Magicians, Storytellers Or Clowns?

I went to a performer's showcase today where the local (all over the state, really) talent comes to give a nutshell performance and/or talk to us at tables about hiring them for the kids' summer reading programs. I am a children's librarian so i get to plan all sorts of fun things like this.

Lots of lizards, snakes, cool storytellers, etc. but what about clowns nowadays??
the next generation seems to have grown up to fear Bozo and his brethren.

What is wrong with today's society???

About 20 years ago when my daughter was about three she was frightened by Ronald McDonald. He came up behind her and she wasn't prepared for all the face hiding make-up. That year for Halloween I went out treat or treating with her and I dressed as a clown. She helped me apply the make-up before we went out.

For Christmas that year I was giving juggling balls and a juggling book as a gag gift. So I taught myself to juggle. I then learned how to make animal balloons. Soon I was a clown for family functions at her school. I have found that small children are frightened because they can't see your face. They can't read your emotions.

After the first couple of functions I stopped putting on clown make-up and just wore a wild outfit. The difference in the way the small children reacted was amazing. When I would start making animal balloons the kids would often come and sit on my lap to watch. They wanted to be a part of what I was doing. When I did the same thing while wearing clown make-up the kids would stand near or just behind their parents.

Over the years we instill in our children to avoid strangers. To be careful. I guess avoiding that strange person in the clown suit is part of what we've created.

It's kinda sad.....I grew up watching Bozo and now I sport the same haircut (just a different color.)

gettin-away

Clowns are not cool, so todays status hungary yuppie parents won't us em. It there was ademand, we would see more of them

Our daughters have never been afraid of clowns. On the contrary, they always looked for them at the circus, and really enjoyed their acts best of all. They've both had closer, more direct interactions with them, too, without any unease. They've just sort of grown bored with clowns - too many other things out there nowadays. Clowns are a bit old-fashioned ( and that's the real shame!).

Dreamer1

My owner and I do amature clowning, having belonged to clubs in a couple of places we lived. It is great fun, especially doing parades and special olympics. We found that with a little patience, kids get over their shyness easily. Clowns are for older kids (and adults) rather than toddlers.

I have three words for you...

John Wayne Gacy

For those unfamiliar with this scumbag, he worked as a party clown part-time, filling the rest of his spare time with molesting and killing children, then burying them in the crawlspace of his house. I am not sure exactly how many bodies were recovered, but it was more than 30 (I think 33, but I am not sure). He has given clowns in the midwest a very bad rep. Oh, and he has since been put down like the rabid dog he was.

Oh well, like I always say, In God we trust, everyone else gets run through NCIC.

Just my tuppence.

Andy

You can also blame it on Stephen King.

I've never liked clowns and I've always been afraid of them. I don't know why. I've never liked loud, obnoxious, funny looking people. Of course that can describe more than just clowns.

I am ending up playing it safe and hiring a banjo/guitar/mandolin player who is a hoot, a blues guitarist who does kids' music with a great twist, and a funny magician called Abbot the Average.

no clowns, too controvercial.

I've never really been a fan of clowns. Some are okay, but too many are over the top and can be pretty un-nerving for the little ones, what with their Twisted Sister make-up and over the top antics. The clowns of yesteryear were pretty neat, but nowadays a lot of them are just bizarre.

And as has been mentioned, the likes of John Wayne Gacy and Stephen King have done nothing to improve the public's perception of clowns.
I quite like the rodeo clowning, but the circus ones are a bit much for my liking.