Clown Motel Tonopah Gets Smiley Face Lift!

By Marianne Donnelly

Hame Anand, third owner, creative director and CEO of The Clown Motel in Tonopah NV, , was full of joy as he shared a picture of his planned renovation-facelift, that will help fulfill his promise to the second owner Bob Perchetti, to keep the Clown-theme intact.

Visitors streamed by to take photos of the 600-plus collectable clown figurines in the playful lobby of this renowned motel as we talked about its history and his high hopes for this whimsical, comfortable, safe, non-scary motel that "welcomes all: secure parking" as stated on a happy-clown-sign outside. 

Clown Motel - Photo courtesy of the Clown Motel

The Clown Motel was founded by Leona and LeRoy David in 1985. Its location is next to the 1901 miner cemetery, where a beloved David family member is at rest. 

The Davids decorated hotel room walls and the lobby with their own beloved clown collection. They added hundreds more, gifted from fans around the world until 1995, when they sold this facinating place to Bob Perchetti, who maintained the growing collection, on groaning shelves, of clowns ranging from Pierrot sweetness to death-masque inspired "scary."  

Clown Motel - Photo courtesy of the Clown Motel

This is a place to sleep comfortably at an affordable price. It is neither haunted, nor spooky, nor creepy.  

Sadly, the 1990's creepy-clown-craze attracted ghost-hunting cults, B-grade cable TV ghost-shows and YouTube wannabes, to feed on that unfounded, somewhat offensive, but amusing, con-artist, fear-mongering, wave. 

"Clowning" is an ancient (often considered sacred) tradition that can be found in every culture around the world going back through pre-written history. 

Known by many recent names such as: clown, shaman-healer, koshare, fool, jester, prankster, trickster, zani, masquer, gagster, jokester, mummer, rodeo-picador, farceur, and hundreds more specific to cultures and eras, their ceremonies and "acts" end-results are roughly the same: to embody absurdities and frailties of human existence, and to poke fun at those vulnerabilities, as well as to "chase away fears of the unknown." 

Yes, there are scary aspects of some clown-personas, deliberately designed to provoke anxious laughter, so as to clear your mind and cause relief, on a subliminal level, by tapping into the collective-unconscious of human evolution across aeons of time. Read up!

Conveniently located in Tonopah, Nevada on Route 95, The Clown Motel is two hours north of Pahrump, thirty miles from amazing Goldfield, and about an hour from Hawthorne, where Walker Lake is located. Reno is four hours north of The Clown Motel. 

It is perfect: comfortable beds, mini fridge, microwave, wifi, dish TV, quiet, quaint, affordable, with restaurants nearby, photo-ops and amusement for the young at heart: 
521 N Main St Tonopah, Nevada 89049 (775) 482-5920.

Clown Motel - Photo courtesy of the Clown Motel