“Bozo’s Circus” went off the air 22 years ago, but all things related to the fabled clown and his various incarnations live on thanks to the archival efforts of Elgin native and self-proclaimed “Bozologist” Tom Holbrook.
“It all started with my mom buying me a Bozo Lakeside Bendy (bendable figure) when I was five. I have so many Bozo-related items now, my friends say I should contact the Guinness Book of World Records about it being the largest collection of its kind,” Holbrook, 59, said.
Among the items in his possession are Bozo children’s books and records, dolls, toys, lamps, bedding, towels, soaps and shampoos. He has ads for Bozo milk, Bozo bread, and Bozo peanut butter and jelly.
There are newspaper clippings, promotional materials, marketing manuals, rare video and film clips, paintings and photos, including one of a Bozo-for-hire who appeared at Meadowdale Shopping Center in Carpentersville circa 1965.
“Appearances like that drew crowds like the Beatles did,” Holbrook said.
If that’s not enough, he also has props, big shoes, wigs and costumes, including two suits worn by Frank Avruch, who played Bozo on TV in Boston from 1959 to 1970.
“I’ve become a Bozo magnet,” said Holbrook, who is single and stores all the items at a location he prefers not to disclose.
There were Bozo shows all over the country for many years, including the one that aired in Chicago on WGN/Channel 9 from 1960 to 2001. The first show appeared in Los Angeles in 1949, with other television markets subsequently buying the rights to franchise the character and create their own children’s TV programs.
Holbrook has become the clown’s unofficial historian, having penned two self-published books — “The Bozo Chronicles: The Origin and History of ‘The Capitol Clown’ 1946 to 1956? in 2010 and “Being Bozo: The World’s Most Famous TV Clown” in 2020, which he wrote with David Eaton, who played the clown in the late 1960s at a station in Ohio.
“In Illinois alone, at one time there were three Bozos,” Holbrook said.
Bob Bell was the first actor to play Chicago’s Bozo, debuting the character in 1960 and playing him until 1984. When WGN became a superstation in 1978, the show could be seen nationally and internationally and created a whole new legion of nonlocal fans.
His love for Bozo was instantaneous, watching it for the first time as a child and his collection addiction spurred, of course, by that first toy he received as a 5-year-old.
He wasn’t alone. The waiting list to see the show live was years long, with some people reportedly putting in for tickets as soon as their son or daughter was born.
“It was the hottest ticket is town,” he said.
By the time he was a teen, Holbrook had gotten to know Marshall Brodien, who played Wizzo the Wizard, and Roy Brown, the actor portraying Cooky the Clown on the Chicago show. From 2002 to 2005, he had a chance to play Bozo himself at special events when he worked for the company belonging to Larry Harmon, who owned the rights to the character.
These days he occasionally plays Wizzo at area events, part of the work he does as a local entertainer.
In August, Holbrook set up a “Bozeum” at the All Night Flea Market on the DuPage County Fairgrounds in Wheaton, giving him a chance to display some of his many Bozo artifacts. Among the people who came out to see them was Joey D’Auria, the actor who played Bozo on WGN from 1984 to 2001.
“Joey was taken aback by the Bozeum. He said it had pieces he had never seen before,” Holbrook said.
Inspired by the success of the exhibit, Holbrook is putting together a website to create a virtual archive where people can view all of his Bozo memorabilia.
Holbrook said he’s also excited that actor David Arquette purchased the rights to all things Bozo from Larry Harmon Pictures in 2021.
“David is going to take Bozo into the future. He wants to help fans become kids again,” he said.
Mike Danahey is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
