Clowns, dolls, and otherwise human-esque things

[LauraGB]

They bother me. They might even scare me. I don't like masks, either.

 

My family has settled in to watch The Dark Knight. After the very first scene, I've been busy with making snacks and answering the phone (and now I'm in my room trying desperately to avoid having to watch the movie). It creeped me out.

 

My dh's grandmother collected dolls. She owned an old home that still had a "parlor" after initial enterance. She filled that room with dolls and it was as untouchable as a formal living room might be. Dolls in period costume, dolls in miniature carriages, dolls and their googly eyes everywhere. I was afraid of that room. No, I never said it, because that would certainly hurt her feelings (and grandma was a Pepsi drinkin', Pringles eatin' cool old grandma). But, geeze, it freaked me out.

 

My mother's sister had clown pictures on her walls. Whenever we spent the night at my grandmother's house, we were supposed to sleep in my aunt's room. I couldn't sleep at all. And when I did, I had terrible dreams. Those pictures on the wall freaked me out.

 

I had a clown bank when I was little. I stashed my money in a sock.

 

I understand most people don't have the aversion I do to potentially normal things taking on the grotesque appearance of nonhuman things, but there has to be a few people who do.

 

If you are one, come in here and make me feel better.

Edited July 10, 2011 by LauraGB

[Belacqua]

I'm not a fan of dolls, either. The worst, for me, are those disembodied Barbie heads. WHY???

 

I'm ok with clowns, though; don't like them much, but I don't have that visceral negative response that many do. Good thing, as the people we bought our house from decorated with a whole-house clown motif. Clown pictures, clown cookie jar, clown figurines, clown shower curtain, clown birdbath (how I wish I'd photographed that). Thankfully, it was all stuff they could take with them: no clown wallpaper, as that could have been a dealbreaker.

[Impish]

Well, its not a doll or clown thing, exactly...

 

When I was 4, I played with a girl down the street. Friend had a teen sister.

 

Teen sister had a poster of KISS on her wall. Scared the living carp out of me.

 

Yes, Gene Simmons was my boogey man. Seriously. I screamed for I don't know how long after that he was coming out of my closet or under my bed...With the axe guitar, boots and tongue.

[LauraGB]

I'm not a fan of dolls, either. The worst, for me, are those disembodied Barbie heads. WHY???

 

 

 

Oh, that poor doll in Toy Story (2?)...:svengo: It was too much.

[Flux]

The ones that freak me out are those little stuffed dolls (made of stuffed baby clothes) that are perpetually facing away from you like they're counting to play hide-n-go-seek. *shiver* I found a picture of one here.

[Stacia]

Dolls don't freak me out, but I don't really care for them.

 

Clowns. Well, I don't like clowns. :tongue_smilie:

 

ETA: Hey, look, there's a term for clown phobia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coulrophobia

[Imprimis]

I absolutely love dolls---old dolls, new dolls, porcelain dolls, plastic dolls---I love them all!

 

Now, clowns :::shudder::: I find them extremely...unsettling. And, weirdly enough, all three of my kids are creeped out by clowns.

 

I remember watching some horror film as a kid where clowns were prominently featured (can't remember what it was called, but it induced nightmares...), and I suspect that has something to do with my aversion to clowns.

[Mommy2BeautifulGirls]

Clowns. I do not like clowns. At all.

 

Well, okay, if it's Bozo or a clown at a circus or a birthday party, that's okay. But I don't like clown paintings or dolls or other spooky paraphernalia. I remember my mom watching Killer Clowns From Outer Space, and I had to go outside to play or to my room or something. I just can't handle them.

 

I can handle The Joker, though, and The Dark Knight is a very, very good movie. He made quite the dark Joker, and I can totally see how you would want to avoid the movie.

 

I also cannot handle aliens. And some dolls bother me, but it totally depends on what their face looks like.

[5knights3maidens]

I absolutely dislike clowns. They scare me. I also do not want to trust someone with all that "cover up". I can't see the real "them". My kids like to go up to the people that dress up like tv characters; Clifford, Barney, etc. But I always seem to keep a close eye on them because I can't see their faces "to see" their reaction to the children. Does that make any sense?

[Stacia]

I can handle The Joker, though, and The Dark Knight is a very, very good movie.

