Los Rivelinos 1988

Los Rivelinos performing in Circo Espana in 1988.

Rest In Peace: Ceslee Conkling

Taken from the world twenty-nine years ago today. Here she is with Margie Talavera performing a doctor gag on the Ringling Blue Unit in 1992.

BREAKING NEWS: ICHOF Announces 2023 Induction Candidates!

Five days into the new year, the International Clown Hall of Fame and Research Center is very proud to announce the 2023 Inductees!

Please welcome -

The legendary Rastelli family

Tom & Tammy Parish

Ruth Anne Chaddock

Paul Jerome

The Board of Directors is thrilled to welcome these amazing clowns and their contributions to the art of clowning into the ICHOF.

Each has left an distinct imprint of the craft of clowning and have inspired generations of clowns and their audiences with their talents and dedication.

Details following very soon as to Induction time, place & date.

Big Apple Circus: Bello and Francesco

 

Bello Nock and Francesco Brunaud on Big Apple Circus for the 1999/2000 season “Bello and Friends”.

Happy Lou Year 2023!

Lou Jacobs and Pee-Wee performing his renowned hunting gag. Lou was making a special appearance on the Blue Unit's 1982 television special.

Congratulations, Alan "Tweedy" Digweed!

 From the Independent: 

Circus clown ‘surprised’ at royal honour

Alan Digweed, known better as Tweedy, has been awarded the British Empire Medal.

A clown who has performed for decades has told of his surprise at being recognised in the New Year Honours list.

Alan Digweed, 48, known as Tweedy the clown, has worked in the circus and shows across the world, and he has now been awarded the British Empire Medal.

The entertainer, who is part of Gloucestershire-based Giffords Circus, said he almost missed the news of his royal award.

He told the PA news agency: “The honour was a complete surprise. I nearly missed out because for some reason I didn’t get the email, and then they got in touch by my agent. I was too late in the end to respond to it, but they let me off for being late, typical clown fashion I guess.

Tweedy, who was born in Aberdeen, had wanted to be a clown from an early age and was inspired by slapstick cartoons and comedy duo Laurel and Hardy.

He added: “I went to Butlin’s in Ayr, Scotland, but I didn’t know how to become a clown at the time, there was no Google back then, so I taught myself how to juggle and unicycling and did shows there, and then I joined the circus the year after and learnt on the road, with some other clowns.

“Being with the circus is very different – it’s a great kind of lifestyle. It’s a travelling community, which is what I love about it, and you all kind of work together and pitch in together.

“It’s an exciting life, but a hard life as well, you would get stuck in mud.

“There’s something pure about it that I love. There’s something raw and real that I quite like about it.

“I did a tour of America with the circus which was great and seeing all that. I lived on the circus train so that was a lot of fun. Sadly the circus train is not a thing any more – it was a unique experience.”

Tweedy is currently starring in the Dick Whittington And His Cat Tweedy panto at Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham.

His wife Sharon performed on the trapeze in the circus, and the couple have a daughter.

He continued: “There’s been lots of interesting experiences, clowning in Saudi Arabia was interesting, there was a lot of things I couldn’t do. I had a huge list, but at the same time, they were a very easy audience as there was a lack of entertainment.”

In his spare time, Tweedy enjoys putting on charity shows and in future is planning to continue working in the circus and pantomimes.

Ringling: Gabor Hrisafis

 

Talented Hungarian clown, Gabor Hrisafis, performing during the Ringling Blue Unit spec "Upside Down World" in 2004.

R.I.P Jim "Enof" Killebrew

Here is Jim Killebrew, or as clowns knew him, Enof, as the rotund aerialist along with Frank Theriault on the Ringling Red Unit in 1987.

International Clown Hall of Fame and Research Center “Thanks For Giving” Fundraiser

P.T. Barnum said, “The Noblest Art is of making others happy”.

The International Clown Hall of Fame and Research Centers mission is to preserve, interpret, and share with all generations the art of clowning in all forms of performance & media. 

We are honored to celebrate the careers of those who have dedicated their lives to “making others happy”. 

Rebuilding our audience and guest attendance since the COVID shutdown has been a challenge but we are very optimistic as we work diligently towards the future. 

Our archives contain the largest collection of clown artifacts in the world, and continues to grow daily. 

We respectfully ask for your help as we move forward into 2023. The generosity of our friends here on social media as well of those who we can host in person humbles us. 

As master clown Lou Jacobs said during his Induction, “by honoring me, you are also honoring all those who came before.”

The ICHOF Board of Directors thank you in advance for your generosity and support.

DONATE HERE

Clyde Beatty Cole Bros Clown Alley T-Shirt

 

A t-shirt showing the members of the 1990 Clyde Beatty Cole Bros. Clown Alley.

Clockwise from top: James Houser, Jeff Day, Mugwump....(beats the hell outta me!), Dave Williams, Ricky Ardelli, Doug Keady, Greg Long, and Robert Temple. 

Circus Vargas Clown Band

 

Chris Green and George Clyatt performing in the Circus Vargas Clown Band sometime in the mid 1980s. 

Dennis Hall

 

Dennis "Dash" Hall. Graduate of the Clown College Class of 1972, and briefly on tour with the Ringling Blue Unit in 1973.

Clowns Without Socks: Photography Entreé

Billy Ward and Frosty Little

 

Billy Ward and Frosty Little on the Ringling Red Unit in the early 1970s. One of the rare photos of Frosty in a different costume than the one he became known for.

Lou Jacobs: 20th Anniversary of Clown College

 

Lou Jacobs posing behind his likeness, which was part of the set for the 20th Anniversary of Clown College in 1987. The set was designed by CC 1971 graduate, Mitch Greenburg.

Alan Ware

 

Photo by Paul Gutheil

Alan Ware, better known to audiences of the Greatest Show on Earth as Grandpa, graduated from Clown College in 1996. He toured with the Blue Unit from 1997-1998, and when he returned to the Ringling Red Unit from 2001-2007, his Grandpa character had fully emerged.

Roncalli: Busy Bee

Bernard Paul, Angelo Munoz and Francesco Carol performing the classic entrée Busy Bee on Circus Roncalli in 1991.

Arturo Figueroa: Rola-Bola

Arturo Figueroa performing during the Come In of the Ringling Red Unit's 119th Edition in 1989.

Arturo performed with all three Units of the Greatest Show on Earth, and is currently the ringmaster of Flip Circus, a new show from Circo Hermanos Vazquez.

Elmo Gibb: Advance Clown

Elmo Gibb giving a morning TV interview to promote Clyde Betty's run in Ladsen, SC in, I believe, 1990.

Anatoli Akerman

From Anatoli's website:

Anatoli Akerman is a clown, physical actor, and a true and passionate artistic soul. He is one of the most intuitive comic performance artists in his field.

Among his career highlights, he was a member of the creation team and performed as a clown in Cirque du Soleil’s “KA” in Las Vegas and later in Cirque’s “ZED” in Tokyo, Japan. He has toured with the world-renowned Circus Roncalli and was cast as a clown in Walt Disney’s feature film “Dumbo”, directed by Tim Burton.

He has thrilled thousands on stages worldwide, including Cirque du Soleil at the MGM Grand Las Vegas and Tokyo Disney Resort, Wintergarten Varieté in Berlin, Friedrichsbau Varieté in Stuttgart, Cirque Bouffon tour of Germany, Pomp Duck Circumstance Dinner Show in Berlin, Circus Roncalli tour of Germany & Austria, and many more…