List of clowns

Circus-style

Famous

[Lowell Swortzell, "Here Come the Clowns: A Cavalcade of Comedy from Antiquity To the Present," Publisher: Viking Press, 1978 ISBN 0-670-36874-1 ] [ Frank Foster and Willan G. Bosworth, "Clowning Through" Publisher: Heath Cranston LTD London, 1937]

* Achille Zavatta (1915 - 1993)
* Batatinha (literally "Little Potato"), from Portugal. A very well-known clown.
* Bev "Rebo the Clown" Bergeron -CBS=TV 1960-65 -Magic Land of Allakazam & The Magic Circus
* Bim Bom, a famous clown of Revolutionary Russia, executed by the Cheka for his Bolshevik satires
* Blinko - Ernie Burch (1929-1997) R50's Tv show. Ringling Bros. circus. The Greatest Show on Earth movie. Named by Cecil B. DeMille
* Charlie Rivel - Other than Grock perhaps the most beloved and respected of all European clowns
* The Chickys, classic European clown act
* Coco the Clown (Nicolai Poliakoff), Longtime star clown of the Bertram Mills Circus
* Daniel Rice (1823-1901) A famous U.S.A. clown of the 19th century and principal inspiration for "Uncle Sam".
* David Konyot, 4 times winner best clown (U K) Hungarian circus festival, Polish circus Festival
* Drosta, Real name unknown. European
* Emmett Kelly - Extremely well-known American tramp clown
* Francesco Caroli
* The Fratellinis, a dynasty of French clowns
* George Carl - American clown who found great success in Europe. Performed "Royal Command Performance" for the Queen at the Palladium in London. He also received the coveted "Golden Clown" award from Princess Grace, (Grace Kelly) at the Circus Festival of Monte Carlo.
* Glen "Frosty" Little, America's only living Master Clown and longtime "Boss Clown" with the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus
* Grock (Adrian Wettach)
* Johnny B, Kummiedjant Lokali
* Ian P, Maltese Clown and Actor of the Rivendell Circus
* Joe Jackson Sr & Jr. - famous tramp clown entree with a breakaway bicycle
* Johnny Tatum, rodeo clown
* Kahlan Brooks, known for her signature hair extensions and bright make-up
* Karandash (Mikhail Nikolayevich Rumyantsev)
* Lou Jacobs - During his 60 years in the American circus Master Clown Lou Jacobs came to be known as one of the most famous clowns in the world through his innovative comic routines, compassion for others and strong dedication to his work
* Oleg Popov, Greatly admired clown from the Soviet Union
* Otto Griebling - Prolific and influential Master Clown with the Cole Bros. and Ringling circuses. The single most admired and respected American circus clown of the 20th century
* Quail Dobbs, rodeo clown
* The Rastellis - European clown act
* Remi, "Puerto Rico's Greatest Clown"
* Vicki Gabereau, "Rosie Sunshine" who ran as a candidate in the 1974 Toronto mayoral election
* Yuri Nikulin, Russian clown and actor
* Zig and Zag (Australian performers)

