Clown

Categories: Clowning | Circus skills | Entertainment occupations

Image:Clown chili peppers.jpg

A clown participating in a Memorial Day parade

A clown today is one of various types of comedic performers, on stage, television, in the circus and rodeo. Though not every clown is readily identifiable by appearance alone, clowns frequently appear in makeup and costume, as well as typically large footwear, oversized or otherwise outlandish clothing, bright colors and patterns or patchwork, a funny or unusual hat or wig or wildly unusual hairstyle and/or color, often with a bulbous or otherwise unusual nose, and enacting humorous sketches, usually in the interludes between major presentations. The clown's humor today is often visual and includes many elements of physical comedy or slapstick humor but not exclusively. For instance, Wavy Gravy's comedy is often cerebral, spiritual, or even political in nature.

History

Clowning is an ancient art form, which appears in some manner in virtually every culture. An early form of clowns was the court jester, a role that can be traced back to ancient Egypt. Though most jesters suffered from some physical deformity and were often the butt of jokes, they were often the only courtiers who enjoyed free speech, and could usually freely speak their minds to the monarch.

Word origin

The word clown comes from words meaning "clot" or "clod" which came also to mean "clumsy fellow", according to the Oxford English Dictionary.

Clown is both a noun and a verb, and can also be an adjective (clown bike, clown shoes, clown white, clown gag and so on). Clown is also used to refer to anyone who provides entertainment in a clownish manner. Within the "clown world", and among professional clowns, "clown" often refers to the character portrayed, rather than the performer. This usage is somewhat rare outside of the professional clown and/or theatrical community.

Clown skills

It has been said "clowns can do anything", this is mostly because clowns have such wildly varying performances. "Everyone knows" that a clown can do magic, juggle, balance things on his nose, do backflips, etc, but clowns might be called on to do just about anything.

In the circus, a clown might be convinced to perform another circus role:

Walk a tightrope, a highwire, a slack rope, or a piece of rope on the ground, though in the latter case, the predictably unpredictable clown might be just as likely to wrestle around on the ground with it, as if it were a boa constrictor.
Ride a horse, a zebra, a donkey, an elephant, or even an ostrich.
Substitute himself in the role of "lion tamer".
Act as "emcee", from M.C. or Master of Ceremonies, the preferred term for a clown taking on the role of "Ringmaster".
"Sit in" with the orchestra, perhaps in a "pin spot" in the center ring, or from a seat in the audience.
Anything any other circus performer might do. It is not uncommon for an acrobat, a horse-back rider, or a lion tamer to secretly stand-in for the clown, the "switch" taking place in a brief moment offstage.

Types

There are several different types of clowns, including:

The whiteface clown, the most well-known of modern clown types - Joey Grimaldi was a whiteface clown. The whiteface clown uses makeup to exaggerate their facial features and expressions rather than modify or conceal them. When a whiteface is performing with other clowns it is usually the leader and the smartest one. skullcaps/baldcaps or headgear appliances simulating a tall, pointy, or otherwise unusually shaped head.

The comedy white face or grotesque clown, who uses exaggerated make-up and costumes, such as large noses, shaped head, tiny hat, etc. Lou Jacobs is a famous grotesque clown.

The character clown, who adopts the character of some common type, such as a butcher, a policeman, housewife or hobo. Prime examples of this type of clown are Emmett Kelly, Red Skelton and Charlie Chaplin. Lucy Ricardo, the most famous character played by Lucille Ball is considered by clowns to be a character clown. Lucille Ball's clown character itself often dressed up as other characters, an instance of a character clown in turn playing a clown as part of the role.

The rodeo clown has one of the most dangerous jobs in all of show business. A rodeo clown is a courageous and hard-working cowboy or animal wrangler, dressed in wild costumes — almost always oversized and consisting of loose fitting layers of clothing to protect them from, and to distract, Rodeo bulls, etc. The looseness of the layers allows a rodeo clown to shed portions of their attire in the event of its being snagged. This professional — whose highly dangerous job is to protect other performers from bucking horses and charging bulls while at the same time entertaining the audience with the antics of a clown — might tell you: "Druther lose a shirt than lose my life".

The Pierrot, or "French clown", appears in whiteface, typically with very little other color on the face. This clown character prefers black and white or other a simple primary color in his or her costume. (le Pierrot is often female, and has also been called "Pirouette" or "Pierrette". When Bernard Delfont was made a life peer, he chose "Pierrot and Pierrette" as the heraldic supporters of his coat of arms.).

