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{{trope|wppage=Evil clown}}
[[File:picture168.png|link=Gunnerkrigg Court|frame]]
{{quote|''"[[Madness Mantra|Can't sleep, clown will eat me]]. [[Memetic Mutation|Can't sleep, clown will eat me]]. [[Rule of Three|Can't sleep, clown will eat me]]...."''
|'''Bart Simpson'''|''[[The Simpsons (animation)|The Simpsons]]''}}
{{quote|''"What's the matter kid, don't you like clowns? Why? Don't we make ya laugh? Aren't we fuckin' funny? You best come up with an answer, cause I'm gonna come back here and check on you and your mama, and if you ain't got a reason why you hate clowns, ''I'm gonna kill your whole fuckin' family.''"''
|'''Captain Spaulding'''|''[[The Devil's Rejects]]''}}
Clowns are ''supposed'' to be funny. They're supposed to make everyone laugh, especially children. This is the entire point of their existence. Sometimes they succeed. But for some people, clowns awaken [
Their face is... [[Uncanny Valley|fake, corpse-like
It's somewhat uncommon to find clown characters who are genuinely ''good'' - sympathetic clowns are generally a little more muted, whether or not this is faithful to the job.
Monster Clowns are often [[Affably Evil]] or [[Faux Affably Evil]] - if they work in a circus, it'll be a [[Circus of Fear]]. Likewise, many of these clowns may or may not be [[Ax Crazy|completely insane]] and act [[Psychopathic Manchild|in a very similar manner to an overgrown child]]; they tend to commit their crimes while [[Laughing Mad|laughing crazily]] [[The Hyena|and frequently]], cracking fittingly dark jokes ([[Evil Has a Bad Sense of Humor|if you can ''call'' them that]]).
Note that there are specific kinds of clowns in the real world. People may fear the ''auguste'', the stereotypical clown who acts and dress the most wildly. ''Whiteface'' clowns are unsettling because they are unexpectedly intelligent, even scheming. ''Character clowns'' - like {{w|Emmett Kelly|"Weary Willie"}} - by contrast have very muted designs, and can be difficult to identify by the TV audience; as such, that are rarely seen anymore.
The point is that real-world clowns ''clown'': while clowning is intended to be funny, it can be received as ritualised (self-)humiliation, and may make modern audiences quite sick to the stomach - now imagine what the Monster Clown's [[Nightmare Fuel|sick twists on their gags will do to 'em]]. Somtimes, a Monster Clown won't even do ''that'' much... they just ''look'' like a clown, without any of the jokes or working in a circus or going to kids' parties. On the flipside of it, [[wikipedia:John Wayne Gacy|John Wayne Gacy]], one of the most famous serial killers in the United States, worked part-time as a clown - the AP [[Critical Research Failure|once used a stock photo of Gacy for National Clown day]].
A subtrope of this is [[Enemy Mime]], while a villainous clown [[Played for Laughs]] instead of fear is a [[Villainous Harlequin]]. A related and overlapping trope is the [[Depraved Kids' Show Host]] related. Clowns' ghastly white makeup may put them into [[White Mask of Doom]] territory. Contrast the [[Non-Ironic Clown]]. Supertrope to [[Juggalo]].
{{examples}}
== [[Advertising]] ==
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jwb9W51j7fo&eurl The original design of Ronald McDonald, as seen in this advertisement.]
** For those of you who don't know, that's Willard Scott under that original Ronald makeup.
** [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ssh71hePR8Q Watch this, and never sleep again.]
** [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6P_BvrtuxAI&feature=PlayList&p=73E023C5A7E97B0F&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=19 Likewise.]
** [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3_KtEC1rkk&NR=1 This] is what people REALLY see when a McDonalds commercial comes on.
** A Japanese spoof of Ronald ("Donald" in Japan) called [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fG9QpllnK5c& "Osoroshii Doukeshi"] ("The Terrifying Clown").
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJL2S3mbyJg A Garmin commercial that came on during the holidays.]
* The US Postal Service used this in an ad: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKGKB5bc9DU "Because we have to get that out of this house." "Come on it's not that ba-eeeaaah! Oh, yeah, that has to go.]
* In [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJqnitjqpuM this] E -Trade commercial with the talking baby, the baby says he rented a clown named Bobo, who we see standing in the background making balloon animals, before getting a scared look on his face and saying "And I really underestimated the creepiness."
** Subverted in that the clown doesn't actually do anything creepy other than just be there. Which may or may not be enough to be freaky for a clown.
* The [http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xc35pi_kgb-commercial-clowns_fun KGB commercial] with two moms looking for clowns for their kids birthday parties. The one using KGB finds Benny the clown, [[Non
* A Motel 6 commercial features a guy not being able to sleep because of all the disturbing clown paraphernalia decorating the guest room he's staying in.
* Krinkles the Clown, of Post's Sugar Rice Krinkles. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDWXGcsMTHw Good Lord, where to begin?]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iiWNKYNUd2U A Bagel Bites commercial from 2021] features a silly clown and a scary clown disagreeing on everything... but Bagel Bites, of course.
== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==
* Hisoka from ''[[Hunter X Hunter]]''.
* In ''[[Akira]]'' there are two rival biker gangs. One gang, called the Clowns, dresses in clown-like outfits and acts very much like evil clowns.
* One appears in the circus scene in the beginning half of the animated movie ''[[Paprika]]''.
* [[Big Bad|Piemon]] from ''[[Digimon Adventure]]''.
** Subverted by his ''[[Digimon V-Tamer 01]]'' incarnation, who's little more than a [[Punch Clock Villain]] who gets eliminated just as he and his partner are doing a [[Heel Face Turn]].
** [[Our Angels Are Different|Cherubimon]] in the ''[[Digimon Adventure 02]]'' movie. Though he also appears in ''[[Digimon Frontier]]'', his monster clown behaviour and appearance there is downplayed.
* Tongpu, alias Mad Pierrot from ''[[Cowboy Bebop]]''.
*
* Although he's not actually a clown, the [[Big Bad|Millennium Earl]] from ''[[D.Gray-man]]'' ''is'' a Monster Clown. He even refers to himself as the Auguste clown once.
** Also, the lvl 2 akuma that could imitate shapes, Pierrot.
*** [[Oh Crap|"This is the final blow exorcist!"]]
** Inverted with {{spoiler|Allen himself, who uses the Innocence Crowned Clown. But his adoptive father, Mana, may have been a straight example...}}
** And Allen was beaten up by clowns until he got adopted.
* Alan Gabriel from ''[[
* The Clown in the ''[[
** [[It Got Worse|And now there are several of them...]]
** The Anime had two robot guards modeled after him. The creators probably thought the show just wouldn't be complete if they didn't use the design.
* In the ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh (
** There is also Saggi the Dark Clown, a monster card, as well as one of the Player Killers in the
*** Specifically, he was a different ''kind'' of clown; a ventriloquist with a [[Perverse Puppet]] in the shape of Kaiba, who claimed that he had put Kaiba's soul into the doll.
* In ''[[
** Cranked [[Up to Eleven]] by Romano, the Gundam Fighter for Neo-Portugal, who not only dresses up as a clown but has a ''mecha'' that looks like one. Naturally, he becomes Chibs's next opponent...
* ''[[
* In ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh! GX (
* ''[[
** Penchinon is a pirate. Pagliaccio, the [[Robo Speak|robo speaking]] Zonder doll that can fold herself into a sphere, is probably a better example.
*** Pagliaccio actually means "clown" in Italian.
* ''[[
** Lafitte, on the other hand, is an extremely soft-spoken, seemingly polite fellow with white face paint and a massive grin that was run out of his home territory for being too brutal in his role as a peace officer, and that's by the standards of an organization that is willing to burn an entire island and its inhabitants to deal with some snoopy archaeologists.
* That's practically the job description of Orgel from ''[[
** Baroque from [[Violinist of Hameln: Shchelkunchik
* ''[[
* [[Complete Monster|Tommyrod]] from ''[[Toriko]]'' is yet another example. [[Nightmare Fuel|With heavy emphasis on]] [[Body Horror|the "monster" part]]. Bonus point for the fact, that his entire face - ''including eyes'' - often seems to be painted on.
* Near the end of the anime ''[[
* Subverted in ''[[
== [[Comic Books]] ==
* Subverted by a short-lived superhero called ''Funnyman'' whose schtick was... you guessed it....
* [[The Joker]] from ''[[
** The Joker, incidentally, was originally based on Conrad Veidt's role in ''[[The Man Who Laughs]]''. While the titular clown of this picture wasn't evil, he certainly was [http://binkythedoormat.files.wordpress.com/2006/11/themanwholaughs.png unbelievably disturbing-looking.]
** [[Tim Burton]]'s ''[[
*** According to the production notes, Burton's vision of the Penguin was inspired by (of all things) ''[[
**** And in the briefly-mentioned backstory, the Penguin in that version also was a sideshow freak in his childhood, implying that's where his gang comes from.
* DC also has the Ragdoll dynasty. The father was a golden age villain with contortionist abilities, who would eventually become a Mansonesque cult leader and eventually regained his youth via a [[Deal
** And don't ask about [[Complete Monster|the sister]].
* NightHawk from ''[[Supreme Power]]'', being an [[Alternate Company Equivalent]] of Batman, naturally faces off against a homicidal maniac who kills and disguises himself as a party entertainer who was visiting the prison, and then goes on a rampage. But let's just say that NightHawk isn't Batman and hasn't heard of [[Joker Immunity]]...
* Violator from ''[[Spawn]]''.
* The Comedian from ''[[Watchmen (
** Like the Joker's Glasgow smile in ''[[
* Protoclown from ''[[The Tick (animation)]]''
** And then the subversion: Protoclown was genetically engineered to be the perfect [[Non
* [[Deadpool]] sees all clowns as Monster Clowns.
