THE FUNNIES

This Month

We will be having a fun Balloon Jam. What is a Balloon Jam? It is a balloon twisting free-for-all. Teach, learn or just watch. Be sure to bring your balloons and pump or you can buy them before the meeting. Also bring a large trash bag to take your balloons home.

Just a reminder, this is the beginning of a new club year. Dues of $18.00 are due now! If you do not renew your membership you will not continue to receive your copy of The Funnies.

Last Month

In May we held our swap meet and club elections. For those who were not there, you missed out on some great swap meet buys. Plan to either set up your own table next year or bring your bankroll of money to purchase many of the great items that our members have for sale.

And we held our club elections. Your club is only as good as you make it. So if you were not at the meeting, you did not get to vote for the club officers. The officers elected are as follows:

President: Pam House

Vice President: Candy Will

Secretary/Treasurer: Wendy Olson

And our own Paulette Rosen agreed to stay on as our webmaster for " Clown Pages", our Funny Business website, and editor of our newsletter. "The Funnies".

And when you see Paulette at the next meeting, give her the praise she deserves for doing a superb job with the newsletter and the webpage. Remember again, your club is only as good as each one of you makes it. If you want changes in the club, become involved!

This N' That From President Pam

Summer is here - and lots more gigs this time of year for clowns. Remember to stay safe. And practice, practice, practice before you perform. The more practice you do, the better performer you are. Look in the mirror when you practice to see what your "audience" will see when you perform. You never can get enough practice.

This year, I am taking my 1st real vacation in 10 years. My dad will stay with my brother. Your new Vice-President is Candy Will, she will run the June meeting. I will be driving with my girlfriend in her van on June 1st to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. My parents are from there and we will stay with my uncle and aunt. Her husband flies in on June 17 and I will return that night to California. We are going to spend two days in Baraboo at the Circus World Museum. They have a library and I will see what I can get to put in future newsletters. At the Grand Avenue Mall in Milwaukee, they have the Clown Hall Of Fame and we will be going there. It will be a trip to visit relatives but also to see what I can see clownwise. I will be back for the July meeting and taking part in the July 4th Parade in Anaheim Hills Paulette Rosen will keep us informed about the parade.

Another unanswerable question: if the police arrest a mime, do they tell him he has the right to talk?

COAI NEWS by Candy

Hello Fellow COAI members, well I am sorry to pass this on to anyone who was interested in getting insurance through Clowns of America International, but because there was not enough interest from the clown population the insurance through COAI was canceled. If you have already bought insurance through COAI, don't worry, it is good for the full year. There are several other options though, you can still contact World Clown Association or Clowns of the US. You can find Clowns of the US Insurance Company in the New Calliope.

On a happier note, I have checked prices for the COAI 2006 convention leaving on March 28, and coming back on April 2nd. If you leave from LAX, the lowest price I have come across on CheapAir.com is $295. If you leave from Santa Ana, the cost would be $365 with Hotwire.com. There is going to be some new and exciting things going on at the New Orleans convention. There will be new competitions and the Junior Joeys will be having their own competition too.
See you all at the next meeting!
Your new Vice President
and your COAI Regional Vice President,
Butterscotch

The Art Of Trade Shows

This is the second in ongoing monthly articles on trade shows. Are trade shows for you?

One trade show staple is location. You must make clear arrangements regarding your location in the clients booth. The client, along with the trade show promoter, determines the booth location within the show. You usually will have no input in this decision. But you need to discuss your location within the booth with your client. Booth rents widely vary and spaces for and within the booth vary even more. Make sure you and your client have an understanding of the space arrangement. You may be standing to one side of the booth, or in front of it. And you may have a certain size platform to work off of. You might be asked to work strolling under a canopy, standing behind a podium, or seated at a table. Your client may expect you to bring your own back drop or have their own that you must use. You may be asked to catch and direct traffic to the product(s) or to the sales team. The key to all of this mentioned above is to work this all out with the client in advance. If you are new to trade shows, let the client make most of these decisions as they usually know what they want. But if you have done trade shows before, listen to their needs and then make your "suggestions" to them. Never be pushy as they are the client, they are your boss! Either way, leave your client with a clear concept of what the booth arrangement will be like and how much space you will be using.

You need to know your location, as that will determine your choice of props. A large booth with a proscenium stage for your act is rare but has been used. The act here will have to be large and visible from a distance as well as from angles. And small podiums are very common where the client tries to attract enough potential customers at one time to make it worth their while to hire you. Often they leave room for a semi-circular crowd of 15 to 30. With this setting, parlor props work well. Also there is the basic strolling or close-up arrangements, where you work for 2 - 3 people at a time to give the "personal service" touch. Standard close up is the best choice for this.

Remember, with any client, work with the client on what they want and what you can and are willing to do for them. Again, they are your boss!

(Laugh Makers Magazine Volume 16 - No. 1 - Fall 1998)

Schedule: New Jersey - June 15 Baltimore - June 20 Pittsburg - June 21 Los Angeles - July 27 San Diego - August 16 Kansas City - August 23 Chicago - September 30	More to Come! Come spend a night with Marcela "Mama Clown" Murad and Hall of Fame Inductee, Leon "Buttons" McBryde as they share their combined 60 years experience in the fields of clowning and face painting. This seminar is a high energy - fast paced - four hours, aimed at sharing tips and tricks of the trade that REALLY work to ad fun, speed and entertainment value to your presentations. . One Minute Wonders To Get a Laugh . Easy but Amazing Magic for Everyone . Storytelling . How to Have Fun with Balloons . Speedy Gonzalez Facepainting Tricks Seminars are held from 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm doors open at 4:00 pm $45 pre-registration - $60 at the door First ten to register in each location will get a chance to win a Buttons or Mama Clown porcelain doll from the Center Ring Collection
	"THIS TOUR WAS THE BEST $45 I HAVE EVER SPENT! I COULDN'T STOP LAUGHING, MAMA CLOWN AND LEON ARE THE BEST!" - Glo-bee the clown, Fl.

To register please go to
www.proknows.com
Or call 954-472-5000 or
Contact Marcela Murad for more info:
mamaclown2@ aol.com
or call 954-923-7504

Your Funny Business Board and Associates:

Pam "Twinkles d'Clown" House, President
562-431-6955 twinklesdclown@yahoo.com

Wendy Olson "Wendy" Secretary/Treasurer
714/524-2897 dolson970@sbcglobal.net

Candy "Butterscotch" Will, Vice President and COAI Regional Vice President
949-489-9971 Btrsctch4h@cox.net

Send all Articles by the last Monday in the previous month to:
Paulette "Pom-Pom" Rosen, Newsletter Editor
and Webdesigner and Webmaster for "Clown Pages" our Funny Business Website
714/539-4472 pom-pom@pom-pomclown.com
Funny Business Website http://clownpages.com

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