The tragic Robert Hunter song "Reuben and Cerise" mentions Pirouette twice, in symbolic colors:

...Cerise was dressing as Pirouette in white

when a fatal vision gripped her tight

Cerise beware tonight...

Cerise is Reuben's "true love", but Ruby Claire was a temptress:

...Sweet Ruby Claire at Reuben stared

At Reuben stared

She was dressed as Pirouette in red

and her hair hung gently down...

Both women have names which translate as "red", but reuben's true love is dressed in pure white, the other, to whom he played his fateful song, is the "lady in red" this symbolism might imply that Reuben was Pierrot's companion, Arlecchino:

Harlequin, or Arlecchino, a character originally from Commedia dell'Arte, is a "motley" clown — in "commedia", Arlecchino used a cane to "whack" the other performers. This is believed to be the origin of "slapstick" a form of physical comedy. A slapstick (battacio in Italian) is a prop with two flat flexible wooden pieces mounted in parallel, the two sticks slap together when the implement is struck, causing a slapping sound, exaggerating the effect of a comedic blow. Harlequin's other names: Traccagnino, Bagattino, Tabarrino, Tortellino, Naccherino, Gradelino, Mezzettino, Polpettino, Nespolino, Bertoldino, Fagiuolino, Trappolino, Zaccagnino, Trivellino, Passerino, Bagolino, Temellino, Fagottino, Pedrolino, Fritellino, Tabacchino could all be considered funny-sounding names, even to an Italian.

Auguste : accompanying a circus clown, as part of a troupe, or as one of a clown duo, there is often another clown character known as an auguste, but the auguste's role is different from the other clowns: he is the "straight man" in most gags. The Auguste is so self-important that the audience inevitably takes the other clown to heart as their protagonist. Bongo (of the duo Bongo and Clownzo) is an Auguste clown, which moniker he might assure you means "dignified and respectable".

The Auguste is the zaniest and most foolish of the clown's group, yet attempts to look dignified, and thinks of himself as smart and superior and wise, which only lends to the comedic effect when he receives his inevitable come-uppance. The cleverer clown (the sidekick) always gets the better of the auguste. The auguste gets the pie in the face, is squirted with water, is knocked down on his backside, sits in the wet paint, etc.

There are also differing styles of clowning. In Europe there is a tradition of "entree Clowning" where the troupe of clowns usually comprising of "White Face, August and a "Joey" (taken from Joseph Grimaldi famous Italian clown) perform a set routine, for example "The Busy Bee" in German " Beinchen Beinchen Gib Mir Honig", "The Bon Bon " "the Ghost" are just a few that are regularly performed in European Circus . Water entrees and Paste(soap) entrees are also staple diet for these audiences. Up until the eighties reprise clowns in europe were very traditional but lately they are showing more versatility with a range of different styles and presentations involving audience participation and more inventive "gags" rather that relying on the old faithfuls. The main difference with the U.S. is that usually european shows have one ring and the clown has the complete attention of the audience , in the states where multiple rings are the norm there are more clowns each working on a different section of the public. there was for many years a tradition of families of clowns all working together ie; the Rastellis, the Francescos, The Alexis and many more, but with the economics changing it is no longer vialble for many shows to afford a large family unit so they are slowly disappearing.

This trend appears to be reversing due to the development of the a new class of "Celebrity Clowns". Circuses have recently been faced with stiff pressure from animal rights groups such as peta for their abuse and mistreatment of animals, as well as the competetive pressure from popular new live action versions of children's television programs. In response, American circuses at least, have begun to lean towards shows based specifically around the clown as a marketable character and personality. Celebrity clowns like Bello Knock or David Larible are headlining recent Ringling Brothers tours and garnering exponentially larger shares of the a shows's operating budget than their fellow performers. This return to clown as central theme in circus, is mirrored it seems, in the likes of Cirque du Solei, who commonly uses clowns a central thread to link their acts and give their shows structure, and the myriad smaller independent and underground circuses around the world who have always relied upon the clown as the primary staple in their retinue.

"The Power Clown" Wall Street Journal Aug 12th 2005

Customs and traditions

As with any ancient artform, fools, clowns and other related artists have developed customs, traditions and even superstitions regarding their chosen avocation. Many of these customs are widely held, and considered fundamental to the Art of Clowning.

A knock is a plug

Professional clowns typically do not make disparaging remarks about other clowns, not only because this is considered petty, but because of the tradition that "a knock is a plug", in other words, to mention a poor performer by name is to provide that performer with undue advertisement.