* [[Blade (Comic Book)|Blade]] once fought ''vampire'' clowns. Really.
* Even [[The Creeper]] has shown dislike of clowns.
* Bali Lali from ''[[
* Clown, who was featured in ''Super Mystery Comics'' and ''Four Favorites'', was so evil he worked for [[Adolf Hitler]].
* Eliot Franklin, from the [[Marvel Universe]], worked as a clown and wore his clown costume to commit crimes. He eventually became a professional hitman.
* The Clown Cenobite (aka "Winky Dink") from the ''[[
* A recent{{when}} issue of the revamped CREEPY comic featured a murderous clown who killed "demons" wherever he saw them. He saw them everywhere.
* The Painted Doll, a Joker-expy from ''[[Promethea]]''.
* Frenchy from the National Lampoon's [http://ohdannyboy.blogspot.com/2007/10/looking-back-with-alan-kupperberg-evil.html Evil Clown Comics] feature which ran intermittently in the magazine in the late 80's and early 90's. He was the brainchild of Nick Bakay and Alan Kupperberg, and was not only totally bitter and diabolical but had... ahem, a way with the ladies as well. Sometimes he was too much even for the proudly non-PC Lampoon, which refused to publish one panel of a particular story.
* Naturally, the Circus of Crime (usually foes of ''[[The Avengers (Comic Book)|The Avengers]]'') has lots of them. One particular member is Eliot "Crafty" Franklin, usually just called the Clown, who is [[The Dragon]] to the Ringmaster, and sometimes the leader when his boss is in jail.
== [[Film ]]==
* ''[[Beetlejuice]]'': The title character from the movie.
** And as noted below, Scuzzo the Clown from [[Beetlejuice (animation)|the animated series]].
* ''[[Killer Klowns From Outer Space]]'' suggests that the very presence of clowns and circuses in Earth culture is a warped memory of an ancient visitation by inimical aliens.
* Pennywise the Dancing Clown from the 1990 adaptation of [[Stephen King]]'s book ''[[IT]]'', portrayed by [[Tim Curry]]. [[Nightmare Fuel|Even the on-set cast and crew were terrified]].
** Even more scary when you realize he's actually an {{spoiler|[[Eldritch Abomination]]}} disguised as a clown.
*** Ironically, he chose the clown form to trick children into trusting him.
* In ''[[Poltergeist (
** [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfiyJa0Zeas Parodied] in ''[[Scary Movie]] 2'' with a clown doll who [[Mugging the Monster|finds that not all victims are helpless]].
* ''[[The Greatest Show On Earth]]'' features a gentle, altruistic, medically-inclined clown who never removes his makeup, even off-duty... because {{spoiler|he's on the run for the murder of his wife}}.
* Subverted in ''[[The Chase (
* [[John Candy]] starred in a drama/horror film in the '70s titled ''The Clown Murders'' which was about a Halloween prank gone wrong. The main enemy was a guy in a clown mask but he only appears for a few seconds in the movie.
* A startling jack-in-the-box (that ''weeps'', apparently) turns up in the very first shot of ''[[What Ever Happened to Baby Jane
* In ''[[
** It's telling that the child is shown to be instinctively afraid of the clown.
** One also pops up in ''[[
*** And in ''[[
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xScj90Lecw0 ''Quick Change''.] [[Bill Murray]]'s character dresses up as a clown to rob a bank. He's not really evil, though he did endanger the customers and bank personnel (who could have been wounded or killed during the robbery if someone had gotten heroic or the police had charged in guns a' blazing).
* ''Gacy, To Catch a Killer'' and ''Dear Mr. Gacy'', all about John Wayne Gacy.
* An original plan for ''[[Halloween (
* "The master and I are going to have words. He knows I hate clowns. God, I hate them. I hate them all. I hate Bozo, Ronald, Chuckles with their freakin' dumb noses and their lousy party hats!" - Violator from the movie, ''[[Spawn]]''.
* Near the end of ''[[
* Captain Spaulding (Sid Haig) in ''[[
* The first segment of ''Amusement'' features a room '''filled''' with scary clown dolls and toys. Except one of them isn't...
* In ''[[
* The second dream sequence in ''[[Pee
** Then there's that motorized clown dummy Pee-Wee chained his bike to...when he comes back and the bike's gone the clown has an evil grin and laughs mockingly!
* As mentioned under Comic Books above, the various film incarnations of [[The Joker]] are classic examples.
** ''[[
*** Interestingly, on the [[
{{quote|
'''Bill:''' I thought that was [[Jim Carrey]]... }}
* The 2007 movie ''Drive-Thru'' features a serial killing clown named Horny.
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* In the 1998 film ''The Clown at Midnight'', a murderous clown attacks several teenagers.
* ''[[Uncle Buck]]'' had "Pooter the Clown", who showed up to entertain children at a young [[Macaulay Culkin]]'s birthday party, ''while drunk'', but ends up trying to pick a fight with [[John Candy]] instead.
* ''[[Shakes the Clown (Film)]]'' is a comedy that treats clowns as a minority. Most of the characters have foul mouths and substance abuse problems, but one clown in particular, played by [[Tom Kenny]], loses it at the end, and holds a woman hostage.
* Angelique of ''[[Hellraiser Bloodline]]'' was supposed to be served by a troupe of these. Sadly the movie went through it's own [[Development Hell]], and they were one of the [[What Could Have Been|many casualties]].
* ''[[The Family Jewels]]'' is a vanity-piece movie for [[Jerry Lewis]], starring in seven roles, including a professional clown who, off the clock, has only contempt for the "squealing brats" he entertains.
** His never-released film ''The Day The Clown Cried'' is about a clown whose job is to entertain children... on their way to the Nazi gas chambers.
* The short Québécois film, ''[[Le Queloune]]'', rather subverts this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dG8wsae-6tU. The clown in question happens to be a confused zombie in a clown costume just rising from the grave, and you can't help but root for the poor fellow when it takes him two days to get himself out of his gravesite. Then he wanders into a couple's home and scares the wife into accidentally killing herself by falling down the stairs (and when he accidentally himself falls on her corpse, his zombie cravings awaken when he tastes human flesh for the first time). After killing the husband with a shovel (and serving their flesh on a skillet for his first breakfast), he removes his old clown clothes and makeup, dresses himself up in a new pair, and walks out of the house ready to begin a new day as a flesh-eating zombie (unaware that everyone around him outside apparently has thought the same thing, what being zombies themselves and all).
** People from Quebec have a fondness for the trope, it seems; not only were ''Le Queloune'' and ''Happy Meal'' (the vampire Ronald McDonald short above) made there, there's also ''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MELPIUpjqmw Pogo et ses amis]'' (Pogo and friends), a stopmotion short about the [[Black Comedy|darkly funny]] day-to-day life of Pogo the clown (see the [[Real Life]] section below) and his friends [
*** And Pogo is Homer himself.
* The 2008 slasher film ''[[Amusement]]''. While not a monster clown, the clown wearing psychopath still proves that sometimes you don't have to be supernatural to be scary, especially in [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0pilBYGK-0 this scene].
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* ''S.I.C.K. Serial Insane Clown Killer'' features a killer who dresses in a clown suit.
* ''Out of the Dark'' features a killer who targets sex-line workers while wearing a clown mask.
* The killer in ''[[
* The Spanish film ''[[
* The ''Camp Blood'' trilogy.
* ''Mr. Jingles'' and its sequel, ''Jingles the Clown''.
* Shivers the Clown from the ''Fear of Clowns'' duology.
* ''[[Blue Velvet]]'': Roy Orbison's "In Dreams" or "CANDY COLORED CLOWN!!!" is a
* ''Klown Kamp Massacre'' and 100 Tears both feature killers dressed as monster clowns.
* ''[[
* Referenced (and possibly subverted) in ''[[Star Trek: Generations]]''; a joke told by Geordi has the punchline, "The clown can stay, but the Ferengi in the gorilla suit has to go."
== [[Literature]] ==
* Pennywise from ''[[IT]]'' by [[Stephen King]].
** In the TV miniseries based on the same, [[Tim Curry]]'s portrayal of the role was so creepy, the other actors avoided him even off-camera. He is responsible for a hell of a lot of people's coulrophobia.
** Pennywise isn't confined simply to "IT"
** [[Irony|Ironically]], while It often used its shape-shifting ability to take the form of nightmarish imagery, one of its primary uses for the Pennywise form was to ''attract'' kids. As such, It gives adults a new reason to fear clowns: [[Adult Fear|they lure children in with balloons and dancing, only to then do unthinkable things to them...]]
* The Ankh-Morpork Fool's Guild in the ''[[Discworld]]'' series realizes that clowns scare and disgust some people. Thus, they prepare their charges through exceedingly harsh conditions to endure a lot of abuse. [[Terry Pratchett]], creator of the series, has described the guild as "the stricter sort of medieval monastery without [the monastery's] non-stop boffo laughs." He also introduces the idea that whiteface clowns are scary even to other clowns because their humor often comes from bullying others. Doctor Whiteface is described as having, under his painted grin, features "cold and proud as a prince of Hell".
** In ''[[Making Money]]'', Lord Vetinari proposes that some people hate clowns because clowns aren't really funny, but instead tragic:
{{quote|''They are tragic, and [[Black Comedy|we laugh at their tragedy as we laugh at our own.]] The painted grin leers out at us from the darkness, [[Nietzsche Wannabe|mocking our insane belief in order, logic, status, the reality of reality.]] The mask knows that we are born on [[Banana Peel|the banana skin]] that leads only to [[Doomy Dooms of Doom|the open manhole cover of doom,]] and all we can hope for are the cheers of the crowd.''}}
** In the Fools' Guild edition of the ''[[All There in the Manual|Discworld Diary]]'' series, the Guild's clowns, mimes and jesters are revealed to be agents of a widespread and ruthless spy ring operated purely for its own profit and power.
