Jan_Feb_86

The New
Cl.1118PI
Clowns of America International,
Lake Jackson , Texas
January/February, 1986
Volume 3, Number 1
Inc.
l

January/February, 1986
From the Editor
We are using our new logo in this issue and think it
looks quite attractiv~. This is only a preliminary artist's
drawing, however; the final design has not been completed
yet. There could still be some minor changes.
But, as long as the design had been chosen , we
thought we would use what was available. We hope
you all like this design by Marjorie Smart of Havelock,
North Carolina.
It seems as if we will be able to produce a complete
New Calliope now; the number of members has remained
relatively constant for the last several months at
approximately 2500. With money no longer our major
problem, we now face another problem : a lack of
member contributed material. In the past we have not
actively encouraged members to send us a lot of articles
because we did not know if we could print them.
Now we would like to change that and encourage you
to take pen to paper and write an article of 1000 to 2000
words that might be of interest to your fellow clowns.
We will not guarantee that material sent to us will be
published, however, we will use anything that meets
our guidelines. The article must be about something of
interest to clowns and be in good taste; it should not
have been previously published and should be the
original work of the author. Articles should be in reasonably
correct English, if not, we reserve the right to
make necessary changes. We would prefer that these
articles be typed, double spaced on 8½" by 11" paper.
We cannot pay for articles, nor can we exchange articles
for advertising space. We will try to return material
and photographs if a self-addressed envelope is
enclosed.
If you are not discouraged yet, let me give you some
suggestions on the type of article our readers might
find interesting. Articles should not be about subjects
recently covered in The New Calliope. Alley news is
always of interest and we would be particularly interested
in an Alley history. I have mentioned this to a few
people in different Alleys, but so far no one else has
found it interesting enough to write down. Please consider
unusual experiences related to a clown performance,
new skits, new props, etc. or individual clowns,
such as those featured in our "A Visit With ... " series,
and of particular interest are activities of our members
outside the United States.
I'm sure that Betty Cash and I will never run out of
things to write about, but you, our readers, are probably
ready to hear from someone else. If you'd like to
send us something, we'd like to receive it. We look
forward to hearing from you.
Ruth Erkkila
The New
Cl1119PI
THE NEW CALLIOPE is publ ished by Clowns of Amer ­
ica International, Inc., P.O. Box 570, Lake Jackson,
Texas 77566-0570 for members of Clowns of America
International, Inc. Entered as third class mail in St.
Paul, Minnesota.
Editorial Office: P.O. Box 75248, St. Paul, MN 55175
Editor: Ruth Erkkila
Editorial Staff : Betty Cash, Tom Oswald,
Cleo Timmis
Correspondence, regarding contributions for future
issues of The New Calliope or advertising in The New
Calliope, should be sent to the Editorial Office. We are
not responsible for unsolicited articles or pictures
unless accompanied by a self-addressed envelope and
return postage.
* * * * *
Clowns of America International, Inc. Annual Membership
Fees:
U.S.: $15.00
Foreign: $18.00 (U.S. Funds)
Junior: $15.00
Family Membership: $7.50 for second and additional
members of one family.
(Foreign $9.00)
New Members: other than family, add $5.00
initiation fee to above rate .
Late Renewals: Add $3.00 late fee.
Send all membership fees to the Clowns of America
International, Inc., P.O. Box 570, Lake Jackson, Texas
77566-0570. Make all checks payable to Clowns of
America International, Inc.
* * * * *
Advertising Rates:
Full Page,
inside front or back cover ... . .... $140
Full Page .... . . . .. . ........... . ....... $125
Half Page, outside back cover ....... . $ 80
Half Page .. .. ....... . . .. .............. $ 70
One Fourth Page ..................... $ 40
One Eighth Page ..... ... ............. $ 25
Camera ready copy is requested. There will
be additional charges for ads not camera
ready. Send copy and payment to: Clowns
of America International, Inc., Editorial
Office, P.O. Box 75248, St. Paul, MN 55175.
Make checks payable to Clowns of America
International, Inc.
Deadline for the March/April
Issue is ..................... February 1
Deadline for the May/June
Issue is ......................... April 1
2 The New Calliope

January/February, 1986
The New
Cl1Ll8PI
Published for members of Clowns of America International, Inc.
January/February, 1986 Volume 3 Number 1
Board of Di rectors
PRESIDENT . .. . .. . . . . Arno ld S. Firine, 1315 Boulevard, New Haven, CT 06511 . .... . . .. . (203) 624-0438
VICE-PRES ....... . ... Hunter Stevens, 1342 Sylvan Way, West Bend, WI 53095 .......... (414) 338-3569
TREASURER ......... Donella Hoffman, 965 E. Geranium Ave., St. Paul, MN 55106 ...... (612) 776-5520
SECRETARY . .. ....... John Guthrie, 234 Lansing St., Aurora , CO 80010 .................. (303) 341-5679
SGT -AT-ARMS ....... Walter R. Lee, 1347 Ava Road, Severn, MD 21144 . . . ............ . .. (301) 569-7830
DIRECTORS .... . ..... Dennis Phelps, 5340 So. 67th St., Lincoln, NE 68516 .. . .... . ....... (402) 421-2167
Barbara Maher, Mayfair Manor, 2435 No . 111 St., #6,
Wauwatosa, WI 53226 ..... . ................. . .................. ( 414) 453-3306
French B. Harvey, 13216 Humboldt Ave. So., Burnsville, MN 55337. (612) 894-3224
Rod Yeager, 2350 Kenton, Aurora, CO 80010 ........... . ........ . . (303) 364-4597
REG. V. PRES ....... . . Betty Cash, 2181 Edgerton St., St. Paul, MN 55117 ............ . ... (612) 771-8734
Robert L. Berry, 7203 Trescott Ave., Takoma Park, MD 20912 . .... (301) 270-9094
Tanya Nelson, 1037 Mitscher Drive, Key West, FL 33040 .......... (305) 296-9616
Pedro Santos, Box 3859, Bayamon Gardens Station
Bayamon, Puerto Rico 00619 ................. .. .............. . (809) 786-3759
Alan Pearson, 5291 Ogden St., San Diego, CA 92015 ........... .. . (619) 582-7795
Thomas S. Oswald, R.R. #13, Lakeshore Drive,
Thunder Bay, Ontario P7B 5E4, Canada . ... . ................. . (807) 983-2032
PERM. BO. MEMBER. Bill Bailey, 200 Powelton Ave., Woodlynne , NJ 08107 ...... . ....... (609) 962-8957
CALLIOPE EDITOR .. Ruth Erkkila, P.O. Box 75248, St. Paul , MN 55175 ............. . ... . (612) 293-1595
Contents
From the Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Letters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Call for Bids on The New Calliope. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Alley News .................... . ....... . ..... . . . .... 8
Alley News from Michigan ...... . ........... . ... . .. 9
A Recap of National Clown Week .................. 10
1986 COAi Convention .... . ................... . 12-13
The Clown's Reward ...... . . . .. . .... . .............. 14
The Restaurant Skit . ... ....... . .................... 15
A Magic Table ..................................... 18
In Praise of Folly ........... . . .. .................... 19
A Visit With Nancy Peters ......... . ................ 20
Another Letter from Keith Pike .......... . ......... 22
Clowning With The Professionals ..... . ....... . .... 25
Transformer Balloons ...... . ......... .. .... . .. . . . .. 26
Let's Make 'em Laugh .............. . . . ............. 27
Teenage Clowns ................ . ................. . 29
Krako's Korner .................. . ....... . .......... 31
Meet Jody Marks .............. . ...... . ... .. ........ 32
Ringling Bros. Clown College ..................... 33
Clown College 1985 ............................... 35
Powder Puff Clowns Wave Hello ... . ............... 38
COAi Membership Application .............. . ..... 39
Notice of Election of Officers .... . . . ........ . ...... 40
ON THE COVER
Luv, alias Nancy Peters, of Pinellas Park, Florida, looks like a
walking valentine in her costume with an Elizabethan collar
and heart motif. To learn more about Luv and Nancy,
member #6590, see page 20.
The New Calliope 3

January/February, 1986
Letters ...
I love my balloons and don 't want to lose them , but I
have become aware of the serious danger they can
pose and do my best to minimize it.
Thank you for The New Calliope . I am glad to be receiving
it and hope to keep in touch with my old friends
through it. Keep up the good work.
Sherri Wahlgren
Westminster , Maryland
Would it be possible for me to subscribe to your publ i­
cation? Could you please send to me any particulars as
I am most interested in obtaining more information
about being a creative clown .
4 The New Calliope
Yours sincerely,
Sister Marylou Ann Rajdl, M.M.
Kowloon Tong , Hong Kong
lain , opens the service. Joseph Grimaldi is now installed
in the memorial corner (of this church) . In 1986 we
will see the first ever, stained, colored glass window
dedicated to clowning .
Best wishes,
Jack Gough
Haywards Heath
Sussex , England
( Editor 's note: The Associated Press reported on the
1984 Joseph Grimaldi Service, the 38th Annual Clowns '
Service held at Holy Trinity Church, also known as the
During the service clowns placed wreaths at Grimaldi 's
memorial plaque in the rear of the church.)
To the Editor:
Reference the November/December, 1985 issue of The
New Calliope page 35 concerning the Constitution and
By-Laws of Clowns of America International. To say
that I am upset about this article is putting it mildly .
The By-Laws and Constitution as published in the
above issue is completely false, erroneous and a figment
of someone's imagination.
A brief history of the By-Laws:
(2) Clowns of America Inc. dissolved and went out of
business. Their By-Laws were used by COAi.
Continued on page 6.
The date of the Annual Joseph Grimaldi Service is now
set on a regular timing, the first Sunday every February
at the time of 4:00 P.M. (Holy Trinity Church, London,
England) . The full event begins at mid-morning with
meetings, discussions , general get-together and socializing
before the event. A guest preacher is invited every
year and Father Michael Shrewsbury , the Clown Chap-
(1) I and others submitted proposed Constitution and
By-Laws changes at the COA National Convention in St.
Paul, MN in 1983. Changes were discussed at the Board
meeting, approved and submitted to the general membership
for approval. Arnie Firine had me chair the Bylaws
portion of the meeting. These By-Laws passed as
indicated by general membership and were to be published
in Calliope. Secretary took no notes. They were
eventually published in Calliope (May/ June , 1984) and
passed by membership.
Recent ly I developed a clown mime here in Hong
Kong. I was frustrated in not being able to say what was
in my heart with my poor Cantonese. As a clown, I
portrayed the life and love of Jesus on this earth to all
peoples . The response has been unbelievable , with
many emotions being touched and displayed. The
Chinese laity, sisters and priests, are all encouraging
me to do more along the line of creative prayer and
ministry. The clown mime is one aspect I'd love to
develop further . Therefore, I would like to subscribe to
your magazine as I'm sure I'd get many new insights
from it.
"Dear Lord, I thank you for calling me to share with
others your most precious gift of laughter. May I never
forget that it is your gift and my privilege . .. and help
me to remember that your foolishness is wiser than
men 's wisdom."
clown 's church, in London 's East End. Grimaldi , the
son of an Italian actor, was born in London in 1779 and
began his stage career before he was two years old.
The father of English clowns is also the man from
whom clowns everywhere gettheirname "Joey ." Grim ­
aldi died in 1837 and is buried in the churchyard of St.
James Anglican Church, which is near Holy Trinity
Church, but is closed now. The 1984 service saw 50
clowns take their seats of honor in the front pews with
300 other worshippers in attendance . The Rev. Norman
Mccurry of St. Paul's Cathedral was the guest
speaker:
I would like to thank you for printing John "Krako"
Guthrie 's article on Safety in Entertainment (S-I-E) in
the September/October issue and expound upon his
ideas with two of my own. Both of my safety oriented
experiences involved balloons. As any health official
will tell you, slippery balloons, whole or fragmented,
lodged in a child's throat are almost impossible to
remove and the results are disasterous. After hearing
of the death of a local youngster I have incorporated a
quick , lighthearted balloon safety message into my
act. I am also careful to caution parents or older
siblings of very young children to make sure the tot
keeps the bal loon out of his mouth and that they throw
away all fragments when the balloon pops . After having
a balloon pop during inflation and strike me
directly in the eye , I have altered my style . I make sure I
aim downward and use my hand as a shield betw een
the mouth of the balloon and my face.

