1
00:00:04,720 --> 00:00:07,440
Speaker 1: Hey, this is Annie, and welcome to stuff. I'll never

2
00:00:07,520 --> 00:00:09,719
Speaker 1: told your protection of I Heart Radio's house Stuff works.

3
00:00:19,120 --> 00:00:23,279
Speaker 1: Today we're talking about clown you know how to suck

4
00:00:23,320 --> 00:00:25,520
Speaker 1: of song in my head? Now everything we were going

5
00:00:25,560 --> 00:00:28,840
Speaker 1: to say, it's every time I read it us right here. Well,

6
00:00:28,840 --> 00:00:32,080
Speaker 1: then that's a very effective song. Yeah it is. And

7
00:00:32,120 --> 00:00:35,960
Speaker 1: we're specifically looking at female clowns. And this episode is

8
00:00:36,040 --> 00:00:40,440
Speaker 1: inspired in part by the release of it chapter two.

9
00:00:40,479 --> 00:00:42,320
Speaker 1: I just watched the first one like a week ago,

10
00:00:42,560 --> 00:00:45,640
Speaker 1: did you, Yeah, the mini series or the new one?

11
00:00:45,720 --> 00:00:47,600
Speaker 1: The new one mini series I watched as a child,

12
00:00:47,600 --> 00:00:51,000
Speaker 1: and I'm traumatized by that one. Yeah, but the new

13
00:00:51,040 --> 00:00:54,960
Speaker 1: one I just finally watched it or newer. Yeah. That

14
00:00:55,080 --> 00:00:58,120
Speaker 1: was the worst theater experience I've ever had because somebody

15
00:00:58,120 --> 00:01:00,440
Speaker 1: in front of me was using it as an upportunity

16
00:01:00,560 --> 00:01:03,360
Speaker 1: to try out his set. He thought he was a comedian,

17
00:01:04,360 --> 00:01:07,840
Speaker 1: and so he was. He was making jokes very loudly,

18
00:01:08,080 --> 00:01:10,120
Speaker 1: and then when the movie ended, he got up in

19
00:01:10,120 --> 00:01:12,000
Speaker 1: front of everybody and said, you can follow me on

20
00:01:12,000 --> 00:01:15,240
Speaker 1: Instagram or see me at the see me at whatever show.

21
00:01:15,480 --> 00:01:18,360
Speaker 1: And we were all like, get out of here, right.

22
00:01:18,920 --> 00:01:21,920
Speaker 1: What I mean, it's if you've got your venue. They're

23
00:01:22,000 --> 00:01:24,520
Speaker 1: trapped in their trapped but they're gonna be angry and suppressed.

24
00:01:24,560 --> 00:01:27,000
Speaker 1: One got him kicked out. Somebody did report him, but

25
00:01:27,120 --> 00:01:30,680
Speaker 1: when the theater person came in, the guy was like,

26
00:01:30,959 --> 00:01:32,800
Speaker 1: come on, man, I'm just having fun. I'm just having fun.

27
00:01:32,840 --> 00:01:35,680
Speaker 1: And I guess that was enough. Shut up man. Yeah,

28
00:01:35,840 --> 00:01:39,360
Speaker 1: so I had to rewatch it. Yes, and I do

29
00:01:39,440 --> 00:01:42,560
Speaker 1: want to apologize in advance to any clowns that are listening.

30
00:01:42,640 --> 00:01:45,680
Speaker 1: Who hates that this is the association that a lot

31
00:01:45,720 --> 00:01:48,440
Speaker 1: of us have. Yes, I'm sure you're good people, but

32
00:01:48,680 --> 00:01:51,600
Speaker 1: I'm still scared of you. I don't have a fear

33
00:01:51,600 --> 00:01:55,440
Speaker 1: of clowns. Um. I don't think I've ever actually seen one.

34
00:01:56,840 --> 00:02:01,440
Speaker 1: I'm pretty sure in real life. In real life. Yeah, Um,

35
00:02:01,480 --> 00:02:06,160
Speaker 1: I did notoriously push a man dressed as the Joker

36
00:02:06,480 --> 00:02:09,000
Speaker 1: into a pool when I was four years old because

37
00:02:09,000 --> 00:02:10,640
Speaker 1: he got my face and he was laughing at me.

38
00:02:10,800 --> 00:02:13,480
Speaker 1: That's cool. And uh, my brother, he was having a

39
00:02:13,520 --> 00:02:15,560
Speaker 1: Batman themed party that I was not allowed at that

40
00:02:15,600 --> 00:02:18,400
Speaker 1: I snuck into. He was very very upset with me.