* In ''Life Expectancy'', by [[Dean Koontz]], we meet a man with the unfortunate name of Konrad Beezo. He is a clown, he has a pistol and apparent mental problems, and he insists on telling everyone he meets that he '''hates''' aerialists.
* In Douglas Coupland's ''jPod'', a group of video game company employees are forced by their boss to make a really inane kids' game with a skateboarding turtle, so as a way of getting back at him, they put in an [[Easter Egg]] which unlocks a gameplay mode where Ronald McDonald goes on a bloody killing spree.
** Speaking of Ronald McDonald crossed with monstrousness, ''[[John Dies
* Horrabin from ''The Anubis Gates'' by [[Tim Powers]].
* In ''[[Use of Weapons]]'', Cheradenine{{spoiler|actually Elethiomel}} Zakalwe wears a clown disguise when assassinating Ethnarch Kerian.
* Australian novel ''[[
* While technically a jester rather than a clown, the murdering rapist mercenary Shagwell from ''[[
* In John Connolly's short story ''Some Children Wander By Mistake,'' the clowns of the Circus Caliban are revealed to be monstrous creatures that ''remove'' their makeup for a performance. They [[Child
{{quote|
For clowns are not made.
Clowns are ''born.'' }}
* In the [[Star Wars]] ''[[New Jedi Order]]'' novels, Onimi is the disfigured jester of Supreme Overlord Shimmra of the Vong. He's a creepy little guy who always has an annoying comment for the situation on hand. {{spoiler|He's also [[The Man Behind the Man]], using [[Mind Control]] on Shimmra. Onimi's the only Force user among the Vong, thanks to the event that crippled him. The [[Final Battle]] of the series is against ''him''; he puts up a hell of a fight, and would have won if Jacen Solo hadn't taken another level of [[God Mode Sue]] at the last minute. Onimi's Wookiepedia entry actually compares him to Kefka. [[Complete Monster|With good reason]]}}.
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* "Scary Clowns" is the name of the psychological warfare division of the Organization in ''Bad Monkeys'' and indeed all its agents dress as clowns.
* The Harlequin is the covert enforcement division of the Vampire Council in [[Laurell K Hamilton]]'s [[Anita Blake]] books. Even to say their name brings a death sentence.
* Arguably, the jester from [[Friedrich Nietzsche
* In [[Andrew Vachss]]'s Burke book ''Strega'', one of the villains dresses as a clown while conducting his child sex offences.
* A short story in some [[RL Stine]] collection featured a tale called "Why I'm Afraid of Clowns" that explained that all clowns are actually sick people who enjoy tormenting kids and always single out the most frightened of them to pick on. As if we didn't know this already.
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* One of the secretaries at the Peoria REC in [[The Pale King]] resembles one.
== [[Live-Action TV]] ==
* ''[[Are You Afraid of the Dark?]]'' had two: Zeebo the Clown, the ghost of a criminal who haunted a haunted house (go figure); and the Crimson Clown, something of a cross between a Monster Clown and a [[Demonic Dummy]].
** Don't forget [https://web.archive.org/web/20120427214906/http://www.desperatethoughts.com/ioffer/areuafraidofthedark.gif The Ghastly Grinner.] He's a jester but he still fits the mark.
* The Clown in the ''[[Star Trek: Voyager]]'' episode "The Thaw" was created as [[Lotus Eater Machine|virtual-reality entertainment for a race in suspended animation]]. The Clown [[Instant AI, Just Add Water|became self-aware]] and [[A.I. Is a Crapshoot|sadistically scared to death anyone who opposed it]].
* ''[[The Avengers (TV series)|The Avengers]]'' episode "Look (Stop Me if You've Heard This One) But There Were These Two Fellas..." has a pair of killer clowns whose boss is a Punch and Judy puppet.
* The robot clowns in the ''[[Doctor Who]]'' episode "The Greatest Show In The Galaxy".
** The Chief Clown has come to enjoy any spectacle of brutality or murder. He also taunts one of his former colleagues on supposedly not being able to stop the [[Big Bad]]s.
* Another ''Doctor Who'' episode, "The God Complex", features the apparition of a clown which is used to represent a person's greatest fear.
* ''[[
{{quote|
'''Willow:''' Oh yeah! When the clown chased you, and you got so scared you went... oh. }}
* A [[Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?|special fear]] of Sam's on ''[[Supernatural (TV series)|Supernatural]]''
** The show had a demon (a rakshasa, to be precise) that took the shape of a clown so children would trust it. (Yeah, 'cause nothing inspires trust like... oh, never mind.)
** Demonic clowns also served as enforcers for a [[Suck E.
* In "Sylvia," a bizarre two-part episode from the seventh season of ''[[Little House
* ''[[Mighty Morphin Power Rangers]]'': In "No Clowning Around," the Yellow Ranger's cousin is harassed by an evil clown that turns out to be Rita's Pineoctopus monster.
** ''[[Power Rangers]]'' generally has at least one clown-based monster per season.
* The David Bowie-esque Pierrot in ''[[Ashes to Ashes]]'' which evokes the one from the song of the same name's [[Music Video]]. Which turns out to be {{spoiler|representative of Alex's father, who killed himself and his wife}}.
* Mentioned half-jokingly by Colonel Sheppard in ''[[
** And brought out for ''real'' when Rodney McKay and Sheppard are being attacked by an entity that feeds on [[Your Worst Nightmare|their worst nightmares]]: rowing a boat through a stormy whale-infested sea... with a clown sitting behind them.
* As the title suggests, ''[[
* '''Hysterically funny''' subversion from 80s [[
** Similarly, in ''[[
{{quote|
'''Chandler:''' ''What'' kind of scary-ass clowns came to ''your'' birthday?? }}
* Subverted with Flabber in ''[[
* [[Bones
** In a later Halloween episode Booth and Bones investigate a serial killer who terrifies victims to death. When Booth confronts the killer, said killer is dressed as a clown. Presumably because clowns terrify everyone.
* ''[[The League of Gentlemen (TV series)|The League of Gentlemen]]'''s Papa Lazarou, a demonic, [[I Have You Now, My Pretty|polygamist]] blackface minstrel who runs a [[Circus of Fear]]. {{spoiler|Season 3 reveals that he [[Not a Mask|doesn't actually wear any makeup]]. That's his actual skin.}}
* For a more clownish but less monstrous example, look no further than Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton's new show ''[[Psychoville]],'' and Mr. Jelly, a one-handed clown who makes balloon animals with his hook, who performs at kids parties and gives us "Mr. Jelly's Hundred Hands" act (although there's only 16, really.) Jelly is a grouchy, dysfunctional weirdo with a bad temper and the tendency to [[Nightmare Fuel
* [[Saturday Night Live
* ''[[
* An episode of ''[[
* The guys at ''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000
** Joel can't turn off the [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKNdOYXLRfc holo-clown sequencer] and after three weeks it gets really tense and scary. "Hey little girl, would you like a salted nut roll?"
* ''[[One Step Beyond]]'' had an episode where a clown haunted a man, appearing in reflections reaching for his throat - {{spoiler|trope averted as the clown was the good guy, avenging the man's murdered wife.}}
* Carrie Bradshaw from ''[[Sex and
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDvdSGkN0aU&feature=related This] ''[[Romper Room]]'' opening. Pop goes the weasel, and the jack in the box comes out of his house...and he looks INSANE.
* Kreegan, from the [[Too Good to Last|short-lived]] series ''[[Cleopatra 2525]]'' is murderous, sadistic, and for no readily apparent reason, resembles a clown crossed with Gene Simmons of [[Kiss]].
* Googler from ''[[Ace Lightning]]''. More of a Monster Jester really, but still close enough.
* Subverted in the ''[[
* In the [[Halloween Episode]] of ''[[
* A show called ''[[Masters of Horror]]'', the ghost of an ice cream-truck-driving clown who the main character and his [[Jerkass]] friend accidentally murdered when they were kids comes back for revenge with his disturbingly happy attitude. And because he drove an ice cream truck, everything around suddenly gets immeasurably cold. (by the way, the [[Jerkass]] friend inexplicably and gruesomely melted. It was a really weird episode.)
* Although not evil per se, [[In Living Color|Homey D. Clown]] is still one big jerk. The reason for his [[Jerkass
* In episode "18-5-4" of ''[[
* Played for laughs with Doctor Blake Downs in ''[[Childrens Hospital]]'', a [[Patch Adams]] expy who believes he can cure anything with laughter despite being utterly unfunny, caustic and permanently soaked in blood.
* {{spoiler|Averted}} in ''[[The Haunting Hour the Series]]'' episode "Afraid of Clowns." Clowns are apparently a race of creepy humanoid creatures {{spoiler|but are relatively friendly and supportive of the coulrophobic main character, who is horrified when he becomes a clown himself at puberty.}}
* ''[[Noel
== [[Music]] ==
* [[Vocaloid]]: Len Kagamine, playing Lemy/Remy Abelard, in the [[Mothy]] song The Fifth: Pierrot/Gobanme no Piero, is a very unique example of this. First, he's just an assassin who has the nickname "Pierrot" and wears a clown outfit. Second, he's not really a monster. He's just {{spoiler|been raised wrong by Santa/Julia Abelard, his adoptive mother and leader of the organization he belongs to, Pere Noel}}.
* The appropriately titled song "Clown" by the band [[Korn]].
* [[Insane Clown Posse]] obviously takes their image from this and have built a mythology around themselves called "The Dark Carnival." In the band's mythology, they're actually [[Anti-Hero|AntiHeroes]] or [[Sociopathic Hero]]es hunting their various villainous enemies. The afterlife story features an evil clown, Jack Jeckel and his good twin Jake Jeckel. Jack throws slippery, blood-soaked balls at Jake, each representing a sin. If Jake fails to juggle the balls and drops one, you're condemned to "Hell's Pit." Other [[Psychopathic Records]] artists that are examples of this trope include [[Anybody Killa]], [[Blaze Ya Dead Homie]], [[Boondox]] and [[Twiztid]].
