What, no clowns on that list? I question the veracity of this study.
Seriously, I need to brush up on my reading/comprehension skillz.
First of the list for creepy jobs, right in the teaser.
- Occupations DO differ in level of perceived creepiness: Clowns, taxidermists, sex shop owners, and funeral directors were at the top of the list.
Interesting that there’s no mention of non-social-construct, more purely biological heebie-jeebies, like trypophobia (pro tip: don’t image search that if you don’t know what it is).
They creep me out so badly I must’ve skipped right over that.
Or, y’know, I’m really bad at reading.
Can you see the fnords?
Subliminally, maybe?
A hint to all you anonymous commenters; clowns are creepy because they are hiding their identity.
Also: grotesque “funny” features, constant faux-happiness, abuse of makeup, being grown adults acting childish around children, etc. There are many possible vectors for creepiness there.
Those would not have contributed to my argument though. But yeah.
That says a lot too about why we laugh at some really bizarre things. In a no-budget film I played a clown sitting in a bar sharing the most intimate details of his life. Almost everyone who’s seen it tells me it’s hilarious.
A lot of humor comes from discomfort.
Identity is for suckaz.
You’re creeping me out (dude*)dude.
This reminds me of the time I taxedermied a clown in the funeral parlor I run out of the back of my sex shop.
I like to keep a diversified portfolio.
I saw the “Help Wanted” sign in your window. Can I get an application?
I’m picturing you played by Buscemi in the inevitable adaptation.
Yes, but HR and payroll are run out of our day care/victorian magic shop across the street. Drop it off with the conjoined clubfooted dwarves at the front desk.
As a kid, I was never creeped out by clowns until I attended a social function at which John Wayne Gacy was in attendance. Obviously, that was before he became notorious for his killing spree but I had one hell of an uh-oh feeling when he looked at me. Now I can’t be around anyone in clown makeup without experiencing fight or flight emotions.
I’m also not crazy about ventriloquist’s dummys. Especially when they’re propped up in a chair without their human handler. I also experience the heebie-jeebies when I see a mass of maggots.
If I ever run into a maggoty ventriloquist’s dummy in clown makeup I’m totally screwed.
Reminds me of the “tent” scene from the recent film A Field in England. (Those who have seen it will know what I’m talking about.) I was struck by how extraordinarily creepy the scene was, even though it lacked any violence or direct suspense. I looked at other reviews of the film and just about all of them pinpointed that scene as particularly, memorably creepy. Certainly its ambiguity was one key to its creepiness.
Number one trait I find creepy in people? Finding non-normative behaviours creepy.
But then, I like the texture of rat-tails and am friends with people who collect dead bugs.
But, y’know, “Ew! That’s just so, like, creepy.”
