The Plague Doctors Cometh: Update

In 2016, it was the Phantom Clowns and Stalking Clowns. Will 2020 be the Year of the Stalking Plague Doctors?  For the historical reference, see "Phantom Clowns: Classified," September 6, 2016.

Copper engraving of Doctor Schnabel (i.e., Dr. Beak), a plague doctor in seventeenth-century Rome, circa 1656. (The painting's use as a mocking of the horrific effect of the costume is theorized here.)

"Walpurgis Night, when the devil was abroad, when the graves were opened and the dead came forth and walked. When all evil things of earth and air and water held revel."

-- Bram Stoker, from Dracula's Guest, 1914.

Walpurgis Night, an abbreviation of Saint Walpurgis Night from the German Sankt Walpurgisnacht, also known as Saint Walpurga's Eve (alternatively spelled Saint Walburga's Eve), is the eve of the Christian feast day of Saint Walpurga, an 8th-century abbess in Francia, and is celebrated on the night of 30 April and the day of 1 May. This feast commemorates the canonization of Saint Walpurga and the movement of her relics to Eichstätt, both of which occurred on 1 May 870. (May 1st is also called Beltane.)

Saint Walpurga was hailed by the Christians of Germany for battling "pest, rabies and whooping cough, as well as against witchcraft." Christians prayed to God through the intercession of Saint Walpurga in order to protect themselves from witchcraft, as Saint Walpurga was successful in converting the local populace to Christianity. 

 

Eyes Wide Shut (see also here).

2020

In the midst of the present worldwide novel coronavirus/COVID19 pandemic, will (as one anonymous commentator termed them) "steampunk goth wannabes" portraying Plague Stalkers begin appearing?

On April 29, 2020, the National Post published photos take by Jade Gosbell, 21. First reported by the Press Association, a person was seen crossing a Norwich recreational area, dressed in the full garb of the infamous doctors whose outfits became a symbol of death.

This supposed Plague Doctor was photographed in Hellesdon, a Norwich suburb, in the United Kingdom.

2016

Something wicked this way came in 2016.

A Plague Doctor, publicized widely on June 24, 2016, in a long black hooded cloak with a beaked mask, shoulder bag and white stick, was seen taunting people in historic Chester, UK. The mystery person was spotted several times by spooked residents, usually at night. YouTube footage was taken at daylight on a section of the Chester's Roman walls, by the River Dee.

In the short clip, entitled "The Chester ChronicleCreepy plague man vid" the person surveyed the river, then headed off in the opposite direction.

Chester-based social enterprise Big Heritage finally owned up to being behind the trick after the story hit the national headlines.

But after the reveal, more sightings occurred, and Big Heritage said they were not responsible. 

Who knows?

Stay tuned for the events of 2020 and beyond.

Hieronymus Bosch painted this image at the end of the 15th century.

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Updates:

Also, it has been observed that Dr. Anthony Fauci is, indeed, a "plague doctor" who appears to be stalking the legacy of President Trump.

In the nearly five years since Donald Trump came down the escalator to declare his candidacy, a set of iron laws has applied to those who enter his orbit.

Rick Wilson, the former GOP strategist who is now a Trump nemesis, summed up the pattern in the title of his best-selling book from last year: Everything Trump Touches Dies. The details vary, but being tempted by Trump has turned into the modern version of the Faust saga. In exchange for benefits that seem glittery and attractive, people around Trump give away much more than they could have reckoned. ~  "This Is How It Looks When You’re Not Afraid: Anthony Fauci is the rare senior government official who seems more devoted to truth than to Trump." by James Fallows, The Atlantic, April 13, 2020. 

Source.

h/t Tim Binnall & Robert Schneck

Clowns Rob Walgreens

Two men wearing clown masks held up a Queens pharmacy at gunpoint on Tuesday morning, May 22, 2018, reported CBS New York.

Police said the suspects walked into the Walgreens on Rockaway Boulevard around 5:30 a.m. and pointed a gun at the security guard. They rounded up the employees, ransacked the place and stole two sacks filled with prescription drugs.

The men took off in a black BMW waiting outside and went east on Rockaway Boulevard. The suspects were described as Hispanic men in their 20s.