41
00:02:19,400 --> 00:02:21,920
Speaker 1: There's a video of it somewhere. I wanted of you

42
00:02:21,960 --> 00:02:23,880
Speaker 1: pushing the clown because I want I want to see

43
00:02:23,919 --> 00:02:28,040
Speaker 1: those joker. I need to see this joker. Yeah, I've

44
00:02:28,080 --> 00:02:30,320
Speaker 1: been to a circus or two in um, no offense,

45
00:02:30,440 --> 00:02:33,320
Speaker 1: like we said, but we've already discussed my irrational fears

46
00:02:33,600 --> 00:02:36,680
Speaker 1: due to my young exposure to horror movies and the

47
00:02:36,680 --> 00:02:38,760
Speaker 1: origin of it of one of the first films, of course,

48
00:02:38,800 --> 00:02:41,320
Speaker 1: is what we were talking about, just the IT mini

49
00:02:41,360 --> 00:02:45,799
Speaker 1: series and um, you know, come on, it's Tim Curry

50
00:02:45,919 --> 00:02:49,320
Speaker 1: hiding in the sewer, threatening like no, not threatening, tearing

51
00:02:49,320 --> 00:02:53,600
Speaker 1: off a kid's arm, talking about fluting. I will say no,

52
00:02:54,160 --> 00:02:57,760
Speaker 1: I rewatched it recently and I thought it was quite humorous.

53
00:02:57,840 --> 00:03:01,000
Speaker 1: But look when you see it as a child, and

54
00:03:01,040 --> 00:03:02,799
Speaker 1: then you go back and you're well, because I don't

55
00:03:02,840 --> 00:03:04,560
Speaker 1: think I actually finished it because I couldn't because I

56
00:03:04,639 --> 00:03:06,480
Speaker 1: was so scared of it, and I should have. That's

57
00:03:06,560 --> 00:03:08,400
Speaker 1: I think that's when I learned my lesson to finish

58
00:03:08,400 --> 00:03:11,160
Speaker 1: out all the movies because you'll be less scared when

59
00:03:11,200 --> 00:03:13,720
Speaker 1: you finish it out typically, But yeah, this is one

60
00:03:13,760 --> 00:03:16,000
Speaker 1: of those I didn't. And then when I did finally

61
00:03:16,080 --> 00:03:17,600
Speaker 1: see clips at the ending, I was like, oh, yeah,

62
00:03:17,639 --> 00:03:23,880
Speaker 1: that's dumb. No spoilers, hashtags spoilers, Yeah, but it don't don't.

63
00:03:23,960 --> 00:03:28,040
Speaker 1: It's definitely an eighties well, and the main character his

64
00:03:28,320 --> 00:03:30,800
Speaker 1: the mullet, not in mullet, and I hit the ponytail.

65
00:03:30,840 --> 00:03:34,040
Speaker 1: He's rocking. You know what. When I was looking back

66
00:03:34,080 --> 00:03:38,400
Speaker 1: on the clips, Jonathan Brandis was in it, Seth Greene.

67
00:03:39,440 --> 00:03:42,520
Speaker 1: Jonathan Brandis was a ninety nineties heart throb and I

68
00:03:42,600 --> 00:03:46,480
Speaker 1: loved him. And he was dating Tatiana Ali Fresh, Prince

69
00:03:46,520 --> 00:03:50,120
Speaker 1: of bel Air. That was very jealous. Wow, yeah, this

70
00:03:50,160 --> 00:03:54,600
Speaker 1: is a serious crush. I think, probably my first crush ever. Well, okay,

71
00:03:54,640 --> 00:03:56,080
Speaker 1: I'll have to go back and we watch it with

72
00:03:56,160 --> 00:04:00,200
Speaker 1: new eyes. Okay, Well, we're not just gonna talk about

73
00:04:00,000 --> 00:04:03,680
Speaker 1: it scary clowns today. Um. We wanted to start with

74
00:04:03,720 --> 00:04:06,760
Speaker 1: the definition, as we like to do from dictionary dot com,

75
00:04:06,800 --> 00:04:10,040
Speaker 1: a comic performer, as in a circus, theatrical production or

76
00:04:10,120 --> 00:04:12,600
Speaker 1: the like who wears an outlandish costume and makeup and

77
00:04:12,720 --> 00:04:16,520
Speaker 1: entertains by pantomizing common situations or actions in exaggerated or

78
00:04:16,600 --> 00:04:21,120
Speaker 1: ridiculous fashion, by juggling or tumbling, et cetera. And what

79
00:04:21,200 --> 00:04:24,760
Speaker 1: we view as traditional clowning at circuses has long been

80
00:04:24,839 --> 00:04:27,840
Speaker 1: dominated by men, but that doesn't mean there aren't any

81
00:04:27,920 --> 00:04:32,679
Speaker 1: female clowns um or that there haven't been from Russian

82
00:04:32,680 --> 00:04:37,359
Speaker 1: critic Mikhail Bochton, Clowns are quote, life's maskers, right to

83
00:04:37,440 --> 00:04:39,720
Speaker 1: be other in this world, the right not to make

84
00:04:39,760 --> 00:04:42,920
Speaker 1: common calls with any single one of the existing categories

85
00:04:43,040 --> 00:04:49,799
Speaker 1: that life makes available. And so clowning has a long history.