** Boondox' status as this is questionable. From his songs (and upbringing) it's pretty evident that he's supposed to be a scarecrow.
* [[
* Shawn "Clown" Crahan of [[
* From "Mr. E's Beautiful Blues" by the [[Eels]]: ''"The clown with the frown driving down to the sidewalk fair / Finger on the trigger and I tell you it's quite a scare"''
* German [[Power Metal]] band [[
* Mr Bungle's self-titled album has a monster clown on the cover. And "Carousel", a song comparing life to a [[Circus of Fear]], contains a few references to a monster clown ("You know there's something lurking underneath the shape, with a mask over it's head and makeup on his face").
** There's also some really creepy clowns in the video for ''Quote [[Un Quote]]''; [[Nightmare Fuel|pretty par for the course considering the rest of the clip's visuals]].
* In the video for [[
** There's also a quick shot of one at :04.
** More Pink: from the same album, the song ''Funhouse'':
{{quote|
''But now it's full of evil clowns
''It's time to start the countdown
''We're gonna burn it down, down, we're gonna burn it down. }}
** And seriously, what more can you do with evil clowns, except [[Kill It
* While the clowns in the video for the Arctic Monkeys' "Fluorescent Adolescent" aren't demonic monsters, given that the video is centered around a fight between two gangs of those wacky circus comedians, they're not exactly nice, either.
* [[
* Ogden Edsl's [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTJGkwMf08k "Kinko the Clown"] is equal parts novelty song and [[Nightmare Fuel]].
{{quote|
* The label of some of Capitol and Wonderland Records'
* Check out [https://web.archive.org/web/20120217140507/http://www.monsterisland.com/wct/wct.gif Blotto the Clown] from the cover of White Courtesy Telephone's (one and only) CD, "Everything is Fun".
* [[
* [[
* Deadbolt have several songs that feature not only Patches, the murderous clown, but also a clown mafia and Mike Dugan, the [[Sociopathic Hero]] who [[He Who Fights Monsters|dresses as a clown to battle them.]]
* [[
* The cover and promotional campaign for [[David Bowie]]'s album ''Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)'', and the video for its lead-off single "Ashes to Ashes", featured Bowie as a mysterious [
* [[
* The video for ''Storytime'' by Nightwish has a group of these harassing a small boy.
* Somewhat inevitably crops up in Sufjan Stevens song "John Wayne Gacy Jr.", though not played entirely straight as it centers on the communities [[Fridge Horror]] over the [[Values Dissonance]] in his two identities. Somehow made even creepier by making it sound kind of erotic though.
{{quote|
* The [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLifSFBs_Lk music video] for Sublime's "Wrong Way" depicts Annie's abusive father as a clown.
== [[Periodicals]] ==
* ''[[MAD]]'' Magazine had [https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/MAD/Issue-289?id=73059#52 "The FBI's 6 Most Wanted Renegade Clowns",] wanted for a variety of silly crimes. For instance, Lotta Fun (aka "Inky", "Dinky", and "Raoul") who was wanted for shampooing a traffic cop with rubber cement, and was last seen driving a tiny getaway car for the 112 clowns who robbed the Big Red Balloon Co. in New York; answers to "Hey you clown!"
==
* Doink the Clown in the [[World Wrestling Entertainment|WWF]], until his [[Heel Face Turn|face turn]]. Then it went downhill fast. Matt Osborne, who portrayed him, claims he took quite a lot of inspiration from [[The Joker]] while doing so. Doink also gets point for the coolest entrance theme ever, which started with the first few bars of "Entrance of the Gladiators" (aka the [[Standard Snippet]] for clowns) before turning into a very bass-heavy, very ''evil'' piece dotted with [[Evil Laugh]]ter. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UDkrGN19ns&feature=related Have a listen].
* Subverted by [[Sting (wrestling)|Sting]] in [[TNA]] during his 2011 war against the Immortal faction. Slathering over his trademark black lipstick with a grotesquely smeared red [[Glasgow Grin]], playing pranks, and [[The Hyena|laughing and carrying on maniacally]], he ''seemed'' to be a Monster Clown but was actually more of a [[Loveable Rogue]] playing mind games with the villains. Definitely a case of [[Love It or Hate It]], especially for longtime Sting fans.
* An episode of ''[[WWE Smackdown|SmackDown]]'' in April 2000 had the Mean Street Posse posing as a trio of circus clowns during a hardcore title match when they ambushed Crash Holly.
* Insane Clown Posse.
== Reality TV ==
* Used in a third-season episode of ''[[Scare Tactics (TV series)|Scare Tactics]]'' for a teenager set to babysit a little girl, only instead of a clown statue, it's the little girl's [[Not
== [[Tabletop Games]] ==
* ''[[Mortasheen]]'' combines this with [[Mons]] and has an entire classification of creatures (Specifically the Joker class) based on this concept.
** And some of them are very weird. Like the eye-chicken-ventriloquist [http://www.bogleech.com/mortasheen/opticaper.htm Opticaper], the straitjacket-snake-clown [http://www.bogleech.com/mortasheen/insanititter.htm Insanititter] and whatever the hell [http://www.bogleech.com/mortasheen/madcap.htm Madcap] is.
* The ''[[Dungeons
* The ''
* Also on the ''
* The Dilisnyas, one of the most treacherous and murderous of [[Ravenloft]]'s great noble houses, trace their bloodline back to a fellow by the unlikely name of Pidlwik. In the original adventure module ''I6: Ravenloft'', which inspired the campaign setting, Pidlwik's crypt identifies him as the court jester.
** The Skurra, of the Travelling Carnival, are one part this, one part [[Enemy Mime]], and all subversion; while extremely creepy (even the mutated Carnies are somewhat afraid of them, and there is a belief amongst them that some or even all of the Skurra are actually ghosts), they are not malevolent in the slightest.
*** They may not be malevolent, but they're INCREDIBLY protective of themselves and the carnival. One of them, The Crimson Rose, has no reservations about maiming or killing a carnival-goer that pays her a bit too much of the wrong kind of attention.
* The Eldar Harlequins of ''[[Warhammer
** Which makes it all the more surprising that the Harlequins are, if probably not exactly ''good'', at least firmly opposed to Chaos and will join forces (temporarily) with anyone fighting it they come across. They also protect the [[Library of Babel|Black Library]] from violators who would almost certainly use its powers for evil.
*** Of course, added scary can be brought in by, if not the certainty, then at least the very possible implication that the "Laughing God" may in fact be [[Cosmic Horror|the C'tan entity]] "The Deceiver", a being so much of a [[Magnificent Bastard]] that he first persuaded his original worshippers to convert themselves into a soulless mechanical army, and then persuaded his ''own'' race of godlike beings to turn on and in some cases ''eat'' one another until only four were left. Suffice it to say that if this is true, really horrible things lie not just in the Harlequin's future, but probably the whole Eldar race's.
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*** Similarly: the Dark Eldar, who would cheerfully torture you in a variety of horrible ways even if they ''didn't'' need to, crap their pants when the Harlequins show up. ''Even if they're just there to put on a show''.
* In the Warhammer fantasy universe isolated villages are sometimes visited by the Carnival of Chaos, what appears to be an innocuous troop of performers turn out to be the hideous daemonic servants of the god of despair, who hypnotise the simple village folk during the performance whilst they quite rapidly decompose. Models are brilliant though, complete with nurglings dressed up as circus animals.
* Let it not be said that ''[[Magic:
** And then there's the Cult of Rakdos, from the Ravnica block. If the land [http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=97082 Rakdos Carnarium] doesn't make your blood freeze, you need to get your head examined. A cult of slash-happy killers who consider their parties a "flop" if someone survives to tell about it - and they have a ''[[Circus of Fear|circus]]'' component to them, too? (And with a circus comes...) Thanks, Wizards, I may never sleep again.
* Naturally, there's at least one ''[[Call of Cthulhu (
* ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh! (Tabletop Game)|Yu-Gi-Oh!]]'' LOVES this trope.
** [http://
** [http://
** The notably Fiend-type [http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Ryu-Kishin_Clown Ryu-Kishin Clown].
**
**
* In ''
== [[Theatre]] ==
* Essentially averted by [[Cirque Du Soleil]] in their specific clown acts. Traditional whitefaces and augustes are less intimidating than the popular conception, and some character-based clown acts largely eschew garish makeup and costuming. Indeed some clowns are downright ordinary-looking compared to the other characters. But there are villainous/mysterious characters who, intentionally or not, have appearances akin to this trope: Boum-Boum in ''Quidam'', Le Titan in ''La Nouba'', etc. Closest to the trope is the bizarre emcee Fleur in ''Alegria'': According to the [[All There in the Manual]] material, he was the court jester to the now-gone ruler of the kingdom, and now he wants to be king.
* One word: Canio, from ''[[Pagliacci]]''. Seriously, people. Brush up on your classics.
** The slimy and lecherous Tonio definitely qualifies.
* ''[[Rigoletto]]'', kinda. Although he's portrayed in a sympathetic light at parts, he's still a crazy, bitter, grotesque jester {{spoiler|who indirectly kills his daughter and [[Morality Pet]], Gilda.}}
== [[Video Games]] ==
* Joker-sama in ''[[Persona 2]]''. Unusual if only for his distinctive elegance... {{spoiler|and the fact he's the plaything of [[Eldritch Abomination|Nyarlathotep]] }}.
* In ''[[League of Legends]]'', there is a ''playable'' monster clown named Shaco. He can set invisible jack in the boxes that cause terror and fire [[Frickin' Laser Beams|laser beams]], poof into invisibility with an evil laugh, backstab people with venomed knives, and make duplicates of himself.
