Jelly Boy The Clown Burned In A Fire
We wish him a speedy recovery
Over the weekend, Jelly Boy The Clown from the Squidling Brothers Sideshow Circus was burned in a fire in a Queens Apartment. He was staying at a friends house after gigging in Coney Island. Oddly enough, the fire wasn’t a death defying stunt gone wrong, but a run of the mill house fire tragedy. Reports are saying that both he and his friend passed out from smoke inhalation after their escape was blocked by the fire. They both suffer from severe burns and smoke inhalation and Jelly is currently in critical condition.
My connection to Jelly Boy and the creation of Swellco & Swellco are almost synonymous. I met the clown five years ago while developing a reality show pilot called Sideshow Nation. Jelly was just starting out at that time. He was a new comer who was encountering serious resistance from the sideshow community. His desire to push boundaries and his outsider status made him perfect for the show. After a year of work and a year of shopping, we were picked up and dropped by A&E all within 48 hours. My partners and I decided to transition the concept of Sideshow Nation into our own DIY company-Swellco & Swellco. Initially Jelly Boy was slated to be a main component in S&S as he had been in Sideshow Nation. But a whole lot of stressors and resentments had built during Sideshow Nation (there is a lot to mistrust in reality T.V.) and we had a falling out.
I still highly respect him as a performer and I think he is extremely IMPORTANT. He has developed, through sheer force of will and perseverance, into a major player in a community that once shunned him. We here at Swellco & Swellco value creativity, talent and dedication over all other things. The clown is a role model in our eyes and his hospitalization cuts deep. He and his troupe exude a beautifully twisted mastery over their art and strive to exist in a world that they create. They live our mission statement.
Like so many performers who choose to live on the precipice of society, we know Jelly does not have many resources and he is going to need your help.
-Nasau Chainsaw has started a paypal donation to help with his hospital bills.
-There will be a benefit show to help raise more money for his care held on Saturday, July 14th in NYC.
-Tattooist Mike Deering of Citizen Ink on Ave U and 16th st in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn will be donating 40% of his profit to help Jelly and the squidlings with the hospital bills. Call or email to set up an appointment. MikeDeeringInk@aol.com
-A FB page has been set up to help co-ordinate benefit efforts
-If you are a performer interested in helping to put together a Philadelphia Benefit, please contact us: info@moneygunsweed.com
Jelly Boy, we wish you a speedy recovery.
-R.E. Brown
Photos courtesy of http://facebook.com/people/Squidling-Brothers
Tags: benefit, betty bloomerz, jellyboy, jellyboy the clown, nassau chainsaw, r. e. brown, side show, squidling bros., tragedy