86
00:04:49,839 --> 00:04:52,680
Speaker 1: It goes all the way back to ancient Greece, ancient Egypt,

87
00:04:52,760 --> 00:04:57,120
Speaker 1: and ancient China. In seventh century BC, the Dorian mimes

88
00:04:57,279 --> 00:05:00,680
Speaker 1: was a troop that included female clowns. The name came

89
00:05:00,720 --> 00:05:03,919
Speaker 1: from the performer's ability to mimic others. So they weren't

90
00:05:04,040 --> 00:05:07,120
Speaker 1: mimes like we we think of them today, but they were.

91
00:05:07,240 --> 00:05:09,920
Speaker 1: They could mimic people we may mimic pretty well, real

92
00:05:09,960 --> 00:05:12,760
Speaker 1: life things like lambing upstairs. It's true. It just didn't

93
00:05:12,760 --> 00:05:16,560
Speaker 1: mean they were silent, I guess. In ancient Rome, a

94
00:05:16,680 --> 00:05:19,560
Speaker 1: valued position was that of the funeral clown, a juster

95
00:05:19,680 --> 00:05:22,800
Speaker 1: that would dress as the recently deceased, typically a rich person,

96
00:05:22,800 --> 00:05:25,839
Speaker 1: if you could afford this and make fun of their habits.

97
00:05:26,400 --> 00:05:29,920
Speaker 1: I want one of those, Well you could, well, who

98
00:05:30,040 --> 00:05:32,479
Speaker 1: makes it? Well, we'll get a professional clown for you.

99
00:05:32,640 --> 00:05:34,280
Speaker 1: I don't, I don't know whatever I kind of want

100
00:05:34,320 --> 00:05:36,680
Speaker 1: this to happen. Yeah, and clowns in a Belanese theater

101
00:05:36,760 --> 00:05:39,679
Speaker 1: were viewed as servants of the gods. Famous and mythical

102
00:05:39,720 --> 00:05:43,279
Speaker 1: Indian gesture to Nali Rama's summon, the Hindu goddess Collie

103
00:05:43,560 --> 00:05:45,920
Speaker 1: stole from her and then joked about it. Now, Collie

104
00:05:46,000 --> 00:05:48,920
Speaker 1: is scary. She's often depicted with skulls on her necklace.

105
00:05:48,920 --> 00:05:50,760
Speaker 1: But she thought he was funny, so she allowed him

106
00:05:50,760 --> 00:05:53,760
Speaker 1: to live. Yeah, you should look up the pictures of

107
00:05:53,839 --> 00:05:57,360
Speaker 1: Colie in this story is pretty good. Yeah, just in general.

108
00:05:57,400 --> 00:06:00,520
Speaker 1: And though she's the goddess of like torment Or, she's

109
00:06:01,400 --> 00:06:04,440
Speaker 1: she's like multi We didn't episode kind of about her.

110
00:06:04,839 --> 00:06:08,479
Speaker 1: She's kind of like both death and life and yeah,

111
00:06:08,920 --> 00:06:12,479
Speaker 1: but she's a frightening fiction. She'll get you. Yeah, that's

112
00:06:12,520 --> 00:06:16,239
Speaker 1: the point we're trying to make. Um. During medieval times,

113
00:06:16,240 --> 00:06:19,359
Speaker 1: clowns called glee men often worked in partnership with a

114
00:06:19,480 --> 00:06:24,160
Speaker 1: glee maiden. This glee maiden was multitalented, a dancer and acrobat,

115
00:06:24,279 --> 00:06:27,720
Speaker 1: a musician. Sometimes these glee maidens worked alone and sometimes

116
00:06:27,760 --> 00:06:32,000
Speaker 1: as assistants for men in burlesque. And this is when

117
00:06:32,000 --> 00:06:35,039
Speaker 1: we saw Mother Fowley, an elderly woman who led medieval

118
00:06:35,120 --> 00:06:40,000
Speaker 1: carnival celebrations, which were appropriately wild. She had a full

119
00:06:40,040 --> 00:06:43,800
Speaker 1: moon mask to represent the fickleness of woman, their power,

120
00:06:43,880 --> 00:06:46,640
Speaker 1: and how dangerous they could be. According to one historian,

121
00:06:46,720 --> 00:06:49,560
Speaker 1: she quote allows for the expression of aspects of the

122
00:06:49,600 --> 00:06:54,000
Speaker 1: feminine that are normally repressed. Then, if we look at

123
00:06:54,080 --> 00:06:58,960
Speaker 1: jesters from Dana Frauden's book King's Fool Quote. In medieval days,

124
00:06:59,120 --> 00:07:01,880
Speaker 1: buffoonery was one of the few professions open to women.