The Code

Each individual clown has the informal right to a costume, makeup and other unique performance attributes that must not be infringed by other clowns. Despite no enforcement through intellectual property laws, this code of non-infringement is always respected by the professional clown, and its protection is even extended to individual clown routines and acts. This practice is of such a great importance to clowns, that it is often referred to by clowns as simply "The Code."

"Clown Eggs"

In Britain, as recognition of The Code, each clown has their own clown face painted onto an eggshell and no two eggs can be alike.

Clown superstition

It is not uncommon for clowns to avoid the use of blue face paint, as this is considered bad luck.

Clowns do not wish each other good luck, an old show business custom, however, among clowns the expression "knock 'em dead" seems more prevalent than the customary show-biz expression, "break a leg". Wishing a fellow performer "good luck" is considered a jinx.

Clown Show

Shows are the overall production that a clown is a part of, it may or may not include elements other than clowning, such as in a circus show. Clown shows are typically made up of some combination of Entrée's, Side dishes, Clown Stops, Track Gags, Gags and bits.

Entrée's

Entrée's are feature clowning acts lasting 4-8 minutes. They are typically made up of various gags and bits, and usually use a clowning framework. Entrée's almost always end with a blow-off

Side dishes

Side dishes are shorter feature acts. Side dishes are essentually shorter versions of the Entrée, typically lasting 1 - 3 minutes. Side dishes are typically made up of various gags and bits, and usually use a clowning framework. Side dishes almost always end with a blow-off

Clown Stops

Clown Stops are the brief appearance of clowns while the props are changed. These are typically made up of a few gags or several bits. Clown Stops almost always end with a blow-off. Clown stops will always have a beginning, a middle and an end to them.

Track Gags

Track Gags are the quick gags performed by clowns, usually in front of one section of seats. Track gags usually last 1-2 minutes, and are typically made up of 2 or 3 gags and a blow-off. Track gags may have a beginning, a middle and an end to them, or they may not.

Gags

Gags are loosely defined as the jokes clowns play on each other. Gags are typically made up of one or more bits that are worked out and timed before going on stage. A gag may have a beginning, a middle and an end to them, or they may not. Gags can also refer to the prop stunts/tricks or the stunts that clowns use, such as a squirting flower.

Bits

Bits are the individual motions the clown uses. These bits are the building blocks clowns combind to form gags.

Blow-off

The blow-off is the comedic ending of the show or gag.

Clowning Frameworks

Frameworks are the general outline of an act that clowns use to help them build out an act. Frameworks can be loose, including only a general beginning and ending to the act, leaving it up to the clown's creativity to fill in the rest, or at the other extream a fully developed script that allows very little room for creativity.

Prop Stunts

Among the more well-known clown stunts are: squirting flower; the "too-many-clowns-coming-out-of-a-tiny-car" stunt; doing just about anything with a rubber chicken, tripping over his own feet (or an air pocket or imaginary blemish in the floor), or riding any number of ridiculous vehicles or "clown bikes". Individual prop stunts are generally considered to be individual bits.

Cooperative bits

A clown duo might employ a number of cooperative "bits" to help them create an improvisational performance. Using this technique allows both clowns to participate in what looks like a well-rehearsed sketch, but might well be a mere placeholder/spacefiller for a missing act, or used to cover "prop failure" etc. Particularly in a Circus or Variety show, clowns are often relied on to perform "at the drop of a hat" and a well-prepared clown will not only have a large repertoire of bits, but will remain alert when off-stage. In accordance with the well-known "show biz" tradition that "The Show Must Go On", the best clowns will always be ready to save the day, even in the midst of a tragedy -- such as an injured performer.

Pete and re-Pete

In "Pete and re-Pete", the first clown narrates the gag, the second "repeats" the main elements of the first clown's exposition:

"I see you bought yourself a new hat"

--"Yeah, a New Hat (big happy smile of contentment with his battered stovepipe hat)

"Get it uptown?"

--"Yup, Got it Up Town, oh Yeah, you're not gonna get a Fine New Hat like this one DOWN town (taking the hat off again for another satisfied look at the hat, and rocking up on to the balls of his feet and back on his heels, proudly)

"You can say that again"

--"OK: Got it Up Town, yeah, not gonna get one of these downtown" (another proud look at the hat, picking an imagined piece of lint from the torn brim of the bedraggled Fine New Hat), yep, nothing like an Up Town Hat"

"Uhuh... they pay you much?"