* Kefka Palazzo from ''[[Final Fantasy VI]]'', complete with [[Laughing Mad|a creepy and weird, cackling laugh]], comical outfit, and whiteface makeup during battles... Not to mention his very quotable one-liners. In Dissidia, they also apparently gave him a [[Glasgow Grin]] that was eerily similar to Heath Ledger's Joker incarnation from [[The Dark Knight]], and, in the English version at least, a voice similar to that of [[Mark Hamill]]'s Joker voice.
** In the [[Updated Rerelease]], they rendered a full 3-D opening sequence, and Kefka's appearance in it is pure [[Nightmare Fuel]].
** [[It Got Worse|It only got worse]] in ''[[
** Note that it's more like this in [[Woolseyism|the old Ted]]'s script, in the original japanese version he's more of an [[Villainous Harlequin|idiot]], even after he {{spoiler|kills Leo, destroys the world, etc.}} When brought to America, he pretty much became [[The Joker]] of video games.
* ''[[
* ColorMan''/''WackoMan from ''[[
** For an even worse example from the same series, CircusMan.EXE from EXE Beast and ''Battle Network 6''.
*** Something perhaps creepier than his appearance is that one of his attacks involves transforming his body into a circular cage draped up like a circus tent, falling down on top of your character to entrap them, then several bulges appear rapidly all over the drapes implying being pummeled (dear god hopefully) all over.
*** Oh God, CircusMan. The first time you see him, you witness him doing some kind of creepy dance that drains the energy of everyone around him in that cutscene. He ''sucks up'' the energy, and then he soon uses the energy to revive [[Sealed Evil in
**** Don't forget about CircusMan's operator, Yuika. Yuika wears an outlandish outfit, has heart-like makeup on her cheeks, and overall acts like a stereotypical clown. She also lured several Navi Operators into Central City 3's area and thus arranged for CircusMan to steal their energy to unleash the Cybeasts in the first place, not to mention having MegaMan kidnapped as well.
**
** Mash, the clown robot boss from ''7''.
* ''[[Castlevania: Chronicles of Sorrow
** In ''[[Castlevania
* Zorn and Thorn from ''[[
* One zone in ''[[
** And there was also the [[Bad Future]] event where players could see a destroyed Seaside Town full of some of the [[Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot|monsters turned into zombies]] (ex: Zombie Hippy, Zombie Frat Boy, Zombie Zombie) And then the Zombie Clown. His in game description? "AIEEE! Ah! Gah! Sweet merciful God, no! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
** Inverted with the wacky pirate: "You'd think a clown with an eyepatch and a hook hand would be even more terrifying than a normal clown, but somehow, the combination is pretty charming"
* One of the bosses in the [[Capcom]] game ''[[
** Made worse by the fact that, according to him, they were all ''laughing at him...''
*** Oh, and his death scene. ''He falls onto his own chainsaws, [[Laughing Mad|laughing while they cut him up.]]''
** His brother, Evan, appears in ''[[
* Dhoulmagus, one of the main villains of ''[[
* Needles "Sweet Tooth" Kane from ''[[Twisted Metal]]'', who wears a flaming clown mask and stores the bodies of murdered children in his ice cream truck. The entirety of ''Twisted Metal: Black'' is actually {{spoiler|a psychotic delusion taking place inside his mind}}.
** A homicidal clown, he's essentially an [[Expy]] of [[The Joker]].
*
* Malcolm the jester in the ''Kyrandia'' adventure game series. Suffers a [[Heel Face Turn|reluctant flipflop]] in the third and final game which does ...absolutely nothing at all. He retains the same personality. He still says incredibly evil and nasty things. He just stopped killing people. (which of course nobody believes, so it's up to you as Malcolm to clear your name in the third.) Most unconvincing HFT ever, most unrepentant villain ever too. Even with his personality set to ''"nice"'' and with him talking to the sorceress Zanthia, whom he has a bit of a crush on, everything he says still makes him sound like a spiteful misanthropic [[Jerkass]] just one dagger away from a multiple homicide. He's not so much an [[Anti
* In the first chapter of ''[[
** Inexplicably, one of the outfits that Max (the main protagonist of the game) can trade for Medals is a complete clown outfit, with shoes and hat... and a ''whiteface'' makeup that is far more unnerving and disturbing than even Flotsam's most threatening appearance.
* ''[[
** Harle (short for "[[Punny Name|harlequin]]") also counts, technically, as she's revealed to be {{spoiler|the Seventh Dragon.}}
* Booster, Knife Guy, and Grate Guy from ''[[
** And also [[Giant Space Flea From Nowhere|Cloaker and Domino]] from the same game.
* Raz from ''[[
* Although the titular NiGHTS and other humanoid Nightmaren from ''[[
** One of the first 2 bosses in ''Journey of Dreams'', Donbalon, is a more literal example of this trope.
* ''Fighters Destiny'' and it's sequel feature a French clown named Pierre- and to add the monster to this trope he fits there's a cheat you can use that turns him into a werewolf.
* The Deathjester from ''[[
** Also, his [[Expy]], [[Sword of Mana|Goremand.]]
* Joka from the ''[[
* Downplayed with Moe, a witness from the second ''[[Ace Attorney]]'' game. He's ''trying'' to be a regular fun-loving circus clown, but isn't very good at it, seeing as his jokes are terrible and his costume (with grinning mouths all over it) is terrifying. Of course, oddball witnesses are nothing new in this series; Phoenix also has to interview a ventriloquist's dummy in the same case.
* The final stage of the game ''[[Carn Evil]]'' is the Big Top, which is absolutely crawling with midget clowns, overly beefed up jokers, and even rabid dogs in clown gear. The former two being even creepier then the torture victim enemies found in the Freakshow stage. The sight of the smaller clowns popping up from the sides of the screen at point blank range while his friends close in on you even after half their faces and bodies have been blown away is shuddersome.
** Tokkentakker, the end boss. Though he's relatively mild compared to [[Nightmare Fuel|the rest of the game]].
** Umlaut, the flying Jester Skull with the SHARK TEETH. Who shows up at the beginning of EVERY LEVEL with a cryptic rhyme about the stage you're about to play on. And then you have him to fight as a miniboss before the [[Big Bad]], there he bites and practically teleports around the arena. [[Nightmare Fuel]] if there ever was anything that could fit there.
* The Jester Spirit {{spoiler|Laughlin}} in the SNES and Genesis game ''[[
{{quote|
* {{spoiler|Marx}} in the "Milky Way Wishes" portion of ''[[
** Necrodeus from ''[[
** In ''[[
* Rudy the Clown in the ''[[
** There is also a
*** The Wonky Circus level also has the standard [[Mooks]] replaced by
*** It's also home to Clown Cannons that literally fire Clown Missiles. Yes, giant missiles with clown faces.
* One level of ''[[Hitman]]: Blood Money'' gives the player the opportunity to play as one, where you can disguise yourself as a clown to infiltrate your target's house...and eliminate him.
** Agent 47 was even awarded Clown Of The Year once.
* ''KISS Psycho Circus'' wholly revolved around [[
* In a weird twist, one of the levels in ''[[
* Played for laughs in the ''[[Time Splitters]]'' series. One of the characters is "Mr Giggles", a monster clown who was raised by a New England family but apparently wasn't truly happy until he "Ate them and ran away to join the circus".
* Spike, the cover star of ''[[
* In ''[[Painkiller]]: Battle Out of Hell'' one of the levels are set in a hellish carnival complete with demon clowns.
* At the beginning of point-and-click adventure game ''[[Broken Sword]]: The Shadow of the Templars'' (known as ''Circle of Blood'' in the US), an assassin dressed as a clown runs into a Parisian street cafe, places an accordion on a bar stool, then runs back out again. A small red light on the accordion flashes, and [[Mad Bomber|the cafe explodes]].
* In ''[[The House of the Dead (
** And note that this stage is almost definitely inspired by ''House of the Dead'''s fellow arcade rail shooter classic ''Carnevil''.
* The Joker from the ''[[Monster Rancher]]'' series combines this with [[The Grim Reaper]].
* [http://www.mobygames.com/game/narc ''NARC'']. During the fourth level, [[Badass Normal|Max Force and Hit Man]] encounter the knife-wielding, maiden-kidnapping, pornography-addicted clown Kinky Pinky. Or rather, [[Elite Mooks|several of him]]. In the arcade version in particular, Kinky Pinky is difficult to destroy by normal means (submachinegun fire). If he closes to stabbing range, your choices are 1) fire a rocket or 2) die.
* ''[[
* Mad Jack, a jack-in-the-box boss from ''[[
* The sixth boss of the unlicensed piece of garbage ''Silent Assault'' is a giant scary clown head.
* In the online flash game ''[[The Last Stand]]'', on one of the final levels there is a single zombie clown. This is the only pre-rendered zombie in the whole game.
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* Sebastian the masochist from ''[[Rumble Roses]]''.
* The [[Wolverine]] levels in ''[[Spider-Man]] and [[X-Men (Comic Book)|X-Men]]: Arcade's Revenge'' are practically made of this trope.
** Arcade also dispatches them during the Murderworld stage of ''[[
* ''[[
* Mr. Crow of ''[[
* Clown enemies in ''[[Star Ocean:
* ''[[Spore
* Early on in ''[[Red Dead Revolver]]'' you face off against an army of shotgun-wielding midget clowns.
* Dimentio from ''[[
* ''[[
* The PC version of the game ''Killing Time'' has a fairly standard "Pennywise" style mutant clown as an enemy. The Panasonic 3DO version, however, features a more normal-looking clown that squeals "It's TICKLE TIME!!" in a high-pitched voice while thrusting its hands out [[Personal Space Invader|into the player's face]], represented by two '''enormous''' hand sprites appearing in front of the clown. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSfB2p2oTks The second one is scarier by far.]
