Final Impression QUIT CLOWNING AROUND

WRITER: JAMES COMBS

Religiously watching “The Bozo Show” on WGN was one of my favorite childhood memories.

My brother and I would excitedly awake on summer mornings and race downstairs to see America’s most iconic clown, Bozo, and his colorful sidekick, Cookie. The red-haired, white-faced Bozo—with his floppy shoes and shiny, red nose—was a good-natured clown with a big heart and smile to match.

I remember him for being kid-friendly, happy, and loveable. There was not a mean bone in his body.

Fast-forward some 30 years. How did clowns go from being fantastically funny to freakishly frightening?

That’s the question many are asking in the wake of this creepy clown craze that’s seeping into our cultural fabric like toxic sewage. In case you haven’t heard, clown attacks, clown scares, and clown pranks have been reported in communities throughout the country. Some are hoaxes. Others are credible events.

And Lake County is not immune. In October, three Tavares Middle School students were charged for wearing clown masks at a school bus stop. The incident happened near Treadway Elementary, forcing administrators to place the school on lockdown. In other parts of the country, clowns have attempted to lure children into the woods, and one clown even faced felony charges after wielding a machete near an apartment complex.

This is bizarre behavior. So much so that it’s twisting Stephen King’s brilliant-yettwisted mind. Here’s what the master of horror wrote on Twitter:

“Hey, guys, time to cool the clown hysteria—most of ‘em are good, cheer up the kiddies, make people laugh.”

This impassioned plea is coming from the same guy who once wrote a book about a supernatural killer clown named Pennywise that was later made into a film. So you know this is no laughing matter.

It’s certainly no laughing matter for Bozo fans such as myself who have always adored clowns because they made us smile with their goofy theatrics. We’ve had to face the disappointing reality that not everybody sees clowns through the same happy lens we do. In fact, after conducting some research, it’s apparent that the persona of the creepy clown has existed for decades.

Some people are convinced that anyone who wears a costume and excessive makeup is hiding something dark, and evil must lurk inside. This perception may stem from serial killer John Wayne Gacy, who murdered 33 young males in Chicago. He was dubbed “The Clown Killer” because he performed as “Pogo The Clown” at children’s birthday parties. Following Gacy, Hollywood exploited this ambivalence about clowns by delivering Joker, a clowninspired villain in the Batman movies, and the unforgettable scary clown doll from the 1982 movie “Poltergeist”. Other scary clown movies include “Killer Klowns from Outer Space” (1988) and the murderous clown in “All Hallow’s Eve” (2013).

Blame Stephen King, John Wayne Gacy, Hollywood, or whomever. The bottom line is this: Some people are permanently wired to be scared of clowns and feel they are infinitely more frightening than wicked witches or headless horsemen. Their fear has become a phobia.

The creepy clown craze has seized upon that phobia and is costing ‘real’ clowns both jobs and fans. It has also created an unsettling juxtaposition about clowns—the smiling face and evil heart, the hilarious antics and sinister acts, the makeup that evokes a sense of joy and distrust.

Here’s a friendly reminder to the public. Don’t assume all those with greasepaint makeup and red noses are bad people. Good clowns visit children’s hospitals and nursing homes and spread joy with their big wigs, big hearts, and big smiles.

Today’s fake, sinister clowns? Well, they’re not bozos. They’re just downright crazy.