CONVENTIONS
by Betty Cash
If your group is planning a convention or session open
to clowns in general, we will be happy to list it in this
column. Full ads may be printed at the regular rate in
The New Calliope. To be listed in this column send me
the name of the event, the dates, and an address of a
contact person. Be sure to send information early to
insure being included in the next issue.
I.S.C.A. Midwinter Shrine Convention
February 26 - March 1, 1986
Ernie Barker
408 Widlake Street
Winnipeg, Manitoba R2C 1 K3
Canada
Clowns of America International
Annual Convention
April 9-13, 1986
Holiday Inn Gaithersburg
c/o Arlene Kolodin
2790 Shanandale Dr.
Silver Spring, Maryland 20904
Badger Clown Day
May 17, 1986
c/o Kathy Marcott
1943 16th Ave.
Grafton, Wisconsin 53024
Funhouse Big 3 Convention
June 26-28, 1986
c/ o John Tabeling
3339 Belair Road
Baltimore , Maryland 21213
Minnesota Day: A Clown Seminar
September 20, 1986
c/o Stanley Tull
13064 Taylor Street N.E.
Minneapolis , Minnesota 55434
13th Annual Midwest Clown Round-Up
October 1-5, 1986
Amway Grand Plaza Hotel
Grand Rapids, Michigan
* * * * *
Peewee: Did you hear the one about the two rabbits
that got married?
Cleo: No, what happened?
Peewee: They lived hoppily ever after
* * * * *
Peewee: What do you get when you cross a four leaf
clover with poison ivy?
Rootie-Toot: A rash of bad luck
* * * * *
NOTICE
from the
Clowns of America International
Board of Directors
January / February, 1986
Because we are a new organization, the Board has
adopted a policy to solicit, biennially, bids to edit and
produce The New Calliope. We encourage all qualified
members to submit a bid forth is position of editor. The
bids may be submitted by one person or a group of
people, however, one person must be designated as
the editor . The editor will be the responsible person
and will also become a member of the Board of Directors.
Bids must meet the following criteria:
1. Bids will be accepted from any qualified member in
good standing of Clowns of America International.
2. The incumbant editor is also required to submit a
bid, if he/ she wishes to remain editor.
3. The bids should be based on 40 page issues of The
New Calliope to be published six times a year,
every two months .
4. The bids must include prices.
5. The bid should include qualifications of the bidders
and references .
6. The bidders will supply all equipment necessary to
publish The New Calliope, however, the cost of
any equipment purchased may be reimbursed by
the Board at their discretion.
7. Bids must be submitted by April 1, 1986. Bids will
be opened at the COAi Annual Convention in
Washington , D.C. at the Board of Directors' Meeting.
Verbal explanations of the bids submitted will
be heard at this meeting from t hose people submitting
bids, if they so desire .
8. Bids should be sent to:
Hunter R. Stevens, Jr., Vice-President
Clowns of America International
1342 Sylvan Way
West Bend, WI 53095
Bids not received at this address before April 5,
1986 will not be considered.
* * * * *
The New Calliope 5

January/February, 1986
Letters - Continued from page 4.
(3) The 1985 COAi Convention in St. Paul, MN. No
By-Laws or Constitution had been approved by COAi
general membership.
The By-Laws were again brought up at the Board meeting
in St. Paul (April 1985), read and approved by the
Board, and submitted to the general membership for
approval at the general meeting. The general membership
meeting was chaired by Hunter Stevens. By-Laws
and Constitution had been published in Calliope and
satisfied advertising requirements.
To make things completely legal we voted to suspend
By-Laws where we could adopt a set of By-Laws. We
were trying to be completely legal. We had no By-Laws
legally at this point.
The new Constitution and By-Laws were read article by
article, discussed and adopted with penned changes or
deletions. All articles were passed unanimously. The
Constitution and By-Laws were then approved in total
by general membership. The vote was unanimous.
COAi had a Const itution and By-Laws approved by the
general membership.
(4) The Constitution and By-Laws as published in The
New Calliope (Nov./Dec. 1985) are false and have never
come before the COAi Board for submission to the
general membership ... This set of By-Laws is a figment
of someone's imagination ...
(5) The official By- Laws and Constitution were voted on
and passed by the 1985 COAi general membership in
April, 1985 at St. Paul, MN. They were approved as per
Roberts Rules, duly printed in The New Calliope and
were approved completely legally by the general membership.
(6) Anything passed by the general membership cannot
be changed by the Board of Directors.
(7) The Board proposes , the general membership disposes.
(8) The current problem has been brought on by one or
more disgruntled Board members ... Apparently they
disagree with the general membership's adopting the
enclosed By-Laws and now want to cause trouble ...
The By-Laws and Constitution did pass unanimously by
vote of the general membership
The Board or individual Board member cannot change
the Constitution and By-Laws as adopted by the general
membership.
I will not stand by and let the Board, a Board member or
a lawyer substitute something else totally false for the
COAi Constitution and By-Laws as approved by the
general membership of COAi in April, 1985. Fifteen
years of hard work to get a good set of By-Laws will not
be changed by someone's whim.
James L. Russell
Butler, Georgia
6 The New Calliope
Dear Editor,
First off, you and your staff are to be commended for
putting together a very impressive magazine. Secondly,
since it seems that most of your articles and photos
center around activities in your part of the country , I
though you might be interested in getting some news
about clowning on the West Coast.
I was a graduate of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum &
Bailey Circus Clown College in 1975, and started out as
your typical red, rubber -nosed, auguste. Over the years
I did clown performances part-time, along with acting
and teaching mime classes. Then in 1983 my wife ,
Susan, and I founded the Victorian Circus Theatre, a
non-profit educational theatre that specializes in turnof-the
century entertainment: melodramas, Victorian
plays, old-time clowning, and traditional circus acts.
During this period I became immersed in clown and
circus history and discovered that the original European
auguste, at the turn-of-the century , wore very little
makeup. He was supposed to be a busybody just off the
street who messes things up for the ringmaster and the
whiteface . This style of clown is still prevalent in the
European circuses today, and his influence is seen in
the makeup and costumes of American silent films and
vaudeville comedians. The present American auguste
style was really invented by Albert Fratellini of the famous
Fratellini clown trio: the big red nose, outlandish
costume, and colorful makeup. My present makeup is
based on the European auguste character as seen in the
photo, with Susan as the "soubrette" another European
substitute for the whiteface clown as straightman to the
bumbling auguste .
With the surge of interest in clowning over the last few
years and everyone jumping in, I find myself telling my
students that clowning is the easiest thing in the world
to do badly. Almost everyone thinks they can put on
greasepaint and a nice costume and be funny. That's
why it's nice to see art icles in The New Calliope urging
people to study and take the time to work on their acts
and props and "put some real thought into them. Clown ­
ing is more than makeup and costumes; you and your
audience get as much out of it as you put into it. And the
rewards are there for the dedicated. I've done clown
performances for cable television, cruise ships in Mexico
and the Caribbean, and in festivals in Great Britain.
There's room for all of us, and it's up to all of us, brother
and sister clowns, to be the best we can for the sake of
our audience. And you and your staff are doing a good
job along those lines to help out.
Keep up the good work!
Faithfully yours,
Tom Costa
The Victorian Circus Theatre
Long Beach, California

Tom Costa and Susan Hayward of the Victorian Circus Theatre recreate the atmosphere of the mid-19th century American
one -ring circus with old-time clown acts, puppet animal acts, mime, and period music and song .
The New Calliope 7

January/February, 1986
ALLEY NEWS
by Hunter Stevens
Alley Coordinator
• How would your alley llke to host an International
convention?
• What does It require to host an lnternatlonal
convention?
• How do you proceed with plans to host a convention?
For further information or answers to your questions,
please write to our convention coordinators or your
regional vice president. The convention coordinators
are:
Donella Hoffman, 965 East Geranium Ave. St. Paul,
Minnesota 55106
Dennis Phelps, 5340 South 67th Street, Lincoln,
Nebraska 68516
Now we would like to wish a warm welcome to our
newest alleys:
Peanut Alley
Alley #171 of Carlisle , Pennsylvania
8 The New Calliope
600DGosH
REPAIRS!
LEO
©
Just Clowning Around of Northern Virginia
Alley #170 of Vienna, Virginia
President: Steve Jiron
Vice-President: Catherine D. Henry
Secretary : Jan Peters
Treasurer: Ed Reed
Alley Coordinator: Mark Keiver
The Board recognizes the fact that conventions should
be held in every part of the country. We also think every
alley should have the opportunity to gain the prestige
and/or notoriety that comes with hosting a convention.
We would like to be able to more evenly distribute the
convention locations among various sections of the
country: one year east, the next south, west, etc. We
think this would make the conventions more interesting
to our members. Therefore, we encourage all alleys
to consider submitting a bid to host the Clowns of
America International Annual Convention held in the
spring of every year. Each year the Board of Directors
accepts bids at its meeting held at the Annual Convention
from those alleys who would like to host the convention
two years hence . From these bids the location
of that convention is selected and announced before
the close of the convention. At the convention to be
held in Washington, D.C. in April, 1986 the Board will
accept bids from alleys wishing to host the 1988 convention.
The site of the 1987 convention , Corpus
Christi, Texas, was selected in April, 1985.
The Board of Directors has compiled a booklet answering
all of the above questions . This booklet also has
much more information that will help you plan an
international convention , including all requirements
for such a convention.
$84,75 ON 5HOE
President: John Hall
Vice-President: John Roberts
Secretary: Rose M. Samuel
Treasurer: Giorgi Anderson
Advisor : Nathan Atwood

January/February, 1986
ALLEY NEWS FROM MICHIGAN
by Barbara Louie
Northville, Michigan
"THE ROAMERS" CLOWN AROUND TOWN
Clowns of America International Alley #76, "The
Roamers" of Warren, Michigan, have been featured
frequently in stage shows throughout the metropolitan
Detroit area.
They appeared in the Northville (Michigan) Autumnfest
in September, sharing the stage with magician
"Ming the Magnificent" Louie. Presenting bits of
magic, comedy routines and clown skits, the alley
attracted a good-sized audience ,for its hour-long
show.
Officers of Alley #76 include:
President Ming "Sam the Clown" Louie, of Northville.
As a professional magician known as "Ming the Magnificent,"
Ming divides his time between clowning and
doing magic, without combining the two.
Vice-President Barbara "Matey" Louie, of Northville,
who has been elected Alley #76 Clown of the Year for
the last two years in a row.
Treasurer Andrea "Too-Loose la Clowne" Liberman,
of Walled Lake .
Besides providing the alley with funds used for buying
additional props and books on clowning, the shows
are proving invaluable for giving all the clowns in the
group a chance to perform. The "Cavalcade of Clowns"
show in May offered many of the clowns their first
experience ever in appearing before an audience.
Each show proves that much easier to do, and, of
course, the best part is the fun all the participants-and
the audience-have while performing and watching
the shows.
Secretary "Zany Amy the Bag Lady" Rhoades , of
Detroit.
Other active members are: "Ramblin' Ragtime" Juggling
Pete Rhoades; Pat "Airabella" Willemsen; Bob
"Kosy" Kosel; and "Pirate Joe" Maurer, who is often
joined by his daughter, "Contrary Mary," 9, and son
Andy, 12, all of Detroit.
The Roamers Alley #76. Back row, left to right: Pirate Joe,
Zany Amy the Bag Lady, Ragtime Juggling Pete, Kosy the
Clown , Sam the Clown, and Too-Loose la Clowne. Front
row, left to right: Contrary Mary with Clarence the Dummy ,
Matey and Airabella.
In May, 1985, the alley presented "A Cavalcade of
Clowns" at the Northville Community Center. This full
evening of entertainment combined clowning, magic
and dance. Joining Ming the Magnificent and The
Roamers were professional dancers Michelle Esper, of
Farmington Hills, and Harwyn and Krystan Lim, a
father-daughter dance team from Westland. Part of the
proceeds were donated to the Multiple Sclerosis
Society in honor of a member's son who has recently
contracted that disease .
Brief skits were also featured during the 4th of July
festivities at Mill Race Historical Village in Northville by
Sam, Matey, Kosy and Pirate Joe.
Walk-a-rounds were performed by Sam, Kosy, Juggling
Pete and Matey at Detroit's Barat House, a home for
abused girls, in celebration of their 50th anniversary,
during the summer.
The Roamers Alley #76 Vice President Matey, at left, and
President Sam the Clown are also known as Barbara and
Ming Louie of Northville, Michigan.
The New Call iope 9

January/February, 1986
A RECAP OF NATIONAL CLOWN WEEK
National Clown Week Coordinator, Bill "Boom Boom"
Bailey, again reported there were many requests for
information on National Clown Week . These requests
came from Canada, Germany, the U.S. Army Recreation
Center in Europe, as well as twenty-three states;
they came from individuals, clown clubs, nursing
homes, shopping malls, radio stations, newspapers,
public libraries, cub scouts and 4-H clubs. The information
he sends out includes hints on what clown
clubs and individuals can do to promote the public
awareness of the work clowns are doing and other
information on the history and celebration of National
Clown Week, which became official when President
Nixon signed it into law in 1970.
Bill also' reported that he did several radio interviews
during National Clown Week;theseincluded radio stations
in Iowa, Florida, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania,
and New York. So throughout this country and in other
parts of the world, people are hearing about National
Clown Week.
During this week clowns paraded, performed, and told
their local newspapers and radio stations, "This is
National Clown Week." In the July/August issue we
invited members to tell us how they celebrated the
week. The reports we received follow.
Riverdale, Georgia. I've been busy here in "Jawja" during
National Clown Week. Of course my lawn chores
suffered; but I think making a few children laugh was
more important.
I made two trips to the local hospital, spending about
two and a half hours on each visit. One visit was with a
local newspaper writer/photographer. Later a story
appeared in The Clayton Neighbor, a newspaper published
in Clayton County, Georgia.
I also went to our County Commission Chairman's
office and presented him with an honorary clown certificate
and a balloon bouquet to his secretary. Then I
visited the local newspaper office and was asked by the
editor, Mr. Jim Arnold, to tour the plant with him and to
cheer up his typesetters, four young ladies, who were
sort of down in the dumps on a blue Monday. After a
few tricks we had them laughing so hard they had tears
in their eyes.
Here's another clown goodie I came up with and like to
use on my visits. It's easy and cheap and goes over
well. I got what is called a "Canned Cow" from a clown
supplier. This is an item that looks like a small can of
condensed milk, which when turned over and then
back upright lets out a soft "MOO-OH, " just like a
contented cow. This costs about a dollar.
To complete the gag, I use a rubber glove, purchased
10 The New Calliope
at the local drug store. I blow up the glove, tuck the
thumb part into the top where I'm holding onto the
glove, and then I have four faucets hanging down
ready to be milked. I let children or old folks milk the
cow as I turn the can over. They crack up hearing the
"MOO-OH."
Keep up the good work on The New Calliope; you are
all doing a great job and it's appreciated a bunch.
Yours in clowning,
Otto "Chuckles" Kitsmiller
Houston, Texas. The Cheerful Clown Alley #166 was
busy during National Clown Week. On Saturday,
August 3, 1985, we promoted a blood drive for the
Blood Center here in Houston. We had clowns on hand
to encourage donors from 10:00 AM until the 82nd unit
was drawn at 6:15 PM. A very successful drive we were
told. Much credit for the success was attributed to the
clowns. It was the first time many of the clowns
appeared in public, because the Alley invited the graduates
from their annual Clown School {graduation was
on July 20th) to join us at the drive. All of the clowns
deserve a standing ovation for a job well done. At least
one of the clowns not only distributed balloons and
encouraged donors for more than 3 hours, but donated
blood as well.
Also, our Alley received a proclamation from the
Mayor of Houston. This was in recognition of the work
our Alley does in the community and in honor of
National Clown Week.
And, finally, I have enclosed a copy of the Official
Memorandum our Alley received from Governor Mark
White proclaiming the week of August 1-7, 1985 as
Clown Week in Texas . He has some wonderful words
about clowns and clowning to share.
Many of the members of the Alley were off doing some
job or another during National Clown Week. We are
pleased with the eager and enthusiastic involvement
we have seen this week and hope it continues throughout
each week of the year.
Yours in clowning, keep a
smile on your face to share
with others,
Mauri "Binkie" Norris
Secretary
Cheerful Clown Alley #166
* * * * *

