Although clowns are originally comic performers and characterized to humor and entertain people, the image of the evil clown is a development in popular culture, in which the playful trope of the clown is rendered as disturbing through the use of horror elements and dark humor.
The modern archetype of the evil clown has unclear origins; the stock character appeared infrequently during the 19th century, in such works as Edgar Allan Poe's Hop-Frog,[1] which is believed by Jack Morgan, of the University of Missouri-Rolla, to draw upon an earlier incident "at a masquerade ball," in the 14th century, during which "the king and his frivolous party, costumed—in highly flammable materials—as simian creatures, were ignited by a flambeau and incinerated, the King narrowly escaping in the actual case."[2] Evil clowns also occupied a small niche in drama, appearing in the 1874 work La femme de Tabarin by Catulle Mendès and in Ruggero Leoncavallo's Pagliacci (accused of being a plagiarism of Mendès' piece), both works featuring murderous clowns as central characters.[3][4]
The modern stock character of the evil clown was popularized by Stephen King's novel It, published in 1986, which became the first to introduce the fear of an evil clown to a modern audience. Another one of the first appearances of the concept is that of John Wayne Gacy, an American serial killer and rapist arrested in 1978, who became known as the Killer Clown after it was discovered he had performed as Pogo the Clown at children's parties and other events; however, Gacy did not actually commit his crimes while wearing his clown costume.[5]
The evil clown archetype plays strongly off the sense of dislike caused by inherent elements of coulrophobia; however, it has been suggested by Joseph Durwin[6] that the concept of evil clowns has an independent position in popular culture, arguing that "the concept of evil clowns and the widespread hostility it induces is a cultural phenomenon which transcends just the phobia alone". A study by the University of Sheffield concluded "that clowns are universally disliked by children. Some found them quite frightening and unknowable."[7][8] This may be because of the nature of clowns' makeup hiding their faces, making them potential threats in disguise; as a psychology professor at California State University, Northridge stated, young children are "very reactive to a familiar body type with an unfamiliar face".[9] This natural dislike of clowns makes them effective in a literary or fictional context, as the antagonistic threat perceived in clowns is desirable in a villainous character.
Interpretations
The concept of the evil clown is related to the irrational fear of clowns, known as coulrophobia. The cultural critic Mark Dery has theorized the postmodernarchetype of the evil clown in "Cotton Candy Autopsy: Deconstructing Psycho-Killer Clowns" (a chapter in his cultural critique The Pyrotechnic Insanitarium: American Culture on the Brink).[10]
Using Mikhail Bakhtin's theory of the carnivalesque, Jungian and historical writings on the images of the fool in myth and history, and ruminations on the mingling of ecstasy and dread in the Information Age, Dery asserts the evil clown is an icon of our times. Clowns are often depicted as murderous psychopaths at many American haunted houses.
Wolfgang M. Zucker points out the similarities between a clown's appearance and the cultural depictions of demons and other infernal creatures, noting "[the clown's] chalk-white face in which the eyes almost disappear, while the mouth is enlarged
to a ghoulish bigness looks like the mask of death.".[11]
Notable depictions of evil clowns
Pagliaccio - Crazy Joe Da Vola's depiction of him in the Seinfeld episode "The Opera"
The Joker, the nemesis of Batman whose key features are chalk-white skin, green hair, red lips and a permanent smile,[12] purportedly caused by a chemical bath, and in various appearances is depicted as a psychopath.
Jokerz, are a fictional gang in the DC animated universe, featured in Batman Beyond. They are a street gang in futuristic Gotham City that take their inspiration from the Joker. They tend to dress in clownish costumes and make-up as did their namesake.
Harley Quinn, her name is a play on the name "Harlequin", a character which originated in the commedia dell'arte. The character is a frequent accomplice and girlfriend of Batman's nemesis the the Joker, and is also a close friend of the supervillain Poison Ivy, from whom she gained her immunity to poisons and toxins.
Gamzee Makara, one of the many antagonists in a popular webcomic titled Homestuck. Gamzee is a troll from the planet of Alternia and is known for his gray and white face paint, "candy corn colored" goat like horns, and the indigo Capricorn symbol on his shirt.
Maxie Martin and Jennings, assassin clowns in The Avengers (TV series) - episode "Look — (Stop Me If You've Heard This One) — But There Were These Two Fellers..." (Season 6, 1968).
The Bicycle Doctor, in the film Pee-Wee's Big Adventure, a malevolent clown disguised as a doctor who destroys Pee-Wee Herman's beloved bicycle after feigning attempts to repair it.
Captain Spaulding, a gas-station owner, museum operator, and patriarch of the murderous Firefly family, featured in the Rob Zombie films House of 1000 Corpses and its sequel, The Devil's Rejects. Captain Spaulding is portrayed by actor Sid Haig.
Violator, a demon from hell who takes the appearance of a balding, middle-aged man with face paint, and an enemy of Spawn in the comic franchise by Todd McFarlane.
The Crimson Clown, a clown puppet that comes to life and terrorizes a little boy in the Are You Afraid of the Dark? episode "Tale of the Crimson Clown".
Doink the Clown.
Doink the Clown, a professional wrestling character portrayed by a number of wrestlers. He is frequently depicted as malevolent, playing malicious pranks and cheating in unusual ways.
