The Healing Power of Humor 

Why are so many people still interested in clowning? If the media were to be believed, every clown is some kind of sicko or serial killer! All children and adults have some deep-seated fear of anyone in a red nose. Yet thousands of people belong to clown clubs all over the United States. Hundreds of clowns show up for conventions across the country to learn more about it, and share their love of clowning. Mooseburger Clown Arts Camp is rapidly filling up. My phone continues to ring with people who are interested in getting started in clowning or are replacing and up grading their supplies. Believe it or not, people who are not clowns read this newsletter (Hi Lyn!) because they find it interesting! Hmmm! 

When people think about the healing power of humor, they usually think about how humor assists people who are sick. Caring clowning is very popular as clowns discover the benefit of bringing laughs to folks in hospitals and nursing homes. I think there is more to it than the old proverb “laughter is the best medicine”. Maybe we should consider another quote…”physician heal thyself!” 

If the media were to be believed, those of us in funny business should all be out of business. Not so! I think the real reason is simple. There is a powerful healing power in humor. Numerous articles have been written on the subject laughter reduces pain, increases job performance, connects people emotionally, and improves the flow of oxygen to the heart and brain! After you’re done reading the Moose Newz, I encourage you to check out these links to read a couple articles on the subject: 

http://psychcentral.com/lib/2006/the-healing-power-of-humor

http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2009/04/17/Study-Laughter-is-the-best-medicine/UPI-62411239945248/ 

Allen Klein writes in The Healing Power of Humor, “In laughter we transcend our predicaments.” How true. We all need a good laugh these days. Making people laugh is even better medicine. When we make people laugh we feel better. A clown colleague once told me that the best clowns had terrible childhoods. It makes sense that those who had troubles of their own made themselves whole by making others laugh. One clown told me that he had a long list of personal health problems. He told me “I have arthritis, but Jumbo doesn’t!” He never felt any of his aches or pains while he was performing.   

Clown school, conventions, and camps are great places to go and laugh! When we all get together, we share ideas, tears, and just have a good chuckle. Clowns in and out of make-up find lots to laugh about. We look at the world with a different set of eyes -- Clown eyes! I often wonder what the hotel staff thinks when we show up? Our theme parties at conventions are a real scream. Everyone dresses up according to the theme. What great imaginations!  Here are a couple pictures I took at last month’s COAI convention in Indiana, where the theme, “Run For the Noses” was tied into the Kentucky Derby:

Crazy Hats at the theme party

Competition Costume

I have never laughed as hard as when I was with a bunch of clowns in or out of make-up! It is true I come home exhausted, but I am better for it. I truly believe it is because we operate on a different philosophy than normal people. We don’t ask “Wouldn’t it be funny IF…?”  We say… “Won’t it be funny WHEN…?”, and then we go and do it!  

Sometimes at Mooseburger Camp a clown will bring a non-clown spouse along. By the end of the week they end up in make-up too. Why? Having fun is contagious! It also may be interesting to know that sometimes folks come to Mooseburger Camp because they have had a personal tragedy or sadness.  Mooseburger Camp is a great place to laugh and cry and take time to deal with your feelings.  That could be the main reason people are still drawn to an art form that is generally degraded in the media. Thankfully there are still people who are willing to admit that they just love clowns!  

I think we are still in good shape to find grateful audiences for our tomfoolery. The world still needs clowns and, more importantly, the people behind the make-up who love to do it. So if you are worried that the art of clowning is in trouble: relax. There are still plenty of people willing to slap on the red nose and, better yet, there is a grateful world in need of our silly services! We will all feel better for it in the end.  

Happy First of May!
(okay, so I’m a little late)

Some of you may wonder why new clowns are called “Firsts of May” and where the saying came from.  Did you know that All Clowns are born on May first?

It's true! According to tradition, all clowns are born on May first, which is the reason why a rookie, or beginner clown is known as a "First of May."  Some believe that the tradition of "First of May" may have begun with Joseph "Joey" Grimaldi. Others believe that it begun with the American circus. Which ever is the truth, it is an important holiday for clowns.

The beginning of May was traditionally the time when circuses made their season run in the northern hemisphere. May being the beginning of the warm months, it was an ideal time of the year to launch the circus tour, which ran through the summer months. In the southern hemisphere, circuses traditionally started their tour around the month of August, but even those folks celebrate May First as “All Clowns Birthday.”  In this modern world, where nature and seasons are no deterrent for entertainment, circuses run their tour all year long, but one thing is constant, clowns continue to be born on May first.

