Sunday, October 02, 2016

Creepy Clown Considerations


The Daily Mail mapped out what clown reports they had gathered, as of October 1, 2016. There are many more than these.
Thirty-five years ago, the phrase "Phantom Clowns" was added to my twilight language lexicon, when the actual "Phantom Clowns" appeared in America. I wrote about them, in depth, in Mysterious America
For those who have been wondering about my recent silence, in the midst of these days of heightened clown sightings, a word or two.

I have been traveling for weeks now, giving talks at conferences and festivals. While my presentations have centered on cryptozoological subjects, people have often wanted to discuss the epidemic of clown appearances. I am keenly aware this is a topic of interest to many folks.

My journeys have taken me from Point Pleasant, West Virginia, to Niagara Falls, New York, and then on to Minerva, Ohio, as well as from the Berkshires of Massachusetts to upcoming events in Minnesota and Wisconsin. I have watched with much interest the explosion in the "Phantom Clowns" incidents, and the confusion by the media with the "Stalking Clowns" accounts.

I need to be in one location (home in Portland, Maine) to analyze, track, and compile what has been happening. Please be patient with me. I will get to this important work.

I have kept in reserve some contributions that I will use from a few of you, including links being sent my way.

The input has been overwhelming. For example, reportedly, there are 30 sites in Ohio alone where "clowns" of one kind or another have been "sighted."

Vocativ's image of a "Phantom Clown" may be a bit too cheery, compared to the luring clowns reported.

There are also accounts of a deadly school shooting, a clown-related death, and perhaps harm done to someone in a clown costume. Is there a predictive link between the clowns and school violence? I hope to capture some newsworthy items here, in the near future, and ponder their linkages.

Rolling Stone's horrific "Phantom Clown" image is much scarier than most descriptions of the "real" ones seen.

I have also noticed that the alternative and mainstream media - Atlas Obscura, Seeker,  VocativWashington Post, New York Times, Rolling Stone, ReasonThe Conversation, Quartz, and others - have jumped in with overview "Phantom Clowns" articles, often quoting me.



I am grateful that there has been all due acknowledgment of my 1981 coining of the phrase "Phantom Clowns," and the realization that the 1981 cases came a half-decade before Stephen King's IT, published in 1986.

It is intriguing to read that I "came up with something called “The Phantom Clown Theory,” which attributes the proliferation of clown sightings to mass hysteria (usually sparked by incidents witnessed only by children)." Source, The Conversation, September 28, 2016.



Credit: J. D. Crowe

Also, there does seem to be a growing awareness that the "coincidence" of these clown sightings in this 2016 election year may, indeed, be synchromystic.

10 comments:

Johnny said...

Love your last line

NEWS COUPS said...

Some of these might be our own thought forms Loren.

Anonymous said...

Interesting since this same thing happened in the '80s.

Tom Mellett said...

Loren, this nationwide clown flap may soon inspire a new collegiate tradition: creepy clown hunting

Penn State students totally lose it after clown sighting

http://nypost.com/2016/10/04/college-kids-riot-over-clown-sighting-post-all-over-twitter/

It was a modern-day witch hunt – or in this case, a clown hunt.

Scores of rioting Penn State students sparked pandemonium early Tuesday when they flooded the campus and downtown streets after word quickly spread online that the nationwide rash of creepy clown sightings has hit the area.

Videos posted to social media show hundreds of rowdy students chanting and running through the streets after midnight on the hunt for the alleged bozos.

Brian D. Parsons said...

A handful of cities in Texas (Plano, Houston, Baytown, Livingston, and Lumberton) as well as Raceland, Louisiana now need added to the map.

Anonymous said...

Chicago can be added to the map also… reports came in from there tonight. http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/lake-county-news-sun/news/ct-lns-creepy-clowns-come-to-lake-county-st-1005-20161004-story.html

Unknown said...

My daughters friend called and said her mom saw one looking at her through the kitchen window.They live across from an elementary school.

Jessie said...

2 different clown sightings here in Fairbanks, AK

Tom Mellett said...

'Clown Lives Matter' march planned for Oct. 15 in Tucson

http://www.abc15.com/news/local-news/clown-lives-matter-march-planned-for-oct-15

Organizers are planning a "Clown Lives Matter" march for October 15 in Tucson in reaction to the recent spate of frightening incidents -- both real and imagined -- spread in the news and on social media.

The march will be at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 15 on 4th Avenue in Tucson. Attendees are invited to show up wearing full clown makeup or masks.

According to a flyer advertising the event, "this is a peaceful way to show clowns are not psycho killers. We want the public to feel safe, and not be afraid. So come out, bring the family, meet a clown and get a hug!"

Tom Mellett said...

And now Stephen Colbert weighs in:

‘The Clown Epidemic Is Spreading Faster Than Herpes In A Clown Car’
Stephen Colbert and a PSA explain why it’s becoming a circus.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/stephen-colbert-creepy-clowns_us_57f625fee4b002a73120ddd6

Fearing that the evil clowns will make life more difficult for the professional ones, Colbert presented a PSA to save the latter before it’s too late.

“I just want to make children laugh and adults uncomfortable,” one depressed funnyman says in the clip.