Infocult: Uncanny Informatics

A history of modern clown panics

It's good to take a breath during this year's Great Clown Panic to see the history of such madness. Jesse Walker takes us on just such a tour, marked by his sense of humor and eye for historical detail.

The earliest he cites is from the early 80s:

In the spring of 1981, according to Benjamin Radford's recent bookBad Clowns, "police in Brookline, Massachusetts, issued an all-points bulletin asking officers to watch for a vehicle containing potential child abductors. The vehicle was distinctive: an older-model van with a broken headlight, no hubcaps, and ladders on the side. It was also full of clowns. Several children reported that clowns had tried to lure them into the dark van with promises of candy, and the sinister white-faced vagabonds were later reported lurking near Brookline's Lawrence Elementary School."

And: "None of these reports, in any of these cities, were ever substantiated. Always a Boogieman, never a John Wayne Gacy."

And this fine observation:

For one thing, pretty much everyone involved is clearly having fun. It's easy to focus on the fear-filled side of a scare—that's why we call 'em scares!—but surely one thing driving these little rumor-manias is the sheer pleasure of spreading a spooky story.

There's also this fine clip of a sneaky clown (check starting :55 or so):

a

Clown panic reaches Oregon

The Great Clown Panic of 2016 now stretches from sea to shining sea, as an incident occurred in Oregon.

[P]olice responded to a call of a "clown sighting" on Wednesday evening at 10:30 p.m. at a Redmond intersection.   

"An employee working at Central Oregon Eyecare called dispatch to report she was leaving work when she saw a person wearing a clown mask with teeth, white t-shirt and blue pants," said Channel 21 in their report. "She became scared and wanted officers to escort her to her vehicle in the parking lot."

Take a deep breath. It gets worse. Police were unable to find the alleged terror clown.

The same article offers a helpful, if incomplete map of scary clown sightings:

(thanks to Mike Sellers)

Clown panic spreads to Michigan

The Great Clown Panic of 2016 spread to another American state yesterday, as a clown spooked people in Michigan.

[S]omeone in a clown costume was seen prowling a Big Rapids neighborhood. Big Rapids police were called to Colburn Avenue just before midnight on Tuesday, Sept. 27.

According to the report, a creeped-out witness says the clown in a blue costume with reddish pink hair just stood there eerily looking at people across the street, before running off into the trees behind a house.

The Big Rapids Police Department is actively looking for the clown. 

Did this really happen, or was it a prank, or did someone imagine it?  Hard to say in this fast-moving Gothic-themed cultural panic.

(thanks to Sam Rose and John Kellden)

Creepy clowns spread north to New York state

The Great Clown Panic of 2016 marched north this week, reaching New York state.

On Monday night, a woman at the Fox Run Apartments in Clifton Park reported seeing what she described as a “creepy clown” lurking outside one of the laundry rooms at night...

“It was just really creepy. Like he was just standing there in the middle of the street and so I was freaked out because of everything that was happening in the south,” Alyssa said.

Here's one video account:

Interesting to see the regional accent, with these New Yorkers referring to the clown menace as a southern thing.

The social media angle recurs: "Social media may be perpetuating the craze a bit. People saying they saw clowns in Schenectady and Troy, but police in both cities say no complaints have been filed."

(thanks to Bob Game!)

The great evil clown of New Jersey

While you wait for the next Great Clown Panic of 2016 story, consider this bit of fearsome New Jersey clown history:

The giant clown’s slyly sinister grin and blood-red tipped index finger have earned it the nickname the "Evil Clown of Middletown" in popular culture.

Behold:

What a face!  What a disturbing finger.  And what is its right hand doing?  Does the "Save" sign mock our attempts at salvation from this horror?

(thanks to Jesse "Honk Honk" Walker)

Clown panic spreads to Tennessee

The Great Clown Panic of 2016 spread even further across the American South, making appearances in the state of Tennessee.

Tennessee police issued this warning against clowns via Twitter:

THP says watch for clowns trying to lure children in to the woods. They are possibly predators. Call 911 or *847

Excellent photo,  Alas, it wasn't from a crime scene, at least not one in state, according to a followup tweet:

The clowns pic wasn't a photo taken in TN, it's a photo circulated via social media. We're promoting awareness. This has been reported in TN

Yesterday Tennessee police arrested a man for making clown-themed threats.