* The [[Pokémon]] Conkeldurr and pre-evolution Gurdurr from the fifth generation games look like circus strongmen with clown noses (And in Gurdurr's case, a head that looks like a clown's wig).
* ''[[Batman Doom]]'' has the Joker, obviously, but also rather tough [[Mooks]] dressed in mime/clown attire who throw darts at you; they pop up in both the Scarecrow's and Joker's chapter.
* In ''[[Rayman]]'' 1 the [[Level Ate|Candy Château]] is full of clowns doing their best to kill you.
* The GAC clowns in ''[[Dead to Rights]]''.
* ''[[Splatterhouse]] 2010'' has a level set at a theme park which is, of course, populated by demonic clowns and spin their heads, split fire, twirl upside-down on their hands kicking you with their legs and crawl along backwards on the floor if you knock them down.
* ''[[The Legend of Zelda]]'':
* In ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening]]'', the second boss is a bottle genie that looks and behaves in a manner similar to a clown.
** Downplayed with Falbi from ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess]]''. Not evil, actually, but [https://zelda.fandom.com/wiki/Falbi he sure is ''ugly''.] No mystery as to why he quit the circus.
* ''[[Serious Sam]]'' II has weird looking, unicycling, manically laughing, suicide bombing clowns that attack in groups. Yeah...
* Cicero in ''[[The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim]]'' is an insane assassin who maintains a persona of a jester when out in public. You can also get in on the fun if you decide to wear his outfit.
* In ''[[Terraria]]'', unlocking hard mode causes Clown monsters to appear during a Blood Moon. Silly-looking as they are, they're also fairly tough, and they throw bombs that destroy blocks and can mess up any buildings you've made.
* [[Laughing Mad|Hecklar]] [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=su4s7oUOAVs from] ''[[Cardinal Syn]]''.
* [[The Joker]] as he appears in the ''Batman Arkham'' games is every bit as [[Complete Monster|monstrous]] and [[Laughably Evil|clownish]] as you'd expect, but he plans on making an army of literal Monster Clowns in the first game by injecting his face-painted henchmen with Titan formula, which causes them to hulk out into Bane-like abominations. {{spoiler|He gets in on the fun himself by shooting himself with a Titan filled dart before the final boss fight}}. This series also gives us one of the franchise's crueler interpretations of Harley Quinn as well.
* As if the killer animatronics of the ''[[Five Nights at Freddy's]]'' series weren't frightening enough, there are quite a few with a clown motif as well.
** Introduced in the second game is the Puppet, who stands out among the animatronics by looking less like an anthropomorphic [[Funny Animal]] and more like an unnaturally thin and lanky [[Humanoid Abomination]] dressed like a pierrot. She's the biggest threat you'll face because one of the game's most important gimmicks revolves around keeping her pacified. If you fail to keep her music box wound up and focus too much on fending off the other animatronics, she'll come flying at you from the darkness like a bat out of hell, and there's no way to put her back in her box. {{spoiler|Interestingly, later games would reveal that she's an unconventional ''[[Big Good]]'' trying to help the other ghosts of murdered children like her get revenge on the man who killed them. Unfortunately, that doesn't stop her from being a menace to any and all innocent night guards who get in her way}}.
** Also introduced in the second game is Foxy's Toy counterpart, Mangle. [[Ambiguous Gender|He]]/[[Pronoun Trouble|she]]/[[Memetic Mutation|yes]] has abandoned Foxy's original pirate motif in favor of a clownish one, and his bright colors, makeup, and whacky cartoon glove reflect upon her new career choice. She especially fits the monstrous criteria in a literal way, as he's been reduced to a tangled spider-like mess of broken machinery thanks to being abused by rambunctious visiting children. {{spoiler|He's also very likely to have been the culprit behind the Bite of '87, where an animatronic attacked someone in broad daylight and tore out their frontal lobe}}.
*** And if you thought these clownlike animatronics weren't monstrous enough, they get Phantom and Nightmare incarnations in the the third and fourth games! Like all Phantom Animatronics, Phantom Puppet and Mangle can't kill you, but they act as [[Support Party Member|Support Party Members]] to Springtrap, who ''can''. Nightmare Mangle also looks every bit as monstrous as the other Nightmare Animatronics, while Nightmarrione looks like an [[Eldritch Abomination]] that only vaguely resembles a clown, complete with tentacley appendages and the ability to [[The Fourth Wall Will Not Protect You|reset your game!]]
** Speaking of Springtrap, he gets a clown-themed skin in the spinoff game ''[[Five Nights at Freddy's AR: Special Delivery]]'' that makes him look like a cross between a deranged fursuiter and Joaquin Phoenix's Joker.
** Almost every animatronic in Circus Baby's Pizza World, the titular Sister Location in ''[[Five Nights at Freddy's: Sister Location]]'' is a Monster Clown in some form. They're hammy, theatrical entertainers who boast bright colors, while Circus Baby herself is a cute clown girl. And not only are they as murderous as the rest, but {{spoiler|they're ''designed'' to lure away children and kill them on behalf of William Afton, their creator}}.
** The Fruit Punch and Lemonade Clowns from ''[[Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria Simulator]]'' are a parody of this. Their minigame has you jumpscare hyperactive children, but their "jumpscare" is a bunch of airhorn noises, and they're otherwise harmless and goofy-looking. {{spoiler|The Fruit Punch Clown ''does'' have a rare voice line where he threatens to slit your throat, but even that is delivered in a [[Stylistic Suck|heavily accented, borderline incomprehensible text-to-speech voice]]}}.
** The Daycare Attendant from ''[[Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach]]'' has two personas that invoke this trope in different ways. His Sun persona is an [[Nice Guy|aggressively friendly]] [[Non-Ironic Clown]] whose manic behavior, [[No Sense of Personal Space]], and [[Uncanny Valley]] design terrify the children left in his care. But while he doesn't ''try'' to be scary, his Moon persona ''does'', and aggressively hounds and punishes any children who stay up past their bedtime while speaking in a growly, raspy voice. When Gregory gets locked in the Pizzaplex after dark, he proves to be just as murderous as the other animatronics, and is among the most dangerous due to how hard it is to hide from him.
* The Jester in ''[[Darkest Dungeon]]'' is a rare heroic example, insomuch as ''any'' of the classes can be called heroic. Sort of a cross between a rogue, minstrel, and this Trope, he can be an invaluable asset in some situations, his singing able to calm the rest of the party and prevent the stress from doing them in. Or it can inspire them and buff their - and his - attacks.
* Lola Pop from ''[[ARMS]]'' was never intended to be this; producer Kosuke Yabuki intended her to just be a silly, fun-loving circus clown who just happened to a contender in a [[Fighting Game]] where ''every'' playable character was silly, but players were terrified of her regardless. Kosuke later said half-jokingly that he had "learned a weakness in Americans" due to them being scared of such a thing. So... if he ever decides to greenlight less lighthearted game, coulrophobia sufferers be warned...
* Mad Clown from ''[[Punch Out|Super Punch Out]]'' doesn't stop at looking the part, he incorporates all kinds of showy acrobatic maneuvers and even juggling balls into his fighting style. His juggling balls are especially dangerous because they're a prelude to a brutal instant-knockdown attack that comes out ''fast''. If you go into his fight expecting a mere Bear Hugger reskin, you're in for a ''very'' rude awakening.
* Philippe, the fourth Boss of ''[[Final Fight|Final Fight 2]]'', who battles the heroes with acrobatic kicks and a trick cane. [[All There in the Manual| According to the instruction guide]], he's been using the circus as a front for a smuggling operation while working for the Mad Gear Gang.
== [[Web Animation]] ==
* One of the primary bad guys in the ''[[
* ''[[Xombie]]'', a flash animation series which takes place [[After the End]] in a [[Zombie Apocalypse]] world at one point goes trough a circus. Guess what the protagonist has to face there.
{{quote|
* Strong Man, the Old-Timey version of Strong Mad from ''[[
* Fizzarolli from ''[[Helluva Boss]]'', Blitzo's former friend and now rival, is a clown, demon, ''and'' cyborg, plus a minion of [[Demon Lords and Archdevils|Mammon, the Exemplar of Greed.]]
== [[Web Comics]] ==
* ''[[Gunnerkrigg Court]]'' does a bit of [[Lampshade Hanging]]:
{{quote|'''Mort:''' And how did you know that girl didn't like [http://www.gunnerkrigg.com/archive_page.php?comicID{{=}}66 clowns]?
'''Antimony:''' Nobody likes clowns. }}
* Subverted in ''[[General Protection Fault]]'', where The Gamester is portrayed as a benevolent [[Lawful Good]] cosmic being. (His [[Evil Twin]], Pandemonium, on the other hand...)
* ''[[In
* Donald McBonald in ''[[
* In ''[[
** Riff is apparently afraid of clowns. He can deal with this to some extent, but [http://www.sluggy.com/comics/archives/daily/021109 unresistingly hands over a gun] when the clown asks for it, gets all flustered when questioned why, and later, when the clown grins at him, [http://www.sluggy.com/comics/archives/daily/021115 faints].
* In ''[[Nodwick]]'', after re-lived her fifth birthday several times:
{{quote|
* ''[[Bug
* {{spoiler|Gamzee Makara}} from ''[[
** Monster Clowndom appears to be the [[Gang of Hats|hat]] of the Subjugglators, judging by The Grand Highblood's facepaint and colorful paintings. [[Nightmare Fuel|Facepaint and colorful paintings made of the blood of slaughtered trolls.]]
* ''[[
* ''[[
* Jason Love cartoons [https://web.archive.org/web/20140807082959/http://www.jasonlove.com/cartoons/00724-funny-cartoons-mafia-clown.gif warns us] about [[The Mafia|Mafia]] clowns.
