Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College (originally located in Venice, Florida, then relocated to Baraboo, Wisconsin and finally Sarasota, Florida) trained around 1,400 clowns in the "Ringling style" from 1968 to 1997.

Clown College was the brainchild of Irvin Feld, the owner of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, and longtime Ringling clown and front man Bill Ballantine. In 1968, Ringling had only a handful of clowns in their alleys, most of them over fifty years of age. It was clear that these performers wouldn't be able to go on forever. But there was a dearth of suitable replacements at that time. So Feld decided to create a school to train a new generation in this ancient artform.

Feld also saw the potential public relations opportunity in having a place that could become the Mecca of clowning in America. In addition, he wanted to use the school as another way of keeping his show more attractive to audiences than his competition, and have a place where he could guarantee getting an endless supply of new talent.

In 1984, after Feld's death, Kenneth Feld, his son, took over production of Feld Entertainment and the Ringling shows. He continued to operate the school through the 1997 session, and then closed Clown College because the needs of the show had changed. The school was no longer profitable, nor necessary, as clowning had moved back into the mainstream of performing arts. Also, with nearly fifteen hundred graduates, many of whom were teaching others the lessons they had learned, and with a home videotape produced by Ringling and made at Clown College in 1986 titled "Be A Clown," which featured many of the techniques used in the school's training sessions, Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Circus officially discontinued their Clown College just shy of its 30th year. Currently, clowns for the Ringling shows are hired based on standard auditions, much like any theatrical production.

Two notable national events took place involving RBBB Clown College. The first occurred on February 17, 1988, when CBS Television broadcast the "Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College: 20th Anniversary" special. This hour long program was hosted by Dick Van Dyke and it featured a cadre of clown alumni, performing their favorite routines, as well as Mr. Van Dyke, in character as the school custodian "Burford," who was trying to pick up some of the "course material" on the sly.

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