By now we’ve all heard about the creepy clown sightings across America. I’m not gonna go into detail about that, just google “clown” and 100s of results about the sightings will come up. But why do we fear clowns? I mean, there are creepy weirdos stalking people and assaulting people all over the place, its background noise, why is it that when one of those creepy weirdos puts on a clown mask, its suddenly national news?
Well let’s begin our clown hating journey in the mid 20th century, when America didn’t hate clowns. Belive it or not, clowns back then were seen for their original purpose, to be a source of joy and entertainment. Bozo the clown was popular on television throughout the 1960's and Ronald Mc. Donald, the now world famous mascot of Mc. Donalds, was created in 1963. "Krinkles the Clown" was even the spokesperson for Sugar Coated Rice Krinkles, a cereal on the market from the 50's until 1969. With clowns being as popular then as Beyoncé is now, how could things ever go wrong? Well, for that you can thank one especially horrible clown, Pogo.
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Pogo the clown, aka, John Wayne Gacy, was a serial killer who’s murder count was up in the 30’s. He would groom young men, invite them over, and then rape and murder them. He performed at children's birthday parties as a clown for a living, which is crazy since even before he was dubbed "the killer clown" he had multiple sexual assaults on his record (be happy you live in an era where we have the technology to keep track of violent criminals.) He was killed via lethal injection in 1994, creating hubbub about the killer clown once again two decades after his murders. But Gacy isn't the only reason we hate clowns so much.
As for media, in the 1980s, Stephen King came out with “It” a horror novel starring a demon that takes the form of a killer clown. Following that came the movie "It," adapted from the book, as well as The Poltergeist which included a clown doll that comes alive and attacks a child, and Killer Clowns from Outer Space (the title is pretty self explanatory). Halloween stores have capitalized on this "evil clown" trend (like they do with politicians, ebola, Harambe, and every blockbuster movie ever) making the “creepy clown” a staple in creepy halloween costume garb, right next to vampires, mummies, and zombies.
More recently, with movies like Saw and TV shows like American Horror Story, the creepy clown trend continues. (RIP twisty)
Kids grow up learning that clowns are something to fear, they are scary, they are not fun or entertaining, they’re terrifying, and if you see one you should mace them and run away (considering all the threatening clown sightings, thats probably good advice). With these new clown sightings, clown reputations are probably gonna be ruined for at least a few more decades. I predict clown unemployment to skyrocket. Bozo the clown would cry.
Sources
Northrup, Laura. "Sugar Coated Rice Krinkles: Your Parents' Favorite 1960s Racist Cereal." Consumerist. The Consumerist, 05 Dec. 2012. Web. 8 Oct. 2016
"John Wayne Gacy Biography." Bio. A&E Television, n.d. Web. 8 Oct. 2016.