Thanks to Dieguin “Veekay” the Clown for this tidbit. Please join me in wishing all clowns a "Happy First of May." If you are a clown, remember to celebrate your special day! 

Hey…does this mean all clowns get to have TWO birthday parties?  That’s twice the cake! 

Where in the world is Pricilla Mooseburger?

In a week, I’ll be heading out of town again, so catch me at these shows to get some great clown arts education and stock up on our wonderful Mooseburger wares!  You can keep track of my travel schedule online here.  See you on the road! 

May 15 - 17, 2009

Clown Town 
Location: Grove City, Ohio 
Website: http://www.clowntown.org/2009/CTframe.html  

June 9 - 14, 2009

Red Skelton Clown School 
Location: Vincennes, Indiana 
Website: http://redskeltonclownschool.com  
(psst – don’t forget that you can save up to $100 on your registration fee by purchasing a set of Red Skelton prints!  Click here to go to the ordering page.  

A Poetic Interlude… 

Poems are a great way to fill up time when you’ve run out of jokes; the really funny ones get massive giggles from your audience.  Don’t worry about memorizing them – come up with a funny shtick for unrolling a long scroll of parchment and making a big production of it, and then recite a short little poem! For birthday parties, you can come up with a template of a poem in which you put the birthday child’s name in the middle of the line, and that way you never have to worry about the ends rhyming!  Check out http://www.poemsource.com/birthday-poems.html for lots of birthday poetry.  Here are some links to poetry sites that have kid-friendly poems:

http://www.gigglepoetry.com/

http://www.familyfriendpoems.com/funny/

http://www.poetry4kids.com/poems  

We were getting goofy with some limericks of our own here at the office and thought we’d share our bardic madness with you: 

There once was a clown in distress

He needed a hat and a vest.

      How to look funny

      Without much money?

He said, “In Mooseburger I’ll invest!” 

Now our friend is all smiles.

He’s confident and clowning in style,

      Quality and value,

      And comfort, too!

That Mooseburger will last him a long while! 

(We thought this little limerick was so cute, we put it in our next Clowning Around and The New Calliope ads!  Be sure to look for it next month!) 

Tips of the Month 

BLOWIN’ IN THE WIND

Pin your hat to your wig! Use safety pins and pin from the inside of your wig. This keeps your hat on, even in the wind! Now you can jump around, bend, bow, and shake as much as you want without worrying about your hat slipping sideways.  Too many clowns get home after a parade to find out their favorite hat is long gone! This works for hair bows as well. 

GLITTER GLAM-O-RAMA!

Lose your nose?  Forgot to pack glue?  No worries!  Here’s a step-by-step guide to painting on a glitter-tipped clown nose, perfect for any clown makeup style:

1. After you have done your makeup and powdered, clean a small dot from the tip of your nose.  Using Red greasepaint (I’m using a Mehron Jumbo Pro-Pencil), draw a circle around the tip and fill it in. If you’re not sure how big you want it to be, it’s better to start smaller than what you think and then expand it (rather then the other way around).  If you don’t want to put glitter on it, then simply re-powder that area and you’re good to go!  But if you want to add some sparkle, read on…

2. Hold a pot of micro-fine glitter (I’m using Mehron Red GlitterWear Dust) near your nose and use a dry finger to dip into the pot.  Pat the glitter onto your nose.  Repeat this until the entire area of greasepaint is covered with glitter. As long as you have used a very fine grade of glitter, there is no need to powder, because the glitter acts as the absorbent for the greasepaint.

What about those cheeks?  Add some sparkle to them by dusting a bit of glitter to your skin after you’ve powdered.  No need to re-powder.  If the glitter is a fin enough grade, it should stick all by itself!  But, if you find it falling off right away, you could give a short 1-second spritz of aerosol hairspray to each cheek. 

Mooseburger Clown Arts Camp! 

For Registered Campers:

--  Be prepared for your PEP Call this month!  Pricilla will be ringing your phone during the time and day you selected to go over your questions, course options, and help you get a schedule nailed down.

--  Did you sign up for the Refund Insurance?  If so, JUNE 1^ST is the LAST day to you can get a refund if you decide to cancel.  You can still cancel after June 1^st, but you will not receive a refund.

