{"id":277853,"date":"2026-02-11T01:34:08","date_gmt":"2026-02-11T01:34:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/277853\/"},"modified":"2026-02-11T01:34:08","modified_gmt":"2026-02-11T01:34:08","slug":"philippe-gaulier-clown-to-the-stars-dies-at-82","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/277853\/","title":{"rendered":"Philippe Gaulier, Clown to the Stars, Dies at 82"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\n Photo: Philip Wayne Lock\/Fairfax Media via Getty Images\n <\/p>\n

Philippe Gaulier, the founder of the literal clown academy \u00c9cole Philippe Gaulier, died on Monday, February 9, at the age of 82<\/a>. He instructed a number of Hollywood\u2019s most malleable stars in the art of clowning, including Sacha Baron Cohen, Emma Thompson, Helena Bonham Carter, and CYSK alumnus Zach Zucker<\/a>. His strict and meticulous methodologies<\/a> taught some of the smartest people on the planet how to behave like complete idiots, paving the way for a new generation of red-nosed fools to pratfall onto the stage. Even if you\u2019re not familiar with Gaulier\u2019s international acclaim as a clown and teacher, it\u2019s possible you know him from one of the great viral tweets of our time, a video most refer to in shorthand of \u201cclown is more difficult.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

Hillary Clinton interviewing a 100 year old French clown pic.twitter.com\/P0V2UMrLXZ<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 cancela lansbury (@gossipbabies) September 30, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n

In Gutsy, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton\u2019s short-lived Apple TV+ docuseries, the Clintons go to interview Gaulier in Paris. \u201cPhilippe, what\u2019s the difference for a woman in comedy than a man in comedy? Can they do the same thing?\u201d the former secretary of State asks the professional clown. In a voice that can be described only as \u201cPaul Schrader\u2019s but French,\u201d Gaulier goes on to explain that, \u201cComedy is okay, but clown is more difficult.\u201d Though that does not actually answer Senator Clinton\u2019s question, she leans back in her chair and goes \u201cyes\u201d in a way that connotes the kind of understanding you feign when you have no idea what someone is talking about. Gaulier then launches into a story about how a boy could return home all dirty and be loved by his mother, but the same perhaps could not be said about a girl coming home dirty being loved by her father. What does that have to do with anything? Don\u2019t worry about it. Just enjoy the Clintons making a half-hearted attempt to learn about clowning from someone who knew better than anyone else on earth.<\/p>\n

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