The clown meme, aka the Clown Putting on Makeup meme, in which the clown progressively applies a full face of makeup and a wig, was created from an actual tutorial for would-be clowns. However, some people find the meme (and clowns at large). It is used in situations where you feel more and more like a clown with each passing moment.
Origins of the Clown Putting on Makeup meme
This visual shows four of the five steps to applying the clown makeup that appears in the original video. The photos used to make up the meme come from a 2015 YouTube video called "Male Clown Make-up Tutorial," posted by @SmiffysFancyDress. The video provides a 5-step tutorial on some classic clown makeup.
While it seems pretty basic, it's the stuff of nightmares for people who are afraid of clowns. It also is very fitting to describe the steps of increasingly absurd situations.
The earliest known version of the clown meme appeared in 2019, on a Facebook page called "Trash Bin." The steps of the clown putting on makeup were applied to accepting different communist governments. The meme came out with great timing, as four-panel formats were enjoying a lot of popularity at the time.
As the meme spread, it came to be used in a few different ways. In many, it shares an evolving unpopular opinion. In others, it can tell the story of someone acting increasingly foolish in a situation. It also increased the popularity of clown content overall, with it becoming one of the choice clapbacks the internet has to offer.
And certainly, society at large has had no shortage of foolish moments to joke about. With each one comes more uses of the clown meme, however—there to break down the steps in how we got there. That's not to mention Redditors who joked the makeup's design looks like the Pittsburgh Steelers logo.
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