 

:iagree:

[cathmom]

I do not like masks and would never decorate with them as some people do. My dh does not like dolls. I have my grandma's doll - oh my goodness! I just realized that her doll is 100 this year! she got her when she was 10 in 1911! - but my dh doesn't want her displayed anywhere because he feels like she's watching him.

[Osaubi]

I don't like dolls or clowns. My dd on the other hand like dolls. Her grandma gave her a creepy doll. Everyone in the house thinks it is creepy but those two.

 

I am ok with Barbies though.

 

My ds hates anyone dressed up in full costumes with adults inside like Snoopy, Mickey Mouse or Pluto. He will walk quickly in the other direction. He has ever since he was little. He also has an aversion to clowns.

[Amy in NH]

Here's a song for you:

 

 

by Jonathan Coulton

 

You might want to just listen, and not watch the video, though.

[elise1mds]

I like most masquerade masks (Mardi Gras/Carnival, that sort of thing), but I do not like dolls or clowns. They totally creep me out.

 

Funny/creepy story (this depends on your perception of funny/creepy): One of my best friends had a doll when she was little that she played with all the time. She grew up and forgot about it. She got married, had her daughter and then her son. One day one of her sisters was going through some old boxes of toys and found this doll - the spitting image of my friend's son as an infant. The similarity was so uncanny that my friend made her sister take a photo of her holding the doll. My friend then showed the photo to her husband. His response? "I don't remember that picture... when was that taken?"

[Rosie_0801]

I hate wearing make up because it's like wearing a mask. I don't want to look in the mirror and have a reflection that doesn't look like me!

 

Rosie

[Alphabetika]

I'm totally with you. My dh would add a special category of terror for puppets (especially ventriloquist dummies) and mimes.

[Geo]

As a little girl, after I was put to bed at night, I would get seriously creeped out by my dolls staring at me in the dark. I always had to lay them down so their eyes would close. Shudder. Clowns and circuses really gave me the heebee jeebies too. Mimes are only a little less creepy. Someone should post a creepy clown poll...I think most folks don't like the looks of 'em.

[Excelsior! Academy]

I'm totally with you. My dh would add a special category of terror for puppets (especially ventriloquist dummies) and mimes.

 

I totally agree! I had a nightmare one night that ventriloquist dummies were biting my fingers. We went to visit my cousins in another state. i told my parents that as long as those dummies wern't there it would be fine. I had no idea they actually had some and, yep, in the room I was to sleep.

 

My uncle has a huge stash of kachina dolls. Cuh- reepy!

 

Killer Clowns From Outer Space is one of the scariest movies of all time. It rates right up there with the Exorcist.

[Excelsior! Academy]

As a little girl, after I was put to bed at night, I would get seriously creeped out by my dolls staring at me in the dark. I always had to lay them down so their eyes would close. Shudder. Clowns and circuses really gave me the heebee jeebies too. Mimes are only a little less creepy. Someone should post a creepy clown poll...I think most folks don't like the looks of 'em.

 

Are we surprised that John Wayne Gacy used that as his side job? Now I can't look at clowns and not think about him. *shudder*

[angela in ohio]

Some dolls are creepy. My dmil has a few that look like they want to murder you in your sleep.

 

My big thing, though? Police sketch artist drawings.

 

They always look sort of human and sort of wrong. I can't look at them without getting creeped out.

[mommymilkies]

They terrify me, as well. Except handmade Waldorf-like dolls. Those I'm ok with.

[LauraGB]

I'm totally with you. My dh would add a special category of terror for puppets (especially ventriloquist dummies) and mimes.

 

No kidding. That creepy red haired guy with the freckles and the blue overhalls (I can't remember his name) has scared the snot out of me since I was little. What was his name? It was from maybe the 50s, he was pretty popular...:confused:

[Impish]

No kidding. That creepy red haired guy with the freckles and the blue overhalls (I can't remember his name) has scared the snot out of me since I was little. What was his name? It was from maybe the 50s, he was pretty popular...:confused:

Howdy Doody.

 

I still say Gene Simmons is way creepier than any clown :tongue_smilie:

[LauraGB]

Howdy Doody.

 

I still say Gene Simmons is way creepier than any clown :tongue_smilie:

 

:lol: They fall into the masked man category for me and I'm not a fan. At. All.

