MERRY CHRISTMAS: Peace On Earth, Goodwill to All (2014)

WALTER DARE WAHL AND EMMETT OLDFIELD: The Patty Page Show (1956)

CLOWN WORKSHOP WITH STEVE & RYAN IN FAIRFIELD, NJ: December 11, 2014

If you are a clown in the NY/NJ/CT/Eastern PA area, DO NOT MISS THIS WORKSHOP NEXT WEEK!!!

HOUSCH-MA-HOUSCH

SPIONE: Clown Scene (Fritz Lang, 1928)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JACKO FOSSETT (11/11/22)

Photo courtesy of Sue Lenz

6 Comedy Lessons that Chuck Jones Learned From Tex Avery

Courtesy of Cartoon Brew

Click to read the entire piece written by Chuck Jones for the Sunday, August 31, 1980 edition of the Los Angeles Tribune.

In this 1980 tribute to legendary animation director Tex Avery, fellow legendary director Chuck Jones shared six lessons that he learned about comedy from working with Avery in the 1930s. The advice remains essential to any animation director working today:

1. You must love what you caricature. You must not mock it—unless it is ridiculously self-important, like the solemn live-action travelogues of that day.
2. You must learn to respect that golden atom, that single-frame of action, that 1/24th of a second, because the difference between lightning and the lightning bug may hinge on that single frame.
3. You must respect the impulsive thought and try to implement it. You cannot perform as a director by what you already know, you must depend on the flash of inspiration that you do not expect and do not know.
4. You must remember always that only man, of all creatures, can blush, or needs to; that only a man can laugh, or needs to, and that if you are in that trade of helping others to laugh and to survive by laughter, then you are privileged indeed.
5. Remember always that character is all that matters in the making of great comedians in animation and in live-action.
6. Keep always in your mind, your heart and your hand that timing is the essence, the spine, and the electrical magic of humor—and of animation.

PUDDLES PITY PARTY: Hallelujah (2014)

VALERY GLOZMAN & YURY KARASHKEVICH

LATTI

CHARLIE BELL: Clown at Madison Square Garden

ALONSO & HERMANOS RAMPIN

JULES GUERIN: Circus Clowns, Backstage Dressing Room (1904)

THE NEW RIVELINOS: Festival Internacional de Payasos (Nov. 2013)

KARATE MASTER

THE SADDRI DANCERS: Hollywood Palace (March 8, 1969)

THE THREE STOOGES

MARCELINE ORBES: The Mishaps of Marceline, Reconstructed (1915)

THE PICKLE FAMILY CIRCUS CLOWNS

LARRY CROSS & DAVID STRONG: Gil Gray Circus (1963)

Photo courtesy of Bill Strong

Lawrence Cross and David Strong, less than a year old.

THE INTERNATIONAL CLOWN HALL OF FAME: Pie Class at Clownfest (9/11/14)

CHAZ CHASE

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

THE FRANCESCOS

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

STEVE COPELAND & RYAN COMBS: CNN

THE FRANCESCOS: Military Parody

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

RUDY LLATA CLOWNS: Luxembourg (1957)

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

Post by Lionel Lutringer.

THE FRATELLINIS: Horse Parody

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

LARRY CLARK & PAT CASHIN: Political Ad (2014)

A recent commercial that Larry Clark and I shot in Washington DC that is currently airing throughout California.

GIL DOVA

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

Post by Lionel Lutringer.

PIPO, DARIO, MIMILE & LORIOT

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

Post by Lionel Lutringer.

ACHILLE ZAVATTA

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

JEAN MADD

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

Post by Lionel Lutringer.

ACHILLE ZAVATTA

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

Post by Lionel Lutringer.

ACHILLE ZAVATTA: Bareback Parody

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

Post by Lionel Lutringer.

THE RASTELLIS

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer and Beth Grimes

SERGIO & DOMINIQUE

THE FRANCESOS: Balloons & Musical Entree (1968)

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

Post by Lionel Lutringer.

MATTHEW SILVER: The Great Performer

CHARLIE CAIROLI & CO.

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

Post by Lionel Lutringer.

ALEX & COMPANY

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

Post by Lionel Lutringer.

