Becoming an It Girl: Cosplaying as a Clown

You’ve heard the phrase, “they are just as scared of you as you are of them?” That’s how I felt on my way to New York Comic Con. This time it’s the clown who is scared.

In front of the Living Dead Dolls at New York Comic Con. This clown wants them all!

When I decided to attempt to replicate the new Pennywise costume from the upcoming “It” feature film (to be portrayed by Bill Skarsgård), my main worry was that I had so much sewing to do in so little time. The first photo of the costume was released only 6 weeks before  New York Comic Con, and I decided a week after its release that instead of recycling old cosplay, I’d make something new. However, as reports of “creepy” clown sightings began to flood the news, each day I got more and more worried about actually being able to go out in public wearing the costume into which I had put so much time (40 hours of sewing/construction) and money (close to $300).

Twitter is full of people vowing to run over or shoot any clown that comes into sight. My choice of cosplay could pose a threat on my life.

I swear if I ever see a clown out and about I will shank them or hit them with my car

— ᴋᴀɪᴛɪ (@KHughes1423) September 24, 2016

I swear if I ever see a clown I will rip his god damn nose off then pepper spray his ass

— Hannah ॐ (@HannahhKeatingg) October 7, 2016

If I ever see a clown pic.twitter.com/gz1Gq5XjUA

— Dom Glassbrenner (@DominqueG) October 7, 2016

I am a non-confrontational person. I don’t want to mess with people. I just want to wear a costume to Comic Con, just like the hundreds of others dressing up for the event. I even made this sign to hold on my way to the con.

But I didn’t even end up using the sign. Because of the hoopla, instead of taking the subway there, which would have been free since I have a monthly pass, I ended up spending $40 on an Uber, out of fear. While riding there, I did see one guy on the side of the road point and go, “Look, a clown!” Oh no, maybe I should have spent even more money on a limo with tinted windows??? But you know, he didn’t seem scared, he seemed more like, “Hey! Wow, you don’t see that every day.”

My attempt at a disguise as I wait in line for a panel.

The first panel I went to was at the Hammerstein Ballroom, a few blocks away from the Javits center, so to get there I had to walk amongst the humans of New York at the start of the day. Within one minute a man approached me. I was a little scared until he said, “Homey don’t play that!” He was just trying to be funny. That was it.

And that WAS it. I didn’t receive any negative comments for the rest of the day. Con-goers loved my costume. Some were excited and impressed to see a new “It” cosplay a year before the film’s release. Some just liked the actual costume, even if they didn’t know what it was from (I should have gotten a job as part of a street team for early promotion for the film!) One guy told me I was brave for going out in public as a clown. And a famous director even told me I was cute! I’m sure the “It” film team might not want to hear that, but sometimes a facade of cuteness can help a creature lure in its prey.

These babies are evil!

One guy did comment that he thought it was strange to see Stephen King represented at NYCC, stating it’s mostly superheroes and anime cosplay. Well, I went to panels that day for both “Ash vs Evil Dead” and “Stan Against Evil,” so I’d say horror is totally welcome there.

One Bad Apple Don’t Spoil the Whole Bunch, Girl

Most clowns aren’t evil. Apart from John Wayne Gacy, who is no longer a threat, and fictional clowns, like Pennywise, or “Killer Klowns from Outer Space,” these are just normal people. Pranksters are ruining it for everyone, not just for girls who want to cosplay, but all of the working clowns in the country. Clowns are losing jobs, and having to fight back.

In this article from Time Magazine, professional clown Jordan Jones states how he fears for his life just getting to work. “I feel that people are out clown hunting because they think it’s cool now. I’m scared that someone might take a swing.”

Schools are banning clown costumes, calling them “symbols of terror.” Using that reasoning, they’ll also have to ban ghosts, vampires, and Mickey Mouse. What? “He isn’t a symbol of terror,” you say? Watch people jump in fear when they see a mouse. As with Mickey, Minnie, Despereaux and Fievel, not all mice are scary–oh wait, not all clowns are either. (And mice are adorable, IMHO.)

The anti-clown movement has to stop. Even the man who created the most famous sewer-dwelling child-murdering clown agrees:

Hey, guys, time to cool the clown hysteria–most of em are good, cheer up the kiddies, make people laugh.

— Stephen King (@StephenKing) October 3, 2016

Sometimes You Feel like Creepy, Sometimes You Don’t

I love both creepy and non-creepy clowns. I was the weird kid who smiled at the sight of Pennywise and the clown doll from Poltergeist. (See my blog post on clowns, including Peanut, the squirrel clown.) If there’s a horror movie with clowns in it, I’ll watch it. I even have a Twisty Funko Pop! signed by John Carroll Lynch from “American Horror Story: Freak Show.” However, I also love the TV show “Baskets” about a clown played by Zach Galifianakis, in which the only horror is the regular human struggle of trying to make money at a job you love.