Police later found two duffle bags filled with oxycodone, morphine, Percocet and Adderall left outside a building on Hendrix Street in Brooklyn. Investigators believe those were some, but not all, of the drugs taken during the robbery.

Today's Tuesday clown robbery at a New York Walgreens closely matches the Tuesday, October 4, 2016 clown robbery at a Detroit Walgreens.

CBS Detroit reported that police were searching for a suspect who robbed a drug store at gunpoint — while wearing a scary clown mask. The incident happened around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, October 4, 2016, at the Walgreens on West and Telegraph roads in Brownstown Township, Detroit, Michigan.

According to police, the suspect entered the store with his gun drawn and demanded cash.

“He had on a black hoodie pulled over his head, a white clown mask underneath and dark colored pants,” Deputy Chief Robert Matthews said.

The suspect made off with $300 to $400 cash, fleeing the scene in a blue Chevy Impala.

A suspect in the 2016 clown robberies was later identified and other clown crimes were detailed. See here.

Creepy Clowns in the Courts: 2017

As predicted, Phantom, Stalking, and Killer clown sightings did vanish, after Halloween and Election Day 2016. It appears that the media-driven phenomena of "creepy clowns" filled a void created by public and media boredom with the long campaign of 2016.

Once the surprising election results came in that Donald Trump had received enough Electoral College votes to be the 45th President, attention shifted to politics again. Clowns seemed to literally disappear.

The lingering criminal actions resulting from a few actual "clown incidents" are now showing up in the news, via official findings and jail time.

What lead to a limited number of people behind these "creepy clowns" being adjudicated in the courts?
Let's look at few of these cases.

In Linden, New Jersey, a 14-year-old boy was recently arrested in connection with posting a creepy clown post that threatened teachers and children last year. The boy was served with complaints for terroristic threats and creating a false public alarm. He has to make an appearance in juvenile court.
Around 6:41 p.m. October 3, 2016, Linden police were alerted to a suspicious Instagram posting that featured a photo of a clown sitting on a swing. The caption of the photo reads "I'm taking and killing teachers and kids just like I did this morning September 30 following that girl."
Following a three-month investigation by Juvenile Detective Keith Milos, the boy was arrested Thursday morning, police said. Source.

Two Hunterdon County residents were summonsed with disorderly conduct after they allegedly drove through a parking lot at Hunterdon Central Regional High School while wearing clown masks.
Jared Matonis, 27, and Tyler Gallo, 18, both with Lebanon addresses, were charged at about 3:38 p.m. Oct. 7 after School Resource Officer Timothy Nemeth received a report of a suspicious vehicle that had driven through the fieldhouse parking lot with the driver and passenger wearing clown masks.
Further investigation identified Matonis as the driver and Gallo as his passenger, police said.
Source.

The big news regarding British "Killer Clowns" this week received headlines loved by the UK tabloids. A teenager who chased a pregnant woman with an axe while dressed as a "killer clown," back in October, was jailed for six months. The woman, who was 22 weeks pregnant, threw a brick at the "clown" before he ran off.

Michael March told Newcastle Crown Court he accepted his actions were "foolish and reckless" and it must have been frightening for the couple. March (below, right) said it was a Halloween prank gone horribly wrong.

Prosecutors told the court that March claimed it was a prank saying he had himself been chased by killer clowns in Gateshead and he thought he would scare people as part of a prank.
...
A 10-year-old boy in Plymouth was threatened by a clown who jumped out of a bush carrying a hammer, while in Workington, Cumbria, a clown brandishing an axe chased an 11-year-old girl.
Kent Police saw 59 clown-related incidents between October 7 and 10, (2016) Thames Valley Police had 14 reports in 24 hours, and South Yorkshire Police said it had received 61 reports. Source.