125
00:07:02,320 --> 00:07:05,520
Speaker 1: Royal courts and nobility often would have jesters on retainer,

126
00:07:05,640 --> 00:07:09,680
Speaker 1: and some of those were women. Jesters had more freedom

127
00:07:09,720 --> 00:07:12,200
Speaker 1: of speech than the average commoner, which gave them the

128
00:07:12,200 --> 00:07:14,320
Speaker 1: power to speak out against their rulers in a way

129
00:07:14,560 --> 00:07:19,120
Speaker 1: most could not, sometimes even impacting policy, like when Emperor

130
00:07:19,240 --> 00:07:21,880
Speaker 1: shahuang Ti commissioned for the building of the Great Wall

131
00:07:21,920 --> 00:07:24,400
Speaker 1: of China. He also ordered it to be painted, which

132
00:07:24,440 --> 00:07:27,200
Speaker 1: could have led to thousands more deaths, but his jester

133
00:07:27,400 --> 00:07:29,960
Speaker 1: was able to make fun of the proposal and the

134
00:07:30,000 --> 00:07:36,000
Speaker 1: emperor decided against it. So that's pretty powerful stuff. Yeah.

135
00:07:36,040 --> 00:07:39,600
Speaker 1: So Roman philosopher Seneca his wife had a female fullwn retainer.

136
00:07:39,840 --> 00:07:42,720
Speaker 1: One of history's most famous female jesters was working during

137
00:07:42,720 --> 00:07:45,360
Speaker 1: the seventeenth century in France, her name was matthe Reen.

138
00:07:45,960 --> 00:07:49,040
Speaker 1: Mathe Reen ruled over the courts of kings Henry the Third,

139
00:07:49,120 --> 00:07:54,000
Speaker 1: Henry the Four's, and Louis. She dressed as an Amazon warrior,

140
00:07:54,120 --> 00:07:57,080
Speaker 1: armor shilled sword in robes. She was also well known,

141
00:07:57,320 --> 00:07:59,800
Speaker 1: and her name came to be used for other satirius.

142
00:07:59,800 --> 00:08:02,920
Speaker 1: In particular type of burlesque writing that was similar to

143
00:08:02,920 --> 00:08:06,200
Speaker 1: her comedy was dubbed Mathra ren Nod. While accompanying a

144
00:08:06,200 --> 00:08:08,120
Speaker 1: woman of the court for an audience with the king,

145
00:08:08,200 --> 00:08:10,920
Speaker 1: the woman told Matheine something like I don't like having

146
00:08:10,960 --> 00:08:13,160
Speaker 1: a fool to my right, and without missing a step,

147
00:08:13,200 --> 00:08:15,640
Speaker 1: Matheine switch side and said, I don't mind at all,

148
00:08:16,040 --> 00:08:19,120
Speaker 1: I love it, love it. Mathein also was very religious

149
00:08:19,400 --> 00:08:22,280
Speaker 1: and dedicated her justicres want to God, and allegedly she

150
00:08:22,360 --> 00:08:25,520
Speaker 1: helped capture a potential assassin of Henry the Fourth by

151
00:08:25,520 --> 00:08:28,760
Speaker 1: blocking the door of his escape. Wow, yeah, I read that,

152
00:08:28,800 --> 00:08:31,240
Speaker 1: and I was like, what it sounds like, cool, lady,

153
00:08:31,400 --> 00:08:35,640
Speaker 1: all these women are pretty badass. In Europe during the

154
00:08:35,720 --> 00:08:39,600
Speaker 1: sixteenth to eighteenth centuries, the it entertainment at the theater

155
00:08:39,760 --> 00:08:43,640
Speaker 1: was Comedia del arte and it included female clowns. The

156
00:08:43,679 --> 00:08:47,160
Speaker 1: performers were divided into three groups, master's servants and the

157
00:08:47,240 --> 00:08:50,760
Speaker 1: young lovers, and the masters and servants were played by clowns.

158
00:08:51,040 --> 00:08:54,240
Speaker 1: The servants, who usually drove the plot, had three main characters,

159
00:08:54,559 --> 00:08:57,720
Speaker 1: the smart male rogue, his foolish male companion, and the female.

160
00:08:58,120 --> 00:09:00,720
Speaker 1: Usually the female served as the roman take interest for

161
00:09:00,760 --> 00:09:03,520
Speaker 1: one of the men, of course, but she was involved

162
00:09:03,520 --> 00:09:06,920
Speaker 1: in other story elements too. There were three servant characters

163
00:09:07,000 --> 00:09:12,080
Speaker 1: only played by women, Columbine, Francistina and smell real Dina.

164
00:09:12,360 --> 00:09:14,800
Speaker 1: Lots of threes in this three by three three rule

165
00:09:14,840 --> 00:09:19,080
Speaker 1: of threes. Funnily enough, the female version of Harlequin is Harlequina.

166
00:09:19,200 --> 00:09:24,000
Speaker 1: So Harley Quinn not so much. I don't know um.

