steve.feldon.org

Bozo "blown into component bozons"

2026-07-07

—Okay, so years and years ago, in the 80s, there was a brief period of time when black and white comics were a big thing, and 3D black and white comics were an even bigger thing. People were buying up licenses not so that they could put out a series of that comic, but so that they could put out a 3D special and see if it went anywhere.

One of the properties that was snapped up to do a 3D special like this was Bozo the Clown. You don’t need to know much about Bozo except that he was a real person who dressed up as a clown and did kids’ TV shows all over the East Coast, and I used to watch him when I was little. But in the 80s, somebody put out Bozo the Clown in 3D #1, and I don’t know what they were thinking, but it really wasn’t about Bozo quite so much at all. It was about these two kids who used to come to his show and were big fans who were trying to rescue Bozo. Or perhaps I should say reassemble Bozo, because there had been an explosion, a very vivid 3D effect, and Bozo had “been blown into his component Bozons.” Yes, a Bozo is made of Bozons. So here it is, 40ish years later, and I still use the phrase “blown into his/its component noun-ons.” Now you know why.

Sorry if you didn’t care.