January/ February, 1986
Omaha, Nebraska. National Clown Week '85 got off to
a roaring start with the pre-game skit at Rosenblatt
Stadium on Friday night, August 1, presented by the
Clowndum. An added bonus to our appearance this
year was that it was Bronco's Baseball Night and each
child received a free baseball. Instantly the clowns
became celebrities by signing everything from baseballs
to Cabbage Patch Doll diapers.
Taking clowns on a picnic is a lot like taking the ants to
one; they eat almost everything and it is hard to keep
them in a group . Saturday's picnic gave some clowns
and their families a chance to enjoy good fellowship ,
great food, and do some climbing and hiking .
Early Sunday morning brought many clowns to the
First United Methodist Church for a very meaningful
Children 's Worship Service. Following the service was
the parade of 100 clowns to the Crossroads Shopping
Center. Estimates indicate about 65 clowns from the
Omaha area participated. The Omaha World Herald on
Monday captured some of the confusion and fun this
parade generated.
Skyline Manor was next on the agenda for the clowns
on Sunday and about 20 clowns participated in skits
and room visits to the residents.
Monday was the first of two skit nights at the Cross ­
roads. The crowd was small but enthusiastic, and
some returned the following night for our performance.
Tuesday evening we held a Clown Style Show with
several clowns getting a chance to show off their ability
to create their own wardrobe.
Wednesday night again featured skits and again they
had the crowd begging for more.
Linda Schroeder
Omaha, Nebraska
For those of you still wondering what you and your
club can do to celebrate National Clown Week, Bill
Bailey sends along a few suggestions .
1. Arrange a breakfast with clowns at a local department
store or restaurant.
2. Arrange a clown walk-a-round at a local shopping
mall or downtown location and invite the news
media.
3. Visit hospitals and nursing homes and mental
institutions .
4. Send interesting articles with pictures to the local
newspapers. For neighborhood papers send pictures
of clowns in their area.
5. Set up store window displays or displays at libraries
and/or museums. These can include clown
props, costumes, and books on clowns.
6 . Produce a clown show for a local charity or a free
one for the public .
7. On the last day, have a banquet, family picnic, or
small party to celebrate, after all the work is done .
8. Plan a softball game with a local radio or TV station.
Get them to plug this on the air; pass the hat
and give donations to a local charity.
9. Contact mayors of towns and cities in your area
for proclamations . Also contact the governor and
have the news media take pictures at the signing .
10. Send articles and photos to The Ne w Calliope for
possible publication.
Please pay special attention to suggestion #10. We
hope to have more reports from alleys and individuals
on National Clown Week, 1986.
G RCET I NC S:
By
MAR K WHITE
Courno, o r Tn:u
AUSTlN. TE XAS
If you have heard the la ughtet of a ch11 d or seen sudden de 11 ght on
the hce of a lonel y ol d man at the sfg ht of a baggy pants clown wfth
pai nted face , you hoe experfenced a ,aystery more profound than love.
are in debted to clowns - - who redeem s ickness and pafn wfth Joy --
such rnoinent s of quiet spl endor .
Clowns wit h putty noses and baggy tr ousers.
We
for
foll owing a t radit ion
u old as man's need to touch gentl y the lh es of ot her s , go fnto orphanages
and chtl dren 's hospft•h.
and give a part of t hemselves.
homes for t he e l derly ·'and for the ret arded,
Clowns. and the spfrft they represent.
are as vf ta1 to the 1114fntenance of our humanity as bufl ders, growers, and
dreamers .
There h a persfs tent clafln In folklore that the heart of a cl own
ts sad, that hh mfrth is a facade that conceal s hfs pain . There 1s scene
basis for thfs belf ef fn t hat the clo wn trad1t fona11y leaves happiness
where\ler he goes and t akes misery aw1y wfth hfll'I.
Yet, we cannot to tall y accept th i s myth as ret11 ty .
For clowns are
ble s sed: they heal the heart of the world and surely they m.ist share 1t s
Joy.
THEREFORE , I , H.drk Whft e , Go\lernor of Texas, do hereby procla fni the
week of August 1-7 , 1985, u
CLOMN W EK
1n Texas.
la ottidal recor niUon whereof, I hen b1 affix mt
1lcnature thla._.251.h. .__ _ 4..,- oL.J.11.l,y._, l t ..Jli._
---- ~-- Covtr nor oC T, u.1
An example of a procl amatio n signed by th e Governor of
Texas.
The New Calliope 11

January/February, 1986
1986 ANNUAL COAi CONVENTION
Kapitol Klowns , Alley No . 6, invites you to the 1986
Annual Clowns of America International Convention.
Ad Book:
A great way to reach prospective customers or to just
say hello to an old friend! Send camera ready ads to:
Harry Annis
c/o Ansco Printing, Inc.
649 Lofstrand Lane
Rockville, Maryland 20850
Full page
Half page
Quarter page
Business card
$60.00
$40.00
$25.00
$15.00
Workshops:
Our workshop/education chairman, Lee Tucker, has
lined up an exciting array of learning experiences for
you! The education sessions include Make-up, Mime,
Improvisation , Gospel Clowning, Walk-A-Rounds,
Sign Language, Magic, Birthday Parties, Costuming,
Balloons , The Wilting Flower, Physical Comedy, Teachers'
Round Table, and lots more. In fact, Lee has scheduled
a total of 20 workshops to choose from!
Don't Forget:
The Evening Bus Tour
The Cherry Blossom Parade
The Cherry Blossom Princess Pageant
Wine and Cheese Party
See you In Washlngtonlll
12 The New Calliope
What's Happening and When:
Wednesday, April 9, 1986
Genera l Members hip Meeting
Dealers Show
Cherry Blossom Princess Pageant*
Thursday, Apr il 10, 1986
Workshops
Genera l Session with Auction
Balloon Competit ion**
Skit Competition**
Friday, Apri l 11, 1986
Workshops
Make-Up Competition* *
Bus Tour***
Wine and Cheese Party
Saturday, Apri l 12, 1986
Cherry Blossom Parade** **
Dinner
Awards and Entertainment
Sunday,April13 , 1986
Church Service
Adjournment
(Schedu le subject to change without notice.)
There will be morning and evening hospitality each
day of the convention.
• Join in and compete in the bea uty pageant of the
decade. Any female character clown may enter the
competition. The winner will ride in the Cherry Blossom
Parade representing the "State of Fun."
**To compete in the competitions, you must be a
member in good standi ng of C.O.A.I.
***Twi light bus tour of Washington, D.C., air conditioned
buses, four hours.
****To participate in the parade you must be in
cost ume and make-up. Awards wi ll be given to best
Alley banner and best individual walk-a-round.
April 9-13, 1986
"CHERRY BLOSSOM TIME"
Washington, D.C.

January/February , 1986
irivite$ you to
your *~tion's Capital
Jor
CLOWNS OF AMERICA
INTERNATIONAL
1986 CO!{VENTION
April 9-13
0
0
----------------------------.-.-u.u. ....,.
Adult s : S45.00
Juniors: S39.00
Hail to: Arlene Kolodin
2709 Shananda l e Drive
Silver Spring, MD 20904
Name _______________________________
REGISTRATION
CLOWNS OF AMERICA INTERNATIONAL 1986 *S10.00 Late f ee
April 9 - -13, 1986 after 3/1/86
Clown Name
-----------------------------
Address _____________________________
City _______________ .State _______ Zip Code ____ _
I am interested in _ _,,..__ ,.....,._Bus Tour __ ..,,....,.... _ __,,....·Sltit Competition
______ Halte-up Competition Balloon Sculpture Competition
_____ cherry Blossom Parade Worltshops, please send more infol
_
_
-AN INTEltNATIONAL OIIGANIZATtOr
_____________
*
Motel R•••rvations
Halt• reservation• dire c tly with
Holiday Inn Oaithersbu r g
2 Montgomery Village Ave.
Gaithersburg, MD 20879
301-948-8900 or
800-HOLIDAY
$50.00 single/double
Specify that you are with the
Clowns of America International
Convention to get this reduced
rate.
Reservation deadline 1•
March 1 1
19861
The New Calliope 13

January/February , 1986
I stood there patiently
Waiting to cross the street,
And my funny clown face
And my great big feet.
The Clown's Reward
by Vern Packard
Omaha, Nebraska
Thoughts going through my mind.
What am I doing here?
When I get to that party
Can I really bring them some cheer?
With cartoons and fun games
And running up and down,
Will the kids really want
To interact with a clown?
So Omaha's Wild Clown -Oum
Let's continue filling our pages
Bringing happiness and cheer
To kids of al l ages.
August, 1983
You see they've got radio, TV
And movies galore.
Will they play with me
Or show me the door?
"The Clown 's Reward" was written by Vern "Packy " Packard
to describe his feelings before an audience in August, 1983.
Packy is president of Omaha 's Wild Clown-Oum , Alley #147.
These are some thoughts
That can go through your mind.
But negative things
A clown seldom will find.
The world today
Wants a lot of cheer,
Fun things to drive away
The sadness and fear.
Yes, clowns bring joy
To everyone young or old
We create fantasies, dreams
And many memories unfold.
No matter if we're white face
Auguste, or a tramp
Smiles will appear
Like turning on a lamp.
A sticky little hand
Grabbing hold of your glove
Is a child showing you
She's returning your love.
It's also returned
With an old man's sigh
Or a Grandma's thank you
As a tear comes to her eye.
Yes, we are reaping
As much as we sow
The warmth in our heart
Is what makes us all go.
CLOWN SUPPL I ES - catalog $1.00
M.E.Persson
162-C Gregory Island Rd
S.Hamilton, MA 01982
(617)468-3214 or (617)468-2887
14 The New Calliop e

THE RESTAURANT
by Ruth Erkkila
Food is always a popular subject for a clown skit.
Whether it's food preparation or eating, the ingredients
are the same. Everyone identifies with food. Even the
man with the most devoted wife has had to try his hand
at preparing food at some time in his life and everyone
has eaten someplace where they served food, whether
it was a restaurant, a relative's home , or a wedding
reception. Then there is the food itself, some food
brings up humorous memories even in the non-clown.
Think of the chicken that's too tough to eat, the fish
bones that got stuck in someone's throat, the souffle
that fell, or the inedible pie. And then there's the mess.
Messy clown skits are always popular and food in a
clown skit is a wonderful opportunity for creating a
mess. Just bringing on a cake, a plate of spaghetti or a
pie will almost always get a laugh. The audience is
already anticipating the next move.
The way we eat is certainly a ripe field for the would -be
clown. I knew an art student who made a movie of
people eating; she had a wonderful variety from the
glutton to the sophisticate and each of them wash umorous
in their own way. After watching the movie, I
almost wanted to eat in isolation. lttook mea few days
to realize that people weren't really watching me eat;
they were too busy stuffing their own faces. If anyone
doubts there is subject matter for a clown skit here,
they should sit in a cafeteria for a while and just
observe. I've never been able to do this for very long; I
always get too involved as a participant.
Let's leave the actual eating for another time and look
at the situation in a restaurant. There are two versions
of a restaurant skit that I particularly enjoy, one of them
has been used for many years by the Powder Puff
Clown Club and Minnesota Alley 19, the other I saw
recently at the clown convention held in Acapulco in
September, 1985. Both of these skits have two characters,
a tab le and chair and several food items.
The two characters in the first skit are a customer and a
waiter. Since the waiter eventually gets the pie, he
should not be a whiteface clown. The skit can be performed
by a whiteface and an auguste, an auguste and
a tramp, or two augustes.
The Powder Puff Clowns usually do this skit in pantomime.
The waiter ushers the customer to a seat at the
table and hands him a menu. Then he steps demurely
aside, waiting for the customer's decision. The customer
ponders the very large menu with the three
words printed in large letters, three or four inches high:
soup, chicken, pie. Finally he points to the first item:
soup. The waiter hustles off stage and returns with a
bowl of soup. As he is about to set the bowl on the
table, he stumbles and the soup lands in the customer's
lap.
SKIT
January/February, 1986
It's all right to use actual soup in the bowl, but depending
on the kind of soup, the skit may be looking for a
new customer after every performance. The Powder
Puffs started out using plastic noodles, cut from sheets
of thin plastic, with water. Eventually the water was
eliminated. Now they usually just use the plastic
noodles.
The customer jumps up from the table and is about to
leave, when the waiter grabs him, brushes off his
clothes with a napkin, and leads him back to his seat.
He hands the customer the menu again. This time the
customer points to chicken. The waiter takes the menu
and hustles off again, returning with a rubber chicken
on a large platter. He places th is on the table in front of
the customer. The customer begins to eat. He tries to
cut the chicken with his giant knife and fork, but the
chicken is just too tough. The customer stands up and
starts to attack the chicken with a saw.
Where to put the saw was a problem. Sometimes it was
in the customer's belt or inside his jacket, but this made
it difficult to sit down. Recently it's usually been concealed
under the table cloth. When he needs it, the
clown just takes it from under the cloth. Usually this is
never noticed.
The sawing on the chicken usually gets one of the
biggest laughs of the skit. Maybe a lot of people have
been served tough chicken, I don't know. Never-theless,
it's one of the funny parts of the skit and should
not be hurried through. The customer finally gives up
in disgust and stomps away from the table. Again the
waiter intercepts him and coaxes him back to the table,
•
Bashful, Pat Roeser, tries to cut up the chicken she has just
been served. First she tried to cut it with a giant fork and
knife; when that didn't work, she resorted to the saw.
The New Calliope 15

