Thanks to all who entered to win and congrats to the winner of the contest! It was definitely a difficult decision to make, that’s for sure. Our winner for the contest was Uwe “Scooter” Krohn.
After contacting Uwe with the good news, he was definitely happy to share with us some neat background info, the clown 411 if you will, for how “Scooter” came about. First, he mentioned how he performs with his wife and how this whole journey started:
”I've been clowning since 1982. Scooter had is coming out day when asked by members of the Kiwanis Club of NE Portland, OR clowns were participating in a local parade and I was asked to drive the Clown Car. Thinking that I would be driving the car, not a silly looking clown. I reluctantly agreed to have a couple of clowns who were also Shrine clowns put makeup and a costume on me. I ran from the house to the car hoping no one would see me, what I did not realize was that I would only last 10 minutes in the car as another member of the group came up a little late. I got out of the car and started meeting and greeting the crowds enjoying every minute of it. A CLOWN IS BORN!”
He also mentioned some of the gigs he’s done, some steps he’s taken to get to where he is today and also who has inspired him along the way:
“I realized that I needed to further my knowledge of being a clown and with out having the internet as we do now the library was our option and that is how I found out about other educational opportunities.
I attended my first clown convention in Corpus Cristi, TX. where I spent time with Dennis Phelps a future president with COAI. Dennis inspired me to reach out and find that clown inside me. I also found a clown class at a local community college and enrolled in the class where the instructor asked me to return the next semester and help him teach the class. I did and eventually was the instructor for the following 7 years.
Realizing that education is so important to our art with help of several other students from the clown class we established a local clown alley, Cascade Clown Club, in the Seattle/Tacoma area. We promoted the alley and started with the help of Dennis Phelps the 1st regional clown convention supported by COAI. I now belong to an alley in the Tacoma area called the Big Foot Clown Alley.
In the past I have had the opportunity to be a guest clown at a local TV show for children also doing public service announcement TV commercials and being the house clown at the Seattle Center, the home of the 1962 Worlds Fair, and the Space Needle.
I enjoy all phases of clowning be it performing for a child's 1st birthday to volunteering at nursing homes etc, participating in as many parades as possible to promote the fact that not all clowns are scary and we can make a difference in someones day. I have found that I do not need a prop for parades as everyone on the parade route has a prop. I get them to do a selfie which the teens love and giggle and laugh and high five the friends that they had a picture taken with the clown.”
Thanks for sharing with all of us your background and congrats again to “Scooter” for winning our contest! If after you read this blog you’re thinking, “hey I wanna win something!” Guess what? You can! Head over to our contest page to see how you can qualify to win in our current contest!