Who was the first juggler to juggle 6 plates while balancing a pole on their chin and a flower pot on their forehead?
Luci Gillet (1910s)
49. Who invented the modern composite juggling club (flex handle, wooden dowel, plastic body, foam knob)?
Jay Green (1964)
50. Who was the first juggler to perform slap backs with three clubs?
Bob Dupont (1940s)
David Cain
David Cain is a professional juggler, juggling historian, and the owner of the world's only juggling museum, the Museum of Juggling History. He is a Guinness world record holder and 16 time IJA gold medalist. In addition to his juggling pursuits, David is a successful composer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and singer as well as the author of twenty-six books. He and his children live in Middletown, OH (USA).