Almost everyone has had fun with a clown, from laughing at their stunts during the circus to having a balloon animal made for them at a birthday party, but most people don't realize the long and rich history of clowns.

Clowns started out as court jesters thousands of years ago. The first known account of a court jester was in 2500 BC in ancient Egypt. Records of court jesters found in China date back through the 1800s BC, and the majority of Native American tribes also had clowns.

It wasn't all fun and games. It's interesting to note that jesters were the only people allowed to disagree with rulers, and, through their humor, they were responsible for impacting many important rulings. In China, it was the court jester Yu Sze who managed to convince the emperor not to paint the Great Wall of China, a move that eventually saved thousands of lives. In the 16th century, clowns became a major part of theater, known as Commedia del Arte. Today, English Pantomime is derived from this form of theater.

Even William Shakespeare recognized the importance of clowns in his work, writing about two in some of his plays; he even tailored some of his writing to fit the clowns' personalities. It is believed that some of the scripts were even made up by clowns on the spot, perhaps the first roots of improvisational comedy, or "improv" as we know it today.

The first clowns appeared in the circus in the mid-18th century in England. Variations of some of the first circus clown acts are still being performed today. "Whiteface" clowns appeared soon after; a product of Joseph Grimaldi, the Father of Modern Clowning, these clowns are the most well known today.

A fun fact about clowns is that the notable character of American pop culture Uncle Sam is based on one! Dan Rice was possibly one of the most influential and highest paid clowns in history. A friend of Abraham Lincoln's, Dan was famous for his satire surrounding modern events, and was possibly a forefather of stand up comedians today.

Clowns have become so popular and such a staple of life over the decades that there's even clown colleges where folks can go study how to be a professional clown. Perhaps the most well known clown college, Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Clown College, located in Sarasota, Florida, formally trained thousands of clowns.

In modern years, clowns have become a mainstream staple of a child's birthday party. Part of the reason for this is the many great ways of entertaining young children a clown can have up his or her sleeve (literally.) They can create a funny animal or shape out of a balloon in seconds, they can paint a cute design on a child's face, and they can excite the crowd with any number of tricks, like a squirting flower or a handshake buzzer. They also engage almost everyone at the party, even the shyest of the group.

For a great party, consider bringing a clown into the mix!

About the Author: At Plan Your Party they go through a lengthy hiring process to find the right person to send out to your party. They teach and train staff so they are able to run a party and perform the activities that are promised. This article powered by SEO 2.0 Services

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