167
00:09:24,040 --> 00:09:27,079
Speaker 1: From Comedia Delarte came English pantomime during the eighteenth and

168
00:09:27,160 --> 00:09:30,240
Speaker 1: nineteenth centuries. This is the time the quote father of

169
00:09:30,280 --> 00:09:35,160
Speaker 1: modern clowning, Joseph Grimaldi, started working first dawning white faced

170
00:09:35,200 --> 00:09:40,520
Speaker 1: clown makeup, and he worked with female clowns. The circus

171
00:09:40,559 --> 00:09:43,520
Speaker 1: got its start three years ago in Western Europe. While

172
00:09:43,559 --> 00:09:45,800
Speaker 1: a few female clowns were recorded these early days, it

173
00:09:45,840 --> 00:09:48,520
Speaker 1: was mostly men working at the circus. Of the few

174
00:09:48,520 --> 00:09:52,240
Speaker 1: mentioned of female clowns somewhere painted as publicity stunts as

175
00:09:52,240 --> 00:09:55,439
Speaker 1: opposed to serious performers. In fifty eight is a year

176
00:09:55,520 --> 00:09:58,120
Speaker 1: a lot of historian's point to the first modern female clown,

177
00:09:58,280 --> 00:10:02,720
Speaker 1: Amelia Butler, and we there are a lot more clown

178
00:10:03,040 --> 00:10:07,200
Speaker 1: clown details his story facts for you. But first we're

179
00:10:07,240 --> 00:10:23,439
Speaker 1: gonna Paustre quickick for words more sponsor and we're back,

180
00:10:23,480 --> 00:10:28,800
Speaker 1: Thank you sponsor. So from eighteen eighties six the New

181
00:10:28,880 --> 00:10:33,360
Speaker 1: Veil Sook in Paris became the circus capital of the world.

182
00:10:33,840 --> 00:10:37,040
Speaker 1: It was owned by the co founder of the Mulan Rouge.

183
00:10:38,040 --> 00:10:42,240
Speaker 1: Clown Nesses, as female clowns were known, weren't all that rare,

184
00:10:42,280 --> 00:10:45,680
Speaker 1: but they were often Mulan Rouge dancers dressed as clowns,

185
00:10:45,679 --> 00:10:47,600
Speaker 1: so a little bit different. One of the most well

186
00:10:47,640 --> 00:10:50,360
Speaker 1: known of these dancers was chat Cow, which was the

187
00:10:50,480 --> 00:10:54,400
Speaker 1: name inspired by a wild dance similar to the can can.

188
00:10:55,000 --> 00:10:56,760
Speaker 1: The only way we know about her is because of

189
00:10:56,800 --> 00:10:59,520
Speaker 1: a series of paintings done by Andre de Toulouse Lautrec.

190
00:11:00,080 --> 00:11:03,760
Speaker 1: Aside from dancing, she was also a contortionist and an acrobat.

191
00:11:04,600 --> 00:11:07,120
Speaker 1: The Check applauded her bravery and working in a male

192
00:11:07,240 --> 00:11:11,040
Speaker 1: dominated industry and being open about being a lesbian. Well,

193
00:11:11,040 --> 00:11:13,760
Speaker 1: there's miss Lulu born in eighty two and she married

194
00:11:13,800 --> 00:11:16,559
Speaker 1: a famous male clown and they worked together. She was

195
00:11:16,600 --> 00:11:20,040
Speaker 1: a contortionist and a wile walker. There's a wire walk

196
00:11:20,120 --> 00:11:23,160
Speaker 1: with me punn in there, but I don't know what

197
00:11:23,200 --> 00:11:27,360
Speaker 1: it is. Maybe it's give me that. Then there's Lulu Adams,

198
00:11:27,360 --> 00:11:30,640
Speaker 1: the daughter of famous British clown Joe Crafton, and her

199
00:11:30,640 --> 00:11:34,120
Speaker 1: grandmother was the first tightrope artist to perform at the

200
00:11:34,160 --> 00:11:38,200
Speaker 1: Brighton Hippodrome. So she kind of had a family family business.

201
00:11:38,840 --> 00:11:41,080
Speaker 1: Literally worked in some of her dad's routines and at

202
00:11:41,080 --> 00:11:44,000
Speaker 1: the age of seventeen, she convinced her dad to buy

203
00:11:44,280 --> 00:11:46,720
Speaker 1: her a set of bagpipes and that's what she became

204
00:11:46,760 --> 00:11:50,760
Speaker 1: known for. Her favorite song was Laugh Clown Laugh, I

205
00:11:50,800 --> 00:11:53,800
Speaker 1: was her favorite song play. She was multitalented, especially when

206
00:11:53,800 --> 00:11:56,960
Speaker 1: it came to playing instruments, and could speak five languages.

207
00:11:57,440 --> 00:11:59,360
Speaker 1: She was the first female clown to perform at many

208
00:11:59,400 --> 00:12:02,480
Speaker 1: of the most to just British circuses. She also worked

209
00:12:02,480 --> 00:12:05,400
Speaker 1: at America's Barnum and Bailey's, the Tom Arnold's Christmas Circuit

210
00:12:05,480 --> 00:12:09,520
Speaker 1: and at the Ringling Circus. Before his untimely death, her

211
00:12:09,559 --> 00:12:12,680
Speaker 1: and her husband worked as a clown duo. She once

212
00:12:12,720 --> 00:12:15,520
Speaker 1: told a reporter, I was born into the circus. Mother

213
00:12:15,600 --> 00:12:17,439
Speaker 1: was a writer and a high wire performer. Dad was

214
00:12:17,480 --> 00:12:19,720
Speaker 1: an acrobat, and all sorts of things. I shall go

215
00:12:19,760 --> 00:12:23,120
Speaker 1: on clowning till I die. That's the power of the circus.

