Clowns are enigmas. The role of the clown exists to bring cheer to children, yet millions of citizen are scared of these painted-up actors. Let's delve into the frightening world of the clown and see why they strike terror in the hearts of some adults and children while bringing smiles to other people. We'll also see why clowns are perfect ghouls for haunted house owners.
It is curious to note that the fear of clowns is a legitimate fear and even has a name - Coulrophobia. Coulrophobia is an abnormal or exaggerated fear of clowns. Agreeing to the Web site way2hope.org, "Coulrophobia is very common...one of the top 10 most tasteless definite phobias. Symptoms can range from high anxiety to outright panic attacks around citizen in clown outfits or other bizarre attire and make-up...even Santa Claus." Yep, the fear of clowns is easily real. This is the suspect many haunted houses contain clowns alongside the actors dressed as zombies, werewolves and witches.
Animated Halloween Props
Of course, it is not only adults who are fearful of clowns. Although clowns are meant to entertain children, many children are scared of them. As a previous haunted house manager, I believe the fear of clowns comes from the fact the clown make-up obscures the wearer's face. Is Bozo easily happy or is he only smiling because he has a painted-on grin? We do not know. Also, I think we instinctively comprehend that brightly colored outfits do not mean the clowns are all the time happy go lucky. What dark thoughts lurk inside the mind of a clown? No one except the clown knows.
Furthermore, I think as a society we can't help but remember John Wayne Gacy, Jr. He did nothing good for the expert clowns of the world who work hard to make us laugh. John Wayne Gacy, Jr. Was an American serial killer also known as the Killer Clown who committed the rape and murder of 33 youthful boys and young men between 1972 and 1978, Agreeing to Wikipedia. Twenty-six of Gacy's victims were buried in the crawlspace of his home, three others elsewhere on his asset and four victims were discarded in a around river, the online database states.
Gacy was dubbed the Killer Clown because he entertained children as "Pogo The Clown." He was ultimately sentenced to death, and on May 10, 1994, was executed by lethal injection. The world breathed a sigh of relief. But, many adults cannot help but remember photos of Gacy dressed as a clown. These images were published in newspapers and today are on the Internet. I am sure those images play a part into our fear of clowns.
Of course, it takes more than just one man to make us afraid of clowns. Agreeing to the site phobias.about.com, there are two main theories surrounding why some citizen are scared of clowns. The Web site states, "In a 2004 recapitulate report for Trinity University, Joseph Durwin postulates that there are two generally approved schools of thought. One is that the fear is based in a negative personal caress with a clown at a young age. The second principles is that mass media has created a hype surrounding evil clowns such that even children who are not personally exposed to clowns are trained to dislike or fear them."
Durwin's principles that society has created hype around evil clowns is curious to me. It is true that Stephen King scared us through the book and film version of It. The novel and film revolve around an evil alien-type mammal that disguises itself as "Pennywise the Dancing Clown." Also, as I mentioned earlier, there are many haunted houses that highlight killer clowns. There is Killer Klowns from Outer Space (1988), the renowned b-movie from the 1980s that brought clowns into our nightmares, as well.
So, has society brought this fear of clowns on itself? It becomes a chicken and the egg issue. Did books, movies, haunted houses, and the image of Gacy cause our fear of clowns? Or did movies and haunted houses start using clowns to strike terror because society was already afraid of them? Which came first? Sadly, there does not seem to be an sass yet.
All I can cease with certainty is the fear of clowns seems here to stay and haunted house owners should take benefit of this fact!
Clown Fear Is Real, perfect for Haunted House Owners