--  June 1^st is also the deadline to turn in your Travel Form and Health Form.  If you are still finalizing your travel plans, don’t worry – all you need to do is drop Katie at line at katie@mooseburger.com and let her know that your Travel Form will be delayed.

--  Have you thought about what you’ll bring to the Ralph Pounder Memorial Scholarship Auction?  If it’s too big to bring on the plane, you can always mail your auction item ahead of time to Mooseburger Headquarters.  Include your name, phone number, and approximate value of the item (needed for silent auction) and mail to: Moose Camp Auction, P. O. Box 700, Maple Lake, MN 55358.  Keep in mind that if it’s too big for the plane, then it might be too big for anyone else to bring back on the plane – and that may limit who can bid on it.  If you need ideas, just think about what YOU would like to bid on yourself!  Or what about “Bit of Home” baskets that tell the tale of where you live?  Or fun circus memorabilia?  If you need ideas, just give us a call!

--  If you are in the dark about anything and have questions, please don’t hesitate to ask us!  We want to make sure you are 150% excited and ready for Moose Camp!  Call us toll free: 800-973-6277 (or 320-963-6277 for our Canadian friends) or email katie@mooseburger.com and we’ll make sure you get all your questions answered. 

For Everybody Else:

--  Thinking about registering?  Well, you better make up your mind quick!  At the time this newsletter was written, we had about 6 spots left.  If we do fill up before our July 20th deadline, we’ll start a waiting list – there are always a few last-minute cancellations that we can fill, so you never know when it will be your lucky day!  If you register after June 1^st, you need to have your balance paid in full at the time of registration. 

--  Want us to send you an email with more information then you’ve ever wanted to know (about Moose Camp, that is)?  Send an email with the subject “Moose Camp Info, please?” to katie@mooseburger.com and we’ll send you a long letter explaining what you need to know before coming to Moose Camp.  The letter has a packing list, schedule, travel arrangements, camp history, and a lot more. 
 

What’s NEW? 

Here at Mooseburger Headquarters, we always have customers calling to ask “What’s in stock right now?”  Well, to answer your question, we’d like to introduce a NEW section of the Moose Newz, called “What’s New?”  In this section, we will take a photo of a few costumes that have just been made and put into stock.  This way, you’ll get to see new fabrics we just got in, fun new styles that we’re making, and different ideas for putting clown costumes together.  Think of it as “electronic window shopping”!   

This is a ONE-OF-A-KIND outfit because we have used up this plaid!  We were so excited when we found this plaid because it was so tightly-woven and crisp, as it washed up so easily with hardly any need for ironing. The vest and pants sell for $248 as a set, but the rest of the items in the outfit are all priced separately.  

We’ve taken our regular Cutest Clown Dress style and replaced the puffed over-sleeves with perky shoulder ruffles.  And we just adore the sparkly butterfly fabric – it has actual glitter covering every square inch (look at the close-up detail to the right)!  Again, this is a ONE-OF-A-KIND outfit because we don’t have any more of that specialty fabric left.  The dress, bloomers, sash, bow tie, and double hair bow sell for $482 as a set.  The yellow petticoat underneath is sold separately for $52. 

Easy & breezy for summer!  This unlined blouse and pants set sells for $163 (all accessories are sold separately).  And, as if we need to tell you, the funky striped material used for the collar, pockets, and cuffs is a limited fabric and we used up the last of it for this ONE-OF-A-KIND outfit! 

Mickey Woven Hat $32  --  Available in Red, Fuchsia, Light Pink, Light Blue, Lilac, Black, and Brown

  --  Large enough for a man or a woman with a wig on.  Wear brim up or down.  Wide grosgrain ribbon band in color of your choice is wrapped around the stack.  Woven polypropylene is perfect for summer weather! 

Felt Soose Hat $30  --  Available in Red, Purple, Navy Blue, and Brown

  --  What a unique style!  This fun hat is worn on top of your head, so it can be used with or without a wig.  The durable wool felt will last you a long, long time.   

Millie Woven Hat $32  --  Available in Red, Fuchsia, Light Pink, Light Blue, Royal Blue, Butter Yellow, and Pistachio Green

  --  Slightly smaller size; perfect for a woman with or without a wig on.  Woven polypropylene is perfect for summer weather!  Wear brim up or down.  Wide grosgrain ribbon band in color of your choice is wrapped around the stack.  Fun accents are not included – they just shown for examples of how to dress it up to match your costume.  