* In ''[[
* In ''[[The Word Weary]]'', Yorick's elf rogue character is disguised as a jester- and he's just as [http://wordwearycomic.blogspot.com/2011/04/28-april-2011.html acerbic and mean] as he is the in regular story.
* A monster clown sets up the story in [https://tapas.io/episode/854723 a one-strip installment] of ''[[Erma]]''. Unfortunately for the monster clown, Erma is a [[Stringy-Haired Ghost Girl]], and his trap turns into a case of [[Mugging the Monster]].
* ''[[Irregular Webcomic!]]'', when Elspeth was a volunteer for "[https://www.irregularwebcomic.net/4138.html Ishmael’s friends who dress up as Martians]":
{{quote|'''Elspeth''': Wouldn't dressing as clowns put patients at ease more?
'''Martian 2''': Ah, good idea! Like [[IT|Pennywise]]? Or [[the Joker]]?
'''Elspeth''': I see your point.
'''Martian 2''': Or Pagliaccio! }}
== [[Web Original]] ==
* "Clowns: Satan's idea of what's funny" [https://web.archive.org/web/20101014022438/http://verydemotivational.com/2008/06/05/funny-demotivational-posters-clowns/ poster]
* Here's a particularly scary example of a monster clown jack-in-the-box, just scroll a bit down to see it (but be warned, it is ''very'' unnerving). Click if you dare: [https://web.archive.org/web/20170719140413/http://www.bogleech.com/halloween-2009sept.html]
* Just a fair warning: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-SamlxVgnc&feature=related This may keep you up tonight.]
* There's a viral comment being spread on [[YouTube]] warning, "a clown will kill u at 3:00 A.M. tomorrow morning if u dont pass this 2 10 vids ''[sic]''."
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MItzvEjNURA Behold Baby Ronald McDonald].
* The Cheezburger Network's newest website, [https://web.archive.org/web/20101118071805/http://72.47.209.134/ Clown Fails], is nothing but this.
* Tom Foolery of the ''[[Global Guardians PBEM Universe]]''. Scary makeup, spine-chilling laugh, weaponized toys, and an urge to see the whole world go down in flames. He is basically the setting's [[Captain Ersatz]] of [[The Joker]].
* [http://www.cracked.com/blog/exploring-the-mysteries-of-the-mind-with-the-sims-3/ Subject Beef] certainly fits. Seanbaby speculates on the cause-effect relationship of wearing clown makeup and killing people. All we can say for sure is that it's there, one way or another.
* "[https://web.archive.org/web/20120614043225/http://loneanimator.elfwood.com/Nightmare-Clown.2978047.html Nightmare Clown]" by Richard Svensson.
* [[The Grotesque|The Jester]], ringmaster of [[Circus of Fear|Le Cirque d'Abberations]] in ''[[
* ''[[SCP Foundation]]'' has a few:
** [https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-993 SCP-993], the "Bobble the Clown" show. Once the program starts, everyone in the room over the age of ten passes out; children under the age of ten report that an animated clown gives how-tos on cannibalism, arson, and a number of other horrifying things. Worse, whoever is creating the show (and there's a certain amount of evidence that the show itself is a sapient entity that creates and broadcasts itself) appears to be aware that the SCP Foundation has found a way to intercept and block its transmission, as the two most recent episodes shown right before they start blocking his broadcasts are "Bobble Hates You" (consisting of Bobble sitting in a chair and glaring silently at the viewer for the entire episode) and an episode where Bobble breaches classification on Foundation researchers, administrators, and SCPs, including detailed instructions on how to breach containment of a number of incredibly dangerous SCPs, with a special guest appearance by the animated version of an SCP researcher who happened to be passing by the room where the Foundation keeps the recordings they make of the show at the time shown on a clock in the episode.
** [https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-5962 SCP-5962]; this creature is technically a cow, having been born from one at a Midwest American farm, but it resembles a large (4 meters tall) obese ( over 5 tons) monstrous version of Ronald McDonald, and it continually spits out fully-packaged McDonalds products. The owners of the farm sold it to a Chinese McDonalds franchise, where they enjoyed an incredible boost in profits for a while until the Foundation found out about it. They also found out that [[Human Resources|the food was made from human flesh]] - all of it. The bacon and fries are human cartilage and ligaments, chicken nuggets were made from, er, reproductive organs, the bread is made of hair, nails, and skin, and the coffee and ice cream, well… were made from various human waste products. [[Squick|(Yeah, a lot of folks in-story were grossed out too.)]] The weird part is, nobody knows who the victims are or [[The Unsolved Mystery|where the stuff comes from, as SCP-5962]] has never been known to attack anyone (except one time when it spewed hot coffee on a visiting [[The Rival|Burger King]] manager, [[Fridge Logic|possibly the guy who tipped off the Foundation]]), and never really does anything except produce the food - it seems relatively mindless. In fact, when analyzed, the genetic material matches that of still-living humans, who seem unharmed by this process. Worst of all, SCP-5962 is not the only SCP that came from that farm; [https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-1458 SCP-4158] is another mutated cow who came from there, and possibly more that have yet to be documented.
** [https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-1799 SCP-1799] ("Mr. Laugh") subverts this. While he is a clown, he is not dangerous, and is, in fact, a [[Tragic Monster]] and [[Sad Clown]].
* [[That Guy With The Glasses]] featured a video with [[Doug Walker]] doing a pretty damn good impression of [[Heath Ledger]][[The Dark Knight Saga|'s Joker]] practicing his origin story. An attempt to spin this off into a series called "Melvin, Brother of the Joker" was not nearly as well received, and the character became [[The Scrappy]] among fans. Walker has engaged in a fair amount of [[Self-Deprecation]] about this, and Melvin was killed by other TGWTG contributors during one of the donation drives.
** [[The Spoony Experiment]] featured [[Noah Antwiler]] playing "Chuckles the Fucking Jester", a character from the ''[[Ultima]]'' series. Spoony finds him creepy, screaming when he enters the room. He is also relentlessly obnoxious, making bad jokes and beating Noah with a rubber chicken for not playing "The Game" correctly. After [[It Makes Sense in Context|Spoony's robot blasts him with a laser beam]], Chuckles flees, and a mysterious figure points out his ability to cause great fear, giving him [[Blackest Night|a Yellow Lantern ring]].
** [[Diamanda Hagan]], who is basically a female Joker and enjoys slaying her minions when bored.
** [[Atop the Fourth Wall
* ''[[
{{quote|
* [[The Fear Mythos]] gives us the Jester, a masked psychopath who serves the [[Perverse Puppet|Wooden Girl]]. He sees himself as an artist who has mastered comedy, and views comedy as being anything unexpected. So if you were, say, walking your dog on a pleasant summer day, he might pop out of a bush and blow your brains out just [[For the Evulz]]. The fact that the Jester is one of the few humans who serves the Wooden Girl willingly (as opposed to being unable to control his own body like the majority of her servants) just makes him even more horrific. [http://strangeandsecretfaces.blogspot.com/2012/01/laughter-is-best-medicine.html This creepypasta] gives a pretty clear indication of how utterly insane he is.
== Western Animation ==
* Can't forget Joker from ''[[
** And the Joker from ''[[Batman:
*** Arguably the goofy, baggy clown-outfit made him look even creepier than his normal purple tux, since it twisted his reasonably normal human proportions into the depths of [[Uncanny Valley]].
** Possibly even more terrifying was when mutagen turns him into [[Reptiles Are Abhorrent|a clown-snake hybrid]] in the crossover ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles versus Batman''. In case anyone doesn't know, snakes eat turtles, making this a terrifying villain to all the heroes in this crossover.
* Frankly, there are countless times ('''not''' including that stint in ''Treehouse of Horrors'') that Krusty the Klown of ''[[The Simpsons (animation)|The Simpsons]]'' fits neatly into the oversized shoes of this trope. Point in fact he is scary enough to provoke heart-attacks in patients with heart conditions (namely Homer).
** "What's wrong? Oh right... My ''grotesque appearance!"''
*** Also: "Well I got news for you, buddy: This ain't make up!"
*** He tried broadcasting his show in High Definition without testing it first; [[Nightmare Fuel|BIG mistake.]]
** Not to mention the haunted Krusty doll.
{{quote|
:* ''And'', Krusto D. Clown from "Treehouse of Horror: Not It", [[Composite Character| a cross]] between Krusty and [[IT|Pennywise]].
* Zombozo the Clown from ''[[
* Although [[Pepper Ann]] didn't feature any actual monster clowns, there was one episode where Pepper Ann watched a movie that revolves around this trope: Gutter Clowns. She had nightmares about that movie.
* Darph Bobo, and the entire Clown Empire, from ''[[Tripping the Rift]]''
* In ''[[
** Studio boss Seymour Plotz doesn't know this, so he sends a [[Jerry Lewis]]-style clown to the water tower to entertain Wakko on his birthday. Plotz doesn't like clowns, either, so when he finds
{{quote|
* In the ''[[Legion of Super
* ''[[Mighty Max]]'' had an episode (and a micro playset) involving Freako the Clown.
* In one episode of ''[[The Grim Adventures of Billy
** "So, it's agreed? We all hate clowns."
* Freakshow from ''[[
* Dr. Rockzo, the rock n' roll clown (he does cocaine!) {{spoiler|seriously, dude; ''a lot'' of cocaine}} from ''[[
** Toki was shown to have a long-time love of clowns - there was a shot of him as a child sitting on [[Serial Killer|Gacy the Clown's]] lap (shudder). Besides, it's metal to like clowns!
* An episode of ''[[
** Also partially subverted in this episode, in that Deedee stops Dexter by learning the ways of an order of benign mimes. Not to be confused with a [[Heroic Mime]].
* Binky The Clown from ''[[Garfield and Friends]]'' isn't really evil, but he is incredibly obnoxious and somewhat creepy, and provides a recurring source of irritation for Garfield.
