Types of Clowns

CLOWN TYPES

There are 3 basic types of clowns. Take a moment to explore each type as you learn more about the art of clowning.

WHITE FACED CLOWN

Character
The white faced clown, a.k.a. the classic clown, is the clown most people first think of when they hear the word 'clown.' Associated with the circus, the whiteface clown is the most intelligent of the clowns, and is typically at the top of the pecking order. The whiteface clown will typically be the ringleader, who will order around the other clowns, and who has his 'clownishness' revealed either by his own ineptness or by that of his underling. The whiteface clown, however, shouldn't need to feel constrained by this; as with any clown, he can be any personality (slow, fast, quick-witted, dull, quickly angered, coming to a slow burn, etc.) that would be funny. This is the oldest of the clown types, with many excellent examples, including Francesco Caroli, Frosty Little, Bob Bell as Bozo the clown, Bobby Kaye, Felix Adler, Blinko, Duane Thorpe as Uncle Soapy, George Fox and Joseph Grimaldi and many others.

Makeup

There are two major classes of the white face clown, and thus two styles of make-up. The first is the standard, or classic, whiteface clown. This consists of a white base, with make-up to accent the eyes and mouth. This is the clown type many people associate with the circus. Francesco Caroli and Glenn "Frosty" Little is a good example of this type. A zanier, less intelligent style of clown is the comedy, or grotesque, whiteface. Here the make up is more exaggerated, to emphasize the more outrageous nature of this clown. Bozo the clown is a good example of this type. Both styles may be with a bald cap, with hair, or with partial hair. Note that the more outrageous hair style typically belong to the comedy whiteface. With either style, the object is to enhance the natural features of the face, never to hide them. The clown takes his or her natural facial features and exaggerates; also, don't forget that many in your audience (in a walk around, for example) may be further away -- this is why the features are 'outlined' -- study the eyes and mouths of Bob Bell's Bozo and Frosty Little for examples. For more detail on make-up, I recommend Strutter's Complete Guide to Clown Make-up.

History
The whiteface is the oldest style of clown, dating back to Greek theatre. Contrary to popular belief, the clown does NOT wear make up to hide or disguise his figures, but rather to reveal them. In Greek theatre, lighting was poor (compared to modern day theater), and so a white background with black markings served well to illuminate the actor's features. A well known ancestor of the whiteface is the court jester of the middle ages (though authentic court jesters often performed with little or no make-up at all). The comedy troupe of the commedia del arté popularized several clown characters, including Pierrot, Columbine, Harleqin and Clown (yes, that was the character's name!), all of whom where originally masked characters, several of whom eventually evolved into whiteface clowns.

A major subtype of the whiteface has also evolved. Unlike the court jester or classic whiteface, who can be considered quite intelligent (given a clown's unique perspective , the "Comedy" or "Grotesque Whiteface" is more buffoonish, with more outlandish and mismatching clothing, and a more exaggerated style. In the comedic partnership of Abbot & Costello, Bud Abbot would have been a classic whiteface; Lou Costello either a comedy whiteface, or an Auguste.

Costume
Traditionally, the whiteface clown would wear a one piece outfit, decorated either snazzily or outlandishly, depending on the clown's character. Today, that is no longer the case. The whiteface clown can wear virtually anything that fits in with his character -- for examples, I suggest that you look at some of the costuming ideas at Clown Costumes (run by Betty Cash, professional clown & instructor at the UW LaCrosse Clown Camp).

AUGUSTE CLOWN

Character:
The Auguste clown is in a class by himself. The least intelligent (although that's not saying much of the clowns, he is also perhaps the most beloved. With the most exaggerated make-up and movements, this is the zaniest of the clowns. Famous Auguste clowns include Cooky, Coco, Albert Fratellini, Grock, Lou Jacobs, and Leon "Buttons" McBryde.

Make up:
The make up of the auguste starts, not with the classic white base, but more of a flesh tone, as can be seen from the illustrations on this page. Like the comedy (grotesque) whiteface, the make-up is exaggerated. Note the large mouth and eyes of Lou Jacobs on this page, or Cooky's eyes. As always, the object is to enhance the natural features of the face, never to hide them. The clown takes his or her natural facial features and exaggerates; also, don't forget that many in your audience (in a walk around, for example) may be further away -- this is why the features are 'outlined' -- study the eyes and mouths of Lou Jacobs and Cooky for examples. For more detail on make-up, I recommend Strutter's Complete Guide to Clown Make-up.

Costume:
There is no hard and fast 'rule' to the Auguste's costuming. As with most things clown, contrast and comparison are the key. Remember that the Auguste's costume is the first visual cue to the audience of who and what he is, possibly more so than the facial make-up. Exaggeration is key here; note Lou Jacobs' tiny hat, oversized coat, and extremely wide lapels on the shirt & coat. The audience needs several visual cues to the character of the character before he says or does anything. For a more contemporary example, picture Steve Urkel from TV's Family Matters -- with his colorful clothes, prominent suspenders, short pants and large glasses, his costume said 'clown' before his character had a chance.