January/February, 1986
Bashful was very disappointed at her dinner in the restaurant.
But when she got her pie she began to grin. Here we see
what she did with the pie. The waiter, Paul Griffin, thought
the pie was quite tasty.
Timmy entered riding a unicycle; after circling the
stage, he got off the unicycle and started sweeping the
floor with a broom. He was the janitor.
16 The New Calliope
There's a lot of action in this skit and it will probably
appeal to those addicted to adventure movies. For me,
the best part of the skit was Timmy trying to get all
those slippery spaghetti noodles back onto the plate.
He was made up to look sad in the first place; his
expression as he tried to coax the noodles back onto
the plate was absolutely pitiful. He looked as if the
whole world was confusing him and he was just trying
to do his job but was completely unaware of how he
should proceed. Stepping in the squishy noodles and
then scrapping his shoe on the edge of the plate
brought out a tactile sensation. We could almost feel
those noodles. Scraping the shoe, too, reminded me of
when I was a little child and used to walk in the mud. My
mother would always make me scrape my shoes
before I came into the house. My childhood was happy,
so this kind of association gives me a good feeling
about the skit.
I saw the next restaurant skit performed by Timmy and
Tommy at the Convencion Internacional de Payasos in
Acapulco in September 1985. Both are students in
Mexico City; Timmy is a tramp clown and Tommy is an
auguste clown.
This skit required some acrobatic skills, while the first
skit did not. A novice should receive some instruction
and practice before attempting unicycle riding or falling
backwards from a chair. The dead and alive exit
requires the first clown, in this case the customer, to
stand between the second clown's legs facing away
from him. The second clown is lying face up. Now the
first clown grabs the second clown's legs and lifts the
second clown, who has made his body rigid, onto his
back . The second clown is now almost in a sitting
position on the first clown's back .
Tommy tumb led over backwards. When he got up he
was angry. He stomped over to the bumbling waiter
and slapped him hard. Timmy fell down, knocked out .
Tommy rolled him over and picked him up by his legs
as in the skit, "Dead and Alive" and carried him off the
stage with Timmy waving.
This skit has been a staple in the Powder Puff Clown
Club's repertoire for so long. I don't even know where it
came from. Minnesota Alley 19 borrowed it from them,
when the Alley began doing shows for National Clown
Week, and it has worked well for the Alley, too.
Tommy continued to read as Timmy went off to get his
dinner. Timmy returned with a platter of spaghetti;
again he triped and noodles and plate landed on the
floor at center stage. Slowly he tried to scrape the
noodles back onto the plate. He sat down on the stage
and removed his shoe and scraped squashed noodles
from the bottom of his shoe onto the plate. The task
finished, he prepared to serve the spaghetti. He
approached the table from the opposite side of where
his customer was sitting. Again he stumbled, lurched
forward and delivered the platter of spaghetti with
such force he knocked his customer over backwards;
the spaghetti landing first in the customer's lap and
then on the floor.
The skit works very well in pantomime. There really
isn't anything that needs to be explained with spoken
words. Occasionally, for emphasis or if the clowns are
afraid the audience can't ·read because of poor lights,
obstructed vision, or poor eyesight, the customer and
the waiter will both say the words soup, chicken and
pie as the items are ordered.
collects the chicken and hands him the menu for the
third time. This time the customer points to pie. Usually
the audience starts to snicker here. The waiter
returns with a gorgeous pie in a disposable aluminum
foil pan. The customer looks at the pie enviously and
then starts to grin. He picks up the pie and begins to
chase the waiter around the table. Usually they go
back and forth around the table three ti mes before the
waiter gets the pie in the face. The final ti me around the
table, the customer reverses direction; the waiter
doesn't notice, and they meet in front of the table near
the audience , so everyone has a good view.
Tommy, playing the part of the customer, entered and
sat down at the table to read his paper. He mistook the
janitor for the waiter and indicated he wanted a g lass of
water. Timmy fetched the water. Insetting the glass on
the table, he stumbled and upset the table. Together
they returned the table to its upright position. The task
completed, we noticed the glass was still standing
there in its original upright position.

. ,
January / February, 1986
Timmy served Tommy the reconstructed spaghetti dinner
but slipped and the spaghetti landed in Tommy 's lap. The
force with whi c h it was delivered sent him tumbling over .
It is this kind of association that makes a clown skit so
much richer. If the connection can be made with what
is happening on stage and some aspect of the observer's
life, the clown only has to doa little of the work.
Each of us in the audience has brought up memories of
our own experience that become entwined with the
course of action in the skit. The humor comes when
unusual and unexpected connections are made, like
playing in the mud and eating spaghetti, which in this
case almost became eating mud.
That is why skits dealing with food are so popular.
Because nearly everyone eats everyday the chances of
hitting on these kinds of associations are greater. The
problem with cooking or restaurant skits comes in
trying to present them in a unique way. Because this
type of skit is so popular, there is always risk of presenting
to an audience the same situation that they
saw on television last night or at their Christmas party
last year.
In the first skit, taking a saw to the chicken is probably
the most unusual part of the skit and probably why it
always gets the biggest laugh. Everyone I've seen perform
this skit has always hand led this rubber chicken
in their own way. In the second skit, Tommy and
Timmy did a good job of presenting the restaurant
situation in a little different way, combining parts of
other skits to do so.
Food and eating are just the beginning of everyday
actvitities that can be used as the framework for a
clown skit. Others might inc lude going to the doctor,
getting up in the morning, dr iving a car, going to
school , going shopping. T he challenge is to present
these situations in an unusual way comb ining traditional
clown gags and to construct the action so that as
Timmy slipped while delivering the spaghetti dinner and the
spaghetti landed on the floor . Here he is trying to reconstruct
the dinner . He scooped the noodles off the floor and tried to
scrape the rest off the bottom of his shoe.
many associations as possible can be made with the
action on stage and the audience's own experience .
• MAKE-UP
• COSTUMES
• WIGS
• PROPS
• MAGIC
• BALLOONS
• BOOKS
• JOKES- GAGS
• NOVELTIES
• JUMBO PROPS
911~
• COSTUMES
3108 Monroe Road
Charlotte, North carollna 28205
The New Calliope 17

January/February, 1986
A Magic Table
by Donna "Domino" Macri
Meridan, Connecticut
Here's an idea I would like to share with New Calliope
readers. This is how I constructed an inexpensive
magic table, which is not a magical table, but a stand
on which to hold my magic tricks and props when I am
doing a clown show. I needed a magic table and to buy
one, since I'm just getting started performing shows,
was a little more money than I could afford. I am also
no carpenter. I started looking around and found an
old, sturdy, cardboard dresser I had once used to store
odds and ends in my closet. I removed the drawers (my
dresser had five) and left the last one on the bottom. I
took out the second partition leaving a deeper hole for
taller or larger tricks . Then I painted and decorated the
outside of the dresser (now magic table) and I had a
place on which to work or place my tricks during my
clown shows.
These kinds of dressers are not expensive to buy. Our
local K-Mart had them on sale for $12. If you buy one,
just make sure it's tall enough for you to work on. Mine
is 34 inches tall, so it's a great height for me. You might
have to cover the dresser with contact paper and/or
paint. Latex paint will cover contact paper fine. Mine
already had a shiny surface so it was no problem.
Do your own thing. Have fun. See my dresser illustrated
below .
0 0
0
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•
MC
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18 The New Calliope

IN PRAISE OF FOLLY
by Dr. Thomas Niccolls
Hiram College
Hiram, OH 44234
Fred, an active layman in his church, had a deep desire
to keep the challenge of peacemaking before his congregation.
But he knows many people think that the
only message appropriate for a church is "rest in
peace." Fred doesn't blame the good folks; he knows
most are almost overwhelmed when they think of the
grim potential for nuclear holocaust. And besides, he
realizes that controversy is considered out-of-place in
church.
To try to get around all this, Fred invited me to do a
clown presentation on peace one Sunday morning. I
was intrigued and, to be honest, apprehensive. I pondered
questions like these: should clowns attempt to
deal with such weighty issues at all? Does comedy
essentially trivialize our concerns about the potential
for nuclear war? Or on the other hand, does the specter
of a US-USSR confrontation render clowning about as
impressive as kite-flying in a tornado?
But fools rush in, eh? And besides I knew that my
discovery of the clown came out of my own personal
struggle for peace during a time of great conflict , both
in my personal life as well as in our society: the tumultuous
60's. What better example of the meaning of the
clown than all that?
So by putting on my clown face and interpreting its
meaning before the congregation, I tried to relate
clowning to our hope for peace. As I put on the death
mask of clown white, I explained some of my own
conflict-ridden attempts for integration of barbershops
and housing in the civil rights movement. How
deadly the fight seemed then.
In the middle of it all I happened to buy two cemetery
lots, a logical step in my "mid-life crisis" when human
limitations had become very real to me. Much to my
embarrassment I discovered my deeds for burial sites
read , "For members of the Caucasian race only ." All
my efforts to point out to the cemetary president the
injustice of such a clause were to no avail. Finally, the
clown emerged to ridicule the ludicrous nature of discrimination:
"But how can I expect to get into an integrated
heaven from a segregated cemetery?" The
cemetary official was not amused , unfortunately, so
the case eventually went to the Civil Rights Commission.
I think I'm the only clown who had to integrate a
cemetery!
In Fred's church I told about such incidents to illustrate
the relationship between clowning and our work for
peace. Putting on my clown eyes, I suddenly produced
a large soap bubble from a hidden jar of bubble mix.
"The clown , above all, sees how lovely and fragile the
world really is. He calls us all to enjoy its beauty and to
keep it from being blown to bits!" And the soap bubble
January / February, 1986
burst into nothingness: the clown's version of the
warnings we hear about the effects of nuclear war .
I tried to underscore the same message in the clown
mime I did after I had completed my clown make-up
and costume. "Nibs" discovered a large gift box before
the Comm union table , and out of it he lifted a globe of
the world. Lovingly the clown spun the world on the
end of his finger. Gently he carressed it. Then from the
gift box came a "sun" with a smiling face (a bright
yellow balloon to shine on the "earth " ). Having already
experimented at juggling the globe back and forth in
his hands, now the clown attempted to juggle both the
sun and the earth at the same time. To the surprise of
all , the sun, when released, quickly ascended to the
high ceiling of the church. (The balloon was filled with
helium.) No matter, for now the clown reached inside
his coat and pulled out his own heart (a red stuffed
heart made of cloth) and fastened it to the globe. Presenting
it at the altar, the clown knelt in prayer for the
future of our earth and all its people.
With gags like these, "Nibs" used gentle humor and
irony to remind the congregation of the well-known
saying from the Sermon on the Mount: "Blessed are
the peacemakers, for they shall inherit the earth."
Actually, however, it was Fred himself , and not the
clown, who provided the biggest laugh and best clown
parable on peacemaking. Before my part in the service,
Fred gave us a vivid contrast of the vast imbalance
between our money spent to feed the hungry and the
money we spend on arms. Setting a tin can on the
lecturn, Fred dropped into it, with a clatter , some coins
representing money spent to relieve hunge r here and
abroad. "But listen to this," he said, as he set out
another tin can for the much larger bag of coins
representing the money spent for weapons . As the
clatter of falling coins went on and on, Fred began to
lose control so that the coins missed the tin can and
rolled all over the chancel floor . "I guess I should have
practiced this ," he said sheepishly as the congregation
roared .
Little did he realize at the time that this skit was in true
clown style and perhaps made the point even clearer
than he had originally planned it . And I saw the chance
to play off his goof in my clown mime . Discovering the
coins all over the floor , "Nibs" began picking them up
with great self-satisfaction. Then the clown blew a kiss
of thanks to Fred. By "milking" Fred's inadvertent gag ,
I could show th e clown 's faith in the possibility of
t ransforming our world's priorities from war to peace .
Well , what about you other holy fools? Have you tr ied
any clown skits on the theme of peace? And what are
your thoughts about such clowning? Share your ideas
with other readers of The New Calliope and we'll all
benefit.
Dr. Niccoll s, Hiram College Chaplain, spent the fall of 1985
teaching in Rome. We look forward to future articles from his
new Italian perspe ctive.
The New Calliope 19

January/February, 1986
A VISIT WITH NANCY "LUV" PETERS
of Pinellas Park, Florida
by Ruth Erkkila
"Being a clown has taken me beyond thinking of
myself. I think of others now and forget about Nancy ,"
says Nancy Peters of Pinellas Park, Florida. She finds
this has led to a more rewarding life. One of the people
Nancy thinks about is an older woman, living in a
nursing home. Nancy visits her somewhat regularly,
dropping in for a short visit whenever she 's in the
neighborhood. Sometimes this woman forgets her
daughter, but she never forgets Luv the Clown.
Luv is a whiteface clown that looks like a walking valentine
, all red and white with hearts all over. Her hat is all
hearts and feathers; she has several hearts painted on
her face and her pockets are heart shaped . Her sparkling,
white Elizabethan style collar could have belonged
to the Queen of Hearts . White clown shoes complete
the costume.
Nancy is rightfully proud of her collar, unique among
clowns, which she had specially made. This came with
the latest evolution in Luv 's wardrobe. Her first makeup
and costume were "atrocious. " says Nancy. She
had a lot of black make-up around her eyes and had a
costume with a lot of black in it. In 1978 she attended a
ten week clown class taught by some misplaced
Calumet (Indiana) Clowns. Here, says Nancy, she
learned fabulous things. Among these were proper
make -up techniques and skits . Here she designed the
basic costume she wears today. "When I saw the mater ­
ial, Luv just came out." This is Luv's costume and she
doesn't lend it, or any part of it, to anyone, not even her
mother who is also a clown.
Through clowning Nancy has grown to know her
clown character, Luv, very well and credits her with the
many changes in her life. "I needed something in my
life and clowning has turned my life around." Before
she started clowning, says Nancy, "I didn't do much
and was not a very interesting person." Now she finds
herself involved with the Heart Association, the Goodwill
, the Kiwanis, and Special Olympics as well as her
local clown group , the Suncoast Clowns. Clowning
has given her a new look at people and one look she
particularly enjoys is the look of enjoyment on a child's
face at a clown performance .
Nancy works for Honeywell as an assembler in the
plant that makes the main engine for the space shuttle
and the MX "Peacekeeper" missles. In 1976, this
Honeywell plant had a clown club, but it was all men.
The men decided they needed more new members and
held a meeting for women who might be interested in
joining the club. Nancy went to the meeting, but didn't
know exactly why she was there. "I went and watched,
but did not try on make-up. I was afraid in front of all
20 The New Calliope
those people. l didn't want anyone to see me without
my street make-up on. I was afraid to try the make-up
and I felt dumb . Why was I here? What did I want?
Where would it lead me?"
It led her to join Clowns of America in 1978 and to a
second place trophy in Whiteface Make-up Competition
at their annual convention in Denver in 1980. In
1982 she won second place in Individual Skit Competition
at the Clowns of America Annual Convention in
Albuquerque with her skit "Love at First Sight. "
In 1980 Nancy became one of the five members of the
Suncoast Clown Club; since then they have grown to
fifteen members. Nancy enjoys her job as producer
with the club. As producer she is in charge of the
forty-five minute stage show t he club performs for
local audiences; she is also in charge of their National
Clown Week activities . One of the highlights of this
week has been the clowns' appearance at an iceskating
rink, where the patrons can skate with the
clowns. They also gather proclamations from mayors
of all the surrounding towns and try to obtain newspaper
coverage of their activities and feature articles
about clowns.
Clowning in the Pinellas Park-St. Petersburg area can
get very competitive with three COAi Alleys, three
Chr istian clown groups, a Shrine clown group and a
Kiwanis clown group. Sometimes it can be difficult to
get a paying job because of all the free clowns available.
Despite the number of clowns in the area, Nancy
went ahead and formed her own clown company three
years ago. One of their first jobs was a grand opening
for a Zayre store, followed quickly by another and then
a picnic for Citicorp. The company is called " Luv a
Clown." One of the few other clowns who work for her
is her mother, Josephine "Pipek" Burton, a tramp
clown. Pipek must enjoy clowning as much as Luv, for
at the 1985 Annual COAi Convention she got up from
her sick bed to do her skit in skit competition. She had
been feeling ill all day. but insisted on doing the skit
and watching most of the others, too.
Both Luv and Pipek particularly enjoy doing skits.
They come to the COAi conventions to get new ideas
that they might develop into one of their skits. Even
though the skit competition can run on for hours,
Nancy says, "I love it." They both try to watch the
whole thing . "I pick up something new every time I go."
Besides skits, Nancy enjoys face painting and working
with puppets and has become somewhat attached to
her puppet, Fluff. She finds Fluff an easy prop to take
along almost anyplace; she fits easily into her pocket
and comes out when she sees a child she 'd like to talk
with or bite.

