Nothing to clown around about

Paul Clinton

At times, the 2-year-olds don’t instantly warm up to Becky Goodyear

while she’s buried in her clown persona, Pickles. All that means is

Goodyear has to work a little harder. ‘The 2-year-olds are typically

frightened of clowns,’ Goodyear said. ‘When a 2-year-old latches on to

you, that’s real special.’ Goodyear counts herself as one of the ‘Clown

Patrol,’ the handful of jesters who have been charged with ensuring

children entering the Orange County Fair have a fun time. Wearing a

multi-colored dress, barn-red wig and cherry-sized nose, Goodyear passes

out informational pamphlets that include maps to those heading into the

fair. She doesn’t tie balloon animals or do other comedy bits that take

up to much time. She tries to keep it simple. Goodyear said she’ll break

out her sheep puppet, with a first-prize fair ribbon tied around its

neck, or shaggy dog puppet. Also in her bag of tricks is a straw basket

of rubber chickens, labeled ‘Chicken Dinnerz.’ ‘The bits that I do are

short and sweet,’ Goodyear said. ‘It’s just doing the little things to

make them feel welcome.’ Goodyear, who declined to give her age, lives in

La Palma. This year is her second at the fair. Other clowns in the posse

are also fair veterans. ‘I’m a local clown, so it’s fun for me,’ Goodyear

said. ‘Some people remember us from year to year.’ Goodyear uses a brand

of clowning that brings out some happy faces to the children she

interacts with. On Tuesday, shortly after noon, she handed a map to a

little blond girl and immediately elicited a little laugh. It’s usually

the teenagers Goodyear has the most trouble with; they have been known to

walk by and shout snide comments. ‘It’s usually because they watch those

stupid movies like ‘It’ and ‘Killer Klowns from Outer Space,” Goodyear

said.