History:
In the 20th century, the two clowns who had the most impact on the development of the Auguste were probably Albert Fratellini and Lou Jacobs. Albert Fratellini, as one of the famous Fratellini Brothers, created a character who served as an in between from one brother's classic whiteface and another brother's tramp character. He also introduced the red nose, which has since become synonymous with clowns. Lou Jacobs, over a lifetime spent with Ringling Brothers circus developed and fine tuned both his own clown character, and much of the 'character' of the Auguste. It is to these two that we owe the foundation of the modern Auguste.

There is a widely told legend about the origins of the Auguste clown. According to the legend, an American acrobat named Tom Belling was performing with a circus in Germany in 1869. Confined to his dressing room as punishment for missing his cues, he entertained his friends by putting on unfitting clothes to perform his impression of the show's manager. The manager suddenly entered the room. Belling took off running, ending up in the circus arena where he fell over the ring curb. In his embarrassment and haste to escape, he fell over the ring curb again on his way out. The audience yelled, "auguste!" which is German for fool. The manager commanded that Belling continue appearing as the Auguste.

Most serious historians doubt that the legend is true. For one thing, the word Auguste did not exist in the German language until after the character became popular. One of the theories of the actual origin is that Belling copied the character from the R'izhii (Red Haired) clowns he saw when he toured Russia with a circus.

Characters like the auguste certainly existed previously. Whether or not he was the first, Belling was not very successful as an Auguste and soon left clowning to perform as a magician.

SAD TRAMPS, HAPPY HOBOS, AND OTHER CLOWN TYPES

Character
The character clown is widely thought of as the tramp or hobo, but it can encompass many other things. For instance, a cowboy clown, virtually all of Red Skelton's TV characters (Sheriff Deadeye, Clem Kaddiddlehopper, the mean widdle kid, Cauliflower McPugg, etc.), Carol Burnett's famous wash woman character, Tim Conway's equally famous 'little old man' character, Urkel from the TV show "Family Matters," etc. are all clearly clowns, though definitely not either a whiteface nor an auguste clown. The vast majority of clowns in this category, however, are clearly tramps and hobos.

The Tramp clown is a distinctly American invention, although he is now popular in European circuses as well. The most well known Tramp is clearly Charlie Chaplin's "Little Tramp," Red Skelton's Freddy the Freeloader, or Emmet Kelly's "Weary Willie." The generic Tramp character assumes a "down-on-his-luck" approach to life. His costume appears tattered and torn (a performing clown should never have a shabby or unclean costume), and things do not go well for him.

The hobo, on the other hand, has much more of a "devil-may-care" attitude. Although in the same position as the tramp (costuming and make-up may be virtually identical), the hobo is not unhappy about his situation. He knows that everything will turn out all right. A well known example is Red Skelton's clown character, "Freddy the Freeloader."

Make-up
The Tramp/Hobo make-up can be thought of as a modified version of the Auguste. A skin tone base, with simple accents around the eyes. Depending on the type, you may want to include '5 o'clock shadow', as Red Skelton and Emmett Kelly did -- or not, as Charlie Chaplin did. And, of course, the make-up would be different for a 'bag lady' character.As always, the object is to enhance the natural features of the face, never to hide them. The clown takes his or her natural facial features and exaggerates; also, don't forget that many in your audience (in a walk around, for example) may be further away -- this is why the features are 'outlined' - examine Charlie Chaplin's eyes, or Freddy the Freeloader's mouth. For more detail on make-up, I recommend Strutter's Complete Guide to Clown Make-up.

Costume
The costume of the tramp or hobo would be nearly identical. The costume should look tattered and torn, but be clean. The impression can be of someone slightly down on their luck to someone who lives in the gutter, depending on the clown, character, and skit. For other characters, of course, that will drive the costume -- for instance, Clem Kaddiddlehopper's costume is designed to project the his 'hayseed' character visually, a keystone cop would need to project that image, and so on. Again, the costume needs to visually describe the clown's character to the audience.

History
The sad tramp/happy hobo are primarily American inventions, though Charlie Chaplin's "little tramp" had European origins as well. Visually, the happy hobo/sad tramp was based on the American hobo riding the rails, wiping the soot away from the mouth & eyes to create the typical tramp look. Famous tramp & hobo clowns include Don Burda's Homer, Charlie Chaplin's Little Tramp, Emmet Kelly's Weary Willy, and Red Skelton's Freddy the Freeloader.

Information Source: history - clown types - the whiteface, auguste, and sad tramp / happy hobo clowns