In this Infocom mystery, the daughter of a circus owner has been kidnapped. The owner has hired a detective to find her, but from the looks of it, he's not going to be much help. You just happened to hang around a little too late after the circus was over, and well, somebody's got to do it. This is Jim O'Neill's only Infocom story, which seems like a shame, because this is a good one. The plot-line is solid, and is carried on effectively each time you solve a problem. More fun than actually going to a circus, Ballyhoo is a winner.

Scoring: There are 200 points in Ballyhoo, rewarded 10 at a time. Actions that get points are highlighted with quotation marks.

In the Wings

S. HELP MIDGET. S. GET POLE. N. N. N. U. E. E. E. E. E. "E." GET BALLOON. W (six times). D. D. GET POLE. S. S. W. GET MASK. S. LOOK IN CAGE. EXAMINE GUARD. ASK GUARD ABOUT CIRCUS. ASK GUARD ABOUT CHUCKLES. ASK GUARD ABOUT HIMSELF. APPLAUD. GET GLASSES. W. HIDE. LISTEN TO CONVERSATION. AGAIN. E.

Back Yard

EXAMINE BALLOON. OPEN BALLOON. INHALE HELIUM. "HARRY, HELLO." S. W. WEAR MASK. KNOCK ON DOOR. "S." CLOSE DOOR. EXAMINE TRAY. SEARCH ASH. GET NEWSPRINT. READ NEWSPRINT. "CRAWL UNDER CANVAS." GET WOOD. DARN. DARN. DROP TRAP. E. NE. N. NE. "SEARCH GARBAGE." GET TICKET. SW. S. PUNCH BLUE (or pink if you're female). PUT TICKET IN SLOT. E.

Midway Entrance

EXAMINE PITCHMAN. EXAMINE DETECTIVE. EXAMINE MONKEY. E. N. GIVE TICKET. HYPNOTIZE ME. GET UP. E. U. E. D. E. U. E. D. S. GET IN LINE. WAIT. WAIT. GET OUT. GET IN SHORT LINE. WAIT. WAIT. GET OUT. YES. GET IN LONG LINE. EAT BANANA. THROW BANANA. N. HAWKER, HELLO. "U." GET UP. S.

Midway of Midway

W. CRAWL UNDER TENT. SEARCH GARBAGE. GET BAR. S. E. E. N. NE. GIVE BAR. TINA, HELLO. HOLD HAND. KISS HAND. GET STOOL. NW. "GET RADIO." TURN RADIO OFF. S. W. W. S. SE.

Menagerie Nook

LOOK IN CAGE. "GET KEYS WITH POLE." UNLOCK CAGE. OPEN DOOR. N. GET ALL. EXAMINE HEADPHONES. REWIND TAPE. S. DROP ALL. GET HEADPHONES AND RADIO. PLAY TAPE. U. TURN RADIO ON. REWIND TAPE. TURN DIAL TO 1170. RECORD MUSIC. WAIT (until tape stops). REWIND TAPE. TURN RADIO OFF. D (ignore it when the game tells you that you died). GET ALL EXCEPT POLE. NW.

Menagerie

UNLOCK DOOR. OPEN CAGE. W. "PLAY TAPE." SEARCH STRAW. OPEN TRAP DOOR. GET RIBBON. E. N. W. SW. W. S. E. EXAMINE TRAILER. UNLOCK COMPARTMENT. OPEN COMPARTMENT. GET WHIP. W. GET MEAT. N. "CATCH MOUSE IN BUCKET." E. NE. N. N.

Performance Ring

UNLOCK CAGE. OPEN DOOR. W. WHIP SMOOTH. AGAIN. AGAIN. OPEN GRATE. THROW MEAT INTO PASSAGE. E. W. CLOSE GRATE. "MOVE STAND." DROP STOOL. E. S. S. SW. GIVE CASE TO HARRY. NE. PUT TICKET IN SLOT. E. E. S.

Jennifer's Boudoir

ASK JENNY ABOUT CASE. "ASK ANDREW ABOUT CASE." U. GET ALL. U. N. W. S. GET MOUSE. SHOW MOUSE TO ELEPHANT. AGAIN. "WAIT." SW. N. FILL BUCKET. S. NE. N. POUR WATER ON MAN. ASK MAN FOR NOTE. DROP BUCKET. GET NOTE AND CARD. READ NOTE. S. SE. "SLIDE TICKET UNDER FRONT." E.

Blue Room

GET TICKET. BET $2.00. NO. OPEN PANEL. NO. LOOK UNDER TABLE. OPEN PANEL. W. NW. SW. WAIT. NE. SE. PUT TICKET UNDER FRONT. E. LOOK UNDER TABLE. GET SUITCASE. OPEN PANEL. W. DROP ALL. U. U. N. S. N. GET SHAFT. "PULL SHAFT." D. D. GET ALL EXCEPT WHIP. NW. SW.

Near White Wagon

DROP ALL. U. TURN CRANK. KNOCK ON DOOR. "IN." LOCK DOOR. EXAMINE DESK. GET SHEET. EXAMINE SHEET. MOVE DESK. U. D. GET ALL. W. ASK HARRY ABOUT EDDIE. W. S. WEAR SUIT. WEAR SHAWL. LOOK IN POCKET. WEAR VEIL. E. SHOW NOTE. SHOW NEWSPRINT. SHOW SPREADSHEET TO EDDIE. SHOW RIBBON. "SHOW CARD." KNOCK ON DOOR. E.

Inside Trailer

CLOSE DOOR. GET BAR. MOVE HEAD. OPEN DOOR. W. W. OPEN DOOR. S. GET THUMB. N. E. E. PUT THUMB IN SPACE. WAIT. "GET CHELSEA." W. N. E. NE. N. W. N. N.

Performance Ring revisited

REMOVE SHAWL. REMOVE VEIL. REMOVE SUIT. DROP ALL EXCEPT RADIO. W. GET STAND. E. DROP STAND. CLAP HANDS. "ROUSTABOUT, GET NET." GET ON STAND. U. U. TURN RADIO ON. E. E. E. W. W. W. W. D. S. S. S. E. CALL WPDL. W. N. N. N. GET ON STAND. U. E. E. E. E. "E." LET GO.