John Wayne Gacy
Clown Fear Helps Haunted House Owners
Clowns are enigmas. The role of the clown exists to bring cheer to children, yet millions of people are scared of these painted-up actors. Let's delve into the frightening world of the clown and see why they strike terror in the hearts of some adults and children while bringing smiles to other people. We'll also see why clowns are perfect ghouls for haunted house owners.
It is interesting to note that the fear of clowns is a legitimate fear and even has a name - Coulrophobia. Coulrophobia is an abnormal or exaggerated fear of clowns. According to the Web site way2hope.org, "Coulrophobia is very common...one of the top 10 most common specific phobias. Symptoms can range from high anxiety to outright panic attacks around people in clown outfits or other bizarre attire and make-up...even Santa Claus." Yep, the fear of clowns is certainly real. This is the reason many haunted houses include clowns alongside the actors dressed as zombies, werewolves and witches.
Of course, it is not only adults who are fearful of clowns. Although clowns are meant to entertain children, many children are scared of them. As a former haunted house manager, I believe the fear of clowns comes from the fact the clown make-up obscures the wearer's face. Is Bozo really happy or is he only smiling because he has a painted-on grin? We do not know. Also, I think we instinctively realize that brightly colored outfits do not mean the clowns are always happy go lucky. What dark thoughts lurk inside the mind of a clown? No one except the clown knows.
Furthermore, I think as a society we can't help but remember John Wayne Gacy, Jr. He did nothing good for the professional clowns of the world who work hard to make us laugh. John Wayne Gacy, Jr. was an American serial killer also known as the Killer Clown who committed the rape and murder of 33 teenage boys and young men between 1972 and 1978, according to Wikipedia. Twenty-six of Gacy's victims were buried in the crawlspace of his home, three others elsewhere on his property and four victims were discarded in a nearby river, the online database states.
Gacy was dubbed the Killer Clown because he entertained children as "Pogo The Clown." He was eventually sentenced to death, and on May 10, 1994, was executed by lethal injection. The world breathed a sigh of relief. But, many adults cannot help but remember photos of Gacy dressed as a clown. These images were published in newspapers and today are on the Internet. I am sure those images play a part into our fear of clowns.
Of course, it takes more than just one man to make us afraid of clowns. According to the site phobias.about.com, there are two main theories surrounding why some people are scared of clowns. The Web site states, "In a 2004 review article for Trinity University, Joseph Durwin postulates that there are two commonly accepted schools of thought. One is that the fear is based in a negative personal experience with a clown at a young age. The second theory is that mass media has created a hype surrounding evil clowns such that even children who are not personally exposed to clowns are trained to dislike or fear them."
Durwin's theory that society has created hype around evil clowns is fascinating to me. It is true that Stephen King scared us through the book and film version of It. The novel and film revolve around an evil alien-type creature that disguises itself as "Pennywise the Dancing Clown." Also, as I mentioned earlier, there are many haunted houses that feature killer clowns. There is Killer Klowns from Outer Space (1988), the famous b-movie from the 1980s that brought clowns into our nightmares, as well.
So, has society brought this fear of clowns on itself? It becomes a chicken and the egg issue. Did books, movies, haunted houses, and the image of Gacy cause our fear of clowns? Or did movies and haunted houses start using clowns to strike terror because society was already afraid of them? Which came first? Sadly, there does not seem to be an answer yet.
All I can conclude with certainty is the fear of clowns seems here to stay and haunted house owners should take advantage of this fact!
Scott Faubion is one of the owners of Halloween Hill, an online store that sells Halloween decorations, animated Halloween props, and handmade haunt items.
Poll: Should I vote for the Tea Party?
READ ALL OF IT!
1. Are they speaking for the good of the country? (especially when they make jokes about killing the president and his family in a plane in order to supposedly make 267 million people happy. Acting like Raskolnikov in Crime and Punishment?)
OR
2. Are they evil, racist, homophobic, fascist, terrorists only trying to help themselves and rich, white men keep their inherited billions of dollars sitting in a vault, rotting away?
OR
3. Are they just trying to win the 2012 election to help America with the absolutely AMAZING leadership of the brilliant Michelle Bachmann?