I have so much respect for real clowns. Not just for the party clowns who have to deal with hoards of children on birthday cake sugar highs (bless them), but also circus clowns like Barry Lubin, who delighted audiences in the Big Apple Circus as “Grandma” for over two decades, and professional clowns like Bill Irwin and David Shiner. I saw their show “Old Hats” and I was blown away. Physical comedy is an art, and these guys have mastered it.

This past summer I saw a play called the “Chinese Room,” about artificial intelligence. I was taken by actor Carson Elrod. His physical interpretation of an android was perfection. Come to find out, he has clown training from NYU. Clowning was the secret ingredient to his performance.

Fun fact: although I’m not a clown, I did take clowning class at circus camp! (So I’ve got a hint of clown street cred…)

Constructing a Clown

Originally I wanted to write a post about cosplay, how I went about creating this costume, but with the anti-clown climate sweeping the country, this article took a turn. However, I still want to share my sewing adventures with you.

There was an article in “Entertainment Weekly” in which we saw the first glimpse of the new Pennywise, created by costume designer Janie Bryant. I was thrilled to find out she was the designer, since I loved her costumes on Mad Men. (Love is probably an understatement.) I also love this new Pennywise look. Like EVERYTHING on the internet, not everyone shares this love. Well, I thumb my red painted nose at them.

Keep in mind, there is only ONE dark still photo of this costume (see below), so I did the best I could, but I had to take some creative license when it came to some of the details.

ew.com

One of the things I love about this Pennywise is that it pulls from different eras, and has a strong nod to Renaissance menswear. I have said many times that I would love to dress like an Elizabethan man–I love tights, and wear a lot of long-sleeve dresses with a full/flared or pleated skirt, not unlike a doublet with a long peplum. And since I learned the importance of puffed sleeves as a status symbol from Anne Shirley, I love to wear puffs whenever is fashionably possible. Make mine a double-puff!

Because I didn’t know the best way to create these sleeves, I did it from the shoulder down. This meant I ended up hand stitching a lot because I couldn’t fit the sleeve around the sewing machine.

I created the pompoms using different colored yarns to add some variety, and I hand-painted the white onto these awesome red boots.

I bought an anime wig and styled it, deciding due to my lack of special effects make-up knowledge, and the fact that I’m female, to forego the receding hairline.

Clown selfie. FYI, I also intended to do gold contacts, but one of them ripped

I LOVE RUFFS! I have been waiting for them to come back into style: if only “Difficult People” was real and Christian Siriano WAS designing a clown-inspired line, perhaps the trend could take off.

Julie Klausner of “Difficult People” (phoenixnewtimes.com)

My love could stem from the fact that my neck is always cold–I’d welcome the excess fabric under my chin–or it could be a subconscious thing from my childhood from watching “Black Adder II”over and over until my VHS copy wore out. Either way, I was so happy to be donning a ruff. I have neither the knowledge or means to create actual Fortuny pleats, but I compromised by cutting up pre-pleated dresses that I got at Goodwill (I actually used three different dresses). This saved me many hours of work, while at the same time recycling old clothing, putting it to good use. Plus I thought the idea of mixing old clothes with new materials fit with the concept of  Pennywise transcending time.

Pleats! Pleats! And more pleats! I actually have been on a pleats binge, ever since I saw the Manus x Machina exhibit at the Met (also accordion pleated skirts are in this season). Since I’m self-taught, I didn’t know the proper way to create the pleats on the pants, sleeves, and jacket (if you call those pleats), so I just measured, folded, and pinned. It took 7 hours just do complete that part of the task, but it got the job done. I watched horror movies while pleating, to double the fun.

Overall, I did more hand-sewing than machine sewing, which I didn’t mind; it brought me back to my childhood. I didn’t have a sewing machine until my early twenties, so August of each year I’d decide what I wanted to be for Halloween so I’d have enough time to sew my costume, whether it was Queen Amidala for a school dance, or trick-or-treating as Anne Boleyn. If it’s September, I must be sewing!

After the Make-up…

Now, de-clowned, sitting in normal clothes (which for me is a Ghoulies baseball tee), I reflect upon the experience, and consider the cosplay a success. I felt great wearing it, I wasn’t stabbed on the street, and considering the dozens of people who wanted photos of it, I think others liked it as well.

At the end of the first day of Comic Con, in a great mood and full of confidence, I decided to take public transportation home. As I headed away from the cosplay-friendly convention zone and into civilian territory, nobody ran in fear. A group of people at a rooftop bar hooted and waved. I waved back. Police didn’t give me a second look. As I got on the subway, nobody said anything, moved to a different car, or even snapped a photo. The clowns have finally come to NYC, and in typical New Yorker fashion, nobody gave a f—.

All that worrying for nothing.

Sad to have to leave Comic Con and go home…

Clowns of New York

Please follow or message me on Twitter: @cheesyearthgirl
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For more of my clown-related posts, check out:

At IT Again: Pennywise Returns to NYCC
There ought to be clowns: a clown only screening of IT
The Clown with the Furry Hands