(the first clown narrates the gag, the second repeats main elements of this exposition)

"Thats good/that's bad"

In "thats good/that's bad", the first clown narrates the gag, the second responds alternately with "that's good /that's bad":

"I found a dog"

--"that's good"(noncommittally)

"It wasn't a hot dog though" (showing the dog)

--"that's too bad" (looking at the dog, wistfully)

"He's really friendly"

--"Oh, that's good" (agreeably)

"with people's legs"

--"Well THAT's bad" (appalled)

"He doesn't eat much

--"that's good" (nodding agreeably)

"He sure poops a lot though"

--"that's bad"('that stinks' expression)

"he's housebroken"

--"THAT's good"(of course it is)

"No that's bad, he did some jail time for the last housebreak"

--"Ok, then that's bad..."(willing to be corrected)

"No that's good - it was his second offense. He's gone straight now"

--"that's... uhhh... good?"(confused now)

"No that's bad, he's gone straight for your pastrami sandwich!"

This bit is also seen with other "good/bad" interjections: perhaps "that's fortunate/unfortunate" or even (with a pair of two "Surfer Dude" clowns) as "Dude that rocks!/Man, that bites".

Note that a clown would likely choose the word 'pastrami' rather than 'corned beef', because pastrami is a funny word and corned beef is not. Clowns prefer: monkey wrenches to "spanners"; doohickeys to "gadgets"; kitchen gadgets to "small appliance"; monickers to "nicknames"; would much prefer to be fidgety than "restless".

Each clown has his own gags or bits, these techniques are used to share gags with other clowns that are unfamiliar with the material, by using "Yes, and..." techniques ("Yes and" has become a technique commonly taught in "improv" classes) such as "Pete and re-Pete", and "Thats good/that's bad", the clowns avoid conflicting gags, supporting each other in whatever they may say, and keeping the performance flowing.

It is considered bad improvisational form to "deny the proposition" as in:

"Hi Dewey, looks like you got yourself a new pair of shoes"

-- "No, Tiny, these are my regular shoes."

... as this tends to stop the show, "killing" the "comedic momentum" crucial to keeping the attention of the audience.

Some famous clowns

Achille Zavatta (1915–1993).
Alfredo Rastelli, world famous Italian clown.
Avner Eisenberg, a.k.a. Avner the Eccentric a "Broadway" clown.
Batatinha (literally Little Potato), from Portugal. A very well-known clown.
Bill Irwin, a "baggy pants" clown known for his vaudeville-style performances.
Bim Bom, a famous clown of Revolutionary Russian, executed by the Cheka for his Bolshevik satires.
Bongo, Clownzo's "Auguste" partner, portrayed by the American multi-media and performance artist whose name is simply "Glenn".
Bozo the Clown, a franchised clown, played by many local television performers. He was also the name of a character in the cartoon.
Coco (Nicolai Poliakoff), a famous clown of Latvian origin.
David Konyot , 4 times winner best clown (U K) Hungarian circus festival, Polish circus Festival.
David Larible
Die Chickys, classic european clown act.
Emmett Kelly, "sad clown" with the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus.
Francesco Caroli.
The Fratellinis, a dynasty of French clowns.
George Washington Lafayette Fox, perhaps the most famous American clown during the 19th century and one of the first known performers to become typecast in a role.
Glen "Frosty" Little, a "white face" clown with the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus.
Grock (Adrian Wettach).
Habakkuk (Arminio Rothstein).
J. P. Patches, seattle children's television clown.
Johnny Tatum, rodeo clown
Joseph Grimaldi credited with being "the first whiteface clown" — in an homage to Grimaldi, circus clowns began referring to them selves and each other as "Joey"s, and the term 'joey' is now a synonym for clown.
Karandash (Mikhail Nikolayevich Rumyantsev).
Lou Jacobs, one the world's most well-known circus clowns, most often performing as a grotesque clown.
Lucy Ricardo (Lucille Ball) television superstar/producer, certainly one of America's most famous clowns, and a fine example of a character clown.
Oleg Popov, great clown from the Soviet Union.
Quail Dobbs, rodeo clown
Red Skelton aka Freddy the Freeloader or Clem Kadiddlehopper.
Remi, "Puerto Rico's Greatest Clown".
Ronald McDonald, McDonald's fast-food restaurant chain's advertising clown character, performed by various performers, all of whom were trained to portray the character in an identical manner. Prior to this standardization of the character, Ronald McDonald was played by several performers. In the first television ad featuring Ronald McDonald, the clown was portrayed by Willard Scott.
Rusty Nails, Pacific Northwest Children's television clown, and model (in part) for Matt Groening's "Krusty" character on the television program "The Simpsons"
Slim Pickens, rodeo clown and film actor.
Will Kemp (fl c 1589–1600) actor dancer and clown who worked with Shakespeare.
Yuri Nikulin, Russian clown and actor.