[Mothersweets]

Yes! Clowns and ventriloquist dummies are incredibly freaky and scary and I DO NOT like them!

 

My dh thinks I'm totally weird about it. He didn't grow up watching all those scary movies about the dummies coming to life and killing everyone in sight. Remember that Seinfeld episode about Mr. Jingles? Hilarious.

 

My kids have a dislike of clowns that they obviously picked up from me. Yay, mom! :tongue_smilie:

 

When I was pregnant with our first child, my sil and bil had just had their first child. My sil decorated the nursery with...you guessed it -a clown theme (insert scream of horror here). I had to smile and say how nice it was while trying to breathe normally and not break out in a sweat.

 

OH, I just remembered another thing - have you seen those lifesize dolls parents make that have a photo of their child for the doll's face? Those are uber-creepy!!

[kewb]

I do not like clowns. Well, really more clown dolls. People dressed as clowns I can deal with better but still don't love them.

 

Dolls-it depends on the doll. Rag dolls are okay, Barbie dolls are fine. Those Madame Alexander type dolls=freaky. I don't like their staring eyes. I am shuddering just thinking about it. A room full of dolls-I will go out of my way to avoid.

[BatmansWife]

I don't really have a problem personally with dolls or clowns. But.....I do.not. like the Dark Knight because of that creepy face. I refuse to watch it.

 

I also knew two woman, both older, who collected dolls. They were all over the inside of their houses. I mean....e.v.e.r.y.w.h.e.r.e. Pretty weird. Some were cute dolls. Most were butt ugly. I mean....just 'cuz it's a doll...you gotta have it?? One lady was my neighbor and she'd come over when I'd have a garage sale and buy my daughter's baby clothes and even baby furniture. :blink:

 

I took my son to a circus for the first time when he was about two. When the clowns came out he totally freaked. He buried his face in my shoulder and was just shaking. I ended up having to step outside with him. A few months later we went into a restaurant and as soon as we sat down ds proceeds to climb under the table. Then I realized....all the waitresses, for some reason, were dressed as clowns (they didn't normally dress that way). Had to leave again.

 

He's 16 now and it's afraid of clowns anymore. But, he doesn't like them.

[Denise in Florida]

creepy, creepy, creepy. Evil toys of any kind, particularly dolls or jack in the boxes (remember twilight zone) are the worst.

 

some clowns are okay, the ones that look like rodeo clowns or raggedy anne. The total face paint ones EEEEEWWWW!

[Jenny in Florida]

I don't generally have a problem with clowns or most dolls.

 

However, I am seriously squicked out by animatronics.

 

And I live in Orlando.

 

And my husband works for Disney.

 

I grew up in Southern California and spent a lot of time at Disneyland. Once, when I was probably eight or nine, I caught sight of an exit sign in the Pirates of the Carribbean. I asked my mother why there would be an exit from the ride, and she explained that, if the ride ever stopped or there was a problem, they would need to have a way to get the guests out safely.

 

The very idea that I might have to walk out through the scene among those not-human-but-moving figures . . .

 

Ick.

 

I've never been able to look at them the same way since.

 

I still love DisneyWorld. (We were at Disney Hollywood Studios yesterday.) But I like those animatronic figures safely at a distance, thank you.

 

I used to work in the parks. And I was once in a situation that required me to walk through The Great Movie Ride. The music and animatronics were turned off, and the lights were on, and I did okay until I got to the Oz set. Honestly, I couldn't get away from those Munchkins quickly enough!

 

I've done some reading about the "uncanny valley," and I felt better once I understood there was a reason I was weirded out by such things.

 

But, yes, you're not alone.

[Jenny in Florida]

When I was a kid, my mother had this coffee table book about antique toys. I loved to look at the pictures, except that there was one photo of a small automaton dressed in what I recognized back then as a clown outfit.

 

He sat at a little desk with a quill pen in his hand. The caption for the photo explained that he actually wrote on a little piece of paper.

 

I had nightmares about that thing for years.

 

I think one of the problems was that the photo was in black and white. So, the face looked very real without color and more detail to show the artifice. Also, there was nothing in the photo to give a sense of the scale. So, it really looked like a person sort of trapped in the toy.