Contemporary

["Circus Report"Magazine. Publisher: Graphics 2000, ASIN: B00006K8X5 ] ["Spectacle" Magazine. Publisher: Circus Plus Publications, ASIN: B00006KXUX]
* Aaron Rider - "Melvino"; unicycling, bagpiping, juggling clown currently with the Carson & Barnes Circus
* Arthur Vercoe Pedlar - "Vercoe", an English clown
* Barry Lubin - "Grandma"; star clown of the Big Apple Circus
* Bill Machtel - "Mr. Bill"; longtime clown at the Circus World Museum in Baraboo, WI.
* Bob Kelmer - "Doodles"; Appearing daily 2006 at the Circus World Museum, Baraboo, WI.
* Buffo, claimed to be the worlds strongest clown
* Cepillín, a Mexican clown
* Chris and Gina Allison - "Bucky and Gigi"; Husband and wife clown team and founders of Cirque du Jour
* David Shiner - Tony Award-winning American born mime and circus clown who has appeared on Broadway and with several prominent European circuses
* Demetrius Nock - "Bello Nock"; a star clown in Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus
* Denis Lacombe - Star clown with Cirque du Soleil and Big Apple best known for his comedy conductor gag
* Dimitri, well-known Swiss clown and mime
* Ernest Borgnine, the American film and television actor, enjoys performing as a clown in parades, particularly in New York City
* Fumagalli, European star clown soon to appear with the Big Apple Circus
* Giovanni Zoppé - Youngest performer ever to be inducted into the International Clown Hall of Fame
* Greg and Karen DeSanto - Husband and wife clown/comedy team
* Jason T. and Kristen Stewart - Husband & wife team formerly with RBB&B. They are the founders of the Seaside Clowns (which also includes Aaron Tucker, [http://www.burlthebubbleguy.com Darren Burrell a.k.a. Burl the Bubble Guy] , Bryan Fulton, and Andrew Scharff, all Ringling alumni and all excellent clowns in their own right) clowning at resorts in Myrtle Beach, SC.
* Jeff "Gordoon" Gordon - "Le Clown Gordoon"; star clown with the Big Apple Circus
* John Gilkey, American clown and comic juggler who has appeared with the New Pickle Circus and Cirque du Soleil
* John Wayne Gacy - "Pogo"; a painter and infamous serial killer
* Jorn Barger - "Erasorhead"; from Hoboken, a hobo-clown in the tradition of Freddy the Freeloader of Red Skelton fame
* Larry Pisoni - "Lorenzo Pickle"; The founder of The Pickle Family Circus
* Michael Halvarson - Swedish clown and star pickpocket entertainer who has appeared in Cirque du Soleil Kooza.
* Pat Cashin - American clown and "Comedy Ringmaster" with the Shrine Circuses
* Rebo the Clown (Bev Bergeron) "The Magic Land of Allakazam" CBS-TV 1960-62-ABC-TV 1962-65 - Magic Circus Internationally Syndicated 1970-71 - Walt Disney World Diamond Horseshoe Revue 15Yrs
* Rik Gern - Bonzo Crunch: Fool at Large; a popular circus and event clown from Austin, Tx
* Steve Smith - "T.J. Tatters"; longtime director of Ringling Clown College
* Timothy Noel Tegge - American whiteface clown and ringmaster with the Shrine Circus
* VeeKay the Zoot Suit Clown - Circus clown and official greeter at the Orange County Fair in Orange County, California.
* Walter Galetti - prize winning clown Austria

Film

[Larry Langman, "The Encyclopedia of Film Comedy". Publisher: Taylor & Francis, November 1987 ISBN 0-8240-8496-9] [Walter Kerr, "The Silent Clowns". Publisher: Knopf - 1975 ISBN 0-394-46907-0] [Alan S. Dale, "Comedy Is a Man in Trouble: Slapstick in American Movies". Publisher: University of Minnesota Press, 2000 ISBN 0-8166-3657-5 ]
* Abbott & Costello (William (Bud) Abbott, 1897-1974); Louis Costello, 1906-1959) American comedy duo whose mastery of the white clown (straight man) /red clown (comic) relationship made them one of the most popular and respected teams in American comedy history
* Ben Turpin (September 19, 1869 - July 1, 1940) cross-eyed comedian, best remembered for his work in silent films
* Buster Keaton - (October 4, 1895 – February 1, 1966) The Great Stoneface. His innovative work as both a comedian and a director made great contributions to the development of the art of cinema
* Charlie Chaplin - (April 16, 1889 – December 25, 1977) British born comedian. The most famous actor in early to mid Hollywood cinema era, he acted in, directed, scripted, produced, and eventually scored his own films. His principal character was "The Little Tramp"
* Chester Conklin (January 11, 1886 - October 11, 1971) American comedian and actor
* Harry Langdon - (June 15, 1884 – December 22, 1944) was an American silent film comedian and a first class mime
* Jacques Tati - (October 9, 1908 – November 5, 1982) was a French comedian, mime and filmmaker best known as the socially inept Monsieur Hulot
*Jim Carrey - a contemporary film star and comic actor best known for his lead roles in "The Mask, Liar Liar "and many more movies
* Keystone Cops incompetent group of policemen created by Mack Sennett for his Keystone Film Company between 1912 and 1917
* Laurel & Hardy - perhaps the most famous comedy duo in film history
* Martin & Lewis - an American comedy duo, comprised of singer Dean Martin (as the "straight man") and comedian Jerry Lewis (as his stooge)
* The Marx Brothers - a team of sibling comedians that appeared in vaudeville, stage plays, film and television
* Peter Sellers - (September 8, 1925 – July 24, 1980) Extremely versatile and talented English comedian and actor best remembered for the character of Inspector Clouseu
* Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle (March 24, 1887 – June 29, 1933) One of the most popular actors of his era, but is best known today for his central role in the so-called "Fatty Arbuckle scandal"
* Slim Pickens, rodeo clown and film actor
* Snub Pollard (November 9, 1889, Melbourne, Australia, - January 19, 1962) was a silent movie comedian, popular in the 1920s.
* The Three Stooges - starred in many short features that consisted of masterful ways of showcasing their extremely physical brand of slapstick comedy
* W.C. Fields - (January 29, 1880 – December 25, 1946) was an American comedian and actor. Fields created one of the great American comic personas of the first half of the 20th century

