# When and why did clowns become creepy? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 18, 2004, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900 "2004-10-18T21:02:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Evil\_Death](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ecccb3/32.png) [@Evil\_Death](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Death)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 8:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/41 "2004-10-19T08:36:37Z")
> [@The Gaspode](#): > > Lot’s of interesting reading, **t-keela**. > > If I’m not mistaken though, I think Pennywise _is_ the first truly evil clown. Bad guys dressing up in clownish ways aren’t clowns. The joker was never meant to be funny and turned out creepy. It might be that court jesters offered a way to let out anxiety. > But I can’t really find a clown, truly only a clown, that was downright evil, before Pennywise. Well, Harlequin was never exactly nice. ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/42 "2004-10-19T12:05:07Z")
> [@The Gaspode](#): > > Lot’s of interesting reading, **t-keela**. > > If I’m not mistaken though, I think Pennywise _is_ the first truly evil clown. Bad guys dressing up in clownish ways aren’t clowns. The joker was never meant to be funny and turned out creepy. It might be that court jesters offered a way to let out anxiety. > But I can’t really find a clown, truly only a clown, that was downright evil, before Pennywise. _They float…_ as someone said before, what about John Wayne Gacy. He was before “it”. There’s a picture of him getting his clown on at the bottom of [this page](http://www.prairieghosts.com/gacy.html). ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/43 "2004-10-19T12:12:52Z")
There’s actually Clown Porn. And, it’s disturbing… hunt for it on the Web at peril of your ability to sleep at night. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/44 "2004-10-19T12:14:06Z")
> [@Chastain86](#): > > I think it has something to do with the time I went to the circus, and a clown shot my dad. I kind of hope you’re kidding, but I’m not certain, **Chastain**. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/45 "2004-10-19T12:37:26Z")
> [@Murcielago](#): > > Sometimes a creepy clown can also be hilarious. > > [Case in point.](http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?display=/rednews/2001/03/08/build/breaking/0ronald.inc) Though Ronnie loved his “Happy Meals,” the resulting periods of depression eventually became too much to bear… Maybe it’s the early morning lack of caffeine, but I laughed at the bottom photo for a full minute. I’ve never found clowns to be scary, unless they were _intended_ to be scary. I used to watch reruns of _Bozo_ when I was a kid. I’ve been to the circus. I never saw The Joker as a clown, but as an “evil jester”. I like the _idea_ of scary clowns, but I’ve never been scared by them. Of course it’s disturbing that John Wayne Gacy was a mass murderer who dressed like a clown when he wasn’t killing boys; but in non-real life, I like evil clowns. I think the ones in _Killer Clowns From Outer Space_ are the best. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/46 "2004-10-19T12:40:39Z")
[Related LINK](http://www.snopes.com/horrors/madmen/statue.asp) ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/47 "2004-10-19T13:12:04Z")
> [@hillbilly queen](#): > > Bozo is EVIL! My sister was on his show and he made her pee! Gee, I don’t remember _that_ segment of the show! By the way, I was yet another child terrorized by a Jack-in-the-Box present as a tot. I still remember the nightmares . . . ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/48 "2004-10-19T15:02:41Z")
> [@Chastain86](#): > > I think it has something to do with the time I went to the circus, and a clown shot my dad. Ha! Jack Handy? ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/49 "2004-10-19T16:32:35Z")
[No more need be said](http://www.geocities.com/kkfos1988/). No more except for “can’t sleep…clown’ll eat me…” ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/50 "2004-10-19T17:13:39Z")
> [@Otto](#): > > [No more need be said](http://www.geocities.com/kkfos1988/). > > No more except for “can’t sleep…clown’ll eat me…” [“Can’t Sleep Decepticons Will…”](http://www.supermegatopia.com/tmbgr/gallery/paranoia.htm) 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Roseworm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/df788c/32.png) [@Roseworm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roseworm)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/51 "2004-10-19T17:40:25Z")
Greetings, everyone, Surprisingly, no one pointed out what is probably the best example of the “creepy clown”: Disney’s _Dumbo_ (1941). In that film, the poor little mutant pachyderm is treated cruelly by the scurvy circus clowns - a very unfunny bunch, indeed. Who knows how many kids were influenced by that image? Also, as I recall, comic book artist Mike Sekowsky had something of a fetish for evil clowns. Every other story he did (during the 60s and 70s) seemed to have a villainous clown (or clowns) in it. Why are clowns creepy? They just _are_, and they _always have been_. Respectfully, [Roseworm234@yahoo.com](mailto:Roseworm234@yahoo.com) ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/52 "2004-10-19T17:48:55Z")
I’m re-upping my [John Wayne Gacy](http://www.carpenoctem.tv/killers/gacy.html) claim. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/53 "2004-10-19T18:32:08Z")
> [@Middlecase](#): > > “Hey, hey, kids!” What about Krusty? Krusty’s not really creepy. He’s just an embodiment of every single Old School-Borsht Belt-nightclub comic/entertainer that’s existed in show biz since the days of vaudeville (of course, some of you still might find that creepy). ---
**Author:** ![Chastain86](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Chastain86](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chastain86)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/54 "2004-10-19T21:17:46Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > Ha! Jack Handy? And \*\*AuntiePam \*\* wins the Obscure Reference of the Minute Award. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/55 "2004-10-19T21:31:36Z")
> [@Bosda Di'Chi of Tricor](#): > > There’s actually Clown Porn. > > And, it’s disturbing… hunt for it on the Web at peril of your ability to sleep at night. That’s it, I’m burning my cable modem. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2004, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/56 "2004-10-20T01:11:01Z")
“I have yet to meet a kid not scared to death of clowns. They can’t walk and they don’t talk they’ve got painted on frowns.” -Too Much Joy “Fred wears sunscreen at the beach. Frank wears evil clown makeup.” -early Late Night with David Letterman (quoting from memory) ---
**Author:** ![Scissorjack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c67d28/32.png) [@Scissorjack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scissorjack)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2004, 8:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/57 "2004-10-20T08:53:46Z")
> [@NDP](#): > > Krusty’s not really creepy. He’s just an embodiment of every single Old School-Borsht Belt-nightclub comic/entertainer that’s existed in show biz since the days of vaudeville (of course, some of you still might find that creepy). What about his range of sometimes lethal merchandise, like the Krusty Brand Home Pregnancy Test Kit {Warning: May Cause Birth Defects}. And he makes his burgers out of zoo animals. ---
**Author:** ![Beltane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aca169/32.png) [@Beltane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beltane)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2004, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/58 "2004-10-20T11:27:58Z")
I am surprised no one had mentioned [Hopfrog](http://eserver.org/books/poe/hopfrog.html) ---
**Author:** ![antechinus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/fbc32d/32.png) [@antechinus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antechinus)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2004, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/59 "2004-10-20T11:45:37Z")
Someone asked me when I was a kid why I didn’t like clowns. I remember saying its really weird having a grown person dress up like that. I had never heard of JW Gacey, Mr Bubbles, It or any of that sick shit. Thats the reason - its just a really weird way for an adult to behave. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2004, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900/60 "2004-10-20T14:54:33Z")
People are giving Stephen King way too much credit. There was a long tradition of evil clowns before _It_. Adding to the list, let us not forget the [evil clown from the Scooby Doo cartoons](http://www.hypnosisinmedia.com/ComicBooks/ScoobyDo/ScoobyDo09.jpg) (1969). _Watch the pretty coin of gold And you will do what you are told…_ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-and-why-did-clowns-become-creepy/269900.md?page=4)