Nancy has developed a witch character. This is an
outgrowth of her business, which she finds leading her
into other characters. The witch goes to birthday parties
and tells stories; she also appears at the local
Renaissance Festival and now even has a home at the
Festival's permanent location. When not hiding out in
her hutch, the witch tells the most unbelieveable stories
to unsuspecting Festival goers.
Nancy has also worked the care bears for the Goodwill
at promotions and grand openings. She has also put
on Halloween safety programs and done face painting
for them. She enjoys working for the Goodwi II because
she frequently finds something to add to her costume
or her collection of clown paraphernalia.
When asked what was her favorite clown activity, the
answer came quickly, "Special Olympics." Nancy has
worked for several years with the local Special Olympics
and now attends the International Special Olympics.
She distinctly remembers the one in Louisiana a
couple of years ago. It was so hot her make-up seemed
to be melting. She had put her face on four times that
day. "Clowning has given mea different look at people,
the small and large, old and young, sick and hurt, and
mostly the special people. When I see them, I think,
'There, but for the grace of God, go my children.' They
need us and we need them."
Nancy has two children, a boy and a girl, and one
grandson. They help with her shows and sometimes
videotape them. Her son is developing a character for
the Renaissance Festival; her grandson enjoys going
along to everything.
January/February, 1986
* * * * *
See Luv and her puppet, Fluff, at right. Luv says: "In January
of 1977, I acquired Fluff. She is a soft furry pet that can't talk,
as yet, and loves children. She shakes hands with everyone.
Most children have to wash their hands because they get -
dirty. But Fluff has to wash her mouth . (She has no hands.)
She loves to go anywhere I take her and she sleeps a lot in the
car. She is so quiet I forget she is there at times and have to
go back for her. Fluff has other friends at home, like gray
snake, green monster , sea monster muff, who is Fluff's
brown sister, and many others, who want to give a show
some time. They too have to learn to talk first."
* * * * *
Genuine humor is always kindly and gracious. It points out
the weakness of humanity, but shows no contempt and
leaves no sting
A sense of humor reduces people and problems
proper proportions.
* * *· * *
to their
. _ _,..
The New Calliope 21

January/February, 1986
ANOTHER LETTER FROM KEITH PIKE
by Keith Pike
Mount Pearl, Newfoundland
Canada
In the last issue of The New Calliope , Keith Pike told
how he had become a clown and of his clown growth.
Keith has been a draftsman since 1978 and, after
obtaining a diploma in vocational education from
Memorial University of Newfoundland , started to teach
drafting at a government vocational school. Since
educational cutbacks in 1978, he has been working
with the Department of Transportation, Highway Design
Division. He says, "That's where I get my money. I
work at being a clown! "
He also teaches drafting part time in night classes at a
local technical college. Besides this he does volunteer
teaching of First Aid tor the Red Cross and is a First Aid
Instructor Trainer.
He is a charter member of Terra-Nova Toastmasters ,
Local Chapter of Toastmasters International.
He lived in northern Canada, specifically Baffin Island ,
for 3 years and worked with Hudson Bay Company,
involved with fur trade and merchandising with Eskimos.
He has traveled Northern Europe several times, the
Caribbean, Florida, and Eastern Canada .
He has been a Mason for 18 years, beginning in Labrador
in 1967. He has since been active in Masonry in
various parts of Newfoundland, attending Lodge meetings
at the Grand Lodge and others in London,
England .
He is presently working with a group of college students
who are interested in forming a clown club.
If interested in corresponding with this very interesting
clown , you may write to him at: 69 Smallwood Drive ,
Mt. Pearl, Newfoundland A 19 182 , Canada. - Betty
Cash.
Hello Again,
It's Monday and I've just returned from musi c lessons!
My daughter , Jennifer , has been learning piano for
about 1 O years now. Tonight we started our son, Jonathon,
on a music .tri'p, his first piano lesson. He is
learning the Suzuki Method. The main difference is
that a parent or sibling must progress along with the
student. Perhaps I can become a rock artist. Imagine ...
A clown rock artist! (Editor's note: See photo Nov/ Dec ,
1985, The New Calliope , p. 21 ).
Our Shrine group has 400 members all over Newfoundland,
so there is no great concentration other than in
St. Johns. We have problems getting together. At present
we have 25 clowns and I must tell you this:
Last fall on the way home from a Children 's Hospital
visit (3 or 4 clowns maintain monthly visits) we stopped
at another hospital to visit Tom Bailey, a Shriner, who
is also a paraplegic. He enjoyed our visits as he was
hospitalized ten weeks and it became a regular thing .
This spring he became our "new clown," a " Care Bear"
in a wheelchair, or as we called him "Cha ir Bear ." It was
good but not good enough for him . So with a little help
from his friends, he became "Candy Andy," a Raggedy
Andy type clown with a sweet tooth and a bag of treats
on hand.
Early last week things began to happen : Tom Bailey
and I met at the Chi Id re n's Hospital for a visit. With us
was a photographer from a local newspaper . I had
along my camera and persuaded the photographer to
take a few extra shots. I sent a few of them to another
newspaper and lo and behold! We got some space!
Because of the publicity, four of our clowns were
invited to attend a Cabbage Patch Birthday Party last
Saturday from 10:00 AM to 12:00 Noon, and again from
1 :00 to 3:00 PM, proceeds going to the Canadian Paraplegic
Association.
I brought along my Cabbage Patch Kid , even though
my bald friend doesn't have a clown suit as yet. Anyway,
I then received a call from a lady needing a clown
for a birthday party on Saturday at 12:30. So, between
the Cabbage Patch shows I managed to drive eight
miles out of town to spend an hour at Chad's birthday
party. We did the " Happy Birthday Coloring Game,' '. I
did some magic, made up the birthday child, passed
out coloring sheets and small prizes, and got back to
town to greet 250 Cabbage Patchers . All in a day 's
work! I did the birthday party for $30.00 afld got a
$10.00 tip. I think that's good for my first birthday party.
Since then I've had two calls to do birthday parties for
children who missed that first one.
The "Happy Birthday Coloring Game" isa relay, really.
I divide the group into two teams and give each team
one color crayon, one team has red and the other team
has a blue one, or whatever. I put up a large poster that
has empty block letters that spell our HAPPY BIRTH ­
DAY JOEY, or whatever the birthday chi ld's name is.
* * * * *
Continued on page 24.
You know, most of Newfoundland is rock . All we need
is the paint and brushes; unemployment being what it
is, this could be a terrific boost to the economy!
At right is a hand -out picture whi ch Happy Kappy gi ves to
children to color.
22 The New Calliope

The New Calliope 23
HAPPY-KAPPY
COLOR ME ! HAVE FUN !
January/February, 1986

January/February, 1986
An other Letter - Continued from page 22.
Candy Andy and Happy Kappy on a visit to the children's
hospital.
* * * * *
The first child on each team runs up and colors one
letter on the poster, runs back to hand the crayon to the
next child in line, who repeats the action. When the
letters are all colored I count all the red letters and all
the blue to determine which team won. Each member
on that team receives a prize, but I always have some ­
thing for the losers, too.
Tonight I will do Meet and Greet and walk-a-round at a
local arena. I managed to recruit a fellow Shrine clown
so it will boost our kitty. We work from 6:30 to 9:30 and
accept all donations. Presently I clown only with
Shriners at hospitals and Shrine related functions .
I had been reading about Clown Camp at Lacrosse ,
Wisconsin for years. So th is year I took the plunge! And
if you look real close you 'll see me there next year, too!
It will take me all year to digest all I've learned so I can
pass it on!
From Clown Camp I have evolved another character,
"Happy Kappy." He is an auguste clown who stopped
into McDonalds during a recent parade and asked to
have McNuggets made from a rubber chicken! I like
him! I stopped at one point in the parade opposite two
young children, a boy and a girl, 5 or 6 years old, and
held out my arms. They ran out and hugged me! That
has never happened before, so I think I have a good
thing going with "Happy Kappy ."
This Christmas season will be busy for our group . One
of the highlights for me will be the chance to perform
on stage with the Happy Tree Show. It is a variety show
sponsored by a local radio station . Five hundred to a
thousand people will donate their time to raise money
for toys for underprivileged children. I will work with
the MC, doing fill-ins between the various acts. I know I
will feel like a professional!
In my last letter I told you about my deaf friend, Shannon
, who isa burn victim. His brothers attend St. Paul's
School here in Mt. Pearl. All schools in Newfoundland
are church affiliated. Each Advent season the children
at this school bring nickel and dime offerings which
are given to a worthy cause . Last year $1200 was given
to the Ethopian Food Fund; the year before about the
same amount was given to a boy needing a kidney
transplant. Last night the principal of St. Paul 's called
me to say this year it would go to the Shrine Sneaker
Fund because of the help Shannon has received from
this fund at the Boston Burn Institute . Shannon has
had extensive reconstruction work done to his hand ,
enabling him some use of it. There is no charge for this
help. Needless to say , Happy Kappy and Associates
are very happy about St. Paul's gift.
The McDonalds Corporation here has been very helpful
to our unit, giving drinks and handouts when
needed. Recently a Ronald McDonald House was
opened here, which is a real blessing to families of
afflicted children. The Ronald McDonald House offers
free lodging to families of children hospitalized for
treatment. This is a real help in all localities, but here in
Newfound land, where everyone is so spread out , it is a
special help.
In November the auxiliary of our unit hosted a party for
the patients at Children's Hospital. The clowns were
there, too., entertaining the bed ridden patients who
were unable to attend the party.
I am very happy being a Shrine clown, and am sure I
will always be one. I remember Leon "Buttons"
McBride at Clown Camp comparing clowning to
bacon and eggs. He said, "The hen was involved but
the pig was committed." I am committed to clowning!
Leon also has a saying , "When you are green you grow,
when you are ripe you rot." I pray I never get ripe!
Keep smiling,
Keith Pike
24 The New Calliope

A Personal Account:
Clowning With the Professionals
by Bob Stanek
Minneapolis, Minnesota
When the Shrine Circus was playing in Minneapolis, I
got a telephone call from Bob "Woody" Wood. He said
Lee Marks, one of the professional clowns with the
circus, had called him and asked if he would like to do a
walk-a-round during some of the performances.
Woody called to ask if I would like to work the circus for
an evening with him. I thought it would be a great
experience, so immediately I said, "Yes."
On the evening we were to perform, we met, in makeup,
in the parking lot of the Minneapolis Auditorium.
Then we headed for Clown Alley. Here we were met by
Lee Marks, who introduced us to the other two clowns
in the show, Toby Ballantine and Mohammed Rahalli, a
clown from Morocco. We watched as they put on their
make-up; then we got our instructions from Lee Marks.
He looked over our props and told us we could do two
of the walk-a-rounds and the spec number .
I had my giant firecracker and Woody had his giant ball
of yarn and his knitting needles, both favorite props of
ours that we use frequently in parades.
Lee Marks told us all we had to do was follow him out
onto the track and do our act. When the whistle blew,
we had to get off the track as fast as possible. It
sounded easy. So off we went into the auditorium. We
got on the track and did our acts once on each side of
the arena and once in each of the ends. I lit my firecracker
with a lot of razz matazz; when the fuse had
burned out a little flag popped up that said, "BANG."
Woody was knitting his sock that was already two feet
long. Behind him he brought his big ball of yarn in a
little red wagon. This was fun . We were getting a great
reaction from the audience. Then the whistle blew. Lee
Marks hadn't told us all the lights go out when the
whistle blows. In the pitch darkness, I started running
for the exit. Of course I couldn't see the rigging cable
across the track . This cable caught me about midthigh
and I did the best trip and "s lide into second
base" pratfall I have ever done. And it was all wasted . It
was pitch dark and no one saw it. I picked up my aching
body and my pride and limped into the dressing room .
Lee was laughing, "Oh, I forgot to tell you to be careful
of the rigging."
We waited in the dressing room during the rest of the
performance until the spec, just before the intermission.
Then Lee told us to just walk around and wave
during the spec, "Let's go. Follow me." And just like he
said, we followed him .
To get onto the track, we had to go down through the
entrance to the arena. Well, they had all the lion and
tiger cages in the entrance, since the cat act would
January/February , 1986
open the second half of the show. There was less than
a foot of room between the cages and the wall. Lee
casually walked down the narrow passage into the
circus arena, then turned around and waved for us to
come on down. Both Woody and I were spread eagled
against the wall, slowly we inched our way sideways,
staring each cat in the eye as we passed its cage, which
was only a foot from our noses. The cats were watching
us, too. This made us all the more nervous. Just as
we got to the last cage and were feeling as if we had
made it through that maze, the big lion in this last cage
let out a roar that was heard all over the arena. I am
here to tell you that no mouth wash, breath mints, or
breath spray could have helped his breath! It not only
scared the beegeebers out of us, but nearly asphyxiated
us on the spot.
We staggered out onto the track, waved to all the boys
and girls and their moms and dads, and tried to forget
about those cats sitting at the entrance.
We made it back to the dressing room for intermission.
Then we almost forgot about the cats; we were watching
with great interest as'Toby Ballantine mixed up a
mixture of shaving soap and water in five plastic , fivegallon
buckets. He was using an electric paint mixer
and the consistency of his mixture was that of whipped
cream. Then he added food coloring to each of three
buckets: red, green, and yellow. Two buckets were left
white. Both Woody and I were very curious, "Hey ,
Toby, what are you mixing there?"
Toby said these were for the final clown act called,
"Painting the Statue in the Park." He asked if we
wanted to be in the act. I said, "No, thank you." Good
old Woody said he had a tramp costume in the car and
would volunteer for the act.
Toby explained the act. There would be a girl in white
leotards standing on a small pedestal. This was the
statue in the park. The clowns would come on and try
to paint the statue, but in doing so, would get most of
the colored mixture on themselves.
Toby said to Woody, "A ll you have to do is lay at the
foot of the statue and pretend you are sleeping in the
park. WE WON'T GET A DROP ON YOU."
It came time for the act. The spotlight hit the statue in
the park with Woody sleeping in front of it. On came
the clowns in white overalls and buckets of "paint,"
equipped with big brushes. Well, I am here to tell you ,
they did not get a drop of that soap mixture on Woody.
They got almost all of it on him. They brushed it on him,
they poured it on him and threw it on him. And good
old Woody, as instructed, didn't move a muscle and
pretended to sleep through the whole act. It was a
Continued on page 27.
The New Calliope 25