GILLES MARGARITIS & ROGER CACCIA

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

LARRY GRISWOLD: The Frank Sinatra Show (November 13, 1951)

Post by Craig Knudsen.

THE BARIOS

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

THE FRANCESCOS: The Haunted House (Cirque Medrano, 1968)

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

ACHILLE ZAVATTA: Cirque Medrano (December 2, 1959)

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

IN MEMORIAM: Robin Williams (July 21, 1951 - August 11, 2014)

Add caption

THE BARGUIS

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

Post by Lionel Lutringer.

THE FRANCESCOS

Link courtesy of Lionel Lutringer

Post by Lionel Lutringer.

LES PAUWELS

Link courtesy of Karen Bell

Post by Lionel Lutringer.

ØRKENES SØNNER: Gas

Post by Ørkenens Sønner.

JACKO FOSSETT & LITTLE BILLY MERCHANT: Soap Entree (Billy Smart's Circus)

YANN FRISCH

Post by Alessio Orotsam.

STEVE & RYAN: 2014 Promo

THE INTERNATIONAL CLOWN HALL OF FAME 2014 INDUCTION

Tonight, July 23, the ICHoF honors and inducts these 4 clowns: Dougie Ashton, Paul Wenzel, Chuck Burnes & Swede Johnson. Ceremony begins at 7:30pm at the ICHoF in Baraboo, WI. It is open to the public and limited seating is available. Admission is $10.00. Join us as we begin Baraboo's Circus Celebration and we salute these funnymen and their careers with kind words, rare video clips of their work and family members. It's guaranteed to be a once in a lifetime event!

 

Chuck Burnes

Dougie Ashton

Prof. Paul Wenzel

Carl "Swede" Johnson (photo by Robert Altman)

THE BIG APPLE CIRCUS CLOWN CARE UNIT: Johns Hopkins Children's Center

My friend Matthew Pauli beautifully articulating what is so wonderful about hospital clowning done well...

Big Apple Circus Clown Care at Johns Hopkins from Peter Philip Von Kahle on Vimeo.

IKEDA YOSUKE: Hello, Goodbye

Link courtesy of Jeff Gordon


Ikeda Yosuke "HelloGoodbye" by ikeikey

SUNDAY MORNING ART GALLERY: "Pierrot's Serenade" by Maxfield Parrish (1908)

CLOWN ALLEY: Vanity Fair Photo by Lusha Nelson (May 1, 1934)

Felix Adler, Jack LeClair, Charlie Bell and two unidentified "funny folk".

From the International Clown Hall of Fame...

The International Clown Hall of Fame is dedicated to preserving the art and craft of the clown worldwide.

We hope everyone who visits this page, the ICHoF Facebook page and our website enjoys the images and the history that we have worked to compile and share.

We are confronted with a financial situation that needs our immediate attention. We respectfully ask for your support to help solve this problem and allow us to continue to preserve and present the artifacts and images that represent this worldwide art form. We need to raise a minimum of $600.00 by this Friday, July 27, 2014. If you can help, please visit our website at www.theclownmuseum.com and donate via our Paypal link button. No amount is too small to help.

We appreciate the generosity shown to this organization in the past and hope we can count on the over 6,453 individuals who follow us on Facebook to help us overcome this challenge.

The Board of Directors of the ICHOF thanks you in advance for your generosity.

THE GOOD FRIEND: The Story of Jim Howle and Teddy Goodman (A Nic Beery Film)

The Good Friend - The Story of Jim Howle and Teddy Goodman from BeeryMedia.com on Vimeo.

ERNIE "BLINKO" BURCH: Captain Blinko, Space Clown (Early 1960s)

IN MEMORIAM: Richard Fick

Photo courtesy of the International Clown Hall of Fame

THE WHY FACTOR: The Fool (BBC World Service)

Link courtesy of David Burd

A 17:30 minute piece on the history of fools, jesters and clowning from the BBC World Service.

