Friends & Family Say A Final Goodbye To Blinky The Clown

DENVER (CBS4) - He entertained children across Colorado for decades and on Tuesday there was a final farewell to Russell Scott, a man known best as Blinky the Clown.

Scott was remembered as a man who loved to make people laugh.

Guests were handed red foam noses to wear to a show -- what family members called Blinky the Clown's last show -- a final moment to laugh in his presence before being laid to rest.

Scott had the longest running children's show on television called Blinky's Fun Club that debuted in 1958 on KKTV in Colorado Springs. It moved to a Denver station eight years later and was on the air for about four decades until it was canceled in 1998.

He was a character who tried to positively influence children and was a self-proclaimed safety clown.

Some paying tribute to him on Tuesday said he influenced three generations of children in their family. The children he did influence often came to visit and take pictures with him when they were all grown up.

After Blinky's show went off the air those grownups could usually find him at his antique shop in Denver, which stayed open until 2008. People also purchased and enjoyed showing off his handmade birdhouses.

Also a veteran of World War II, Scott was buried at Fort Logan National Cemetery with full military honors.

People smile and laugh when they recall their own personal memories of Blinky the Clown. But when they cry, it's not just for the man with a big red nose in a plaid coat, it's for the end of an era.

There are plans in the works to build a Blinky wax museum. An artist has already crafted a life-sized replica of the famous clown character.