These familiar comic characters of pantomime and circus, with their distinctive makeup and costume, ludicrous antics, and slap-stick behaviour, set out to make you laugh. Where does the concept come from? Sometimes it seems like they’re laughing at themselves, sometimes they’re laughing at their audience. A wider look at the history of the clown reveals they have always been a dubious figure! At what point did clowns go bad? Or were they never ‘good’ in the first place? You see this in the harlequin character who was a wily and covetous comic servant, and of course in Mr Punch – there’s a classic evil clown if ever I saw one - a glove puppet from the traditional ‘Punch and Judy’ shows, who is both funny and evil, constantly beating someone with a truncheon.

Fear of Clowns

There is a word for being frightened of clowns – ‘coulrophobia’. I find them a bit spooky, and some psychologists believe that clowns can be scary in part because we can’t read genuine emotions on their faces. At ‘face’ value they are smiling, somewhat falsely if you look closely, but they are unpredictable and manic, which can create apprehension, particularly in children. This can start at a really young age, and when they encounter a clown for the first time with no forewarning from parents, they could be terrified - a freaky-looking bloke wearing a wig, a big nose, big shoes and a weird outfit, talking in a weird way and doing weird things - no wonder people get scarred for life.

Credits: PA;

Clown History

The earliest ancestors of the clown flourished in ancient Greece—bald-headed, padded buffoons who performed as secondary figures in farces and mime, parodying the actions of more serious characters and sometimes pelting the spectators with nuts.

According to Encyclopaedia Britannica, the clown, unlike the traditional fool or court jester, usually performs a set routine characterised by broad, graphic humour, absurd situations, and vigorous physical action. Their performances can elicit a range of emotions, from humour and laughter to fear and discomfort.

Grimaldi

It was at the turn of the 19th Century when the British pantomime star Grimaldi honed his alter-ego ‘Joey’, a character that was the forerunner to the clown we know today, and both the nickname and Grimaldi's whiteface make-up design were, and still are, used by other types of clowns. Grimaldi originated catchphrases such as ‘Here we are again!’, which continue to feature in modern pantomimes.

The oldest of all clowns, the Whiteface, can be traced back to ancient Greece, where comedy actors painted their features white so they could be better seen, and the character they portrayed was a know-it-all, a straight man setting up the situations where other clowns become the hilarious victims. The customary features of the Whiteface include the full white face, red-and-white features (sometimes quite delicately and beautifully painted), a colourful outfit, and a wig.

The Whiteface is traditional

The Whiteface can be further divided into three groups: The Classic Whiteface, sometimes called the 'most majestic and beautiful' of the Whitefaces; an elegant clown, like the Pierrot or Harlequin, The Straight Whiteface, similar to the Classic but more colourful, more cheerful; The Grotesque Whiteface, similar to the Straight Whiteface in colour and cheer, but zanier, with exaggerated features and clothes. In addition, is The Mime, characterised by the famous Marcel Marceau, known of course for not speaking, but conveying his act through body language and facial expressions. Famous Whiteface clowns include Krusty the Clown from the Simpsons – and of course, most children will recognise Ronald McDonald, who has been the mascot and marketing tool for McDonalds for years, although perhaps less so these days.

Credits: PA;

There are even Clown Schools that offer serious online or face-to-face training for participants from all walks of life, including doctors, teachers and students, and can include directing, coaching and mentoring. You can understand where the phrase ‘clowning around’ comes from: being funny, mischievous and generally ‘acting the fool’, - but if you are freaked out about clowns, that chalk-white face, evil eyes and grotesquely enlarged mouth gives you the shivers, they aren’t funny at all.

Author

Marilyn writes regularly for The Portugal News, and has lived in the Algarve for some years. A dog-lover, she has lived in Ireland, UK, Bermuda and the Isle of Man. 

Marilyn Sheridan