Zeebo The Clown, the spirit of a thief that stole the circus' whole payroll of $20,000 in the 1920s who terrorizes the main protagonist, because of the theft of his nose by said protagonist in the Are You Afraid of the Dark? episode "The Tale of Laughing in the Dark".
Poltergeist, the 1982 supernaturalmovie from Tobe Hooper features a clown doll in several scenes. During the finale, this doll becomes possessed by a demonic presence and attempts to strangle a young boy.
The Ghost Clown, a faux evil supernatural circus clown in "Bedlam in the Bigtop", a 1970 episode of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!. He is a criminal who used to work in the circus. He hypnotizes people with a magic pendulum in particular Daphne Blake whom he puts in danger by making her ride a unicycle.
Killjoy, a demonic clown who is summoned to assist revenge plots.
Clownhouse, a slasher film in which three mental patients escape and stalk a young boy home from the circus dressed in clown costumes.
Craig Russell's novel The Carnival Master, about the hunt for a clown who comes out every Cologne carnival to kill women.
Shaco, The Demon Jester, a champion and playable character in League of Legends, an assassin of possible supernatural origin who has taken on the guise of a court jester.
Sticky the Clown, a knife-wielding birthday entertainer seen in the beginning of the Married... with Children episode "Rites of Passage". His knife is seen stuck in the door of the now empty house in the closing scene.
Piedmon, a mega-level Digimon from the Digimon franchise and one of the Dark Masters designed based on evil clowns.
Buggy the Clown, a recurring pirate antagonist from One Piece who desires revenge on Monkey D. Luffy.
From the same series, Caesar Clown is a subordinate of antagonist Donquixote Doflamingo.
Adam MacIntyre, a psychopathic clown from the Capcom video game Dead Rising. Also has a psychopathic brother with similar job role in Dead Rising 2: Off the Record called Evan MacIntyre.
Horny the Clown, The main antagonist in the American Horror comedy "Drive thru".[14]
4th Grade Class Clown Calvin, the one of 4th grade student in his true human form in Jumpstart 4th Grade: Haunted Island, who his 4th grade substitute teacher Mrs. Grunkle has transformed into an evil clown as his monstrous form.
AnEvil Firefighter ClowninThe Brave Little Toaster, who briefly appears in the Toaster's nightmarish vision where he hoses him as his victim into the water.
Dimentio, the true main antagonist of Super Paper Mario. Like Kefka above, he is a psychopath with the outfit and mannerisms of an insane jester.
Cangaço and 8-Ball, from Brazilian horror slasher movie Condado Macabro (2014).[15]
With his distinctive appearance, surreal feats of magic, and behavior that is simultaneously comedic and menacing, the Tim Burton character Beetlejuice can be considered a manifestation of this theme.
One of the minor characters from The Nightmare Before Christmas is a clown, seemingly bound to his tiny unicycle, with razor-sharp teeth and the signature ability to tear off his face, revealing a black void within. Like most residents of Halloweentown, he is frightening, but not evil.
Malcolm the Jester is arguably the main character of The Legend of Kyrandia computer game series - he is the antagonist of the first game, wielding vast magical power to cause wanton destruction for his own amusement, or to toy with and torment the protagonist and his allies in ways that are often elegant in their subtle terror (such as turning someone to stone with the exception of their eyes). Though the first game ends with his defeat, he is mentioned in the second game, and in the third game he returns as the protagonist - gone are his magical powers, so he relies on more mundane talents of mischief, manipulation, and skills befitting a royal jester to make his way in the world, and it is revealed that while he is an imbalanced and misanthropic trickster, he is not actually the fiendish villain he seemed in the first game.
Dandy Mott (Finn Wittrock), Twisty's self-appointed apprentice and later successor in American Horror Story: Freak Show, dresses up as a clown to emulate Twisty, whom he sees as his hero. After Twisty is killed, Dandy drops the clown motif.
The Pilo Family Circus, a 2006 Australian novel by Will Elliott that deals with a troupe of homicidal clowns who perform at a creepy circus.
Umlaut, a floating jester head, and the right-hand man of Ludwig von Tokkentaker from CarnEvil. Besides Umlaut, other evil clowns appear as enemies in the Big Top level.
Joka, a recurring antagonist in the Klonoa video game series. Joka is a clown creature with many magical abilities, most notably shape-shifting.
Marx from Kirby: Super Star, a jester-like creature who manipulates Kirby into helping him gain power from a wishing star named NOVA, turning him into a giant monster resembling a bat. Many minor enemies in the Kirby series resemble clowns as well, such as Perot from Kirby: Super Star Ultra, and Clown Acrobot from Kirby: Triple Deluxe.
Whippy and the Training Clowns from Kirby: Right Back At Ya, a group of clowns who work for Nightmare Enterprises. Their job is to train the monsters created by Nightmare. They appear in the episode "Cowardly Creature", in which Whippy is the main antagonist.
Zorn and Thorn, a couple of jesters which serve as minor antagonists in the videogame Final Fantasy IX.
In 2014, Clowns of America International responded to the depiction of Twisty on American Horror Story, and evil clowns in media generally. President Glenn Kohlberger said, "Hollywood makes money sensationalizing the norm. They can take any situation no matter how good or pure and turn it into a nightmare. ... We do not support in any way, shape or form any medium that sensationalizes or adds to coulrophobia or 'clown fear.'"[16]