216
00:12:23,160 --> 00:12:27,640
Speaker 1: You can never leave it. In the early United States

217
00:12:27,640 --> 00:12:30,480
Speaker 1: there are more records of female clowns than in Europe.

218
00:12:30,880 --> 00:12:35,200
Speaker 1: In the New York Times called a Vetta Matthews, misattributed

219
00:12:35,280 --> 00:12:38,640
Speaker 1: as a Miss Williams, the only lady clown on Earth.

220
00:12:39,080 --> 00:12:41,640
Speaker 1: The woman's rights movement was taking off in Europe and

221
00:12:41,679 --> 00:12:43,600
Speaker 1: the US at this time, and Barnum and Bailey had

222
00:12:43,640 --> 00:12:47,480
Speaker 1: a new woman's segment that featured Matthews. Some of their

223
00:12:47,520 --> 00:12:52,400
Speaker 1: advertisements read A Vetta the only lady clown from Adams.

224
00:12:52,679 --> 00:12:55,880
Speaker 1: There were plenty of women trupee performers, bar performers, and

225
00:12:55,920 --> 00:12:59,040
Speaker 1: tight rope performers, and even strong women who could hold

226
00:12:59,040 --> 00:13:02,360
Speaker 1: half a dozen full on their shoulders. These fields seemed

227
00:13:02,400 --> 00:13:05,760
Speaker 1: to be pretty well occupied, so Miss Matthews got advanced

228
00:13:05,760 --> 00:13:09,080
Speaker 1: notions of emancipation and determined to invade a new field

229
00:13:09,080 --> 00:13:13,439
Speaker 1: and become clown. There never had been women clowns so

230
00:13:13,600 --> 00:13:16,040
Speaker 1: this this is from a work, a piece on the

231
00:13:16,080 --> 00:13:19,680
Speaker 1: history of clowning um and she chafed at the strict

232
00:13:19,720 --> 00:13:21,360
Speaker 1: rules handed down to her about what she could and

233
00:13:21,360 --> 00:13:23,320
Speaker 1: couldn't do as a woman. Like Tumble, they were very

234
00:13:23,320 --> 00:13:27,880
Speaker 1: specific about certain physical things that women could perform. Pop

235
00:13:27,960 --> 00:13:30,840
Speaker 1: their mechanics referred to Loretta la Pearl as a fair

236
00:13:30,880 --> 00:13:34,440
Speaker 1: young woman with luminous eyes and as the only circus clown,

237
00:13:34,840 --> 00:13:37,160
Speaker 1: the only woman circus clown nineteen seven. So there's a

238
00:13:37,200 --> 00:13:40,760
Speaker 1: lot of the only of these women clowns. Female clowns

239
00:13:40,800 --> 00:13:42,840
Speaker 1: at the time did usually wear outfits that were at

240
00:13:42,840 --> 00:13:48,160
Speaker 1: the intersection of sexy and ridiculous. Felix Adler and Amelia

241
00:13:48,240 --> 00:13:51,280
Speaker 1: Irwin or the King and Queen of clowning during the

242
00:13:51,320 --> 00:13:55,000
Speaker 1: mid twentieth century. In nineteen sixty eight, when the Ringing

243
00:13:55,040 --> 00:13:58,560
Speaker 1: Brothers opened their clown College, female clowns became more common.

244
00:13:58,840 --> 00:14:03,280
Speaker 1: Their first female clown own graduated in nineteen seventy, Peggy Williams.

245
00:14:05,520 --> 00:14:08,600
Speaker 1: Then they got Annie Fredalini. She was a film actress

246
00:14:08,600 --> 00:14:10,480
Speaker 1: before she got into clowning, and she worked with her

247
00:14:10,559 --> 00:14:13,520
Speaker 1: husband as well, director Pierre Ette. She went on to

248
00:14:13,559 --> 00:14:16,240
Speaker 1: start her own circus in nineteen seventy four in her

249
00:14:16,280 --> 00:14:18,400
Speaker 1: own circus school in France, and this led to the

250
00:14:18,440 --> 00:14:21,760
Speaker 1: birth of nouveau cirque in that country. When interviewed in

251
00:14:21,840 --> 00:14:24,840
Speaker 1: nineteen seventy seven, she said, circus people didn't believe that

252
00:14:24,880 --> 00:14:27,520
Speaker 1: a woman could take pratfalls, get slapped and kicked and

253
00:14:27,520 --> 00:14:31,360
Speaker 1: be ridiculous. But women have more sensitivity, the essential quality.

254
00:14:31,640 --> 00:14:34,480
Speaker 1: It's not a question of gayety or humor. A clown

255
00:14:34,680 --> 00:14:37,160
Speaker 1: isn't a comedian. To be a good clown, you must

256
00:14:37,160 --> 00:14:39,480
Speaker 1: have lived. To be a clown means more than just

257
00:14:39,520 --> 00:14:42,120
Speaker 1: putting on a costume and making funny faces at the audience.

