Hey, Welcome! And you don't EVER have to worry about anybody writing you off here because you are a "new guy." I've only been here a month or so, and I've experienced nothing but nice and friendly clowns who sincerely want to help me be the best clown I can be. (sorry if that sounded like an Army commercial.)
Regarding the clown phobias: I was just wondering the exact same thing. There's been one kid at each of the last three parties I've done who has had a clown phobia. I thought this was strange because I can think of only one or two kids with clown phobias whom I encountered during the first five or six years I clowned -- and they were cured of their phobia by the end of the party.
There's definitely been some bad PR about clowns in recent months, but it's not like these little kids are reading the newspaper. I even did a party for a kid who LOVED me one year ago when I did her party. This year when I was hired again for her birthday, she was terrified of me. She did "come around" 10 or 15 minutes into the party, but I couldn't figure out what was different this time around. (One year ago, I wore my party dress and came across as a more girly clown; this time I wore clown bib overalls -- could that have made a difference? Maybe she just needed a nap! Who knows!)
I will be waiting to hear what other clowns have to say about this topic.
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