Meanwhile in Arizona,

An 18-year-old Phoenix-area man was sentenced to three months of probation Monday (February 6, 2017), in connection with a creepy-clown threat made against his former high school.
Alonzo Vargas, 18, pleaded guilty in January (2017) to a felony charge of interfering or threatening an educational institution after posting threats on social media against Westview High School in Avondale. As part of the plea agreement, a misdemeanor charge of threatening and intimidating was dropped.
With his head bowed and his voice quivering, Vargas expressed remorse over the incident during his sentencing in Maricopa County Superior Court.
"I want to apologize for the mistakes I made," he said.
Citing the seriousness of the crime, Judge Warren Granville ordered Vargas to complete 40 hours of community service and drug counseling.
"We have to figure out if this was just a badly-timed goof or something more," Granville said.
Vargas was arrested Oct. 6 after police say he posted to Instagram a screenshot of a Facebook post indicating students and faculty at Westview would be shot.
Sgt. Mathew Hintz, an Avondale police spokesman, said in October (2016) that Vargas claimed the post was all in good fun and did not believe it would be taken seriously.
Source.

Illustration at top: R. A. Di Ieso from an article in September 2016 discussing the historical origins of the then-current "creepy clown sightings," via research from Loren Coleman and Ben Radford.

Little People Lost: 2016

In a year of seemingly so many giants of Hollywood and music dying suddenly or shockingly, let us pause to remember the "Little People" often forgotten who we lost too.

For as long as show business has existed, little people have been delighting audiences — usually for the wrong reasons. In the early 1800s, they were billed as "midgets" and put on display alongside oddities like the "Feejee Mermaid" in dime museums, precursors to freak shows that served as entertainment for the unwashed masses.

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The politically correct term is "little people," abbreviated to "LPs." "Dwarf" is acceptable, the plural being "dwarfs" — not "dwarves" (which conjures Tolkien or Snow White's pals). "Midget" long has been considered offensive, referred to by many LPs as "the M-word." ~ Seth Abramovitch, "Little People, Big Woes in Hollywood: Low Pay, Degrading Jobs and a Tragic Death," Hollywood Reporter, August 25, 2016.

KIM TRIPP

Kim Tripp, 32, starred as the little people's "Mini Kim Kardashian" at Beacher's Madhouse in Las Vegas and Hollywood Roosevelt. She was found dead on the porch of her Las Vegas apartment, on Saturday, March 20, 2016.

MIHALY "MICHU" MESZAROS

Michu Meszaros, 76, the diminutive actor behind the beloved sitcom character Alf (1986), died following a stroke, on June 12, 2016. Standing at 2 feet, 9 inches, he was well-known in the skills of juggling, acrobatics and pantomime in Hungary, and brought to the United States in 1973. He was a performer formerly known as “Michu, the smallest man in the world," as a member of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus. Besides ALF, Meszaros played Hans in Waxwork (1988), Andy in Big Top Pee-Wee (1988), Augusto in Warlock: The Armageddon (1993), and Leprechaun in Death to Cupid (2015).

KENNY BAKER

Kenny Baker, the British actor who gave life to the droid R2-D2 in the Star Wars films, died at the age of 81, on Saturday, August 13, 2016. He had been ill for years, with a lung condition. Baker, who was 3 feet, 8 inches, told his family he did not expect to live past his teen years because he was a "little person," so "it is amazing he lived this long," said his niece.

Up until his final moments, Baker was in good spirits and was watching the Olympics on television.

 
Besides appearing as R2-D2 in ten Star Wars and aligned films, Baker was in many movies, including Circus of Horrors (1960), Flash Gordon (1980), The Elephant Man (1980), Time Bandits (1980), Amadeus (1984), Labyrinth (1986), Willow (1988), and U.F.O. (1993).

MARTIN HENDERSON

A dwarf, who shot to fame in 2011 after being cruelly tossed by a rugby fan in a bar, died earlier in 2016, according to media reports of December 19, 2016. The 4 ft, 2 inches tall Martin Henderson, 42, who played a goblin in Harry Potter, was left with serious injuries following the incident, while he was out celebrating his 37th birthday.

The attack was blamed on the notorious antics of the England rugby team. It came one month after star Mike Tindall and several of his teammates admitted attending a "dwarf tossing" event in a New Zealand bar.

Henderson’s story went worldwide and his name trended on Twitter after Game of Thrones star Peter Dinklage asked fans to Google him during his Golden Globes victory speech in January 2012. Drinklage said: “I want to mention a gentleman I’m thinking about in England, his name is Martin Henderson. Google him.”

MICHAEL J. ANDERSON

The actor Michael J. Anderson did not die in 2016. But some are saying he performed professional suicide with this claims against David Lynch.

