Editing Rodeo clown (section)

==History==
Rodeo clowns date to the beginnings of competitive rodeo in the early 1900s, when promoters hired cowboys to entertain the crowd between events or if the competition was delayed. These individuals began wearing oversized, baggy clothing and eventually developed more outlandish gear. When bull riding competition began to use ill-tempered [[Brahma bull]]s in the 1920s, the need for a person to distract the bull from fallen riders fell to the rodeo clown. The comedy aspect of clown work, as opposed to protection of rodeo athletes, began to disappear in some parts of the USA by the late 1970s.<ref>{{cite web |title=Clownin' around |author=Kendall, Pete |url=http://www.cleburnetimesreview.com/local/local_story_166095435.html |publisher=Cleburne Times-Review |date=2009-06-15 |access-date=2009-07-07 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120723131939/http://www.cleburnetimesreview.com/local/local_story_166095435.html |archive-date=2012-07-23 }}</ref>

The use of a barrel for protection began during the 1930s when a rodeo clown named Jasbo Fulkerson began to use a wooden barrel with a solid bottom.<ref name=Hollman>[http://archive.decaturdaily.com/decaturdaily/news/070326/clown.shtml Hollman, Holly. "Clowning around in arena is a century-old tradition"  Decatur Daily, March 26, 2007]</ref> In 1995, [[Earl W. Bascom]] was honored at age 89 as the oldest living rodeo clown in the world.<ref>Vernal Express (August 30, 1995) "World's oldest living rodeo clown and bullfighter dies"</ref> Bullfighting was reported as Wick Peth's profession in 1967,<ref name=latimes67>{{cite news |title=Matador in Baggy Pants |author=Taylor, Ron |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=1967-11-12 |page=M35}}</ref> and [[Jimmy Anderson (bullfighter)|Jimmy Anderson]] was reported to have begun his career in 1975.<ref name=espn>{{cite web |title=Late bullfighter Jimmy Anderson is remembered by rodeo community |url=https://www.espn.com/rodeo/news/story?id=3755701 |author=Clifton, Guy |work=[[ESPN.com]] |date=2008-12-08 |access-date=2009-07-07}}</ref>

In Australia, rodeo clowns were a part of rodeos and agricultural shows for many years. They were hired to entertain the spectators between events and to help manage the bullocks, steers or bulls in the arena.<ref name="Hicks">Hicks Jenny, “Australian Cowboys, Roughriders & Rodeos”, CQU Press, Rockhampton, QLD, 2000</ref> In the 1930s, with the introduction of aggressive [[Brahman cattle|Brahman]] bulls and Brahman crossbreds, the job became much more serious.<ref name="Groves"/> In the late 20th century, acknowledging the great danger faced by the profession, the term ''bullfighter'' began to replace the name ''rodeo clown'' in formal use.
[[File:Bull-Riding-Szmurlo.jpg|thumb|A rodeo bullfighter at work]]
At the 2001 Professional Bull Riders (PBR) World Finals, bullfighter [[Rob Smets]] no longer wore his traditional, baggy clown outfit and began wearing a sport jersey and shorts that featured his sponsors' logos. This was the blueprint for future PBR bullfighter outfits as in 2003, all bullfighters in the organization stopped wearing traditional clown make-up and outfits, and traded them for sport jerseys and shorts with corporate sponsor logos. This was also the case for barrelmen in the PBR, but they retained their make-up. In subsequent years, many bullfighters in other organizations would also adopt sport jerseys and shorts, but many also kept wearing clown make-up. Some even combine make-up and baggies with jerseys. Frank Newsom, who had fought bulls in the [[Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association]] (PRCA) and [[Professional Bull Riders]] (PBR), including at each organization's respective world championship event (the National Finals Rodeo and PBR World Finals) was the last bullfighter to wear a baggy outfit and make-up at a televised PBR event, which was the 2004 [[Built Ford Tough Series]] (BFTS) event in [[Guthrie, Oklahoma]]. He was an alternate bullfighter at said event. Beginning the next year, he would don a sport jersey and shorts as an official member of the PBR elite series' bullfighting team, of which he was a member for several years until retiring at the conclusion of the 2022 PBR World Finals.

For several years, barrelmen at PBR events have no longer gone inside the barrel in the arena. As a result, they are now referred to as "arena entertainers" or simply "entertainers".