----------------------------------> Bachmann quotes <----------------------------------
"I find it interesting that it was back in the 1970s that the swine flu broke out under another, then under another Democrat president, Jimmy Carter. I'm not blaming this on President Obama, I just think it's an interesting coincidence." -Rep. Michele Bachmann, on the 1976 Swine Flu outbreak that happened when Gerald Ford, a Republican, was president, April 28, 2009
"Carbon dioxide is portrayed as harmful. But there isn't even one study that can be produced that shows that carbon dioxide is a harmful gas." -Rep. Michelle Bachmann, April, 2009
"Well what I want them to know is just like, John Wayne was from Waterloo, Iowa. That's the kind of spirit that I have, too" -Rep. Michele Bachmann, getting her John Waynes mixed up during an interview after launching her presidential campaign in Waterloo, Iowa, where she grew up. The beloved movie star John Wayne was born in Winterset, Iowa, three hours away. The John Wayne that Waterloo was home to is John Wayne Gacy, a notorious serial killer. (June 2011)
"If we took away the minimum wage -- if conceivably it was gone -- we could potentially virtually wipe out unemployment completely because we would be able to offer jobs at whatever level." Michele Bachmann, Jan. 2005
>>>>>>>>>Tea Party Official wants to KILL Obama and his family!?<<<<<<<<<
TEA PARTY official, Sumter, makes a "joke" about how she wants and would like Obama and his family killed.
"Yet another Far-Right Racist whackjob who hates the Obamas makes the news, and her name is Shery Lanford Smith, the chairwoman of the Sumter Tea Party.
She make a very derogatory and racist statement encouraging the assassinations of both President Barack Obama (D) and First Lady Michelle Obama.
SUMTER, SC (WIS) - The chairwoman of the Sumter Tea Party is taking some heat after posting a joke on Facebook about killing the president and first lady.
Shery Lanford Smith posted the joke on her public profile Thursday afternoon, according to a screen-capture taken by the Sumter Item's Nick McCormac. Smith removed the post after being asked about it.
In the joke, the Obamas' helicopter pilot says to his co-pilot, "I could throw both of them out of the window and make 256 million people very happy!" Smith also posted, "If you're one of [the] 256 million, pass it on," implying she herself would be happy to see the Obamas killed.
Smith was elected chairwoman of the Sumter Tea Party in February 2011, according to the organization's now-defunct website."
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/08/14?
http://www.rolandsmartin.com/blog/index.?
----------------------------------> Conclusion <----------------------------------
In conclusion, how could the middle and lower classes (especially minorities) even consider supporting this clearly radical and fascist group of extreme conservatives? The nation, in this time of this extreme recession calls for the comfortable, rich citizens to help support the country's spending by RAISING taxes. Without having the rich pay more taxes, the United States is unable to support helpful government programs that safe millions of lives a year. Is a small tax increase more important than a MILLION lives (many of which are children?). 2 in 3 US Corperations don't pay ANY taxes whatsoever. Taxes are the lowest they've been in the past, starting at Eisenhower's presidency. Sure, people are going to mention that I'm a "dumb liberal" who can't see that the poor should rot and receive absolutely no health care. I understand the right wing want to keep as much as their money as possible. In the current economic state, we need to apply Keynesian economics and fuel the industrial cycle. Also note that cutting spending to fix the budget isn't the problem.
The problem is that the government should be increasing spending in health care, social security, and unemployment rather than the overwhelming defense budget. The defense budget costs us trillions of dollars a year, more than every other country COMBINED!
Cutting spending in the right places is just as important as increasing s
Get the answers...
Can you remember all of Michele O'Bachmann's gaffes?
On there own, they are no big deal, but they are funny in volume
1) Forgot her own name, and called herself O'Bachmann
2) Said Obama has chutzpah
3) Claimed Soviet Russia is on the rise.
4) Mixed up Elvis's birth and death
5) Confused John Wayne and John Wayne Gacy
@Blue Balls
I will re-ask in a few minutes with sources. It'll take a minute to find them all.
Get the answers...
Can you remember all of Michele Bachmann's gaffes?
(Note: I've been asked to include sources)
1) Forgot her own name, and called herself O'Bachmann
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJSQkwfL2VM&t=0m15s
2) Said Obama has chutzpah
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIipriQpzpc&t=0m16s
3) Claimed Soviet Russia is on the rise.
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnXBt1bqoEQ&t=0m10s
4) Mixed up Elvis's birth and death
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNnfH7anz_4&t=0m8s
5) Confused John Wayne and John Wayne Gacy
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLNOy1GhFow&t=2m43s
Get the answers...
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