This classic clown character is traditionally ascribed the role of leader, expert or know-it-all in a clown skit. His white face contrasts with his costume, as these characters often wear very bright colors. The whiteface clown's palette is limited to two or three colors, reinforcing this clown's usual role of elegance. He might be seen in a brightly colored tuxedo (pants and jacket of matching color) or a jumpsuit of one color that is adorned with stripes or polka dots of another color. Often, the whiteface clown's costume is of a single color, but adorned with rhinestones or other glamorous decorative touches.
The tramp clown is a down-on-his luck character who is often described as sad or melancholy. The silent movie star Charlie Chaplin was a tramp clown. The tramp's color palette is dingy and dark, often a men's suit that is ratty and unkempt. Rips, tears and holes are all a part of this drab character's costume, as are dark clown shoes and a dark bowler or floppy hat. A white shirt is often worn to contrast with the drabness of the rest of the attire, and tramps often paint on a grayish five o'clock shadow and a huge white frown. Emmett Kelly, a pre-eminent clown for the Ringling Brothers Circus, dressed in the tramp style.
Modern circus clowns are very individual characters created by the actors portraying them. As such, these clowns can choose any colors of the rainbow to create their characters' costumes. Often, the color palette for circus clowns is wild and crazy, mixing and matching clashing colors and incongruent patterns. A circus clown might have pink hair and a solid black costume ,or an oversize, multicolored vest and tie over an all-white jump suit. Circus clowns that emulate recognizable occupations with their characters -- such as owboys, police, doctors, nurses -- often exaggerate the color palettes of the uniforms of these professions.
The Pierrot clown is a French version of a classic character from the Italian comic theater called commedia dell'arte. The French Pierrot was noted for an all-white costume -- an oversize tunic over baggy pants. The tunic usually had two or three huge black pompons down the front. This clown often performed a silent, or mimed, routine and is considered to be the predecessor of modern mimes such as Marcel Marceau. This clown's white face was meant to emphasize the expression of the eyes, since no words were spoken. Sometimes the Pierrot would cover his hair in a black skullcap or wear a tall, pointed white hat.