Chapter 3 - The Bird Cage Theater.
Once again Stromboli's wagons were parked in the empty lot behind the Bird Cage theater. All of their passengers were sure of one thing however. No matter what deals the Coachman and the Ringmaster were making with the McLaurys and Stillwell he was certain that they were going to trick boys into their new Pleasure Town on midnight Friday as was their usual method of operation on their own.
"There is only one way we can stop Pleasure Town from going into operation tonight." Pinocchio said. "A puppet show."
"Buta how do you proposea we do this." Stromboli said. "All ofa my puppet operators anda musicians are back ona Pleasure Island Collodi."
"I'm sure that the Bird Cage Theater can supply the musicians." Pinocchio said. "And you and my father are
Both puppet operators. You can also teach Lampwick, John Worthington and Gideon. Jiminy is good at voices and I will have him in the matchbox under my hat while the show is going on."
"There area problems witha the Bird Cage Theater however." Stromboli said. "Generally it isa an adult theater with a saloon, housea of ill fame and faro and poker games operating from it. "Hardly a suitable environment fora boys."
"But more suitable than Pleasure Town." Pinocchio said. "Especially if we can get the management of the place to have a children's night in the theater alone in return for a cut of the profit's the puppet show will bring in. At least we have to make a try at producing a competitive attraction to Pleasure Town. Because my guess is that even if the Clantons and McLaurys and Stilwell aren't going to do anything tonight that the Ringmaster, the Coachman or both have hired out other Tombstone bottom feeders to bring boys their coaches tonight."
Stromboli and Geppetto went into the Theater to ask about scheduling the puppet show and Lampwick and Pinocchio continued the conversation.
"And if your puppet show does not work." Lampwick said.
"Then we will have to surrender ourselves to the Ringmaster and The Coachman." Pinocchio returned. "And don't worry if we have to do this. Remember, it is what is in your heart that turns you into a donkey and not their magic alone."
"I wasn't thinking about donkeys in our case." Lampwick returned. "I was thinking more in terms of scorpion fodder."
"You don't have to worry about that either." Pinocchio said producing his revolver. "The "ammo" in this was designed to work against magic and the scorpion monsters are creatures of magic. One shot and they return to their normal size and you step on them with good shoes so you don't get stung to death, end of story."
"You are sure confident about this one Pinokey" Lampwick returned.
"Look at it this way." If Geppetto is our father then the Blue Fairy is our mother so to speak because she gave both of us our lives as a boy even though the thought it well to change mine back to a puppet for the time we are in Tombstone for my protection. Do you think your mother would really put you in a situation too hazardous for you to handle? You see that is probably another reason we will NOT be involved in the real gunfight at three o'clock tomorrow afternoon, We rather will be involved with the Coachman's and Ringmaster's scorpion monsters which we are equipped to handle."
"We may be equipped to handle them but they still give me the creeps." Lampwick said. "Remember, those things don't swallow you into some intermediate compartment where you don't digest like a monstro does. They sting you to death, digest you outside their body and suck you up."
Stromboli's and Geppetto's return to the wagons ended the conversation about the scorpions.
"You have your puppet show." Stromboli said. "The only conditions are that ita be outside the Bird Cage Theater itself because asa I told you the other activities that go on ina there Are nota fit for children. The Bird Cage however will provide the musicians that we need."
"What about the facilities to run it from?" Pinocchio asked.
"Don'ta you remember our first encounter." Stromboli returned. "Thesea wagons have everything except the musicians needed fora setting up a temporary puppet theater. We cana start the set up right now.
Within a couple of hours the puppet theater stage was set up in the lot behind the Bird Cage Theater. John Worthington and Gideon took charge of the advertising and a new albeit smaller attraction to compete with the Coachman's and the Ringmaster's park was under way.
