Blinky the Clown (June 30, 1921 – August 27, 2012), also known as Russell Scott, and simply Clown, was an American

clown A clown is a person who performs comedy and arts in a state of open-mindedness using physical comedy, typically while wearing distinct makeup or costuming and reversing folkway-norms. History The most ancient clowns have been found in ...

, television personality and presenter who starred in a

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

television program called '' Blinky's Fun Club''. Having spent 41 years on television in character, Scott holds the record as longest-running television clown in history, as well as the longest running children's television host in the United States.

Entertainment career

Born in

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

, Russell Scott inherited his love of the circus from his father and began his entertainment career as Sears-O the Clown, performing in

Colorado Springs Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...

, Colorado. Changing his character's name to Blinky, his success brought him to the attention of television station

KKTV KKTV (channel 11) is a television station in Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States, affiliated with CBS. The station is owned by Gray Television, and maintains studios on East Colorado Avenue in downtown Colorado Springs and a transmitter ...

. ''Blinky's Fun Club'' began in 1958, originating from the KKTV studios. In 1966, the show moved to

KWGN KWGN-TV (channel 2) is a television station in Denver, Denver, Colorado, United States, airing programming from The CW. It is owned-and-operated station, owned and operated by network majority owner Nexstar Media Group alongside Fox Broadcasting ...

in Denver and remained there until ending its run in 1998. Scott performed in more than 10,000 episodes, giving him the longest career of any children's TV personality in the U.S. and second longest in the entire world. In 2004, he was inducted into The Silver Circle of the Heartland Chapter of the

National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) is an American professional service organization founded in 1955 for "the advancement of the arts and sciences of television and the promotion of creative leadership for artistic, edu ...

. In 2005, he was inducted into the Broadcast Professionals of Colorado's Broadcast Pioneers Hall of Fame. In 2006, he was the subject of a documentary titled ''Blinky'', produced and directed by Brian Malone. After his television career ended, Scott owned and operated a store called Blinky's Antiques and Collectibles on South Broadway in

. After 22 years, the shop closed in 2008. Scott died on August 27, 2012, at the Bear Creek Nursing Center in

Morrison, Colorado The Town of Morrison is a Colorado municipalities#Home rule municipality, home rule municipality in Jefferson County, Colorado, Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The population was 428 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. Red R ...

, from complications of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

. He was 91 years old.

References

1921 births 2012 deaths Deaths from pneumonia in Colorado American television personalities People from Denver People from Enid, Oklahoma American children's television presenters American clowns {{US-entertainer-stub