258
00:14:42,320 --> 00:14:44,840
Speaker 1: The clown must take the audience on a unique adventure

259
00:14:45,200 --> 00:14:51,840
Speaker 1: in a strange dimension, which I love. Then there's Nina Krasavina,

260
00:14:51,960 --> 00:14:54,600
Speaker 1: the star of the Moscow Circus, who also got in conning.

261
00:14:54,600 --> 00:14:56,840
Speaker 1: Thinks to her husband, she was the first clown in

262
00:14:56,880 --> 00:15:00,600
Speaker 1: the Moscow ring. Yeah. So. According to one list that

263
00:15:00,680 --> 00:15:03,520
Speaker 1: ranks clowns, there were only three women listed within the

264
00:15:03,560 --> 00:15:06,920
Speaker 1: top one hundred most famous clowns. Arrissa a. K A

265
00:15:07,000 --> 00:15:11,160
Speaker 1: Resolva or Arissa or Risolba Pippa she was at four,

266
00:15:11,680 --> 00:15:15,360
Speaker 1: Annette Fredlini at forty one, and Camilla Grisky at seventy.

267
00:15:16,200 --> 00:15:18,360
Speaker 1: Of course this is just one list, but with all

268
00:15:18,400 --> 00:15:20,640
Speaker 1: the people we mentioned above, I just I thought it

269
00:15:20,680 --> 00:15:23,480
Speaker 1: was interesting, um that it was just three that made

270
00:15:23,520 --> 00:15:26,440
Speaker 1: into that top one hundred list. Yeah. I mean think

271
00:15:26,480 --> 00:15:30,240
Speaker 1: about the uproar around podcast when it's like ten and

272
00:15:30,240 --> 00:15:33,280
Speaker 1: it only has three women one hundred and I have

273
00:15:33,440 --> 00:15:39,240
Speaker 1: three women. Um. Yes, So clearly it has been a

274
00:15:39,320 --> 00:15:41,320
Speaker 1: lot of dudes in the clowning business, but there have

275
00:15:41,360 --> 00:15:44,720
Speaker 1: been women there and they have been doing great work.

276
00:15:44,840 --> 00:15:46,440
Speaker 1: And these are just a few examples that we were

277
00:15:46,480 --> 00:15:49,680
Speaker 1: able to find. So we do have a little bit

278
00:15:49,720 --> 00:15:53,400
Speaker 1: more in this episode for you, but first one more

279
00:15:53,440 --> 00:16:08,680
Speaker 1: quick break for word from our sponsor and we're back,

280
00:16:08,720 --> 00:16:13,880
Speaker 1: Thank you sponsor. So nowadays, I mean we've all heard

281
00:16:14,400 --> 00:16:19,400
Speaker 1: about the problem of the horror clown, the problem I

282
00:16:19,440 --> 00:16:23,320
Speaker 1: guess for clowning and specific I mean, it didn't will

283
00:16:23,440 --> 00:16:26,000
Speaker 1: help that we have, you know, serial killers who liked

284
00:16:26,080 --> 00:16:28,560
Speaker 1: dressing up as clowns as well, so kind of attached

285
00:16:28,560 --> 00:16:32,880
Speaker 1: to that. Yeah, yeah, it's unfortunate and several wasted something.

286
00:16:33,760 --> 00:16:40,840
Speaker 1: Um and the circus the circus closing, um, so well,

287
00:16:40,880 --> 00:16:43,720
Speaker 1: I have I found this quote from Real Smiley Clown

288
00:16:44,400 --> 00:16:46,280
Speaker 1: we have to face facts and realize that, at least

289
00:16:46,280 --> 00:16:48,480
Speaker 1: in America, clowning is dying as an art form due

290
00:16:48,520 --> 00:16:52,160
Speaker 1: to negative attention, which has harmed the image of clowns.

291
00:16:52,760 --> 00:16:56,480
Speaker 1: And in this blog post, one of the things the

292
00:16:56,680 --> 00:17:01,800
Speaker 1: author says is we need to bring in more women.

293
00:17:02,240 --> 00:17:05,480
Speaker 1: We need to make it more diverse and more appealing

294
00:17:05,760 --> 00:17:07,520
Speaker 1: to people. And if you're listening to this, because it's

295
00:17:07,520 --> 00:17:10,000
Speaker 1: pretty easy to make fun of clowns. It's kind of

296
00:17:10,040 --> 00:17:12,080
Speaker 1: the butt of a lot of jokes about going to

297
00:17:12,080 --> 00:17:16,720
Speaker 1: clowning school or being a terrible frightening. I don't joke

298
00:17:16,720 --> 00:17:19,680
Speaker 1: about it because I'm I'm still a fright afraid that

299
00:17:19,760 --> 00:17:23,000
Speaker 1: Penny Wise is going to come for you something, something

300
00:17:23,040 --> 00:17:27,040
Speaker 1: in that realm, right, But I think we forget this.