Pleasure Town, Outside Tombstone, Arizona Territory, 1881:
For once the Coachman admired the accomplishments of his son. Pleasure Town was built in such a way that the "jackass" behavior of bad boys would mount more and more the further into the park they went finally leading up to the boy to donkey conversion roller coaster at the very end of the street. At the very beginning of the new park was tobacco row, followed by faro, poker and chuck a luck wheel of chance games at the middle of the midway. The pool tables and bear bars were next. And the "jackass" games that encouraged vandalism and violence against, parents, teachers, marshals and other authority figures were placed at the very end of the midway right before the entrance stairs to the roller coaster. There were of course other rides in pleasure town but the whole main midway was built around "jackass" behavior and ushering boys onto the roller coaster where the boy to donkey conversion would take place. Behind the roller coaster were shipping facilities designed to ship donkeys to assorted places of hard animal labor such as farms, ranches and the Tombstone and Virginia City silver mines. The whole thing was set up for quick daily "mass production" of boys converted to donkeys by the Ringmaster's Alexandrian magic.
So far however Pleasure Town was only inhabited by the assorted Bird Cage Theater rejects which would act as the places showmen and barkers, the uniformed guards with the scorpion sting hats and the Coachman and the Ringmaster themselves.
"Yes I have to admit that this place is a brilliant design." The Coachman told his adopted son. "However this still would have not worked on the original Pleasure Island. That place needed something like the red star to bring the original abandoned park back to life in order to make it usable."
"I don't know. I had the original Pleasure Island working pretty much along these lines when I owned it." The Ringmaster Returned.
"But only after you waited for Geppetto to fix the place up for you." The Coachman said.
"Come to think of Geppetto," the Ringmaster said. "I think he and his so called family are here in Tombstone and probably after us."
"And just what makes you think this?" the Coachman asked.
"Some of our in town barkers I hired to bring boys to the coaches have been reporting there is a puppet show going on featuring a boy pretending to be a living puppet without strings outside the Bird Cage Theater tonight." the Ringmaster answered.
"Pretending my eye," the Coachman returned. "That just happens to be that thorn in the flesh toothpick Pinocchio again. So his fairy mom seems to think that changing him back into a puppet again will, protect him from us. Well, we'll just see about that. We're going to crash that puppet show tonight and kidnap every boy there. They will fall for our park as they always and be donkeys for the silver mines while that Pinocchio becomes fire wood and Lampwick becomes pre digested din din for our guardians."
"You mean you aren't going to try to turn them into donkeys." the Ringmaster asked.
"Too late for that." the Coachman answered. "They both are too far into that fairy's and Geppetto's way of thinking to ever do the "jackass" behaviors needed to make the magic work on them ever again. Therefore they have to go to the park bonfire and to the scorpions."
Behind the Bird Cage Theater, Tombstone, Arizona Territory, 1881:
Just as Pinocchio had hopped the tiny puppet theater behind the Bird Cage Theater was attracting the children of Tombstone's miners from all over town. Stromboli and a brass band waited toward the side of the little theater to start the show. Geppetto, Lampwick, John Worthington and Gideon were acting as puppeteers behind the was on stage at the top of the stairway where his percormances always began and Jiminy acting as the voices of the other puppets took his usual place under Pinocchio's hat.
Stromboli came foreword to start the show. "Now itsa time to showa you ladies and gentlemen that wea have a much better attraction than thata new amusement park outside town. May I presenta to you for the firsta time in America the only puppet that cana sing and dance without the aid of strings. Laidies and Gentlemen, the one and only Pinocchio.
Not only were kids in attendence but many of the famous adults in Tombstone were there too. Wyatt, Morgan and Virgil Earp were present in the audience as were Doc Holliday and his on and off notorious girl friend Big Nose Kate. The former three were probably there to keep the law at the show since that was their profession but it was anybody's guess why the other two were there. Holliday was an infamous Faro bank as well as an infamous gunfighter and Kate was also known as a major house of ill fame operator. Also present were some of Tombstone's more blatant bottom feeders including the law on the other side of the law Sheriff Behan and Deputy Stilwell and Clanton / McLaury gang members Billy Claiborne, Johnny Ringo and Pete Spense.
The curtain opened to Pinocchio standing at the top of his stairway apparently on strings like any other puppet. The hired musicians gave a trumpet fanfare together puppets accompanying it on the stage in band uniforms. Then Pinocchio's regular song started.
I've got no strings - to hold me down.
To make me fret or make me frown.
This time Pinocchio did not fall down like with his first attempt at doing this performance. Doing it several times made him very confident about descending those stairs in a dancing manner. At the bottom he went into his regular dance.
