January 2: Bozo the Clown

Larry Harmon (Weiss), who bought the rights to the character Bozo the Clown and turned him into an international mascot, was born in Toledo, Ohio on this date in 1925. It was a television writer, Alan Livingston, who created the character, and a vaudevillian named Pinto Colvig who brought Bozo to life (as well as providing the voice for Disney’s Goofy) in 1946, but it was Harmon who franchised the ever-insipid character, trained more than 200 Bozos for television affiliates across the U.S. and, in the words of the Associated Press, “embellished the clown’s distinctive look: orange-tufted hair, a bulbous nose and an outlandish red, white and blue costume.” He renamed the character “Bozo, The World’s Most Famous Clown,” modified the voice and laugh, started his own animation studio to create Bozo cartoons (with Harmon providing Bozo’s voice), and licensed a museum’s worth of Bozo products. Harmon died a millionaire at 83 in 2008. “Bozo is a star, an entertainer, bigger than life. People see him as Mr. Bozo, somebody you can relate to, touch and laugh with.” —Larry Harmon