Clowns being Clowns:Â The PassAlong Video! Sometimes clowns being clowns is enough to make a video about. Inspired by the popular passing videos that are going around (especially the stuntman video) a group of Ringling trained clowns (myself included) got together and said: “Let’s do this!” Planned in a private Facebook group, and organized by New York clown Joel Jeske […]
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I got my copy of A Clown In Our Town a few weeks ago, and I have been meaning to write about it. It’s a wonderful tribute to Rob Torres, who passed away unexpectedly in 2018.  I wrote his obituary here: RIP- Rob Torres, International Man of Mirth. Photographer Jim Moore, who has taken more photos of clowns, circuses, […]
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Angela Delfini Explains It All For You. Oct 4-7, 2018 in Chicago. Directly from the New York Clown Festival, Italian clown Angelina Delfini is taking her show (along with her director John Towsen) on the road to Chicago for a one week set of workshops and performances at the PROP Theatre. The show features Delfini as both a psychiatrist and […]
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It is with very sad heart that I relay the fact that Rob Torres, International Man of Mirth has passed away. UPDATE 12/10/2019:Â Jim Moore’s book/tribute to Rob Torres is now available. Read the review for more information. I saw him perform at the New York Clown Festival, with Big Apple a couple of times, and a few times as […]
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Ron “Toto” Johnson has been a clown his entire life. He started in 1977 at age 10 in his hometown of Naugatuck CT. He graduated Ringling Clown College in 1985. He has since worked in circuses, theme parks, casinos, riverboats, parades, carnivals, and just about every other venue you can think of. He has performed all over the world, including […]
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The people at CloWnStePPinG have been producing a Clown Cabaret Scratch night in Edinburgh since 2014. It’s been pretty successful, and they are now looking to step it up a notch, and are looking to produce the first ever Edinburgh Clown Festival from May 3- May 5, 2018. Officially known as the Edinburgh Contemporary Clown Theatre Festival (ECCTF?), the shows will […]
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I read with a heavy heart the story about Grandma the Clown (Barry Lubin) ‘s resignation from the Big Apple Circus. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/23/nyregion/big-apple-circus-grandma-clown-resigns.html It suffices to say that this is terrible news for everyone all around. Of course, for the young girl, and for Barry, and for Barry’s friends, and for the Big Apple Circus, and of course, circus people […]
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PHYSICAL FESTIVAL CHICAGO is calling for proposals of physical theater plays for its 5th edition of the festival that will run in June 2018. An annual contemporary, visual, and physical theater festival based in Chicago, Physical Festival presents new forms of theater that are being performed around the world and in our backyard. In 2014, Alice da Cunha and Marc Frost […]
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For over 30 years, Clown Camp has been an intensive training ground for newcomer clowns and for seasoned clowns to hone their skills. Clown Camp was founded and directed by Dr. Richard Snowberg, a clown for over 35 years and an inductee into the International Clown Hall of Fame. Since 1981, over 6000 people from over 25 different countries have […]
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Rik Gern (aka Bonzo Crunch) is a grassroots entertainer currently based in Austin, Texas. He’s been working as a performer since 1978 in places as varied as Chicago, Texas, California, and Australia. Rik Gern started performing in the mid 1970’s, and then studied at the Dell’arte School of Mime and Comedy in 1982 in Blue Lake California, where he […]
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PLEASE NOTE: THIS DEADLINE HAS BEEN EXTENDED UNTIL NOVEMBER 20! It’s not often that clowns get praised for being abstract, but here’s our chance! The Healthcare Clowning International Meeting (HCIM) is holding its 2018 meeting from April 4-6, 2018 in Vienna Austria. The topic of the meeting is “The Art of Clowning- Connecting Culture, Health, and Science.” CALL […]
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I got a link to a video today, and after watching it, I felt a little sad/verklempt about Ringling going away. Â (If you don’t know the word verklempt, you should definitely look it up. Â Yiddish words have a way with getting to the heart of emotions. The video is a sad, maudlin, and touching pictorial tribute/video of Ringling clowns. It’s […]
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My friend Trav SD, who writes the wonderful blog Travalanche, recently published the speech he gave at the Coney Island Congress of Curious Peoples. Â He was the keynote speaker, The topic is When Did the Circus Become Un-American. (or more accurately, when did the American Circus Become Un-American) Dick Zigun (founder of Coney Island Circus Sideshow) had suggested the topic […]
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On the website Complex, the Bindlestiff Family Cirkus ‘s favorite clown Kinko opines about the new movie IT remake In case you weren’t aware, a huge portion of Coulrophobia (fear of clowns) can be traced to this one movie (and the original Stephen King book). Once the remake is released, I’m guessing even more! Here’s the trailer of the new […]
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Brian Dewhurst is the elder statesmen of Cirque du Soleil’s Las Vegas performers. Â Currently 85, he’s been performing all kinds of circus acts for the past 70+ years, and since 1993, he’s been working as a clown, performer, and director for Cirque du Soleil. Â He’s currently starring as the usher in the Cirque performance of Mystere. Dewhurst is featured in […]
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I’m happy to say that ClownAlley, the late Pat Cashin’s excellent blog about the history of clowns and circuses, is back.  (It’s not currently at clownalley.net, but at it’s original place clownalley.blogspot.com) I have always been a big supporter of that blog, which has had some amazing photos and articles about circus clowns past and present. Friend of Pat’s  Beth Grimes […]
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