January/February, 1986
TRANSFORMER BALLOONS
by Ralph Dewey
1110 E. Princeton
Deer, Park, Texas 77536
Toys that change from one thing to another are popular
these days . Cars change to robots, motorcycles
change to jets, and dinosaurs become war machines.
Balloon animals can be "transformed" too. You may
have seen the Daschund that switches to a Giraffe or
the Alligator that turns into a Moose . This new Transformer
balloon converts from a Coyote to a Roadrunner.
Some time ago a Shrine clown was kind
enough to share his version of this creature with me.
Later, I could not remember exactly how it went so I
came up with this version. Now I would like to share it
with you. The Coyote/Roadrunner takes only one pencil
balloon . It can be either a #260A or a #260E.
Twist off a 2" bubble and two 3" bubbles, Twist connect
bubbles 5 and 6 at points C and D.
PC
Twist off a 4" bubble and a medium bubble. Ear twist
bubble 8.
Cut a hole in the nipple and let out enough air to form a
medium bubble. Then tie a knot one half inch from the
bubble. Trim off the excess nipple.
Fully inflate the balloon except for about 3 inches, then
tie it off. Twist 9ff a 2" bubble and two soft 6" bubbles.
Twist connect them at points A and B. Fold twist both
bubbles (2 and 3) at point A/8.
A
B
b(--x!--2.--x x:--
3
~ 7
--------
26 The New Calliope

Insert and roll bubble 1 through bubbles 5 and 6. Pul I it
snugly up between them. Slightly curve bubble 7 to be
the Roadrunner's neck. Mark the Coyote's face, then
turn it over and decorate the Roadrunner's eyes. BEEP!
BEEP!
* * * * *
Clowning With the Professionals - Continued from page 25.
great act and the audience liked it. But, I'm kinda glad I
didn't volunteer to be the tramp in the park.
Woody came back to the dressing room just saturated
with the multi-colored mixture and was met at the
entrance to the dressing room by the manager of the
circus. "You take that costume off and leave it right
here in the middle of the floor," he said gruffly .
Woody stripped off the soggy mess as instructed and
left it in the middle of the floor. That was it for us in the
Shrine Circus clowning with the professionals. It was
an unforgettab le experience and I enjoyed it very
much. I don't really think I would ever be cut out for
that type of life , but it was fun to sample. And Woody
still has a pile of stiff-as-a-board tramp costume in the
middle of his garage floor as a momenta.
LICENSE PLATE
License plate mad e of
weatherproof plastic
Size 12" x 6"
Red background with
whit e lett ers rea din g
I (h e art) A CLOWN
POSTPA ID $4.00
BILL WATSON
35 22 N . Willow Av e .
Castl e Sh a nn o n, P A 15234
January/February, 1986
Let's Make 'em Laugh
by Steve Bender
(alias Mr. Pickle)
lckle Pickle Products, Inc.
883 Somerton Ridge Drive
St. Louis, MO 63141
The Story Continues:
The Conclusion and What Follows.
Susan was not found in the closet, but she was in her
secret hiding place which Sneeky the Snake pushed
open. The revolving door was then tipped over so that
Susan could fall out. And so the story continues.
"Oh, my, she still has no clothes on. Well , we must
quickly do something about that. Since she's seven , we
shall give her seven seconds to get dressed." I use the
number of seconds to match the birthday child's age.
Now I lift the door of the bathroom so that the audience
can see the empty box and I slide her into the box. The
count begins and when it reaches seven, Ii mmediately
turn the empty (bathroom) box over so that Susan falls
out. But suddenly she has on her new knit dress.
Explanation: The naked doll slides into the box. The
cup attached to the front panel holds this duplicate in
place as I turn the box over and allow the troll with a
piece of red yarn wrapped around her to tumble out. It
happens so fast that it truly baffles the audience
because they are certain that they saw an empty box.
Usually someone will ask, "How did she get dressed?"
I promptly reply, "She's seven years old. She knows
how to dress herself."
Then I wrap up the story by saying, "And since it wasn't
her fault that she was late, but the Woo's fault, her
mother let her have her very favorite breakfast. As I say
this I put the Woo back where he was at the beginning
of the story . Then I put the skeleton back into the closet
and push Sneaky back where he goes. As I do this I
allow the sqeaker in the box to sqeak . To the sqeak, I
answer , "Yes, you can have some, too. " I put the
dressed Susan back into the cup and put everything
back into my #1 suitcase and I'm ready to begin the
story at the next party.
Now I ask the children , "Do you know what Susan liked
best for breakfast?"
Usually they play back to how the story began , "Pancakes,"
"Captain Crunch," or 'Cinnamon Toast."
To this I answer, "No, she liked all those things, but her
very favorite breakfast was Oobee Dobees." This
made-up word varies from time to time so that I can go
into my cooking routine and the children will never be
sure what it is I am going to cook.
"You've never had Oobee Dobees? Well, then, would
you like to see what they look like? If you don 't like the
way they look, you don't have to have any. Besides , no
Continued on page 31.
The New Calliope 27

January/February, 1986
for Clowns and Magicians
JUNE 26. 27, 28. 1986
Holiday Inn • BWI Airport - Baltimore, Marvland
* 3 All-Star Shows by professionals
* Center Ring Clown Around
* Clown Make-Up/Wardrobe Critique*
* 6 New Workshops
* Dealers Show
* Banquet
* Cash Bar Cockta il Partie s
* Hospitality Room w/goo dies
Register Before APRIL l -
THE FUN-CONVENTION ...
No Competition ... No Politics ...
No Mad People .. .
Workshops on ...
Clown Wardrobe by Betty Cash
Clown Make-Up by Mehron
Clown Props & Skits by Leo Desilets & Joe Barney
Body Movement & Pratfalls by Ed Reahl
E-Z Magic for Clowns by Mike Schinner
* Perfonner's View on Entertaining by Sandy Johnson
... plus more to come . ..
Some Acts booked to date ...
Denny & Lee * Bob Little
* Bill Gross (an up & coming black magician)
* Sir Andrew - Merlin's Apprentice
* Senile Sorcerer * Luigi Linguini
... plus more top acts ... and surpr ises!!
be eligible for 2 Special Drawings
Send to:
Hotel - $55/night (single or double)
Holiday Inn - BWI Airport
c/o Carol Reba
890 Elkridge Landing Road
North Linthicum, MD 21090
( 30 l) 859 -8400
Registration - $40.00 / After June 2 - $45 .00
For Infonnation contact:
Funhouse Big 3 Convention
c/o John Tabeling
3339 Belair Road
Baltimore, MD 21213
(301) 675-2066
THE COSTUMER
By Philip Moms
I CAN'T UND£~5TAND rT, MR. MoRF.fS ...
WHE~ I Lf.FT oN SATU~AY NIGHT, WE.
ONLY HAD BUNNY surrs Lf-FT. ....
-rwo
SEND A FIRST CLASS STAMP OR A
BUSINESS SIZE S.A.S.E. FOR MY
or
CA.TA.LOG
OH,BOY!
JUST THE ITEMS
I NEED TO
PUBLICIZE MY
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28 The New Calliope

TEENAGE CLOWNS
by Tom Oswald
Thunder Bay, Ontario
Canada
Over the past couple of years, there has been a movement
to educate and involve children and adolescents
in the art of being a clown. If legend holds true, clowns
have always involved their own children in their clowning
activities. But this new movement is the undertaking
of national and community groups with no ties to
the world of the circus or clowning.
A careful look at local newspapers will probably reveal
a clown ministry celebration at a local church presented
by the youth group; or maybe a feature story
will appear on the 4-H group which is presenting a
clown show as part of their art program this year.
Perhaps there will also be a calendar listing of a clown
group from the local school visiting a nursing home.
The list could go on. The point is that teen clown
groups are becoming more numerous and are demanding
recognition if for no other reason than their growing
number.
Some will argue that children are not able to be clowns.
Their sense of humor is not developed enough to analyze
what is humorous in a situation and capitalize on it.
They lack verbal dexterity. Others might say thatteenagers
are too reckless, thoughtless, and irresponsible
to be clowns. It is generally accepted that adolescence
is a time for establishing self identity, so there can be a
legitimate question about how they can develop another
character if they don't even know who they are.
Still others would argue that young clowns would disrupt
the social activities of adult clown clubs. And most
important, there is the concern that young clowns can
not be insured.
While there may be some truth in those feelings and
concerns, teenage clowns can be an asset to the world
of clowning. Their energy and perpetual motion can
provide life and activity to a club . The quickness and
dexterity of adolescence allows for the easy mastery of
some skills that older clowns never acquire. Their
optimism and creativity have not encountered years of
failure and negativ ism, so in brainstorming sessions,
the wild ideas rush forth in torrents. For them the world
of clowning still holds the aura and mystique that
beckons to the chi ld buried deep inside. The resultant
sparkle in their eyes is real and makes for very attrac ­
tive clowns . Their honesty immediately attracts little
children. Since many babysit to gain money to pay for
clown expenses, they come with a lot of experience in
working with litt le children .
The emerging of adolescents and children into the
clown world is not a one sided issue. For any club
accepting a teenage member or any adult working with
the teenage clowns, care needs to be taken to insure
that the young clowns are given a proper education . It
January/February, 1986
is these clowns who will carry on the legacy of the
masters. And without the proper guidance they will
merely become "Halloween Clowns" hurting the cause
of second hand clothing stores and the professionalism
of. the art of clowning.
Perhaps the first consideration in starting to work with
young clowns is the selection of an experienced clown
as their guide. This clown should have some teaching
or communication abilities and be a good model. This
teacher needs to have impeccable make-up and a thorough
knowledge of the different clown types. But more
importantly this guide must be tolerant, yet have a
demanding attitude toward perfection. Skill attainment
(juggling , tight rope walking, unicycle riding, stilt
walking , hand magic, balloon blowing, etc.) is not as
important in a teacher as the understanding of the
relationship of these skills to the individual character
and the overall role of such gimmicks in clown enter ­
tainment. The ability to communicate that understanding
to the youth is the critical element.
Selecting the guide in ~my club can be a most difficult
task. The guide should be someone who can walk a
fine line between insisting that each new clown put on
his own make-up and design his own outfit while at the
same time helping the new clown complete both tasks
in a very short period of time. The practicality and
sense of immediacy of children and teenagers require
that they put to use their newfound skills immediately.
A yearly schedule intermingled with appearances calling
for varying degrees of skill will allow new clowns to
try out their newfound identity in a harmless fashion.
Care needs to be exercised that new clowns of any age
not be put into positions that will hurt themselves or
their audiences.
Perhaps the hardest thing to teach , impart, or explain
is clown character. This is especially true in teaching
young clowns. Young clowns do have a limited experiential
field from which to draw. They can, at times,
misconstrue silliness or buffoonery that is inappropriate
as a character trait. A lot of attention and examples
must be used in this area. On the other hand, skills
such as juggling, unicycle riding, and hand magic will
be mastered in as little time as one evening. These
ski I ls wi II take care of themselves. The major emphasis ,
therefore, needs to be the congruent packaging of the
character and clown type.
Many of these ideas and priorities hold true for new
adult clowns as well. But in dealing with young clowns
some factors come to bear that are unique to teenagers
and children. Most do not drive (at least not legally) so
transportation must be provided. They may be too shy
to ask for a ride, so it should be offered regularly . While
they may make a committment to a particular event ,
their parents may make some other plans and have
other priorities resulting in the young clown's appear-
Continued on page 30. The New Calliope 29

