Short of a GOP presidential convention or a nonagonal track meet, the biggest three-ring spectacle of the moment is now playing at the Boston Garden. With a penchant for extravagance matched only by the verbosity of the publicity men, John Ringling North and assistants have made their bold bid to recoup the loss of the 1944 Hartford fire, and if mere bustle and flourish are any criterion of success, they've hit the tin can squarely with the bottle. Twenty-two Sensational Displays Where Daredeviltry Beggars Description, a Mammoth Menagerie and a Block-Busting Convention of 115 Cavorting Clowns assure enough show time for any calliope fan to consume peanuts, popcorn, and pink cotton candy to his heart's content. If by the end of four hours he hasn't forgotten his finals altogether, he deserves a well-lighted seat in the Side-Show.

This year's performance is unusually well-leavened with foreign stars, for now with the war over they have a chance to leave the confusion of Europe and gain the quiet security of the high wire and trapeze. Another influence of the modern scene is a display involving a Junior Jeep, not to mention the tragicomic clown skit with a bright black Atom Smasher. One clown climbs in the machine and...the rest can be imagined.

Perhaps the most ballyhooed performer is Mathis Duo (first time in America) who rides a bicycle upside down somewhere close to the Garden's roof. Although the band doesn't play "A Bicycle Built For Two," the effect is quite convincing if not entirely stylish. Another show-stopper hides under the title of the Newest Sensation on the High-wire, and the star (also new in the States) manages to skip a three-foot rope nearer the ceiling than anywhere else. Before and after his dance he walks up and down a slanting wire, and, though he sways back and forth some, he hasn't slipped yet and may live as long as one of Ringling's elephants. These last, by the way, are the biggest thing of the evening, but with Wizards of the Wire, Emissaries of Brute Erudition and a Glittering Galaxy of Fairyland Folk to choose from, there should be something for anyone. Unless, of course, he's looking for a Message.