Flea Circus Research - Films and Videos

The flea circus has lots of appearances in films. There has always been something slightly mysterious or sinister about flea circuses and this makes for some excellent drama. Of course often the fleas escape and this adds a comic element.

Flea Circus Films

There several flea films and animations, some old and some even older.

Die Floh-Zirkus Joe May-Film Co. (1916)
In a 6 minute abandoned film called "The Professor" Charlie Chaplin plays the trainer in a flea circus. This film is said to have provided the inspiration for Chaplin's other film, Limelight and can sometimes be found on the same DVD. (1919)
Laurel and Hardy have to deal with fleas escaping from the circus in Thundering Fleas (1926)
It's in the Bag is a zanny film about a Flea Circus Ring Master who inherits a fortune (1945)
Death of the Flea Circus Director from Eric Koerfer (1973)
The origional STOIC Flea Show (1992)
The Cardoso Flea Circus Video by Maria Cardoso (1997)

Coming soon the animated Flea Show film from ACE Animation.

Fleas on Film and Television

There it is from Charley Bowers has a flea assisting a Scottish detective and living in a match box (1928)
Charley Bowers' "Educational" film Hop Off has 2 trained fleas on roller skates using a bald man's head as the rink (1928)
Laurel and Hardy are given a flea circus and a trained chimpanzee as wages for working for a circus in The Chimp (1932)
Charlie Chaplin returns in Limelight which contains a short Flea training section (1954)
Mr Arkadin, also known as Confidential Report is a mystery by Orson Wells where Mischa Auer plays a Flea Circus Trainer (1955)
Michael Bentine from Potty Time fame also had a flea circus in his series It's a Square World (BBC, 1960-64)
Mekhanicheskaya Blokha - The Mechanical Flea. One of many films from the Soyuzmultifilm studios which were setup on August 20, 1936 in order to concentrate all the best artists of the Russian animation (1964)
The Flea Circus from Huberts Museum in Times Square appears in the background of one of the scenes of Easy Rider (1969)
Autobiography of a Flea was an adult film adapted from a 19th century book of the same name. The film is narrated by an intelligent talking flea. (1970s)
CBS produced "Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College: 20th Anniversary". This special hour long program was hosted by Dick Van Dyke who performed a Flea Circus act (1988)
Fleabites is a TV drama staring Nigel Hawthorne (1992)
The City of Lost Children contained a flea spy. (1995)

Flea Documentaries

The Strength and Agility of Insects is in the style of a documentary (1911)
Mona Lisa Produtions film Leroy and Lee's Circus of Fleas in their documentary "Flea Zone" (1996)
Mona Lisa productions have in their catalogue a documentary about fleasas part of their squatters series (1997)
Flea Bitten by Blabber Productions - follows Arnold Frenzy and his Strangely Compelling Flea Cirkus on tour. (2004)
Owen Plotkin's thought provoking Flea Circus film for PBS
The National Geographic channel has reported on Walt Noon's show.
Archive footage of fleas at http://www.film-images.com
Comming to Sky One in October is Human Safari by Scream Films, this series looks at the life that lives on man and has interviewed Walt Noon about his flea training. (2006)

Animated Films

Felix the Cat seeks the help of hundreds of Fleas (1923) - Ref: Lobster Films
What Price Fleadom is a Tex Avery animation about a Flea in love. (1948)
Win, Place and Showboat is described as a a "classic Max Fleischer cartoon featuring some entertainment on a showboat", one of the acts was a fire fighting Flea Circus. (28th April 1950)
Fleas run away from the circus in Tex Avery's Flea Circus, MGM (1954)
Another animated flea tale Flea for Two about a rivalry over a girl between a city and country flea (1955)
To Itch his Own a Chuck Jones Animation about a very strong Flea (1958)
Fleas a Crowd is an episode of Popeye where Popeye has a flea circus and Brutus attempts to disrupt it. The fleas a fed spinach to save the day. (1960)
"F" is for Flea Circus, an animation (perhaps from Seasame street? 1970s?)
The Disney Studios had a guest flea "Baron Itzy Bitzy" on their Ducktales series. (1988)
Adventures of Cheating Flea. Based on a poem by Jan Brzechwa, a humorous children's tale about a mischevious flea. Jan Brzechwa, real name Jan Lesman was a Polish poet and author (1989)
A Cartoon Network show, The Moxy Show began in 1995 was about a dog and a flea. Penn Jillette played the voice of Flea, who later became a title character in 1998, Flea's voice was replaced by an unknown actor in some episodes.
P. T. Flea's Circus in Bugs Life by Pixar (1998)
Mona the Vampire and her dog Fang tackle giant fleas in the episode "Flea Circus of Horror" from Canadian company CINAR animation. (2000)
"The Flea" regularly wrestles on Mucha Lucha on the Cartoon Network
Elizabeth from "Marvin the Tap Dancing Horse" accidentally buys a Flea Circus from a Flea Market and everyone loves the new act. However Stripes quickly discovers fleas and horses don't mix. Made by the Canadian company Nelvana
An Italian circus flea begs not to be squashed and tells Arthur and friends his experiences in Season 8 Episode 114 of Arthur - "Flea to Be You and Me / Kiss and Tell" from PBS Kids. (first aired December 2003)