Clowning is by no means a new art form. In fact, it's existed in one form or another for thousands of years dating back to Egyptian times. The Greeks and Romans had clown-like figures that performed in farces and plays and the Chinese had court jesters dating back to the 6th century BC.
The look of the modern clown can be traced back to the Middle Ages. Court jesters were a popular form of levity in any kings court and by the sixteenth century, this form of humor had filtered down to the commoners in the form of traveling entertainers. One of the most famous troops was the Italian Commedia del Arte of which the Harlequin clown can be traced back to.
The 17th century marked the introduction of the traditional white faced clown. Pierrot, a French clown, had a bald head and a face whitened with flour. He appeared as a counterpart for the Harlequin clown and eventually became a success.
The first circus made it's debut in England in 1768 and with it came a clown act named Billy Buttons. The basis of the act was a clown trying to no avail to mount and ride a horse with comical consequences.
But the first truly modern clown made his debut in 1805. Joseph Grimaldi is in fact considered to be the "Father of Modern Clowning." Grimaldi's clown performed a variety of physical tricks and antics which propelled him into a starring role as an entertainer.
The 1860's brought on another type of clown: the Auguste clown. Auguste is German for fool and as the name implies this clown's act would include tripping, falling and a general loss of coordination. He wore a big nose, baggy pants, and oversized shoes.
In 1874, James McIntyre and Tom Heath created the first hobo or tramp clown. They based it on African Americans of the Civil War era. They tried to make their portayal somewhat acurate and to this end they introduced a dance called the Buck and Wing to an American audience. This dance evolved into modern tap dancing.
This page merely scratches the surface of the rich heritage of clowning, in all it's forms.
