by Amy Borer
photography by Matt Poyneer
At one time or another, many children dream of running away from home and joining the carnival. For most, this childhood dream remains only a fantasy, but for a very few, the fantasy becomes a reality.
The majority of people who make a career of working carnivals join a carnival company as a way to escape personal problems, such as trying to survive on the streets.
A worker for Big T Enterprises, a company that is currently working at the Los Angles County Fair, who would only identify himself as Clayton, joined the company in 1979 when he was 18 years old so he could get off the streets. “It is a lot nicer than the streets,” he said. “But it is hard in a different way.”
When he joined the carnival group, the other members became the family he did not have. “We were like a family. We’re not as tight anymore and that’s a real shame,” he said. “We need lo get people who are tight and want to stay tight. We could get a lot more done that way.”
A life on the road with a carnival company is not an easy one. Most employees work up to 14 hours a day, and depending of the popularity of the carnival, some may go to work on a Saturday morning, for example, and work until Monday afternoon without so much as an hour’s sleep.
“By the end of the weekend, say on Sunday night, we get really cranky. We can be real jerks,” said Clayton. “People just don’t understand why. They are out here having fun, but they go home to their normal lives and sleep. This is our life. This is definitely not a normal life.”
When the workers get a chance to sleep, most do so on the ground of their game booth or under their ride. Those who have the opportunity to stay in a hotel room are the lucky ones who have made a lot of money working their booth.
“I remember waking up many times and it’s already morning and the booth is already open. The people playing the game always look at me funny, but I don’t care,” said Clayton, who is currently working a game booth called “Bank The Ball.”
The lifestyles of the workers depends on their ability to bring people to their booth or ride. As their sole source of income, they rely on the money they make each day at a carnival to eat.
“I remember eating bologna sandwiches for breakfast, lunch and dinner because I wasn’t good at the games,” said Clayton.
He also added that when someone steals a prize from his booth, it is as if they are taking food off of this table or money out of his pocket. Because of this, he tries not to cheat his customers out of money and assures that his game is not rigged, which could make it impossible to win the game.
Although life on the road is a rough one, it has its pleasurable moments. When the carnival or fair the group is working is a popular one and everybody is making money, there are a lot of fun times, complete with boisterous partying and card games. Certain months out of the year, the groups try to plan fishing trips or a trip to Las Vegas.
Clayton enjoys the chance he has to meet many people. “You may meet someone you really like, fall in love and get married.”
All groups also take two to three months off a year, called their winter season, when they conduct maintenance on their rides and games.
Clayton has mixed feelings about his life as a carnival worker. “When I can’t make money, I hate life,” he said. “If I came across the right job, I guess I’d go.”
Despite his resentment to the life at times, Clayton could never completely leave the carnival because the life is in his blood. “If I won the lottery, I’d buy a ride and take it on the road myself,” he said.
Matt Poyneer