 

I have looked most of my adulthood for some explanation of what the thing was, when it was made, what it did, any information, because I've never been able to forget about it. Finally, a few weeks ago, I found a bunch of stuff about it on the internet. There was even a video of it working.

 

It's still kind of creepy, but doesn't bother me as much now that I've seen the mechanisms inside and know that it's only a couple of feet tall.

 

I mean, it's not like I'm going to rush out and buy one to display in my living room, but it's better.

[AnthemLights]

I did not grow up watching horror films of any kind so I don't know how I came by it....but yes I am completely creeped out by clowns.

 

Coulrophobia...hmmm, that's pretty neat. Interesting to know that it has a name. My dh absolutely doesn't "get it" so it is nice to have some validation.:D

 

I googled fear of clowns and this is a quote I found: "She believes most people are afraid of clowns because it's impossible to gauge a clown's true emotions. Thanks to painted-on smiles, people can't distinguish if the clown is as happy as he seems or if he's actually about to bite somebody's face off."

 

How true.

[helena]

A few years ago my mom called me to see if I wanted to keep an old bag of dolls, she had a hefty bag full of them to throw away at work (she has a school, and the pre-k used them to shreds). She put them in the dumpster, freaked herself out, and took them back out. My uncle came over later and she couldn't get them to throw them out either. My family used to have the Talking Tina joke for years. :lol:

 

She finally tossed them, but she got a few laughs and a bit of the creeps that weekend. :tongue_smilie:

 

"My name is Talking Tina, and I don't think I like you"... "you'll be sorry". :lol:

 

I also had an aunt who kept buying me porcelain dolls. Ugh! Hows a kid supposed to sleep with one of those staring at you??

[helena]

I'm totally with you. My dh would add a special category of terror for puppets (especially ventriloquist dummies) and mimes.

 

:lol:

I had one of of those for a while.. I drove my friends nuts with that thing. Everyone would sleep over and I would have him next to me talking..:lol:

 

Oh my gosh!! It was so funny! This was in my early 20s too, so these were young adults getting all worked up.

[helena]

When I was a kid, my mother had this coffee table book about antique toys. I loved to look at the pictures, except that there was one photo of a small automaton dressed in what I recognized back then as a clown outfit.

 

He sat at a little desk with a quill pen in his hand. The caption for the photo explained that he actually wrote on a little piece of paper.

 

I had nightmares about that thing for years.

 

I think one of the problems was that the photo was in black and white. So, the face looked very real without color and more detail to show the artifice. Also, there was nothing in the photo to give a sense of the scale. So, it really looked like a person sort of trapped in the toy.

 

I have looked most of my adulthood for some explanation of what the thing was, when it was made, what it did, any information, because I've never been able to forget about it. Finally, a few weeks ago, I found a bunch of stuff about it on the internet. There was even a video of it working.

 

It's still kind of creepy, but doesn't bother me as much now that I've seen the mechanisms inside and know that it's only a couple of feet tall.

 

I mean, it's not like I'm going to rush out and buy one to display in my living room, but it's better.

 

 

I have a stack of those type of books! :lol:

This thread is cracking me up!! I never realized that I like a little bit of creepy doll energy.

 

Once I bought a child size doll, and I freaked the kids out with it all the time. I'd leave it in the bathroom on the toilet, or in their closet so it would be looking at them when they opened it.. :lol: I'm so bad.

 

When I was a kid we went to the circus, and the clowns came up and asked if I wanted to come down and ride in the parade. It was so frightening! I thought they wanted to take me away forever, and I morphed the memory to a Killer Clownz vibe. :tongue_smilie:

 

My mom is obsessed with circus stuff. In the summer she likes to do a circus unit in her Pre-K class. She's always showing me some new clown thing she bought for the school (usually vintage, so extra scary). I'm always laughing thinking I know some parents are weirded out by this, and the kids too... right?? Here's a book she just bought though, which is actually very cool: http://www.amazon.com/Circus-1870-1950-Noel-Daniel/dp/3822851531

[amo_mea_filiis.]

I love creepy things. Killer Clowns from Outer Space was very funny. Dolls, Dolly Dearest, Demonic Toys, It,...I love them all! The kids love halloween because they love to pick out their favorite scary movie characters. DD and I worked at a carnival until she was about 2. She would go in the exit door of the haunted house and scare the teens!