"Stick To It, Good Things Happen"

I've rented theatres, every holiday season.

The tough part, getting an audience. I spend so much time getting an audience, the show itself becomes the second most important thing after just getting kids in there.

A funny thing happened this year. I'm over 3 weeks from my show and a quarter of the tickets are sold. This means it's pretty likely to sell out plus. Wow.

My lesson, stick to it. I've been running into people that say, I know you, I keep getting you in my email.

So, I really started working on the show. It's quite exciting. I am rehearsing and writing and reordering the show. Even if I don't sell another ticket, I have enough people coming to do the shows. I just need about 10 per show to get good laughs.

There are so many things like this as a performer and dare I say it... in life. Stick to things, even when it's uncomfortable and you can get the reward over time.

This reminds me of a section in "Think and Grow Rich" (highly highly recomend by the way!). One of the secrets to very succesful people, they don't give up early. They come to decisions quickly and let go very very slowly.

This year it looks like not only will I break even, which is my goal each year but I'll make a bit and I'll be able to pay my son and my neice more than I thought.

It's pretty cool. If you're around...come check out the show http://www.boswick.net.\/show

“The Most Hated of Men...”

I have to say, it does get to me...the clown hatred the pretend clown phobia. Yes, pretend, it exists and I’ve seen it if someone really has a fear of clowns, you can tell it’s on the level of fear of spiders it’s pretty extreme. The people that say they have it are just buying into this lazy perception.

I put up a good front and laugh it off but I am honestly confused, hurt and disappointed, about this world I’m trying to make a funnier place.

Here’s tmy mistake. Don’t go on youtube, don’t go on yelp, don’t read discussions when you search clowns. I made that mistake.

but I’ve been a bit vulnerable this week. When really great things happen to me, I get a bit nervous and uncomfortable. If get a lot of applause, I am looking for the other shoe to fall. Underneath my bravado, I’m scared of not being liked.

Here are some good things this week...

I was mentioned in the New York Times in the Sunday magazine. That’s terribly cool. I mean, it’s the NY Times! A reporter asked for a quote about a fetish thing with clowns, there are stripper clowns apparently in the burlesque world.

I’m not in the burlesque world, if I have a choice, I’m asleep around 10:30, up at 6.

A reporter for the NY Times! asked me for a quote about these strippers. I said, I was probably not the right guy to go to, I really don’t care that much. But I said, if kids see this, start saving for therapy now. I’m protective of kids but I can’t imagine you’d find a kid anywhere near a stripper place anyway. It’s drinking, it’s late at night, the filters are built in. You’re not going to find kids around a bar.

I also had some big time love and nice emails about one of my shows for Family House a charity I have taken on for kids with cancer.

I’ve been promoting my annual holiday show like crazy, I’ve been busy with shows, I’m writing a lot and I’m not broke right now.

To me, a recipe for disaster. Too many good things at once.

I was looking on Yelp and saw a guy wanted a recommendation for a clown for his child’s birthday. The thread about, how children hate clowns and clowns are scary etc etc hurts me to the core. I had an annoying teenager make a big deal the other day of avoiding me as I was going into a little girls house (this happens a lot with teenagers, they are dramatic), I had a fellow say “clown’s are scary” as I got out of my car to go to a corporate event and now Yelp.

it’s tiring being the most hated person on the planet. Yet, all I live for is audience love. It’s a weird feeling.

It’s a confusing feeling. I am one of the most beloved characters in the lives of the kids I see. I should say, the adults as well, the most common compliment I get is “I think I laughed more than the kids”

Yet, there is this lazy joke floating around that somehow becomes true to people, clowns are scary, don’t get your kids near clowns.

I often don’t think I’m strong enough to take on this battle.

Oy...it’s a living.

"It's Surreal to be a Clown.."

I visited the kids at Family House last night. Just for clarity, Family House is a place where families live while their kids are in super extreme car at UCSF Med Center. A lot of these children are bald, in wheel chairs, are very small because they don't grow.

There is a Thanksgiving party every year I go to. Volunteers make food, it's a big celebration, then they see their favorite Boswick the Clown.

OK, that's the scenario.

I am famous at Family House, and when I say famous, I mean Brad Pitt, Robin Williams famous. They have posters all over announcing my visit, they have a giant poster of me with a kid on the wall, they have a photographer to shoot the show. Last night a bunch of kids skipped the feast so they could hang out with me as I set up.

That's pretty uncomfortable for me but this show and this is bad phrasing, kills. I mean, I have the sick kids, their brothers and sisters, parents, staff and umpteen volunteers laughing in hysterics.