The Year 2017 may be personified by the broadcast of Twin Peaks. Has Michael J. Anderson's Hollywood self-destruction late in 2016 already spelled the vanishing of "The Man from Another Place" in the revival of the series?

On August 10, 2016, as one online journal wrote:

In an astonishing online attack, Twin Peaks cult actor Michael J. Anderson has unleashed a disturbing barrage of hate-filled vitriol on esteemed filmmaker David Lynch’s reputation. The ‘revelations’ were posted up by ‘Little Mike’ on his Facebook profile photo.
It reads: “He totally did NOT rape his own under-age daughter and then write a television series about it. She totally has NOT lived under a DEATH THREAT from her own father, all her life if she ever told. He NEVER had his “best friend” murdered. And he DEFINITELY NEVER suggested to me that I should kill myself! There’s a whole bunch of other stuff he never did either.”

Whom did I miss?

Top Ten Creepy Clown Clusters of 2016

Top Ten Creepy Clown Clusters of 2016

by Loren Coleman, author of The Copycat Effect 

(New York: Simon and Schuster, 2004).

Following in the tradition of my clown list from 2008, my notes on evil clowns (and Joker copycats) for 2009, my documenting of real killer clowns in 2010, my list of evil clowns of 2011, similar weirdness in 2012, a compilation for 2013, and the creepy clown reports in California, countrywide in the USA & in France, ending us back in Aurora for 2014, and finally Top Ten Evil Clown Stories of 2015, here is my new "top ten" gathering of "creepy clown clusters" that occurred in the extraordinary Year of 2016.

First, let us reflect on 2016. No year since 1981 - when Phantom Clowns were sighted and then first discussed in book form via Mysterious America -  has there been such a multilayered, massive explosion of reports of clown accounts among the populace, first in America, and then worldwide.

The hints began in the Spring of '16, overseas.

(1) Germany ~ February

The first unusual clown event of 2016 occurred in Kassel, Germany. Two activists in clown costumes disrupted a meeting of the German anti-migrant party Alternative for Germany by throwing a cake into the face of Beatrix von Storch, one of the party’s leaders and a European Parliament member. The men approached von Storch while she was presiding over a closed-door Alternative for Germany party meeting held in Kassel, Germany, on February 28, 2016. They sang “Happy Birthday” as one of them threw a cake into von Storch’s face and the other filmed the incident.

(2) Mexico ~ March

On the weekend of March 19-20, 2016, Tony Tambor, also known as Marco Antonio Vazquez, claimed he was repeatedly punched and kicked at a Sonora, Mexico party for 30 children, according to the Houston Chronicle. Tambor may lose his eyesight, according to the Mexico News Daily.

(3) Wisconsin ~ August

The largest wave of reports of clowns in recent history began in a small way in Green Bay, Wisconsin, in early August 2016. A mysterious clown that seemingly came out of someone’s warped sense of humor was spotted in Green Bay, according to photographs making the rounds of the social media. A Facebook page called “Gags – The Green Bay Clown” claimed the first sighting happened August 1, 2016, at 2:00 a.m.

By definition, these clowns were "stalking clowns."

(4) Carolinas ~ August

"Phantom Clowns" soon popped up. On August 29, 2016, residents at the Fleetwood Manor Apartments in Greenville County, South Carolina, reported that a person wearing a clown costume had been spotted lurking around the apartment complex trying to convince children to come into the woods. This was followed quickly on September 4, 2016, when police in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, received a call about a clown looking to lure children into the woods. The Phantom Clown accounts then spread throughout the Carolinas. See also "Phantom Clowns in Greenville: Four Sightings," "Phantom Clowns: Spartanburg," "Phantom Clowns: Winston-Salem," "Phantom Clowns: Two New Piedmont Triad Incidents," "Phantom Clowns: Fayette Factor," and "Phantom Clowns: High Point."

These reports were classic "Phantom Clowns," and did not seem to be real people dressing up as clowns, i.e. "Stalking Clowns." See, "Phantom Clowns: Classified."

(5) Ohio ~ August

Like dropping a pebble in a pond, the ripples of Phantom Clown sightings went out from the Carolinas. Ohio seemed to be hit first.