Television

[Karin Adir, "Great Clowns of American Television", Publisher: McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers - December 2001 ISBN 0-7864-1303-4 ]

* Benny Hill - The Benny Hill Show
* Bozo the Clown, a franchised clown played by many local television performers and on cartoons, based on the character created in 1946 by Alan W. Livingston for Capitol Records' record-reader series
* Bubbles the Clown - The clown doll that appears on BBC test cards F,J & W
* Charlie Chalk from the British children's TV series of the same name
* Clarabell the clown was a regular character from the "Howdy Doody" television program, originally played by Bob Keeshan of "Captain Kangaroo" fame
* 'Clown' from "Adventure Island" (John Michael Howson)
* 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
* Eric The Clown, a character on Seinfeld, played by Jon Favreau
* Flunky the Clown, a character on Late Night with David Letterman, a bitter, chain-smoking, depressed, very unenthusiastic clown who helped Dave answer viewer mail about circuses and clowns, played by show writer Jeff Martin.
* 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
* Jackie Gleason - The Jackie Gleason Show, The Honeymooners
* John Belushi - Saturday Night Live
* J.P. Patches Seattle mainstay for decades
* Loonette, character played by Alyson Court on the The Big Comfy Couch
* Lucille Ball - I Love Lucy, The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy
* Michael Richards - Seinfeld
* Milton Berle - Texaco Star Theater, Berle's Buick Hour
* Mr. Noodle, character created by Bill Irwin for the Elmo's World segment of Sesame Street
* Paul Reubens - Pee-Wee's Playhouse
* Pinky Lee - The Pinky Lee Show
* Red Skelton - The Red Skelton Show
* Rowan Atkinson - Mr. Bean, The Black Adder, The Thin Blue Line
* Rusty Nails - Pacific Northwest Children's television clown, and model (in part) for Matt Groening's "Krusty" character on the television program "The Simpsons"
* Sid Caesar - Your Show of Shows and Caesar's Hour
* Soupy Sales - The Soupy Sales Show
* Yucko the Clown, made famous from his rude observations, obsceneties, and public intoxication
* Zig and Zag (Australian performers)

Theatrical

Famous

[Stanley Green, "The Great Clowns of Broadway". Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA September 1, 1984 ISBN 0-19-503471-6]