I had strings - but now I'm free
There are no strings on me.
Hi ho the marryo - that's the only way to be.
I want the world do know - nothing ever worries me.
It was with seeing Pinocchio dance the way that he did that the audience realized his puppet "costume" was not a fake. If they were paying they were getting exactly what they paid for. No human could perform the motions the puppet boy on the stage did, only a real magic stringless puppet could.
I would absolutely swear that is a real animated puppet on that stage. Wyatt Earp said to his brothers Morgan and Virgil.
That is the only conclusion that I can come up with too. Virgil said. These people may come from Italy but it is the Italy of another reality, like something out of those new fangled science fiction books they are publishing in Europe.
Well, just keep that kind of talk to ourselves." Morgan said. "The last thing we need id for the population of this town to think we are a bunch of nuts."
I've got no strings - So I have fun.
I'm not tied up to anyone.
They have strings - but you can see.
There are no strings on me.
Hi ho the marryo, I'm as happy as can be.
I want the world to know.
Nothing ever worry's me.
Suddenly a photograph of the front of the Bird Cage theater slammed down behind Pinocchio and the new part of the show designed for a Tombstone audience began with a chorus line of female puppets dressed as saloon girls.
Jiminy Cricket under Pinocchio's hat provided the "voice" for the main one of these.
You have no strings, can this be true.
To hold me like a buckaroo.
If we could dance - this whole song through.
I'd bust my strings for you.
Pinocchio then engaged in a square dance routine with the main female puppet while the others danced in the background in a chorus line style to a saloon piano version of the there are no strings on me music..
Meanwhile in the audience others were looking on the show with different ideas in their hearts than the Earp brothers. "I think it's time to crash this kiddie amateur hour." deputy Stilwell told Johnny Ringo. "Go get the Coachman and the Ringmaster."
Ringo left the puppet show discreetly as it's next new act involving male Native American puppets along with a single female one in front of a photograph of a Native American village went into action.
Once again Jiminy provided the "voice" for the female stringed puppet.
You have no strings - so I now swoon.
To love you for - many a moon.
If to my village - you'll go to.
I'd cut my strings for you.
This led to the last act of the show featuring cowboy puppets with a female one in a cow girl's outfit. However this was where the show was stopped by a gunshot. Everybody looked behind them to see the Coachman and the Ringmaster together with deputy Stilwell and Johnny Ringo at the entrance to the rear lot. Stilwell was holding the weapon that was fired.
"Break this up." Stilwell said. "You have to have a permit to run outside amusements in this town."
Wyatt Earp broke in. "That is for amusements on public property. This is on private property of the Bird Cage Theater and an entirely legal show being run by that theater in a way that children can see it without having to expose themselves to the goings on in the main theater."
"You have no Jurisdiction here Earp." Stilwell said. "The law requiring permits for outside performances and amusements is a county ordinance, not a town or federal one. Now you Earps we'll deal with later but all children and adults not in law enforcement are under arrest. The children will be taken to the licensed amusement park outside town and the adults can march to jail NOW." Stilwell cocked and shot his revolver again to emphasize that he was in charge.
Pretty soon Pleasure Town's coaches came into the lot driven by the now all to familiar black uniformed guards with the scorpion sting hats. This time there was no discrimination, both boy and girl puppet show attendees were loaded on the coaches after which they departed to pleasure town.
"I wonder what they would want the girls for." Pinocchio asked Jiminy. "As far as I know girls don't change into donkeys."
"They probably don't" Jiminy answered. "They are just being taken to make all this look like a legitimate arrest."
Pinocchio kept quiet as two of the guards approached him. One guard shouted "This one has a red headed accomplice, find him." The guard who had Pinocchio shouted to the other one. "The coachman and the Ringmaster have something special for the both of them."
Lampwick allowed himself to be found. Pinocchio was both a best friend and a brother to him now and he was not about to let Pinocchio face the Coachman and the Ringmaster alone. Both of them were very roughly placed in a coach driven by the Coachman personally that was off to Pleasure Town as soon as it was loaded and locked. There were only three passengers in this particular coach. Pinocchio, Lampwick and the Ringmaster.
Next - Pleasure Town