101 Amazing Facts about Clowns

By Jack Goldstein

From ancient Egypt to the modern-day circus, the role of the clown can be traced throughout history. But how much do you really know about the profession that takes comedy very seriously? This fascinating book takes the reader on a journey through the ages, explaining how clowns such as the whiteface and auguste came to be. You’ll read about history’s best-loved performers such as Joseph Grimaldi, the father of modern clowning, and learn about the origin of terms used today such as the ‘clown alley’. If you want to know why blue make-up is supposed to bring bad luck, and who the literary world’s first ever killer clown was, then this is the book for you.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jack Goldstein Books
• Release date: May 30, 2017
• ISBN: 9781785386985

Book preview

you.

Clowning Basics

A clown is - according to some definitions - a performer who employs physical comedy. However, even this basic explanation can easily be debated, as a clown’s performance is not necessarily comedic, nor is it always physical. Clowning covers so many different areas that it is perhaps best to think of the word clown simply to mean entertainer.

There are a number of different types of clown, with some elements of crossover between them. For instance, what many people think of as the classic ‘circus’ clown draws heavily on the auguste character, who is the ‘opposite’ of the more serious white clown. There is also the character clown, with perhaps the best-known example even today being Charlie Chaplin’s Tramp character. Pierrot and Harlequin can be seen as ancestors of the white clown and the auguste, and the mime shares many characteristics with the white clown, but has his own individual traits.

Ask a child to describe a clown, and they will most likely talk you through the dress and make-up of an auguste: an outlandish and often highly colourful costume, a wig, again often of a bright colour, larger-than-necessary footwear, and distinctive face-paint.

The word for a deep-rooted fear of clowns is coulrophobia. Whilst many adults these days claim such a fear, in psychiatric terms it is reserved for pathological examples, with a number of people suggesting the ‘fear’ as being more of an affectation, in response to the modern use of clowns in a deliberately horror-related context.

There are estimated to be around twenty thousand clowns in the world, including both full-time professionals and ‘serious’ amateurs.

The etymology of the word clown is unknown. Some believe it comes from the Teutonic clod, meaning someone who is coarse and impolite; others have suggested it may come from the Icelandic word klunni, meaning clumsy - which is also similar to the Swedish word kluns which has the same definition.

The first references we can find that use the English word clown