SNAKE CLOWNS!

[Buster's Uncle]

I'll bet € 1,000 fake forum money that it's a clown gets hurt first, not for lack of sick freaks trying.

[Unorthodox]

I'll take that bet. 

[Unorthodox]

Orem, UT PD just posted an advisory to citizens not to shoot clowns. 

https://www.facebook.com/OremDPS/?hc_ref=PAGES_TIMELINE&fref=nf

[Unorthodox]

Apparently a satire news place sucked folks in on a fake clown death:

http://www.journalgazette.net/news/local/frank-gray/No--no-clowns-have-been-shot-here-15598348

[terzaerian]

I await the moment when the news media decides to dub it "Clowngate"

Everything is a -gate

[terzaerian]

Makes me think, though: what happened to clowns, anyway? Were they always creepy and people just suppressed it better? Was it just the influence of Gacy and King's It that made them sinister, or were they just symptomatic of the change? Who changed, us or the clowns?

[Unorthodox]

Makes me think, though: what happened to clowns, anyway? Were they always creepy and people just suppressed it better? Was it just the influence of Gacy and King's It that made them sinister, or were they just symptomatic of the change? Who changed, us or the clowns?

They've always had a dark side. 

Even back to the court jester days, they were as much villain as entertainment. 

But, specifically to the more modern clown, blame Dickens. 

With The Pickwick Papers and Clown Grimaldi, Dickens put forward the idea that clowns led HORRIBLE lives behind their paint.  (Grimaldi was a rather tragic character in real life, but Dickens embellished things.)

Shortly after that, there was Debarou (spelling) a very famous French clown, that beat a kid to death when he got heckled. 

These planted the seeds.  In the late 1800s there was an opera about a murderous clown, though I forget the name. 

1700's saw the rise of the circuses, and the clown acts were often gruesome. 

Here in the states, I'm convinced Barnum specifically capitalized on the creepiness by some of the old posters.  I forget where I put the shot of the full poster, but my daughter and I hamming it up in front of this one.  You can't convince me that main clown is supposed to be anything BUT creepy. 

[Rusty Edge]

I was always OK with Emit Kelly, Ronald McDonald, and The Town Clown. BUT generally clowns give me more of a creepy vibe than a funny one. Much like internet trolls, they seemed to be disguised because they were up to no good. I often wondered how many criminals were hiding in the traveling circus as clowns.

[E_T]

Should we begin to lay odds whether it's someone dressed as a clown that gets hurt, or a clown hurts someone first?

Some passed off red neck or similar is going to take a bat to one...

[E_T]

I was always OK with Emit Kelly, Ronald McDonald, and The Town Clown. BUT generally clowns give me more of a creepy vibe than a funny one. Much like internet trolls, they seemed to be disguised because they were up to no good. I often wondered how many criminals were hiding in the traveling circus as clowns.

Shoot, I remember Bozo the Clown on TV when I was growing up.

[Unorthodox]

I was more a captain kangaroo person.  Clowns were for the rodeo. 

[Buster's Uncle]

Captain Kangaroo was Clarabelle the Clown on Howdy Doody...

[E_T]

I was more a captain kangaroo person.  Clowns were for the rodeo.

Same... to this day, Overture to Candide is still one of my favorite pieces of music.  Was in that video with all the gadgets and the toast popping up in the end.  Later, while in High School Concert Band, we used that as a practice piece for the sight reading part of the Concert competition.   Most difficult piece of music I have ever played, with it's unique and rapid timing changes and Key changes.  But it is also a very fun piece.

[E_T]

Captain Kangaroo was Clarabelle the Clown on Howdy Doody...

He moved on and never looked back, too

[Lorizael]

My school's police department sent out a campus-wide email warning people about clowns. I'm so confused.