Video: Clown Costume Controversy Leading Into Halloween

by Victoria Bailey

STARKVILLE, Miss.(WCBI)—Well Clown scares have been felt across the country and leading into Halloween the anxiety  of Spotting a clown continues to grow.

Once upon a time clowns were happy, nice, and fun. Now, thanks to scary clown sightings being spread mostly on social media, people now have a love/hate relationship with the classic character.

A princess. A Super hero…. even an astronaut…. are all very popular Halloween costumes. But at the Costume Party in Starkville, one seasonal favorite has become….in more demand.

“Our clown sales have gone up. because people are hearing an idea. people sometimes need help with an idea so they here that it’s in the news so they say hey you know I want to be a trendy clown,” said Costume Party Owner Connie Willsey.

“Amanda Slaughter, who paints faces for local events in the community says she hasn’t had to paint a face like this one… in a while,” Wcbi Reporter Victoria Bailey

“So Much Madness has happened around this, even the people that do really want to be a clown. I have a regular customer that comes and gets his face painted every Halloween. He really enjoys being a scary gruesome clown. This year even he was like I think I’m going to pass just because of all this that’s started,” said  local face painter Amanda Slaughter.

Costume Party Shop Owner Connie Willsey says clowns are getting a lot of attention, but anything can be made scary.

“Clowns don’t have to be creepy. But really you can anything can be creepy. You can take a prom dress or a bride dress and make it creepy,”said Willsey.

Slaughter says though she hasn’t created a clown face in quite some time, she has paint and brushes ready to design more happy, fun faces.

” I’m hoping its just a flash in the pan kinda thing because a lot of little kids love clowns and I would really hate for that to tarnish or leave some deep impact on them,” said Slaughter.

Now as far as we know, no other counties have placed a ban on clown attire.