A knife-wielding clown reported in the Northland area might prove a hoax, but Columbus, Ohio, police say they aren't taking any chances. A 14-year-old boy told police that a 6-foot-tall man in dark clothing and a clown mask chased him a short distance as he walked to a school bus stop at about 6:15 a.m. Tuesday, August 30, 2016, said police spokesman Sgt. Rich Weiner.  The boy told police that the incident occurred just before sunrise in his neighborhood, near Satinwood and Ironwood drives.

See also, "Phantom Clowns: Ohio."

(6) Georgia and Alabama ~ September

Next, leaping from the Carolinas to Ohio, clown incidents turned up in Georgia and Alabama. On September 14, 2016, McDuffie County deputies in Georgia say Cameron Frails, 12, and his little brother, were walking to a bus stop when they were chased by men donning clown costumes. The next day, on September 15, 2016, authorities locked down Escambia County High School and Flomaton High School in Southern Alabama after clowns threaten students and post gun emojis on Facebook. So-called "Flomo Klowns" were spotted on the premises of both schools. On September 15, 2016, police in Flomaton, Alabama, arrest 22-year-old Makayla Smith and two underage accomplices in connection with the threats to students at Escambia County High School and Flomaton High School. A middle school girl in Athens, Georgia, was arrested on September 21, 2016, after bringing a knife into school. She claims it was for protection against clown attacks.

See also, "Phantom Clowns: Alabama," "Phantom Clown: Macon + LaGrange," and "Phantom Clowns: Greensboro + Green Name Game."

(7) United States ~ September

Creepy Clown Sightings Map 2016.

After the initial sightings, all kinds of encounters with clowns were reported throughout the United States, as can be seen from this summary or this one.

Sep. 19: Several children report a series of clown sightings in different neighborhoods of Annapolis, Maryland. Police later confirm the reports to be a hoax.
Sep. 21: A 12-year-old in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, is chased by a clown through a park.
Sep. 24: A Palm Bay, Florida, resident reports spotting two “killer clowns” while walking her dog. She says the clowns were staring at her and frightened her to the point that she called police after returning home.
Sep. 25: A child in Phillipsburg, New Jersey, is chased by three people who emerged from the woods dressed as clowns. Nobody has been hurt in the town but it is the fourth such incident reported in the area. Residents plead with the troublemakers to stop their antics.
Sep. 27: Tennessee officials put out a warning telling residents to be vigilant as Halloween approaches. One teenager reports being attacked by a clown.
Sep. 27: Police in Phoenix say two different fast-food restaurants were robbed by suspects wearing clown masks.
Sep. 30: The New York Times reports that false reports or threats in connection to sightings of "creepy clowns" have led to the arrest of 12 people in over 10 states.
Sep. 30: Threatening Facebook post from the account "Aint Clownin Around" leave at least five schools in three separate states on high alert. The post sent to students in students in Westside High School in Houston reads, "We will be at all High schools this Friday to either kidnap students or kill teachers going to they cars ..."

By October, reports were coming in from Idaho, Alaska, California, Arkansas, and several other states.

(8) Worldwide ~ October

By mid-October 2016, clown sightings were being recorded in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland, New Zealand, Netherlands, Norway, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. 

Reports in the UK - in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland - called them "Killer Clowns."

(9) USA ~ October

One of the major outcomes of the "Creepy Clown Epidemic" of 2016 was the temporary (?) retiring of Ronald McDonald.

On Tuesday, October 11, 2016, the McDonald's Corporation acknowledged that it will henceforth be "thoughtful in respect to Ronald McDonald's participation in community events" as a result of the "current climate around clown sightings in communities." It became obvious that the overlap was not imaginary.

See also, "Precursor to Creepy Clowns: Ronald McDonald."

(10) USA - 2016

An earlier indicator that "creepy clowns" were on the horizon happened in June 2015, and continued into early 2016, when front page clown images and political cartoons of Donald Trump appeared in New York City and other newspapers.

The number of clown-Trump visual jokes merely increased as the year went along.

The above meme was based on an infamous scene from Stephen King's IT!

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One last note.

The media's many stories on the "Creepy Clown Epidemic" personally pulled me into the analysis long before any reporter interviewed me. Instead, the use of my 1981 work and coining of the phrase "Phantom Clowns" caused journalists to write about and quote me. See here and this brief overview.