Abby Connolly
Juggling is one of the most challenging tricks to learn to master. But some people have made impressive careers through jugging, including Lottie Brunn, who was believed to be the fastest woman juggler in the world.
Lottie was born in Germany in 1925. As a little girl, she learned how to juggle from her father, who learned how to do it while he was imprisoned at a French prison camp during World War I. While her father had to learn how to juggle with stones, she was taught using various objects around the house, like potatoes and oranges.
Lottie was one of four children, and her brother Francis also became a skilled juggler. During World War II, the two of them would perform juggling acts in propaganda variety shows and theaters in Germany.
In 1948, she arrived in the United States with Francis and her father to perform in the Ringling Brothers circus. While Lottie started as more of an assistant to her brother during these juggling acts, she eventually began stealing the spotlight with her talent and impressive ability to juggle extremely fast.
Lottie eventually entered a solo career and performed more circus juggling acts in the 1950s. In 1951, she married the ringmaster and manager of Polack Brothers Circus, Theodore Chirrick, and they had a son together.
Theodore was very supportive of Lottie’s juggling career and helped manage it. In the early 1950s, Lottie set out on the road and played hundreds of shows before beginning a consistent schedule at Radio City Music Hall in New York City in 1959, where she’d perform four times a day over the course of eight weeks.
Lottie also appeared on the infamous Ed Sullivan Show that year and wowed people nationwide. People often doubted Lottie’s abilities because she was a woman, but she’d prove them wrong every time she performed.
Lottie began performing internationally again in the 1960s and 1970s and would juggle through Europe and stop in East Asia. She’d also travel and perform on cruise ships, juggling balls of various sizes and numbers.
Lottie stunned audiences with her fast-paced juggling abilities for over 30 impressive years before retiring in 1985 when she was 60. She and Theodore eventually settled down in New Jersey, and their son Michael eventually grew up to be a talented juggler himself.
Sign up for Chip Chick’s newsletter and get stories like this delivered to your inbox.
