Let your laughter out with a visit to the International Clown Hall of Fame. Located downtown in the Grand Avenue Mall, the ICHOF is a museum for the kid in us all. Stop in at lunch or take the day off and bring the kids; everyone leaves with a smile on their face.
"Seldom after the laughter fades away are we remembered," Red Skelton once said. Now, Skelton and his fellow colleagues are now immortalized for their years of laughter, right here in Milwaukee.
The museum collects and exhibits vintage pictures, props, oversized shoes, memorabilia, authentic costumes and life-like reproductions of the most famous clowns.
The wall of fame displays prints, which capture each inductee and the class in which they were inducted. These same prints are available for sale at the gift store, which also sells dolls, t-shirts and other items.
New artifacts arrive daily and the Hall of Fame is currently scouting locations in Milwaukee for a planned expansion in the near future.
There is also a theater in which you can watch your favorite clowns at work. Arrangements can be made for a guided tour and clown show, or if you're on a tight schedule, take a self-guided tour at your own pace.
The ICHOF has inducted over 50 clowns during its 14-year existence, many of whom have donated personal belongings. Among them are Skelton, Felix Adler, Otto Griebling, Roy "Cooky" Brown and many more.
Members of the public also have an opportunity to become a clown in a "Clown Encounter." National Clown Week events are also big productions here at the Hall.
The laughs extend outside the museum, according to Executive Director Kathryn O'Dell.
"The Clown Hall of Fame does a great job of providing social services to our community", O'Dell says.
Programs presented by the museum have an impact on troubled teens, who learn the value of humor by dressing up as clowns to bring laughs to the elderly. The "Clowns for Children's Hospital of Wisconsin" program provides weekly visits to the patients, family and staff at the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin.
The museum is open Mon.-Fri., 10 a.m.-4 p.m. It is closed on all legal holidays and yes, it is handicapped accessible. The International Clown Hall of Fame is located at 161 W. Wisconsin Ave., in the lower level of the Grand Avenue Mall's Plankinton Arcade.
Admission for a self-guided tour is $2 per person. Children under six are free for self-guided tours only. Tour or Clown Show (Please allow one hour) costs $5 for adults, $4 for seniors and $3 for children. Group rates (20 or more) include a tour and clown show. Please allow two hours. Adults are $8, seniors $7 and children $5.
For more information on the ICHOF you can check out www.clownmuseum.org, or give them a call at (414)-319-0848.