January/February , 1986
Teenage Clowns - Continued from page 29.
ance of irresponsibility . Adu lt clowns will see that they
get themselves to educational sessions if they want to
go or feel a need to learn something. Adolescent and
child clowns need assistance in remembering dates
and times, locating opportunities and coordinating
those events with family priorities. Transportation
once again becomes an issue.
One of the most critical elements in determining the
success of a young clown is parental support. Parents
who view clowns and clowning as silly and a waste of
time will provide no moral, financial, or functional support.
Such parents will place most other activities
before clowning. Their failure to see the good that
being a clown does for the community and for their
child wi II present an obstacle for young clowns with
which most adult clowns do not have to contend. Parental
support is even critical in developing an outfit.
While good costumes can be designed and made very
inexpensively, they do cost some money and locating
the right materials is a time and money consuming
activity. Without parental help, the job probab ly will
not get done in a timely and appropriate manner. The
result may be a young person's withdrawal from clown ­
ing. The issue is even more critical for youth in rural
areas.
In some clubs, internal conflict arises over leadership
and decision making because of t'he egos of the adu lt
clowns involved. It is important that the guide selected
for young clowns be free of those conflicts. In addition,
the guide needs to have a sincere desire to see the new
clowns succeed for their own benefit and not as an
accolade for the guide or as a fulfillment of some personal
need of the guide.
Establishing a new youth clown group or a youth component
to an existing group and doing it well is not an
easy or simple task. Some difficult questions need to
be addressed and discussed during the planning
phase. As many obstacles to success as possible need
to be removed during the planning. With everyone
working together and the obstacles removed, even the
work will be fun . And it can be very rewarding.
If the youth movement continues, it would seem
imperat ive that major clown organizations take a more
active and supportive role in the development of young
clowns. Without that leadership, the future quality of
clowndom may suffer.
Tom Oswald is founder and former director of the Forest
Lake Teen Clown Club of Forest Lake, Minnesota. See the
May/June, 1984 issue of Calliope for an article about this
club.
* * * * *
Cleo: Where do they keep horses in a hotel?
Peewee: I don't know, where do they keep horses in a
hotel?
Cleo: In the bridal suite.
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KRAKO'S
KORNER byJohnGuthrie
MAGIC , MAGIC, MAGIC
Shou ld clowns perform magic? Many say yes ; and
then many say no. It is up to the indiv idual. If you can
entertain with magic , then do it. If you can't, then don't
try to do it. It's that simple.
Now let me tell you about a great magic trick. When I
was at the recent Clowns of America International
Annual Convention in Apri l of 1985 , I was there as a
dealer. I heard person after person tell me , "I just can't
do magic, it's too hard to learn ." Nonsense. I do use
magic and will not spend hours in practice or in front of
a mirror trying to see how wel I I can master a trick. If I
can't do it in about three minutes , I won't buy it. This is
just the way I am. I stick with items that I know I can
learn easily and are simple to do. I am now using an old
trick that is just fantastic. Why I never learned it before ,
I really don't know. Perhaps, the time just wasn't right.
But, I'd like to share it with you now. I saw a magician
use this trick in our local area last year. The trick is
called "Ba ll To Jumbo Square." It is by Al Goshman
and can be purchased at almost any magic or novelty
store. It is easy, easy, easy to do and can draw a great
response. I now use it to open any show that I do,
regardless of the type show. This trick is just great.
The trick comes in a box. Inside the box is a square
with a hole in the bottom, a small black ball, and a small
red ba ll. I forget about the red ball and don't use it. The
trick comes with an explanation, but this is not quite
the way I use mine. Don't worry about the instructions
with the trick. They make it look hard; these instructions
call for palming the red ball. Remember as a
clown you can get by with many things. Just take the
square and the black ball and do as instructed; just turn
the black ball into the bottom of the square and it looks
as if you just have a red ba ll in your hand. Very simple.
Now tell the children. "I want to perform a fantastic
magic trick for you." I always have a child from the
audience help me; with a magic wand , he or she will do
the trick. Now just push the ball down in your hand
between the fingers. As you do this, it will turn inside
out and the b lack ball is now in the bottom of your
hand. Holding this black ball in your other hand ,
announce to the audience that your assistant has now
turned the red ball into a black ball. Ask the audience to
give your assistant a big hand. As you show the black
ball to the audience, hold up your other hand and they
will see part of the red ball sticking out of your hand.
Don't worry ; someone will see it even if your assistant
doesn't. Now comes the big play . Tell the audience that
there is nothing in your other hand and switch from
hand to hand if nec essary. Everytime you do this trick,
a new move will come to you. You can really "milk " this
January / February, 1986
trick and it can be a time filler if tha t' s what you need.
The response from the audience will never stop coming.
When you're ready to move on, tell the audience
that you don 't really have a red ball, but a red square.
As you open your hand the ball will reopen and it is a
red square. Before you show the red square, have your
assistant wave the magic wand over the ball. The
audience wi II give the assistant a big hand and you will
have a fantastic opening for your show . Everyone has
thought they caught you in th is trick, but yet it really
looks like a piece of magic. I wish I was selling this
trick, but I'm not.
Now, I'd like to ask you to remember these two things:
1. If I can do it so can you. 2. Any trick is only as
effective as your presentation. I do not practice a t rick
more than twice; then it is in the show . That is a great
place to see how it will work for you. I love comedy
magic. It is really what is happening today. Even
Blackstone, Jr. is performing a comedy magic show. In
this stressful society, everyone wants to laugh. Serious
magic is fun also , but so much can be done with
comedy magic. Don't be afraid to try it. Have the people
at the magic store demonstrate it for you . They will.
That is why they are there.
In my next few articles, I wi II share with you some of the
things I use that I feel are perfect magic tricks fo r
clowns. What I share with you has been used in many
of my shows and they work. That is what's important:
simple, effective and fun, fun, fun . Just yesterday I
worked the trick I have just described in a school. They
loved it. So did the teachers. One even asked me, "How
did you do that?" Of course I told her the secret. "Carefully
," I said. Try this one, I promise you, you won't be
sorry.
HAPPY DAZE
Krako
Let 's Make 'em Laugh - Continued from page 27.
one said it was your favorite breakfast ; it's Susan's
favorite. I guess Susan better come up here and help
me."
I've now completed the story of the Woo and I've led
d irectly into the cooking of breakfast. To tell the entire
story takes about fifteen minutes . Cooking breakfast
will take another ten minutes . Whil e I use no helpers
during the first fifteen minutes, the story keeps the
children quiet and attentive as they follow the rapidly
developing sequence of events. But before they even
have time to rea lize that one story is over and the next
act is about to begin , it's already begun. And now the
birthday child is center stage and will be center stage
for the next ten minutes. Should the child's parents
wish to do so, they wi II have plenty of opportunity to
snap her picture. And, believe me, I will give them
man y good shots as she helps me prepare the Oobee
Dobees .
Coming Next Time : The Making of the Oobee Dobees.
The New Calliope 31

January/February, 1986
C.O.A.I. #5783
Meet Jody Marks of Stinson Beach, California
Jody says: "I'm very'interested in the healing power of laughter, and hope to work with the mentally ill and depressed
patients. I would do this not as a clown, but would teach them the art of clown make-up so they can discover the clown
in themselves. For awhile, at least, they can free the happy, playful self they have repressed. The "mask" has that
liberating effect."
This closeup shows a better view of "Boom Boom 's" neat
make-up .
In a playful mood , "Boom Boom" rides a grocery cart to the
store.
32 The New Calliope
Posing prettily , "Boom Boom" seems about to offer her
flower for a smell.

Ringling Bros. Clown College
January/February, 1986
A Visit to the World's Funniest Final Exam
by Betty Cash
In past issues of The New Calliope you have read
articles about Ringling Bros . and Barnum & Bailey
clowns. Perhaps some of you have wondered how do
they become Ringling clowns? In this issue Brian
Goede shares his experiences as a member of the
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College
class of '85. Follow me now in my visit to Venice, Florida
and the Ringling Bros. Clown College graduation,
which was titled "The World's Funniest Final Exam."
I arrived in Venice, Florida on Friday, November 8, the
day ,before graduation and went immediately to the
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey arena to tell my
friend, Brian Goede, a student there, of my arrival.
Tickets are by invitation only, and Brian has seen fit to
include me in his list of guests.
The class was in rehearsal. I asked for Brian and during
a break I was able to talk with him, Rocco Paris of
Hobart, Indiana, and Tina Bausch of Grove City, Ohio.
I knew them from Clown Camp Wisconsin and saw
them audition there for Clown College.
Steve Smith, the Dean of the college, also stopped by
with a welcome.
Soon it was back to work for the students. That night
they would hold dress rehearsal. Unlike other years, it
would be a private affair and tickets would not be
available.
After dinner with friends in the area, I returned to the
Venice Villas where I was staying . After the rehearsal
Brian dropped by and we talked clowning 'til the wee
hours.
Saturday morning I was awakened by a knock on my
door. It was Barry DeChant, of Redford, Michigan,
another one of Brian's guests to the graduation. We
planned a day together. Breakfast was first on the list,
after which we visited the home of Merle Evans, the
renown circus band leader. Merle lives in Sarasota,
approximately 20 miles north of Venice. He is now 92
years old, but continues an active life, including a lot of
travel. In fact the list of places where he guest conducted
last year includes Illinois, South Dakota, Ohio,
and Michigan. He rode in the Great Circus Parade in
Milwaukee and led the U.S. Army Band on the Capitol
lawn in Washington, D.C. He retired from his job,
bandmaster of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey
Circus, in 1969, but has been busy ever since.
I especially enjoyed listening to him tell of the great
Hartford circus fire in 1944. He kept the band playing
as the people filed out. He said he watched the fire
come ever closer with tent poles falling in order as the
fire neared. When it got to the last pole, which was near
the band, they made a hasty exit. Although there was a
smile on his face, I could still feel the tension. He said
he felt it was their duty to keep playing to retain some
kind of order in the otherwise arena of chaos. He was
commended by the Governors of Connecticut and
Massachusetts for his bravery .
Since his wife died three years ago, he lives alone in his
home in Sarasota. Although this visit had nothing to do
with the Clown Graduation, it was one of the highlights
of my visit there and I thank Barry for arranging it.
From there we drove a short distance to the R.B.B.& B.
Circus Museum. We spent the afternoon looking at the
grand collection of circus memorabilia, and the beautiful
home where the Ringlings once lived. All of this is
set on several acres right at seaside.
Then it was back to Venice to get ready for the graduation.
It wa~ a dress affair and we needed to prepare.
After a quick trip to the airport to pick up Jack Anderson
of Jacksonville , Florida, who was also arriving to
attend the graduation, we arrived at the arena.
The arena seats 5000. We were lucky to have center
seats about 1 O rows up.
Director Steve Smith, prior to the start of the show , and
anxious with anticipation, began to mingle his way
through the crowd, sprinkling bits of tinsel confetti into
the air. This helped to establish the gala atmosphere of
the unique performance about to begin. It is also a
classic trademark of Steve Smith's personality and
free-wheeling character. After the confetti incident,
Steve proceeded backstage to give his students / colleagues
a pep talk to reaffirm his confidence in them
and their abilities , and then it was on with the show!
The opening number featured Rocco Paris, dressed as
an artist, trying to paint a light mural on the black
curtain back drop. In the middle of the ring was a large,
bright, multi-colored parachute with small white lights
on it. As Rocco continued to try to follow the moving
spot light to paint, he gave up hope and chased it out of
the ring. At this point the back curtain opened and a
huge space ship emerged. Long feather cords danced
out of it in time to the music, which was playing in the
background . Their colored tails twitched back and
forth with motions of dancing on air. Eventually the
space ship burst open as the fog filled parachute
began to rise. Underneath the clouds of fog , the 49
Continued on page 34.
The New Calliope 33

January/February, 1986
Final Exam - Cont inu ed from page 33.
beautifully dressed, multi colored clowns stood, standing
still, styling to the audience. At a choreographed
place in the music, which slowly rose to a climax, the
clowns started to move slowly and began to juggle the
three silk scarves that each held. Faster and faster the
action became until the clowns worked their way
closer and closer to the audience, still juggling their
scarves. The number ended with them stopping everything
and giving their best pose to the audience, simultaneously
with the music. Wow!
The show continued with skits and walk-a-rounds.
This year the skits and walk-a-rounds were conceived
by the students themselves and the variety was impressive.
There were funny skits, pretty skits, and skits
with feeling. I recognized some as take offs on skits I
have seen other times and other places.
Each student was involved in several skits and each
performed at least once in a walk-a-round of his own
creation.
Can you imagine 49 clowns, each different in appearance
and character, trying their best to impress
judges? The colors were bright and multiple, the stage
was constantly alive and changing, background music
filled the air. I felt I had died and gone to Clown
Heaven!
Each clown wore a number displayed very visibly on
his costume so he could be identified easily by the
panel of critics seated in the front row of the audience.
Each clown was closely watched and judged by the
panel who were trying to make some assessment of
ability and personality to aid them in decisions for
contracts to be offered the next day.
The show continued for 2½ hours. After 31 beautiful
numbers on the program, we enjoyed a 15 minute
intermission. The arena seats are small and very close
together, and the chance to stand and stretch was
most welcome. With the lights on I was happy to recognize
many of the circus stars. Bill Ballantine was
there, as was Ron Severini, Lou Jacobs, Frosty Little,
Mark Anthony, Jim Howle, as well as Peggy Williams,
the first female clown hired by R.B.B.& B.
Soon it was back to the show, where we were treated to
another 23 fabulous numbers, and another artist skit
starring Rocco Paris, where the spotlight picked out
groups of three clowns , who again posed for the
audience as the show ended.
Steve Smith then introduced Kenneth Feld, owner of
The Greatest Show on Earth, who handed a diploma of
graduation to each clown as his name was called.
Following this, the class posed for group and single
photos. Then the crowd cleared out and the clowns
and their families retired to a back-stage room for a
celebration buffet. The instructors and other special
guests were there as was Mr. Feld and his family.
34 The New Calliope
Rocco Paris proudly points to the Ringling Bros. logo on his
back as he and Brian Goede pose for the camera outside the
Venice Villas where they stayed while at Clown College.
After the banquet I was privileged to a behind-thescenes
tour as I helped Brian pick up his costumes and
personal items.
The prop shop was a delight to this clown's eyes.
Feathers, flash paint, bangles, bananas, flowers, puppets
, stilts, unicycles, even a birthday cake and cup
cakes! It took all my self control to leave, but the costume
shop awaited and the thought propelled me on.
As we entered the costume shop, the first sight to greet
me was a full row of sewing machines. Patterns of sign
board hung neatly on the wall. They were the only
things in the room that were neat! Scraps of fabric,
spools of thread, pieces of trim and paper littered the
floor. It was obvious, great activity had recently occured
here. There were shelves lining one wall , stacked
with fabrics of every kind, all colors and textures, polka
dots, loud plaids and screaming stripes! If the prop
shop fascinated me, just imagine the effect of the costume
shop on this seamstress! What a hey day I could
celebrate here!
We gathered up the rest of Brian's possessions and
with reluctance I followed him to the car. Graduation
was over. Tomorrow would determine the fate of the
newly graduated clowns. Contracts would be offered
to 24 of the 49. Tension would be high as the clowns
waited to be called to the office , one by one, to talk to
Mr. Feld and Allen Bloom, assistant to Mr. Feld.
My friend Brian, and Tina Bausch, were not offered
contracts. Rocco Paris went to the Red Unit. Some
would be offered other jobs with the circus , and some
would be approached by other circuses with offers to
clown with them.
Whether the 49 students left with a contract or not,
each left with a wealth of clown knowledge not available
any place else.