301
00:17:27,160 --> 00:17:29,800
Speaker 1: History has shown that clowning can be very powerful and

302
00:17:30,000 --> 00:17:33,200
Speaker 1: it is I even read articles about the difference in

303
00:17:33,960 --> 00:17:36,920
Speaker 1: how do we define how do we separate clowning from

304
00:17:37,240 --> 00:17:42,720
Speaker 1: comedians who are very physical in their acts, and um,

305
00:17:42,760 --> 00:17:46,040
Speaker 1: that's not really for us to say, but it is

306
00:17:46,560 --> 00:17:51,080
Speaker 1: conversations that are happening right now. And um, I when

307
00:17:51,119 --> 00:17:54,480
Speaker 1: I was talking about this episode with our coworker Lauren,

308
00:17:54,560 --> 00:17:57,159
Speaker 1: who is my co host, over on saber Um. She

309
00:17:57,440 --> 00:18:01,760
Speaker 1: has friends who work in clowning, and I totally forgot

310
00:18:01,760 --> 00:18:03,399
Speaker 1: about this whole aspect of it. But they work for

311
00:18:03,440 --> 00:18:07,880
Speaker 1: something called Humorology Atlanta, and they visit places like children's

312
00:18:07,920 --> 00:18:11,440
Speaker 1: hospitals and senior communities, and they bring so much joy

313
00:18:12,000 --> 00:18:14,840
Speaker 1: when they go visit those places. And the way Lauren

314
00:18:14,840 --> 00:18:17,760
Speaker 1: described it was very heartbreaking and beautiful at once. Um,

315
00:18:17,840 --> 00:18:20,640
Speaker 1: she's telling stories of people who can't speak and being

316
00:18:20,680 --> 00:18:23,199
Speaker 1: able to interact with a clown who is also not

317
00:18:23,240 --> 00:18:26,200
Speaker 1: speaking on that level and feeling such like joy and

318
00:18:26,280 --> 00:18:33,719
Speaker 1: validation and happiness, and that's powerful. She can juggle, right, Yeah, Um,

319
00:18:33,840 --> 00:18:35,560
Speaker 1: she can do it. She's got a lot of talents.

320
00:18:35,600 --> 00:18:41,120
Speaker 1: She's got a very particular set of ling Um. So

321
00:18:41,160 --> 00:18:44,160
Speaker 1: I just feel like I clowning can do so much good,

322
00:18:44,440 --> 00:18:48,600
Speaker 1: and it would the industry itself would benefit from being

323
00:18:48,760 --> 00:18:53,040
Speaker 1: more diverse, right, Yes. And hopefully Lauren is reaching out

324
00:18:53,080 --> 00:18:55,200
Speaker 1: to her friends, her female friends who work in clowning,

325
00:18:55,280 --> 00:18:58,240
Speaker 1: so hopefully we can revisit. Yeah, bring someone on to

326
00:18:58,320 --> 00:19:01,639
Speaker 1: talk about it. I'm sorry, I just had a moment.

327
00:19:01,640 --> 00:19:03,240
Speaker 1: If they dressed up, I may I may have to

328
00:19:03,280 --> 00:19:06,919
Speaker 1: go to the corner. I don't think they'll okay. Okay,

329
00:19:07,000 --> 00:19:08,919
Speaker 1: I think you'll be okay. We need to get you

330
00:19:09,040 --> 00:19:12,000
Speaker 1: some uh No, I don't knowin therapy. I don't know.

331
00:19:12,440 --> 00:19:19,520
Speaker 1: You're right, you're right, You're right. That's how Samantha. But

332
00:19:19,600 --> 00:19:22,520
Speaker 1: we would love to hear from from you listeners. If

333
00:19:22,600 --> 00:19:24,960
Speaker 1: you are, if you happen to work in clowning or

334
00:19:24,960 --> 00:19:26,679
Speaker 1: know someone who does, or you have any stories you'd

335
00:19:26,720 --> 00:19:29,360
Speaker 1: like to share, please share them. You can email us

336
00:19:29,400 --> 00:19:31,880
Speaker 1: at Stuff Media, mom Stuff at i heeart media dot com.

337
00:19:32,119 --> 00:19:34,320
Speaker 1: You can find us on Twitter at mom Stuff podcast

338
00:19:34,480 --> 00:19:37,760
Speaker 1: or on Instagram at Stuff I've Never Told You. Thanks

339
00:19:37,800 --> 00:19:41,439
Speaker 1: as always to a superproducer, Andrew Howard. Thanks Andrew, and

340
00:19:41,480 --> 00:19:43,760
Speaker 1: thanks to you for listening. Stuff I've Never Told You

341
00:19:43,880 --> 00:19:46,800
Speaker 1: production of iHeart Radio's How Stuff Works. For podcasts from

342
00:19:46,840 --> 00:19:49,440
Speaker 1: my Heart Radio, visit iHeart Radio, app, Apple Podcast, or

343
00:19:49,440 --> 00:19:50,960
Speaker 1: wherever you listen to your favorite shows,