* A. Robins - Vaudeville's "The Banana Man" and "One Man Music Shop"
* Andy Kaufman American comic and one of the most famous practitioners of "anti-humor"
* Clark & McCullough - Bobby Clark & Paul McCullough started as circus clowns and progressed to be stars of stage and screen
* Ed Wynn - The Perfect Fool
* George Carl - Longtime star of the Crazy Horse Saloon in Paris
* George Washington Lafayette Fox, perhaps the most famous American stage clown during the 19th century and one of the first known performers to become typecast in a role
* 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
* Olsen & Johnson - Stars of Broadway's "Hellzapoppin"'
* Richard Tarlton - actor and clown in the Elizabethan theatre in England
* Robert Armin - actor and clown in Shakespeare's company
* Spike Jones and his City Slickers - Murdered the classics with their "Musical Depreciation Revue"; versatile American musical act featuring slapstick circus-style comedy
* Tommy Cooper - British comedy magician
* W. C. Fields - Vaudeville comedy star who mastered the variety as well as the legitimate stage, silent and talking films, print and radio
* Will Kempe (fl c 1589–1600) - actor dancer and clown who worked with Shakespeare; famously jigged his way from Norwich to London in 1600
* Willie, West & McGinty - Fast-paced Irish-American vaudeville knockabout act about 3 laborers building a house

Contemporary

* Adam Gertsacov - bills himself as "The Most Educated Clown In America (barring certain elected officials.)" Currently the Clown Laureate of Greenbelt Maryland, and the "boss clown" of the [http://www.acmeclown.com Acme Clown Company]
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Hopton123/Alex_the_Jester Alex the Jester] , the "King of Jesters" speaks a contemporary version of the medieval gibberish language Grammelot. - [http://www.alexthejester.com Alexthejester.com]
* Avner Eisenberg - also known as Avner the Eccentric, a "Broadway" clown
* Bill Irwin - Tony award winning clown known for his new vaudeville-style performances
* Blue Man Group - Trio of silent characters that perform covered in blue paint
* Dan "Sylvester the Jester" Sylvester - The Human Cartoon
* Dario Fo - Capo Comicio - creator of "Mistero Buffo" and "Accidental Death of an Anarchist"; recipient of the 1997 Nobel Prize in Literature; uses Arlecchino stage persona, political activist
* Drew Richardson - The Dramatic Fool
* Gale LaJoye - International performer and creator of "Snowflake" [http://www.lajoye.com LaJoye.com]
*Geoff Hoyle - stage clown. Started in the Pickle Family Circus with Bill Irwin and Larry Pisoni
* Hilary Chaplain - Versatile NYC stage clown
* Jeff Jenkins - co-founder of Chicago's Midnight Circus
* Julie Goell - "If Olive Oyl played Tinkerbell, in a play by Kafka, directed by Mel Brooks, and designed by Samsonite"
* Michael Lane Trautman - physical clown and pantomime, with several theatrical shows
* Mump and Smoot - Canadian "clowns of horror"
* Richard Pochinko - founder of "Canadian Clowning" style
* Slava Polunin - Russian-born clown and creator of "Slava's Snowshow", a theatrical experience currently running at Union Square Theater in New York, New York
* Wolfe Bowart - stage clown touring internationally with his productions "LaLaLuna" and "The Shneedles"

