Alvin Schwartz rescued Gladys Rimmer, 23, from a fatal fall, Sarasota, Florida, December 9, 1954. In a building at the winter quarters of a circus, Miss Rimmer ascended a rope suspended vertically from the ceiling and began practicing her aerial ballet act 25 feet above the earthen floor of the building. She was holding to the rope with one hand and had the rope entwined around one leg. She extended her other arm and leg in mid-air as a man on the floor drew the rope to various positions in response to Miss Rimmer’s movements. Suddenly her leg slipped from the rope, and she lost her handhold and dropped erect. Schwartz, 27, circus acrobatic clown, who was less than five feet tall and lighter than Miss Rimmer, ran 13 feet along the floor to a point directly beneath her. With one hand he seized the rope, which he hoped she might be able to grasp. Crouching, Schwartz held out his other arm to catch her. She landed atop Schwartz’s shoulder, and he fell to the floor beneath Miss Rimmer, who suffered only minor bruises. Schwartz, who was badly dazed, sustained rib fractures and a kidney injury but recovered without any disablement.
43295-3967Obituary
May 29, 1928 – May 4, 2007Alvin “Al” Schwartz, 78, Venice died May 4, 2007.Survivors include his wife of 52 years, Betsy; a daughter, Diane Ross of Las Vegas; sons Michael of Portsmouth, N.H., and Lewis of Melbourne.Al is also survived by three grandchildren, Jasmine, Alexander and Caitlin; and a great-grandson, Calvin.Al performed as an acrobat and clown for Ringling Bros. Circus, retiring after 27 years, and was a bridge tender at the Circus Bridge in Venice. In 1955, he was awarded the Carnegie Medal for civilian heroism.