P a g e 5 G h o s t T o w n s a n d H i s t o r y o f M o n t a n a N e w s l e t t e r an’s exhibition. They provided pre-written articles, advertisement, and photographs for city newspapers to hype up the show. The news releases often proudly announced that the newspaper or mayor was providing free tickets to kids in homeless shelters, the Boy Scouts and girls’ groups. Clip-out coupons often accompanied the articles, giving a discount or free entry for kids. To cast an aura of seafaring about the exhibit, the briny guest of honor was accompanied by a captain and his crew as the ringmasters of this nautical circus. Some of the captains had actually sailed the seven seas and battled the behemoths. Others were pitchmen hired to affect the visage and mannerisms of old salty dogs, a few eventually believing that they were the heroes of their illusions. Finally, in September 1930, “Colossus” sailed into the big skies of Montana upon the rails of the Northern Pacific railroad. Butte was the first stop for a three-day show, beginning September 9. Capt. Barnett, head harpooner of the whaling boat “Hawk,” presented informative and perhaps imaginative scuttlebutt about life and death battles with the beasts. He would sometimes exclaim, “Shiver me timbers, only an ignorant landsman wouldn’t know the five that are sought are sperm, finback, sulphur bottom, hump back, blue whale and upright whale." An escort of twelve whalers explained the various operations involved and displayed their deadly tools of their trade. The local newspaper announced the, “Transcontinental Tour of the Captive Whale,” along with a “Giant Sea Elephant” previously exhibited with the Ringling Bros. Circus. From Butte, Colossus cast off for Anaconda September 12-14th and Missoula the 16-17th. The Missoulian pronounced, “A Whale Epidemic. The whale on exhibition here this week is a symptom of a nation-wide epidemic. Some astute gentleman has discovered, quite evidently, that land-lubbers have a yen to see monsters of the mighty deep and whole flocks (or should we have said herds or schools?) are being transported around the country.” The article chronicled a whale of a tale of the hours-long battle between man and beast and of the explosive harpoon that failed to detonate. The death-defying struggle was wearing out both combatants until a final shot could be launched into the mighty whale to end this clash of titans. The king of whales honored the Queen City of Helena with two performances, September 18-19 and 22-23, interspersed with a two-day stop in Great Falls. The Helena Independent Record brazenly declared, “Colossus, Giant Killer Whale Arrives in Helena for Two-Day Exhibition.” Accompanying this “killer,” were natural illuminati such as penguins, "live Chinese dragon, lizards, man-eating sharks, octopi, [and] a flea circus,” the fleas to contrast the largest and smallest of God’s creatures. On the final day of viewing, the paper proclaimed, "a congestion of automobiles at the [railroad] station . . . [that] hasn't been seen since Presi
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