CLOWN COLLEGE, 1985
by Brian Goede
Rushford, Minnesota
Three years ago the Ringling Bros. and Barnum &
Bailey Clown College seemed like a far away dream;
now three weeks after graduation the memories seem
like distant thoughts. Let me tell you about my extended
journey to Venice, Florida and the eighteenth class
of the RBBB Clown College.
It all began in the summer of 1985, when I decided to
audition for Clown College. The auditions were to be
held during Clown Camp at the University of Wisconsin,
Lacrosse, Wisconsin. I felt comfortable about
doing this now because Steve Smith had just been
named Clown College Director and I had met Steve the
year before at Clown Camp. I had thought about auditioning
before, probably as early as 1983, but had
never gotten up enough guts to do so or to fill out the
extensive application/questionaire. It seemed as if this
opportunity in Lacrosse was my chance to prove
myself. Although my audition did not go as well as I
had hoped, I knew that I had conveyed my deep interest
in going to Clown College 1985. I wrote my best
answers to their application questions in a two and a
half hour session in my college dormitory late one
night. I sent in the application with several photos of
myself. Eagerly and somewhat impatiently awaiting
their answer, I wrote several letters to Director Steve
Smith and even tried to call him several times. Finally at
the end of June I had received the news I had hoped
for: I was to be a student in the class of 1985.
During the first week of September, a hurricane delayed
me and my fellow classmates' traveling to the south
Florida town of Venice for three days. When we finally
arrived, we checked into the rooms at the Venice Villas
Motel and began to meet each other. I was one of the
lucky students housed in the much larger apartments
at the Villas; some of the students were forced to live in
regular motel rooms.
They came from all over the country, mostly from the
east and west coasts, but several from midwest and
southern states. There were forty men and fifteen
women, everyone of them as eager to begin the challenge
as I was. The Ringling bus, which we would ride
for the next ten weeks, picked us up to take us the short
distance to the arena, where we would be spending
almost all of our time. It was very large, it seemed,
seating about 5000 people; it was painted with the
traditional colors: bright red and yellow with touches
of blue. An endless variety of props and juggling
equipment was laid out on large tables and boxes like
toys for us to play with in this vast toy room-school. We
began checking in and meeting our teachers, professors
of laughter, who had been carefully chosen by
Clown College Dean Steve Smith as the best in the
January / February, 1986
country, to make us the best, well-rounded
possible.
clowns
Soon we began to experience the many different
things that would occur in our lives. We would be
changed as people forever, because of the training we
were receiving and its effect on our personalities.
The first four weeks were spent in training the real
clown deep down inside each and everyone of us. We
urged him to come out and play with others and to
grow and develop himself.
After beginning each day with a rigorous warm-up
exercise at 8:00 am, we proceeded to classes such as
mask, mime, improvisation, and arena choreography .
These classes operated on rotation with the students
split into three groups. After a one hour lunch in the
media room, we proceeded to classes such as juggling,
stilt-walking, props, costumes, acrobatics, and
the most important class, the class on clowning.
Evenings were spent in more informal class sessions.
Sometimes we would have a guest lecturer; other times
we would spend studying old films of the comedy
greats, such as Charlie Chaplin. Later on the evenings
were spent practicing, building props, or sewing.
In the mask class, we wore brown and black co lored
masks for one hour each day and ran through scores of
short gags with the "magic triangle" of a beginning, a
middle, and an end . Eventually our masks evolved into
individual personalities with characteristics which
would fit our clown's feelings and ideas.
In mime class, we worked with Steve Smith on perfecting
our pantomime skills and incorporating them into
our routines to be used with our clowning. We were
video taped and our performance evaluated by the
students and teachers as we all watched the tape
together.
Improvisation class focused on teaching us how to be
funny on our feet and how to react to different situations
that might occur in a gag.
The last morning class was arena choreography. Here
we worked on filling up the arena with our body and
actions so that everyone, even the old man with his
grandson sitting in the last row, could see and get the
full impact of the gag.
The afternoon usually began with acrobatics. We
started with basic tumbling and worked our way up to
multiple table sliding, advanced teeterboard gags, and
a variation of the charivari gag used last year on the
road. In stilt-walking class we began with shorter stilts
and gradually worked our way up to taller stilts. Over ­
head mechanics made sure that nobody would be hurt
during the learning process. This made it possible to
learn faster and move up in stilt size more quickly .
Continued on page 36.
The New Calliope 35

January/February, 1986
Clown College , 1985 - Continued from page 35.
Eventually, pants, arm waving, and obstacles were
added as the mechanics were discarded . Rubber mat
tracking lined the floors and the bottom of the stilts to
insure proper grip an9 prevent slipping .
Juggling class was my favorite . Here we worked on all
aspects of juggling and combined juggling with unicycling
and various acts of balance such as rolabola,
rolling globes, and foot spinning. Juggling started with
the basic three scarves and progressed to balls, clubs,
plates, bowls, cigar boxes, hats, flaming clubs, rings,
and combinations of these with other objects, such as
fruit. In prop class, we made things for our own original
wl11k-a-round gags as well as for production gags and
other gags we would be assigned to later on in the
College session. The variety of props and the sizes in
which they were constructed made this a very interesting
class.
The costume class was spent solely on clothing our
individual clown character. This class did not become
a part of the curriculum until the third week. In the first
three weeks, designers spent their time organizing the
costume shop and watching us at work in our other
classes. They were getting to know our individual personalities
so they could better design our costume.
Each student was assigned a designer. Then began the
long process of designing, approval, and making each
student's full costume, including some accessory
articles. We began learning to sew by making small
things , such as shorts, groucho bags, skull caps, and
gloves. I nttiis way we learned about the different kinds
of machines and the proper way to do things. Seeing
the Ringling costume shop and its endless variety of
fabrics would truly amaze any clown . Every color,
check, or plaid was there. Every kind of material and
any size polka dot imaginable was there. All of this was
accessible to every student. This was also true of
shoes, hats, and wigs. Once our costumes were com ­
plete and combined with our accessory props, shoes, a
wig and a hat, we all had a colorful costume that was
both original and -practical. It was coordinated with our
character and our make-up and had a good visibility,
even at a distance.
Clowning class was just what it sounds like, fun. Oh ,
don't get me wrong. Ringling clowns take their merriment
very seriously; they practice and hone each gag
to a fine tuned edge . Even this was great fun for all of
us. The class explored all aspects of clowning from
gag construction to delivery and technique . This class
carried over into all of the other classes and yet was
unique because it alone tried to teach the art of being a
true, complete clown. Techniques taught in the class
included water spitting, pyrotechnics, pie throwing,
slaps, falls, flips, tumbles, and hits. At the same time
nutrition was stressed . Various gags were taught,
beginning with the simple ones and working up to the
larger ones which required accurate timing for their
execution.
36 The New Call iope
At the beginning of the fourt h week we started learn ing
make-up. In the first few days we learned proper app licatio
n techniques , the types of clown faces, and the
make-up brands . The f irst day we applied make-up
ourse lves, we put on whiteface ; this was followed by
days of auguste, tramp, character, cartoo n, crazy,
scary, and then our own clown face. After several
weeks of expe rimentation, we developed a face that
best fit our persona lity and learned which type of
make-up worked best fo r us and which stayed on our
face the best. In the weeks t hat followed, our make-up
instructors helped us with problems and corrected our
mistakes.
Every student molded his own clown nose after castings
of his face were made. Thi s by itse lf was a different
experience. Trying to decide how one wanted his nose
to look brought up many questions. Finally the perfect
nose was made, after long deliberation and advice
from others. The noses, cast in liquid latex, fit perfectly
since they were built on our real noses. When painted
with acrylic paint, these noses added an attractive
touch to an already amazing face.
The final weeks of Clown College were spent practicing,
perfect ing our many gags, and adding finis hi ng
touches to props and costumes. By this time the hectic
schedule had begun to take its toll on all of us and
proper pacing to accommodate our bodies was criti ­
cal. During these days friendship and kindness were
contagious. The teachers at Clown College '85 were
the best in all respects. They were hand-picked by
Director Steve Smith himself and were extremely
eager to produce the best clowns possible for The
Greatest Show on Earth. Master Clowns, Lou Jacobs
and Glen "Frosty" Little headed an all star line-up of
loving, caring people, who gave us everything they had
to give. Combining them with clowns from the traveling
shows, guest lecturers, parades, field trips to the
Ringling Museum in Sarasota, Florida and the Sarasota
Shrine Circus made for an educationa l experience
that lacked nothing.
The culmination of all of our hard work occured at the
graduation ceremony on November 16. This took
place in ring #1 of the arena in which we had learned
and practiced all of this time. The whole show was
expertly choreographed to music by Director Smith
and used many props and devices to highlight it. Producer
of the Circus, Kenneth Feld, and his staff from
Washington, D.C. were there to judge us all. After the
final performa nce and after pictures had been taken,
we attended a gala dinner and met Mr. Feld.
Sunday was the big day for contracts. Nervous ly we
put our costumes and props away, waiting in eager
antic ipation to be called to the office to f ind out if we
wou ld get a contract or not. Contracts were offered at
the starting price of $185 per week pl us living quarters,
that measured 6 feet by 4 feet , on the circus train.
Continued on page 37.

Clown College, 1985 - Continued from page 36.
January/February, 1986
At the end of the day, contract or no, we all realized that
we were still friends and that we had together lived
through and experienced one of the most important
times in our lives, when we stud ied what we considered
vita l and worthwhile.
We could no longer go back to our previous lives; we
had all changed in some way; we had learned new
things and grown in ways we never before thought
possible. We all were the winners; we had endured and
done what many could not. For that alone we could all
be thankful. We had come a long way; we were clowns.
Brian Goede has now returned to Minnesota. He has completed
three years of college at Winona State University,
majoring in music. Currently he is considering a return to
college, a job as a flight attendant, or continuing his clown
career professionally . We wish Brian the best in whatever he
chooses.
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January/February , 1986
Clowns from the Powder Puff Clown Club of St. Paul
wave HELLO FROM MINNESOTA.
Neither sub-zero temperatures nor near-record snowfalls kept these hearty clowns from their Christmas
appearances . They are also looking forward to a busy time at the end of January when St. Paul celebrates the
100th anniversary of their Winter Carnival. Look for an article on this winter festival in the Marchi April issue.
38 The New Calliope

The New Calliope 39
drinking alcoholic beverage while in makeup
and clown costume . I will conduct myself as a
gentleman / lady , neither molesting nor interfering
with other acts, events, spectators , or individuals
.
4 I will remove my makeup and change into my
street clothes as soon as possible following my
appearance , so that I can not be associated with
any incident , which may be detrimental to the
good name of clowning. I will conduct myself as
a gentleman / lady at all times .
5 While on appearance, in makeup and costume , I
will carry out the directives of the Producer or
his designated deputies. I will abide by all performance
rules without complaint in public .
6 I will do my very best to maintain the best clown
standards of makeup , costuming, properties,
and comedy .
7 I will appear in as many clown shows as I possibly
can.
1 I will keep my acts , performance and behavior in
good taste while I am in costume and makeup .
I will remember, at all times , that I have been
accepted as a member of the clown club only to
provide others , principally children , with clean
clown-comedy entertainment. I will remember
that a good clown entertains others by making
fun of himself or herself and not at the expense
or embarrassment of others.
2 I will learn to apply my makeup in a professional
manner. I will provide my own costume . I will
carry out my appearance and assignment for the
entertainment of others and not for personal
gain or personal publicity when performing for
either the National club or Alley events . I will
always try to remain anonymous while in makeup
and cosume as a clown, though there may be
circumstances when it is not reasonably possible
to do so.
3 I will not drink any alcoholic beverage prior to
any clown appearances . I will abstain from
A CLOWNS
CODE OF ETHICS
And The Seven Clown Commandments
NON-PROFIT NON-POLITICAL NON-SECTARIAN
INITIATION FEE ... ................ .. ......... $ !5.00
MEMBERSHIP FEE IN CONTINENTAL U.S.A ... .. 15.00
MEMBERSHIP FEE OUTSIDE U.S.A .. ..... .. ... .. . 18.00
FAMILY MEMBERSHIP (Second P9rson)
. . . . ... .... 7.!50
Clowns of America International, Inc .
P.O. Box 570
Lake Jackson , Texas 77566-0570
Pieose submit this application with a check or lftOney order to=
SIGNATURE
CLOWN NAMES USED
AGE SEX M E
DATE OF BIRTH
AOORESS-----::-:---:---------------::--------------------------
strMt Cdy Sto1a Zip Code
NAME----:--:----------------::-:--:----------------,-:---,-,----------
Lost Flnt •1cN1e laitlal
( Please Type or Print )
CLOWNS OF AMERICA
INTERNATIONAL APPLICATION
January / February, 1986
MEMBERSHIP

NOTICE
ELECTION OF OFFICERS WI.LL. BE HELD
' . ,
JUNE, 1986
RESUMES OF ALL CANDIDATES WILL
APPEAR IN THE MARCH/APRIL ISSUE
Please remember to vote.
Your opinion does count!
Clowns of America International, Inc.
P.O. Box 570
Lake Jackson , Texas 77566-0570
Bulk Rate
U.S. Postage
PAID
ST. PAUL, MN
PERMIT NO. 1058
Forwarding and
Address Correction Requested
40 The New Calliope