Felt Pillbox Hat $22  --  Available in Purple only

  --  Perched on top of your head, this charming hat is the perfect accent for any costume with purple in it.  Durable wool felt will last a long time.  Secure to wig with safety pins or to real hair with bobby pins. 

Felt Bobbie Hat $35  --  Available in Red, Orange, Fuchsia, Light Pink, Royal Blue, Lime Green, Navy Blue, and Black

  --  Generous size makes this the ideal choice for men or women with wigs.  Lots of colors to choose from!  Wear brim up or down.  Wide grosgrain ribbon band in color of your choice is wrapped around the stack.  Durable wool felt will last a long time.   

That’s what’s new!  There are just a handful of our many new pieces that are filling up the store this month!  If any of these interest you, or if they spark some ideas for a customized outfit for you, please give us a call: 800-973-6277 (or 320-963-6277 for our Canadian friends) or an email: pricilla@mooseburger.com. 
 

Besides these fabulous monthly specials, remember that we also have a CLEARANCE section, too!  Click here to see all the other great stuff that we’ve marked down for you! 

Hat off to you! Order ANY in-stock hat and get FREE Shipping on your ENTIRE in-stock order!  This includes the sale-priced hats, our regularly-priced hats, and our NEW hats! Scroll down below to see the terms and conditions of the sale.

Click here to see our sale-priced.

Click here to see four pages of our regularly-priced hats and NEW hats.  

SALE-PRICED HATS: 

Bowery Boy Hat reg. $39 SALE PRICE = $30!

The classic hat the Mooseburger started out with – now finally on sale!  Made big enough to fit over any wig style. Many different color combinations in stock.   
 

Wool Felt Derby Hat reg. $52 SALE PRICE $42! This deluxe bowler-style hat comes in 4 different sizes and is made to last for years and years. Comes in Blue, Black, and Red. Can be worn with or without a wig – measure you head before you order.

Jug Head Hat reg. $42 SALE PRICE $35!

Perfect style for the prankster!  Comes in four different sizes so you can wear it with or without a wig on – call us for a list of what’s in stock.  Plenty of different color and pattern combos ready for immediate shipment. 

Sugar Baby Hat reg. $38 SALE PRICE $18! This adorable hat is perfect with or without a wig.  Many different cute color combinations in stock.  Can you believe you get a whopping $20 OFF?!?  REMEMBER, you get FREE Shipping & Handling on your entire in-stock order when you add ANY of our in-stock hats, and we mean ANY!!  We have over 50 hats in stock right now, just waiting for a happy home!

BUBBLE  JET  RINSE  How can you keep your costumes looking bright? Try Pricllla's secret weapon, Bubble Jet Rinse.  Buy TWO bottles and get FREE shipping!  Bubble Jet Rinse is a mild detergent that was originally developed for the quilting industry, so it removes waxes and oils as well as prevents fabrics from immediate fading when washing. We find it to be terrific for 100% cotton and poly/cotton blend print fabrics. We just starting using this fabulous rinse aid here at the store, and we saw SUCH a dramatic difference!

Go online to order:www.mooseburger.com

Call in your order: 800-973-6277 (or 320-963-6277 for our international friends)

Fax your order: 320-963-6692 

Terms and Conditions of Sales:

1. Offer good on orders being shipped to Canada and the US.  Order will be shipped by U.S. Parcel Post or First Class, depending on weight and destination.
2. You have to type the word “FIRST OF MAY” in the Discount Code box at the end of your online order, or write “FIRST OF MAY” somewhere on your fax-in or mail-in order, or tell the word “FIRST OF MAY” to the Mooseburger Salesperson on your phone-in order.
3. Supplies are limited. Free Shipping & Handling offer is good only on in-stock items.  Please note: Just because the item is displayed online does not mean it is in stock – all products are displayed online regardless of immediate availability.  We try to update it everyday, but the site is not always 100% up to date with current stock.  If you have any concerns, then call us before you place your order: 800-973-6277 or 320-963-6277. Click here for our Sales Page.
4. Good on phone-in, mail-in, fax-in, or online orders.  Order must be placed during the month of May. This offer is not retroactive.
5. The Shipping & Handling will still show up on your online order confirmation; sorry, we cannot control that application online.  However, rest assured that the Shipping & Handling will be deducted from your total before we process it.  You will get an email titled “New Order from PMO” with your correct total.