Fictional

* Adam the Clown, from the video game "Dead Rising". Equipped with two chainsaws that he juggles, he is a boss in the game. He dies by falling on his chainsaws and suffering from massive blood loss.
* Binky the Clown from "Garfield and Friends"
* Buggy the Clown is the 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 extremely 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 absolutely nothing to do with his nose) will cause him to get extremely violent. (if you watch the episodes in Japanese you will see the words are similar to "big" "red" & "nose")
* Buttons, a central character from the 1952 movie "The Greatest Show on Earth", played by Jimmy Stewart
* Calvero was a famous clown character played Charlie Chaplin in the film "Limelight"
* Captain Spaulding, from the horror films "House of 1000 Corpses" and "The Devil's Rejects"
* Chuckles the Clown was a "Mary Tyler Moore Show" background character who was trampled to death in one of the best-known episodes
* Dodo Delwyn once a famous Ziegfeld star, is reduced to playing clowns in burlesque and amusement parks in 1953 film "The Clown", played by Red Skelton
* Frenchy the Clown of the national lampoon comic "Evil clown comics" series
* "I Pagliacci", ("The Clowns") a tragic opera by Ruggiero Leoncavallo prominently features Arlecchino as a character. This opera was inspired by a true story
* Jack, advertising icon for the fast food company, Jack in the Box
* Jack Point, from the Judge Dredd Megazine's The Simping Detective series.Undercover Judge who dresses like a clown in order to appear crazy enough to fit in. Also conceals several weapons within clown gear
* Jojo, main character on the Disney Channel's "Jojo's Circus"
* The Joker is a supervillain often called the "Clown Prince of Crime" from DC Comics
* J. P. Patches, seattle children's television clown
* Koko the Clown from Max Fleischer's "Out of the Inkwell" series of animated cartoons
* Krusty the Clown the television clown from the animated television series "The Simpsons"
* Pennywise, the clown monster in the Stephen King book "It"
* Pierrot Bolneze from "Yakitate! Japan", world-class clown, bread judge and master of ceremonies, he's also the crown prince of Monaco according to the series. Even though he's defined as a clown, he looks more like an harlequin and he perform acrobacies (like free-falling from a great height) and even magic tricks (like cloning himself)
* Rajoo, a circus clow and the central character in Raj Kapoor's film "Mera Naam Joker"
* 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 in Washington, D.C.
* Scoopy, clown mascot of the Safe-T-Cone novelty ice cream cone company.
* 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"
* Willie Whistle - WSBK-TV38, a clown who had a kids' show in the early 1980s. He got his name because he "spoke" with a squeeky whistle
* Yorick was a court jester who featured as the subject of a lengthy soliloquy in Shakespeare's "Hamlet"
* Stan is the clown name of the character Louison in the 1991 french film "Delicatessen". When Louison worked as "Stan" his sidekick was a chimp known as Livingstone and they were employed in the fictional "Cirque du Colonial" in Paris.

References

Further reading

*"Poor Clown" by Charlie Rivel
*"Behind My Greasepaint" by Coco
*"Bert Williams - A Biography of the Pioneer Black Comedian" by Eric Ledell Smith
*"The Book Of Clown" by George Speaight
*"Bring On The Clowns" by Beryl Hugil
*"Clown, My Life In Tatters and Smiles" by Emmett Kelly and F. Beverly Kelly
*"The Clown In Times (Volumes 1-6)" by Bruce Johnson
*"Clowns" by Douglas Newton
*"Clowns" by John Towsen
*"Clowns Of The Hope - Tradition Keepers and Delight Makers" by Barton Wright
*"Felix Adler" by Anne Aull Bowber
*"The Fool and His Scepter" by William Willeford
*"Fools and Jesters At The English Court" by John Southworth
*"Greasepaint Matadors - The Unsung Heroes of Rodeo" by Jeanne Joy Hartnagle-Taylor [http://www.lasrocosa.com/greasepaintmatadors.html]
*"Grimaldi - King of Clowns" by Richard Findlater
*"Grock - King of Clowns" by Grock
*"Here Come The Clowns" by Lowell Swortzell
*"Jest In Time: A Clown Chronology" by Bruce Johnson
*"Life's A Lark" by Grock
*"A Ring, A Horse And A Clown" by John H. McConnell
*"Russian Clown" by Oleg Popov
*"The Tramp Tradition" by Bruce Johnson
*Hammond, J.
*"Woven Gods: Female Clowns and Power" in Rotuma (book review) [cite web|url=http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb3030/is_199703/ai_n7673867|title="Woven Gods: Female Clowns and Power in Rotuma"|accessdate=2006-05-20]
*Handelman, D., "Models and Mirrors: Towards an Anthropology of Public Events" [cite web|url=http://www.berghahnbooks.com/title.php?rowtag=HandelmanModels|title="MODELS AND MIRRORS Towards an Anthropology of Public Events"|accessdate=2006-05-20]
*Little, K., "Clown Performance in the European One-Ring Circus". Culture, 1981. 2(1):61-72. [cite web|url=http://www.publicanthropology.org/Archive/AnthCACult1981.htm|title="Public anthropology", "Culture 1981"|accessdate=2006-05-20]
*Rudlin, J., "Commedia Dell'Arte; An Actors Handbook" [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0415047706]