[Ads-l] Quote: There's nothing funny about a clown in the moonlight

[ADSGarson O'Toole]

Several years ago I attended an excellent talk by horror writer Will
Ludwigsen. During a discussion afterwards he mentioned a saying
attributed to horror writer Robert Bloch and horror actor Lon Chaney.
He asked me to investigate the origin. He are five instances in this
family of sayings:

(1) The essence of true horror -- the clown, at midnight.
(2) There is nothing laughable about a clown in the moonlight.
(3) There's nothing funny about a clown in the moonlight.
(4) No one loves a clown at midnight.
(5) A clown isn’t funny in the moonlight.

Here are links to the piece I wrote:
Full https://quoteinvestigator.medium.com/2d3fb16d61b9
Abbrev https://quoteinvestigator.com/2023/07/19/horror-clown/

Robert Bloch was best known as the author of the 1959 book "Psycho"
which was made into a chilling 1960 film by Alfred Hitchcock. In May
1962 the magazine "Famous Monsters of Filmland" published "The Clown
At Midnight" by Bloch. This was the second part of a two part article.
Bloch wrote about the desire to visit the cinema "for shocks &
shudders and the wholesome release of fears as old as all mankind":

[ref] 1962 May, Famous Monsters of Filmland, Volume 4, Number 2, The
Clown at Midnight (Conclusion) by Robert Bloch, Note: First published
in Rogue magazine in 1960, Start Page 8, Quote Page 32, Central
Publications, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Verified with scans) [/ref]

[Begin excerpt]
Where our search will lead, I don’t know. It may be that we’ll
discover the ultimate cinematic horror in a clown. Years ago, Lon
Chaney said:

"A clown is funny in the circus ring, but what would be the normal
reaction to opening a door at midnight and finding the same clown
standing there in the moonlight?"

That, to me, is the essence of true horror -- the clown, at midnight.
[End excerpt]

A note at the beginning of this 1962 article stated that the essay was
reprinted from a 1960 issue of "Rogue". I have not directly examined
this earlier article. The cover of the March 1960 issue of "Rogue"
does list an article titled “The Clown at Midnight”.

I have not yet found additional evidence supporting the attribution of
the quotation to Lon Chaney. Chaney died in 1930. The final sentence
with the word "essence" is a quotation directly from Bloch and not
Chaney.

If you can access the March 1960 issue of "Rogue" please let me know.
If you find earlier evidence that would also be helpful.

Feedback welcome
Garson

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org