Yengibaryan the “Thinking Clown” Would’ve Been 75

Had he been alive, Leonid Yengibaryan, master of pantomime, well-known clown and writer, would’ve been 75 today. His father was a chief cook in Metropol Hotel, while his mother was a homemaker.

Born in Moscow in 1935, he had a long way to go before he would devote his life to the circus and become a professional clown. Yengibaryan tried to reveal his hand in various areas, such as the fishing industry and professional boxing, but when the Moscow State College of Circus and Variety Arts opened a Department of Clown Art in 1955, Yengibaryan decided to apply.

From early on in his new career, Yengibaryan faced controversial reactions from his colleagues and the public, with his friends advising him to quite the “thinking clown” character.

Leonid Yengibaryan said about himself: “I like the sea, the autumn ... Vincent van Gogh. I am afraid of welfare [that is, social welfare]. For me the most important thing in life is responsibility, which must be borne for everything happening around us.”