ARGO: From the London Coliseum

CLOWN ALLEY: Mills Bros. Circus (Circa 1960s)

Herman Joseph, Buck Leahy and Bumpsy Anthony in an
undated photograph that I would estimate comes from the early 1960s

MICHAEL "COCO" POLAKOVS: Mills Bros. Circus (5/29/1954)

Clown
Photo by Sverre O. Braathen courtesy of the Milner Library Special Collections

HOW TO DO VISUAL COMEDY: An Analysis of the Comedy Techniques and Style of Director Edgar Wright

OUR EIGHTH ANNIVERSARY!

Pat Cashin at the Salaam Shrine Circus (produced by the Royal Hanneford Circus)
May 18, 2014 at the Mennen Arena in Morristown, NJ. Photo by Paul Guthiel.

Today marks 8 years since the launch of clownallet.net, a project most assured me would run out of material within the first few months.

Thank you all for your continued support.

PETE MARDO: Sparks Circus (1923)

Pete and Florence Mardo, Sparks Circus, 1923. Photo by Frederick W. Glasier

Pete Mardo, Sparks Circus 1923. Photo by Frederick W. Glasier

SALAAM SHRINE CIRCUS: Honoring Our Veterans (May 18, 2014)

Veterans were given a ringside seat of honor for last week's Salaam Shrine Circus in Morristown, NJ. The gentleman seated in the center is a veteran of World War II and turns 100 years old this week. Photo by Paul Gutheil.

ACROBATS AND MOUNTEBANKS: Hugues Le Roux and Jules Garnier (1890)

Billy Hayden

The complete text and illustrations of ACROBATS AND MOUNTEBANKS (1890) is available to read at The Internet Archive. The chapter on clowns begins on page 276.

THE LERFOLD TRIO

RINGLING BROS. AND BARNUM & BAILEY: Kenneth Heilbronn Photographs (1940s)

Paul Jung

Charlie Bell & Trixie

Felix Adler

Felix Adler

RHUM: The Ideal Pick Up Car (1946)

THE IDEAL PICK UP CAR

EMMETT KELLY: Pacific Ocean Park (1959)

PROF. PAUL WENZEL: Skeleton Chase Patent (Feb. 17, 1925)

Photos and research 

courtesy of Beth Grimes

Yup, that photo that we've all seen? That's a young Paul Wenzel and he filed the paperwork for his creation with the United States Patent and Trademark Office on December 4, 1923.

Paul Wenzel should be officially recognized as the creator of the Skeleton Chase.

QUOTE

"Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away."

- Antoine de Saint-Exupery
 

THE VINTAGE SYNCOPATORS: Wheel Tappers And Shunters Social Club (April 5, 1975)

CHARLIE "ONIONS" BOAS

THE TIMES SQUARE TWO

WORLD CIRCUS DAY: Charlie Rivel in Portrait of a Clown

BETRAM MILLS CIRCUS: Winter Quarters (British Pathe, 1963)

RINGLING BROS. AND BARNUM & BAILEY: Bellevue Hospital (British Pathe, 1935)

RINGLING BROS. AND BARNUM & BAILEY: Bellevue Hospital (British Pathe, 1931)

RINGLING BROS. AND BARNUM & BAILEY: Bellevue Hospital (British Pathe, 1932)

RUDI LLATA CLOWNS: Boxing Entree on Circus Schumann (International Showtime, 1961)

Courtesy of Raffaele de Ritis




From Raffaele...

"Circus Schumann, Copenhagen, from "International Showtime" NBC TV prime-time show, hosted by Don Ameche. 

Nolo and Pepi Diaz with José Llata were the core of "Rudi Llata", the greatest European clown team between 30s and 70s. 

The "boxe" entrée is considered their masterpiece."

WALTER GALETTI: Circus Land

ERNIE "BLINKO" BURCH: Backstage On a Shrine Date (Circa 1960s)

JACKO FOSSETT at Bell Vue

LOU JACOBS and Pee-Wee (circa 1980s)

BUSTER KEATON: Performance Footage from the Cirque Medrano (1947)

THE INTERNATIONAL CLOWN HALL OF FAME

CLOWNS AT BELLEVUE

Felix Adler, 1944

Ernie Burch and Albert White, 1960

Jimmy Armstrong, 1955

Emmett Kelly, 1954

CLOWNS AT BELLEVUE