The Clown Egg Register

By Luke Stephenson and Helen Champion

Step right up for the Greatest Book on Earth! For more than 70 years, Clowns International—the oldest established clowning organization—has been painting the faces of its members on eggs. Each one is a record of a clown's unique identity, preserving the unwritten rule that no clown should copy another's look. This mesmerizing volume collects more than 150 of these portraits, from 1946 to the modern day, accompanied by short personal histories of many of the clowns. Here are Tricky Nicky, Taffy, Bobo, Sammy Sunshine, the legendary Emmett Kelly, and Jolly Jack, clowning since 1977 and still performing today with a penguin puppet named Biscuit. A treasure just like the eggs it enshrines, The Clown Egg Register is an extraordinary archive of images and lives of the men and women behind the make-up.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Chronicle Books Digital
• Release date: Mar 20, 2018
• ISBN: 9781452169859

Book preview

Stephenson

Bibbledy Bob

Rob Bowker discovered clowning completely by accident on Sunday, September 14, 2003, at around 2.30 p.m.

He was attending his niece and nephew’s fourth birthday party. His sister Julie and her partner Paul had invited a clown called Topoff to entertain the children.

Rob was working as a DJ at the time, but watching how Topoff entertained both the children and the adults, he was transfixed.

Walking out of the garden, Rob declared that he was going to become a clown right there and then, and Clown Bibbledy Bob was born.

Izzo and Malteaser (The Rapide Brothers) and Oggy

Gavin (Malteaser) and Ian (Izzo) Radforth are brothers from Wolverhampton.

Their clown act was formed in 1991 after encouragement from their hero, Wakefield clown Ted Pickles. Brightly colored wigs were part of their first costumes, as they wanted to be just like Ted.

They joined and trained at the Leeds-based Circus Zanni.

The brothers have a keen interest in classic cars, having been around them all their lives. They attended many car rallies, and when they first started clowning and were too young to drive, they were driven to their gigs in their father’s 1954 Morris Minor. Over the years the Rapide Brothers have had some of their car collection featured in classic car publications and been photographed alongside them in their clown costumes.

The Rapide Brothers are skilled jugglers and unicyclists. Happily, Izzo’s son Owen now performs as Clown Oggy.

Izzo

Malteaser

Oggy

Jo-Jo

Sizzle

Barney

Allsorts

Bombo

Tricky Nicky

Nick Clark from West Sussex performs as Tricky Nicky.

He has worked at Chessington World of Adventures, Thorpe Parke, and Sandown Racecourse, among others.

Nick now works part-time for West Sussex County Council.

He has traveled across Britain and Europe with clown shows and circus troupes, and was lucky enough to support Paul Daniels at the London Palladium, as well as obtaining walk-on supporting roles in television and film.

His talents include stilt-walking, balloon modeling, juggling, and slapstick.

Taffy

Ian Taffy James was born in Cardiff in September 1930. He attended Cardiff High School for boys, where he was quite often scolded for fooling around. During his clowning career he entertained families around Cardiff, and in 2005 he won a Grimaldi Clown Award for services to clowning.

After completing two years of National Service, Taffy worked as a residential social worker with physically and mentally disabled children. Through this work he met his wife, Shirley.

Taffy was a much-loved member of Clowns International and worked as the Clowns International chairman for many years.

He died in October 2009.

Gary the Musical Clown

Cheko

Smiley

Stoney Broke

Pepe

Bobo

Chester Eugene Barnett was born on October 23, 1903, in Tenaha, Texas.

His long career spanned the 1920s through to the early 1970s.

His nickname of Bobo came from childhood, when he would wear a paper bag over his head with holes cut out for his eyes.

He joined the circus as a caretaker for the elephants, and after honing his clowning skills,