JanFeb_2012

Why Did I Wait So Long
by Jayne “Twinkle” Urquhart
Chances are, if you are read The
New Calliope, you are a clown. Can you
remember back when you first thought
about being a clown? Did you hunt for a
clown school or drag your feet? Can you
remember when you first went to clown
school? You may have thought about how
much fun it would be to entertain people
with tricks or the balloons you would
learn to tie. I’m sure you never dreamed
about that warm fuzzy feeling you would
have the first time someone laughed at
something you did while performing as a
clown. I remember.
I got started in the summer of 2006 at
the age of 59. My husband worked with
two guys named Bruce Kerr and Lynn
Hopkins at General Electric in Eire, PA.
Even the people they worked with called
them by their clown names, Bruce was
Rollo and Lynn was Happy Hoppy. They
would talk about clowning and how I
would make a good clown. Rollo told my
husband that “Squeeze” was going to start
a clown school down in Meadville. At that
same time I had read an article in the local
paper about a clown school starting at the
Market House in Meadville. A voice said:
“You know you’re 59 years old.” I called
to sign up anyway and the lady said to
come down before 2 p.m. and register. I
was surprised to learn that my name was
already on her list! I guess Rollo just took
it upon himself to register for me.
A few weeks later I was a member of
the first ever Squeeze U Clown School
with 11 other “newbies.” It was a rush.
The excitement was high but the speed of
morphing into a clown was at lightning
speed. I picked the type of clown and
learned to put my face on. I picked a
name, bought a wig, made a costume.
Whew! Who was that person looking back
at me in the mirror? I learned some jokes,
pocket magic, tricks, and learned to tie a
balloon dog.
While all this was going on the 12
newbies and two instructors Squeeze
and Rollo had turned into a very special
group. We all graduated and went to the
Erie Alley which some of us joined. Some
of our clowns wanted to have an alley
closer to Meadville, so we started Clown
City Clown Alley in Meadville, PA.
Life was good for a while. I clowned
with both Erie Alley, Clown City Clowns
and occasionally by myself. There is
nothing in the world like the first time
you hear someone laugh at something you
did. I was hooked. I couldn’t get enough
clowning. Squeeze suggested we all go
to the MACA Convention in Harrisburg
that November. Most of us went.
She introduced us to Leon “Buttons”
McBryde. He offered to spend some time
with us answering questions we might
have. We were in awe, even more after
the one and a half hours he spent talking
to us. He asked if we would want to be in
his show! You all know Buttons and how
tall he is, but you can’t imagine how tall
he was in our eyes! Life was good and
Willy from Philly would say, “I love being
a clown. Why did I wait so late in life to
become a clown?”
Seven months after I graduated I was
solidly hooked on clowning. Then my life
took one of those unexpected turns. I was
working two jobs besides clowning. I was
a rural carrier associate at our post office
and I worked at the Stone Methodist
Church. I had 21 years invested at the post
office. On March 5 th I fell down a flight of
stairs. Three weeks later I left the hospital
with a severe concussion, 6 pins in my
right wrist and three more pins in two
fingers of my right hand. Mostly, I left
with a sinking feeling the I would never
strap out the mail again, I wouldn’t be
able to do the church job and most of all,
there would be no more balloon twisting,
face painting, or magic. Clowning was
also gone.
I had signed up for Clown Town,
but decided not to go. Why should I?
I couldn’t face paint, twist balloons. I
was in a major depression. Squeeze,
my husband, and my friend Mort said I
should go, it would do me good, besides,
I had already paid my money. I agreed to
go but I wasn’t taking “Twinkle.” I took
a lipstick clown costume from a Mardi
Gras party I had a few years earlier and
I didn’t take a wig. Nobody understood
how heartbroken I was, I had just lost
everything. I couldn’t even clown. Then
Squeeze took me to see a clown named
Bubba Sikes. “Hey Bubba, this is the
clown I told you about.” Oh my, what has
she said! I didn’t want to meet anyone.
I do believe if you can’t be happy and
have a good time then you shouldn’t be
around clowns. Well Bubba gave me the
speech about what you think about when
you think of a clown ... a nose, big shoes,
funny hair. Nobody mentions balloons or
face painting. Those are not the things you
should concentrate on if you want to be a
clown. Needless to say, I went home with
a different point of view. I could continue
being depressed, or I could choose not to
be depressed. I could be a clown, or not
be a clown. I chose to be a clown.
I started attending everything I could.
I went to Paint the Town Red, COAI
conventions, Shrine Clown seminars,
MACA Conventions, Red Skelton’s First
Inaugural Clown School and Priscilla
Mooseburger's Moose Camp. I used
twisting balloons as therapy for getting
my wrist and fingers to move. Face
painting was still a challenge, but I can
get the job done. I helped Erie Alley grow
by working at the Alley Clown School
every year. I tried to attend every event
the Erie Alley participates in.
Now I am involved with the startup
of Erie Alley’s new Junior Joey
Program. Along the way I have met many
wonderful clowns, from people who let
me pick their clown name to those who
were students of instructors I’d met along
my journey. I’ve met people who worked
with Red Skelton; Priscilla Mooseburger,
who made my second costume and taught
me much about clowning techniques,
Karen and Greg DeSantos who inspire
me, and most of all I got to be great
friends with Toby. Toby is a friend to
clowning and my mentor. He encouraged
me to pursue storytelling. It’s been five
years since my first clown school, and
now I only have one regret ... Why Did I
Wait So Long To Become A Clown??
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The New Calliope