The owners of the world renowned entertainment icon, Bozo the Clown, have signed an exclusive representation agreement for licensing with Beanstalk.
Bozo the Clown is the world’s most famous, recognizable clown. Created as a storybook character by Capital Records in 1946, Bozo the Clown was part of a storytelling record album that had a companion illustrated read-along. In the 1950’s, the record label hired Larry Harmon as one of several actors who portrayed Bozo at promotional appearances. Harmon purchased the rights to Bozo in 1956 and then franchised the character to local TV markets, where each market created their own, local, Bozo the Clown shows. At the peak of his popularity, there were dozens of Bozo shows in the US, Mexico, and Brazil. Harmon was a pioneer in merchandising, licensing the character for toys, costumes, and party accessories, among other products. The most well-known toy was the Bozo “bop bag”, an oversized, inflatable, Bozo-shaped punching bag that was in the playrooms of children across the country.
Today, Bozo is beloved as a nostalgic icon for generations of adults. Beanstalk sees licensing opportunities in several diverse categories including apparel, novelties, toys, and collectibles. The products will appear globally, across all channels of distribution, with an emphasis on specialty retailers.
“We are delighted to welcome Bozo onto our roster,” said Martin Cribbs, Vice President, Brand Management at Beanstalk. “With all the challenges in the world, Bozo is a refreshingly joyful, innocent, and fun icon who makes people smile.”
Larry Harmon Pictures Corporation representative Marci Breath looks forward to working with Beanstalk, saying, “With Beanstalk’s many years of expertise and quality representation of iconic properties like Bozo, we are honored to work with them in leveraging Bozo’s 60 plus years of global brand equity for advertising and promotions.”