* Chuckie from ''[[
** Not to mention the end of the episode had Mr. Finster walk out of Chuckie's room after tucking him in and noticing Stu turned away from him. He says, "Stu, I didn't know you were coming over," only to have clown faced Stu turn around and do the exact same thing that the clown faced Tommy did except he says, "''I'm not Stu...''" * laughs*
*** Another episode called "The Trial" featured a creepy clown lamp with a giant perpetual grin and an evil countenance.
*** Or the episode "The Mysterious Mr. Fiend" which had a talking clown doll depicted [https://web.archive.org/web/20110907011123/http://cust.idl.com.au/boyd/images/bfriend.gif here].
*** The episode "Clown Around" had plenty of
*** To keep this list from getting longer, lets just say that ''[[
* The Beast Which Dares Not Speak Its Name, from the ''[[Earthworm Jim (
* Madkat from ''[[
* The Clown With The Tearaway Face from ''[[
** Subverted in that [[Dark Is Not Evil|he isn't that scary]] once you get to know him, just like the other denizens of Halloween Town.
* [[The Brave Little Toaster]] had a nightmare about a fireman-clown trying to chase it into a filled bathtub. His only line was "Run!". [[Nightmare Fuel|Sound advice!]]
** Considering it was a toaster's nightmare, and the clown was armed with a ''fire hose'' and a ''fork''...
*** [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEdZh8a4ZvE Click it]. [[Shmuck Bait|Go on. Do it]].
* ''[[Scooby
** Villain of the week Harry the Hypnotist used a clown getup as both [[Scooby
*** Harry was a [[Complete Monster]], who hypnotised Scooby into walking a tightrope and then snapped him out of the trance when he was halfway across. And then hypnotised Shaggy into being a lion tamer:
{{quote|
** [[Scooby
* Clownfoot, a villainous clown from a ''[[Captain Caveman and
* A later-season episode of ''[[Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go!]]'' features villains who are members of a circus possessed by [[Big Bad
* One Man Circus from ''[[Scruff]]''.
* Peter dresses up as "Pee Pants the Inebriated Hobo Clown" in an episode of ''[[
** Is there any way that could have gone ''right''?
*** Considering that {{spoiler|Peter accidentally killed the man he thought was his father (Francis, not the town drunk from Ireland) while performing as Pee Pants}}, no, nothing could have gone right from there.
** ''[http://youtu.be/-LjwCjaqSO4?t=1m52s I wish that scary looking clown at the end of my bed would go away!]''
* The short-lived American adaptation of Australia's teacher sitcom ''[[Sit Down, Shut Up]]'' has a
{{quote|
''You took an old-fashioned shiv in the crown.
''They fired tear gas on your ass from the tower.
''And when you got back up
''You were feelin' down.
''So...
''Someone sent you a prison clown
''Someone bought you
''Or bartered you
''A prison clown --'' }}
* An episode of ''[[
* Paddywack from ''[[Darkwing Duck (
** [[Villainous Harlequin|Quackerjack]] once made a
* In an episode of ''[[League of Super Evil]]'', the team revives Doktor Frogg's first invention, Chuckles the Robotic Clown, for his birthday. Frogg later reveals that he invented Chuckles when he was a kid to ruin all the birthday parties he was never invited to and [
* Played with in ''[[American Dragon
* Subverted in ''[[Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job
** Good to know: Child Clowns eat only Steve Mahahanan's Child Clown Wet Food Logs.
* ''[[
* ''[[Minoriteam]]'' has Halfpint, the evil gangster clown.
* Four of these showed up in the ''[[Jimmy Two
** There was also the episode where Jimmy and Beezy tried to become clowns, only to be constantly rebuffed by the selfsame jerks.
* [http://i43.tinypic.com/6yl8io.jpg Sneero],the villain clown in [[Achille Talon]].
* Scuzzo, and his large mute brother Fuzzo, in ''[[Beetlejuice (
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ivk_LPQP6Ag This] computer animation demo reel from 1984 opens with an evil juggling clown so scary, he has the power to terrify even those not normally afraid of clowns!
* ''[[
* ''[[The Tick (animation)]]'' featured the villain Proto-Clown, a rampaging superpowered brute of a clown [[Gone Horribly Wrong|created by a genetic experiment]] intended to create a perfect [[Non
* ''[[
* The Clown Demons who run the carnival in ''[[The Owl House]]'' episode "Really Small Problems". While this is truly a nightmarish concept, they are the [[Affably Evil]] type who do not tolerate anyone scamming customers - [[Hypocrite|''unless'' the scammers are working for ''them''.]]
* In ''[[American Dad]]'', Roger overlaps this with [[Evil Teacher]] in his H.J. Rimmens personality, being a teacher at a clown school. Right off the bat, he admits to using mind games and emotionally abuse his students into becoming clowns, adding that 60% of them will be [[Driven to Suicide]] by the end of the semester. Of course, [[Ineffectual Sympathetic Villain|seeing as this is Roger we're talking about]], he’s not very good at being either type of villain, and eventually loses his permit to teach clowns. A [[Flash Forward]] scene shows him as a [[IT| Pennywise]] [[Expy]] gunning for revenge against Steve, only to [[Epic Fail|get stuck in a storm drain while doing so]].
* In the ''[[Star Trek: Lower Decks]]'' episode "Mining the Mind's Mines", the psychic mines initially try to tempt the Lower Deckers [[The Vamp|by creating illusions of their fantasies]]; when the mines malfunction, however, they switch to illusions of their nightmares, which includes Klingon clowns with bat'leths for arms. While this does not specify ''whose'' nightmare this is, ''all'' of the ensigns flee in terror.
* The [[Juggalo]]s from ''[[Inside Job]]'' subvert this. They're pretty... weird, but of the six organizations who secretly rule the world, they seem the least evil. They aren't sure ''why'' they are in the overall group, but are actually very nice to their "rivals", giving Myc and Glenn pep talks after they are shunned from the festivities at the Power Struggle competition.
== [[Other Media]] ==
* Urban legend: A teenage girl (of course) is babysitting, and the parents call home to check in. "Everything's fine," she says, "oh, but I covered up that clown statue in the back hall with my jacket, it was creeping me out." "Clown statue? [[Oh Crap|We don't own a clown statue]]..."
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120512084943/http://citynoise.org/upload/32898.jpg Abandoned clown train remembers you!]
==
* A 2007 [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7189401.stm University of Sheffield study] found that both young and older children universally fear or dislike clown images. Now a lot of hospital wings for child patients will have to be repainted.
** A quote from the BBC article: Researcher Dr Penny Curtis said: "As adults we make assumptions about what works for children. We found that clowns are universally disliked by children. Some found them quite frightening and unknowable.")
* A charity in the Netherlands is the CliniClowns, people who dress up like clowns and visit children's hospitals in order to make them feel better. After doing this for years, psychological research shows that this backfires because too many children are ''afraid'' of clowns. Oops...
** A [http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL1582409620080116?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews Reuters article] elaborates: "The study, reported in the Nursing Standard magazine, found ''all the 250 patients'' aged between four and 16 they quizzed disliked the use of clowns, with even the older ones finding them scary."
* [
** To make matters worse the AP once accidentally used a stock photo of Gacy for National Clown Day.
** Gacy also created disturbing paintings of clowns. He sold them while he was in prison, believing that his art would live beyond the grave. The person who bought the paintings burned them all after he died so he wouldn't be remembered.
*** At least one of his paintings made it to the Louisiana swamp metal band Acid Bath. They had sent him a demo of their stuff, and he liked it so much he sent them a painting. ''When the Kite String Pops'' uses it as album art. It's rather fitting, really- [http://www.darklyrics.com/lyrics/acidbath/whenthekitestringpops.html that shit's fucked up, son.] Incidentally, their second full-length actually had a painting by ''Dr. Jack Kevorkian'' who actually ''does violins on one of the songs.''
* [http://www.ouchytheclown.com/ Ouchy the Clown] '''([[Not Safe for Work|NSFW]]!)''' is "your premier provider of adult clown services." That's right, sex clown for hire with S&M clown porn for sale. Tell me that's not [[Nightmare Fuel|some scary shit]]. His motto is "Popping up where you least expect me!"
* In his book ''Mysterious America'' and [http://copycateffect.blogspot.com/2008/10/phantom-clowns-on-coast-to-coast.html elsewhere], Fortean Loren Coleman has documented numerous cases, beginning in May
* Lon Chaney, Sr., "The Man of a Thousand Faces", and perhaps the single most iconic (as well as genuinely frightening) horror actor from the silent film era, once made the observation that "There is nothing funny about a clown in the moonlight."
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20100102022526/http://lovelylisting.com/2009/07/no-no-no-no-no-no-no.html Look! Clowns!] (This is supposed to have ''sold'' a house?)
* You can now [https://web.archive.org/web/20121120111914/http://www.metro.co.uk/weird/821591-evil-clown-hired-for-stalking-threats-and-a-pie-in-the-face hire a monster clown] to stalk small children a week before their birthday. He'll leave phone calls, post notes about how he's watching them and how he'll attack them and on their birthday, he'll smash a cake in their face.
** Jesus, what kind of parents would do ''that'' to their kid?
* Inverted by rodeo bullfighters, who dress like clowns to deal with situations (out-of-control bulls) which would scare the living shit out of practically anyone.
* The [[Juggalo]] subculture has shades of this.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20131026122902/http://www.buffo.com/ Buffo, the World's Strongest Clown!] If clowns don't scare you enough, try one that can rip phone books in half without even trying.
{{reflist}}
[[Category:
[[Category:Clown Tropes]]
[[Category:Horror Tropes]]
[[Category:Subverted Innocence Tropes]]
[[Category:Truth in Television]]
[[Category:Villains]]
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