Red Skelton.. We Miss You!
Noble Red Skelton was born into a circus family on July 18, 1913 in Vincennes, Indiana two months after the death of his father who had been a clown with the Haggenbach and Wallace traveling shows.
Red was raised by his mother in the love of the circus people who were to become his first real family, leaving an imprint on him that he would carry throughout his life, bringing happiness and laughter to millions.
At age 10, Red joined up with a traveling medicine show. From there, minstrel and tent shows, circuses, burlesques, Mississippi show boats, vaudeville, radio, motion pictures and television were to become his home.
It was as a star in in over 48 motion pictures and television that Red was to achieve his greatest public acclaim. His TV career spanned a record twenty consecutive years and his shows were always rated among the top ten in the United Sates.
Red's lesser known but equally outstanding accomplishments include the writing of nearly 5,000 musical compositions, including 64 symphonies, many of which have been played and recorded by Arthur Fiedler, Van Clyburn, David Rose, the Las Vegas Symphony, the Palm Springs Desert Symphony, and the London Philharmonic Orchestra.
Noble Red has authored more than 4,000 short stories and full length books. His Skelton's "Pledge of Allegiance (above) has won 42 awards and has twice been read into the Congressional Record.
In addition to being an accomplished entertainer, Noble Red is acclaimed as one of his century's greatest painters. His original oil paintings are displayed exclusively at Center Art Galleries, Honolulu, Hawaii, where they have been received with great acclaim by art critics and collectors from all over the world.
Evocative of a bygone era, Red's clowns are welcome guests in homes worldwide, where you are continually reminded that the appeal of these fine character studies knows no bounds. Collectors include the rich and famous and those for whom the ownership of a painting by Red Skelton is the fulfillment of a lifetime dream. Past ISCA President John Whipple has a number of original paintings.
While all artists attempt to capture emotions in their works, Red has succeeded in doing so to a degree unique in contemporary history. We are all reminded of happier days, no matter which generation of fans we belong to. It hardly matters if we first saw Red perform, in the vaudeville of the thirties, in the films of the forties and fifties, on night club stages in the sixties, college stages of the seventies, or on HBO in the eighties, Red has been part of all of the lives of we ISCA clowns, and his painting and graphics allow us to be sure that he will be our guest in our homes for years to come.
Picasso once said that he had spent his entire life trying to recapture the innocence and sensitivity of a child.
Red Skelton never lost it.