Some other clowns

Jonny Mortensen, from Sweden, a really "nerdy" clown. He is without doubt Karlstad's (in Sweden) most famous "newsclown".
Jack, advertising icon for the fast food company, Jack in the Box.
Jorn 'Erasorhead' Barger,from Hoboken,a hobo-clown in the tradition of Freddy the Freeloader of Red Skelton fame.
Ernest Borgnine, the American film and television actor, enjoys performing as a clown in parades, particularly in New York City.
Three peace-seeking clowns were beaten up by police during the protests against the 1981 Springbok rugby tour of New Zealand. The protest movement thereafter added "Send in the Clowns" to its repertoire of songs.
Pat Cashin, (America) solo clown with the Shrine Circus
Cepillín, a Mexican clown.

Fictional clowns

Krusty the Clown the washed-up, has-been television clown from the animated television series The Simpsons.
Shakes the Clown the title character of the movie of the same name. Shakes the Clown was called "the Citizen Kane of alcoholic clown movies" by the New York Times.
Pennywise the Clown, a character from Stephen King's It.
Binky the Clown, a character from Garfield comics.
Homey the Clown, a character from the In Living Color television program, whose famous catch phrase was "Homey don't play dat", played by Damon Wayans.
Buttons (clown), a central character from the 1952 movie The Greatest Show on Earth, played by Jimmy Stewart.
Clarabell the clown was a regular character from the Howdy Doody television program, originally played by Bob Keeshan of Captain Kangaroo fame.
I Pagliacci, (The Clowns) a tragic opera by Ruggiero Leoncavallo prominently features Arlecchino as a character. This opera was inspired by a true story.
Yorick was a court jester who featured as the subject of a lengthy soliloquy in Shakespeare's Hamlet.
Chuckles the Clown was a Mary Tyler Moore Show background character who was trampled to death in one of the best-known episodes.
Calvero was a famous clown character played Charlie Chaplin in the film Limelight (film).
Frenchy the Clown of the national lampoon comic "Evil clown comics" series.
Koko the Clown from Max Fleischer's Out of the Inkwell series of animated cartoons.
The Joker is a supervillain from DC Comics.
Buggy the Clown is a fictional character & antagonist of the manga and anime One Piece. His appearance is best described as a mix between a blue-haired clown and a stereotypical pirate. He is extreamly sensitive about his real nose (which actually looks like a false clown nose) and anyone who says any thing that he thinks sounds like an insult to his nose, (even if the statement has absolutly nothing to do with his nose) will cause him to get extremly violent. (if you was the episodes in japanese you will se the words ar similer to "big" "red" & "nose")
Doink the Clown, a gimmick used by several wrestlers in the 1990s. Doink began as a heel wrestler in the evil clown archetype, but later Doinks portrayed the character as a babyface who loved to entertain the children in the crowd.
Captain Spaulding, from the horror films House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects.

Coulrophobia

The term coulrophobia, the fear of clowns, is a recent coining in response to a surprisingly large amount of interest in the condition, particularly on the Internet, where websites have been developed which are specifically devoted to the issue.

The word has no significant coverage in printed dictionaries, but try an Internet search on coulrophobia and you’ll discover a host of websites by coulrophobes (people who fear clowns), the condition being one of the most remarked-upon phobias on the Internet.

Much of the interest has originated with a man called Rodney Blackwell, a web designer whose affliction with the phobia led him to set up several website featuring message boards where fellow coulrophobes could share experiences. The sites also affords opportunities to buy merchandise bearing an ‘I hate Clowns’ logo, and play games like ‘Punch-the-Clown’.

Causes of the phobia

In discussions of causes of coulrophobia, sufferers seem to agree that the most fear-inducing aspect of clowns is the heavy makeup which, accompanied by the bulbous nose and weird color of hair, completely conceals the wearer's identity. Clowns also often appear in horror movies, but unlike the phobia, the intention here is usually to frighten viewers by letting evil take the disguise of something normally associated with fun and happiness.

External links

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