Coffee County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Lucky Knott told News 2 a man called the Coffee County Communications Center’s non-emergency line and identified himself as “the clown who has been threatening children.”

The man became lewd and told the dispatcher he was going to harm children.

He also allegedly told her that he would kidnap her and children, cut their ears off and conduct other lewd acts.

Meanwhile, in Kentucky, police arrested a lurking clown:

Police in Middlesboro, Kentucky have arrested a “lurking clown” that they say was crouching in the woods near an apartment complex in a full mask and costume.

The police department had received multiple complaints about the clown from several areas within the city, and were finally able locate and capture the masked menace Friday night.

Jonathan Martin, 20, has now been charged with disorderly conduct and “wearing a mask in a public place” according to local media.

This unfolding social panic seems to give some people a form for expressing otherwise hidden desires.  It's a classic real-life Gothic tale, in other words.

(thanks to Jesse Walker and Chris Lott)

And now we have digital sex doppelgangers

A Belgian sex company has come up with a new use for facial recognition technology.  They'd like you to find your own digital porn doppelganger.

“A lot of people watching porn have someone in mind and try to fulfill this fantasy by  finding  a doppelgänger doing porn. Searching for it using textual searches is very hard, that’s where technology comes in. Facial recognition is far more accurate than any textual search could be...”

The brave TechCrunch reporter tried out the service and it did not really yield good results.  But now that the idea is out there, developers will race ahead.

The world is always Gothic.  That's the great lesson of Infocult.

Another clown incident in Kentucky

Kentucky police arrested a young man for dressing up as a clown.  The 2016 Clown Panic continues:

Police in Middlesboro say an officer spotted someone dressed as a clown crouched down in a wooded area in Bell County early Friday morning.

Police say when they pulled over, the man began running towards a vehicle at Cumberland Village Apartments.

Officials arrested Jonathan A. Martin for violating the city ordinance by covering his face while in public as well as disorderly conduct.

Quite the costume:

(thanks to Tatiana)

 

Clown panic spreads to Kentucky

The Great Clown Panic of '16 has reached another state.  Police in one Kentucky town have issued a statement, on Facebook, appropriately:

Ladies and gentlemen please take note of the following as we have had several "clown complaints."

With the current mainstream media and social media coverage of clown sightings clown pranks have created a real concern and risk.

Dressing as a clown and driving, walking or standing in public can create a dangerous situation for you and others.

This creates a risk of harm to you, of collisions near roadways and to bystanders and children who become frightened.

Please refrain from this unnecessary activity.

While dressing up is not, in and of itself against the law, doing so in public and thereby creating an unnecessary sense of alarm is illegal.

Approaching people in a threatening manner and threatening people is illegal.

If you create such a situation that violates the law you will be charged and arrested.

There are additional notes about hoaxes and anti-clown militancy:

Also falsely reporting incidents to law enforcement is illegal and can lead to arrest.

Assaulting, shooting, attacking or otherwise injuring someone simply because they are wearing a costume can lead to criminal charges.

The mix seems to have stabilized: people dressing up; hoaxes; anti-clown threats; social media.

(thanks to Tatiana Benet)

Big clown fear on campus

The Great 2016 Clown Panic continues, with a report of one Alabama university now about to fall under a floppy shoe.  From a mass email to Auburn's community, reported by Jesse Walker:

On Monday evening the university and Auburn Police Division received a few reports of people dressed in clown costumes on campus. There were also several social media posts that suggested the same. We have seen similar reports of clown sightings at other universities and towns across the State of Alabama and the Southeast.

Auburn Police officers were on patrol and immediately responded to the areas reported but were unable to locate anyone. Auburn Police will continue to patrol our campus and investigate any suspicious activity. We are not aware of any danger or threat to our campus community.

We also had a report of students walking around looking for people dressed as clowns. For your safety, we strongly encourage you to leave this job to Auburn Police. Please use good judgment and avoid wearing clown masks, as it could be perceived as a hazard or threat to others...

Clowns and rumors of clowns...

("Scary Dashboard Clown Face" photo by c_r_i_s)