I got involved with Family House because they are 2 blocks from where I live. No car, just a clown walking down the street with his junk to a show.

My neighborhood is one of those really popular city neighborhoods, with hipsters, oldsters, shoppers and ATM users. Walking, I have to pass 4 restaurants, either side of the road, 3 banks, and a grocery store. Lots of people.

Mostly people ignore me, in an obvious, I'm ignoring you on purpose way. Which is always odd, I am a clown, they could say hi, or have a good day or quit clowning around. And it's at night, the show is around 7:30, you probably aren't expecting to see a clown at night going out to dinner.

I'm a celebrity in my little universe. And walking home, I'm a weirdo in a clown suit. It's the strangest of feelings. I just keep wanting to say, "you should have seen me 10 minutes ago, they couldn't stop laughing" But I'm getting people walking by me saying, "clowns scare me" And yes, they do say that right to me.

I read a great story about the world's greatest violinist playing in the subway as an experiment. The conclusion was basically, out of context you don't appreciate an art form.

As a clown, I am the living embodiment of the art itself. it's not a recording of a song, or a photo on display. It's me walking by...sort of a celebrity.

I spend my life looking for fame. So when I get that fame in abundance, it's really surreal to have it taken away so quickly.

I would drive but there's no place to park around here!

"You Can Get an Entertainer to Do Anything!”

People that do entertainment, are insecure little children. I can say that because I am an insecure child.

I have taken the stupidest jobs that do nothing for my bank account or career, because I heard, something like “we love you, my children always talk about you...” I’ve given discounts, I’ve done things for free, I’ve driven and driven driven. Because they love me, they really love me!

I am such an insecure wreck, I need to hear how wonderful I am.

The thing is, it’s not just me. All performers will do this, all performers need love more than money.

I often am in a position of being event planner for a company and have the chance to hire other entertainers. Because I chose to call them and they will lower their price for me, practically offer to wash my car because I’m calling them.

I booked a large event last year. I put together a crew of about 15 performers. It was amazing how many people just begged and were so happy, I called. I am just happy to hire the best I can, I was being paid to put this thing together, because of my knowledge, you don’t have to lick my shoe.

On the other side of this. I do have people chew me out, because I should do them a favor. then demand I give discounts. I’m talking customers here. It’s funny because it’s so easy to get discounts, this tactic makes an unhappy relationship. I often discount shows because I need to work and compare the bird in the hand vs. maybe I’ll book something, maybe I won’t. I usually have to go with the security. But it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. If people are nice about it, I don’t have that crusty feeling in my mouth.

The funny part, if they said something like, we really like you but that’s a lot more than we can afford, can you discount a bit? I’d work it out and be happy to be there. People are funny.

It’s a lesson in life. You can get a lot of good things given to you if you approach it from the person you are talking to is the best at their job.

So, if you need to totally take advantage of a creative person. Just compliment their hair, skin teeth and talent. They’ll do anything for you. Just be nice about it.

"Shows For Special Needs Kids!"

I did a show yesterday at a camp dedicated to special needs kids.

I just love these shows, I love these kids, I get a big kick out of how much they will laugh.

A lot of people don't deal with this population. I would do the shows for free, it's just a treat to me.

What's great about being a clown, is whatever happens during the show, I can "comment" on it, either physically or verbally and I do. It gets the councilors howling. Every kid there had a one on one councilor. So, it's an interesting show. Sometimes, I can have people just wandering right into a routine or in the case of yesterday, I had one young lady, stand front and center in front of me to watch. Each time, I tried to put her off to the side (gently and in a funny way), she came back to the center. Oh well, no one can see, but I just put that much more energy into working with what's there.

I have a choice going in, I can be super sarcastic and edgy because it will go over the heads of the participants and go to the councilors that tend to be sort of hip people. (yup, I've visited lots of special needs places and there are more facial piercings, porkpie hats, beanies and tattoos than the normal population).

I choose to do routines that will have the participants enjoying the show. Now this can be uncomfortable because sometimes there is no response, it's a weird feeling to be doing a routine in the quiet. While I'm doing it, I know it works, I have to trust it. I could get easy laughs by going for the self commenting route "well, I guess that doesn't work..."

That will get a laugh but it's easy cheap comedy.

At the end, I really am not sure how I did. There were participants on a higher functioning level that had a great time. But I also got a lot of stares. A couple of the councilors came up and told me, they loved it. They paid attention, watched for the entire time, that's unusual.

This is a part of the job I get a kick out of. Every day is new. Who knows what will happen next?