[Snugglesnort]

First: color meanings are cultutral. For instance pink here is Korea is just another color.

Second: Clown colors are not inherantly funny colors. Red is blood, white is purity, Black seriousness (death?), brown earth and so on. But these colors on a clown are exagerated life colors. The White is pale skin. The red is blood under the skin, black is hair, blue is shadow.

Third: As pointed out by everyone else, bright colors are not necessary to, nor do the gaurantee laughter in clown style humor. There have been lots of clowns without any sort of make up at all, nor any praticularly bright clothing. Also as Rainbow pointed out, you could look a old black and white movies, and see that color affected the humor not one whit.

I also agree with Rainbow and others that the reason for the bright colors is about focus. Eyes go to differences and they go to light. A clown in a bright clothing and makeup is hard not to pay attention to. Have them moving all over the place and doing things that are interesting to watch and they are almost impossible not to look at. The cirucs used clowns to grab the attention of the audince while other people changed the sets, or took care of someone injured. It worked too.

You can test this by going out in public in clown, and just walk around shopping or enjoying reading a book at a coffee shop. You might not get laughs. In fact unless you do something funny you almost certainly won't. But you will get attention everywhere, and you certaintly will not be able to blend in. If you dont do anyhting funny people will try adn get you too because they feel silly watching you for apperantly no praticular reason.