From The Wylie News
It’s Magic At The
Library
"American Girl
Princess" seems as amazed by "Sherlock Holmes" and "Santa Claus" as by
Clinky the Clown’s magic act. Clinky (author, Eric L. Hogue) led the Smith
Public Library’s ‘Hooray for Libraries’ parade last week at the Smith
Public Library in honor of National Library Week.
From an article in the April 12, 2006 edition of The Wylie News (Wylie, Texas), by managing editor, Donnita Nesbit Fisher.
From The Wylie News
State of Texas Recognizes Hogue For ‘Clinky’ Book
From The Dallas Morning News
Wylie's Mayor pro tem is a real clown.
From The Plano Star Courier
Wylie City Councilman Writes Children's Book
Revised and updated:
01/08/07.
All rights reserved.
In The News
The book, published last year, focuses on loyalty, kindness, acceptance and how to overcome prejudice in a positive way. The book, written for children age 9 to 12 years old, is a chapter book. It tells the story of Clinky and a mystery he has to solve in order to save the town of Happyville.
"It is a real honor to receive this flag and certificate from Representative Laubenberg," said Hogue. " wanted to create a book that would do more than just tell a funny story. I wanted it to have a lesson that children could learn and apply to their lives, Clinky The Clown and The Secret of Happyville is that story."
Hogue created the character "Clinky The Clown" more than 24 years ago, when he was in high school in Arkansas. He still spends part of his free time performing as Clinky. Each year he works with the Wylie independent School District to encourage reading. Once a year "Clinky" visits all of the WISD elementary schools to help promote the local public library and the importance of reading.
The book is available locally at Wylie Sports and Apparel in down town Wylie.
Hogue is currently in his second term as Wylie’s Mayor pro tem.
From an article in the February 9, 2005 edition of The Wylie News (Wylie, Texas), by managing editor, Donnita Nesbit Fisher.
Mr. Hogue, 40, created Clinky 23 years ago for a high school talent show. He's revived him over the years. When his two sons were toddlers, Clinky was a character in the whimsical bedtime tales he told them.
His wife, Tammie Hogue, encouraged him to write those stories down.
It took a couple of years, but Mr. Hogue's first children's book, Clinky the Clown and the Secret of Happyville, was published this summer. Aimed at children ages 9 to 12, it's a mystery, with life lessons sprinkled throughout.
"The whole premise behind the book is overcoming prejudice," said Mr. Hogue, explaining that whether someone is a "plain-face" or a big, red-nosed clown – "we're all the same, even if we look a little different on the outside."
Mr. Hogue's first book signing will be at 6:30 p.m. Monday. Sponsored by the Friends of the Smith Public Library, it will be at the Rita and Truett Smith Public Library, 800 Thomas St., in Wylie.
From an article in the September 12, 2004 edition of The Dallas Morning News (Dallas, Texas), by columnist, Linda Stewart Ball.
"I do a 30-minute magic show with tricks in connection with an educational message about getting a library card," said Hogue, who serves as Wylie mayor pro tem when the mayor cannot fulfill his duties and who works as a manager in the information technology department at EDS in Plano.
On his library rounds, he spends a day visiting all the school children. He started out going to Wylie's three elementary schools five years ago, and now that there are six, he says, "it's hard to fit them in one day."
But he does. Then, at the end of the year, Clinky the Clown once again re-emerges at a student-writing contest through the Wylie schools.
A columnist for his hometown paper, Hogue interviews people in the community. Once, for fun, he even interviewed Clinky.
Hogue created Clinky the Clown out of necessity. Asked to participate in a talent show in high school, Hogue says he was so shy he had to hide behind a costume.
The minute he stepped onto the stage, he was in his element. "I loved it," Hogue said. "And I loved being in front of people."
This was a major turning point in his life because up to then, he had been an introvert. And now, he was performing on stage. From that first stage production, he went to performing at children's hospitals in his home state of Arkansas.
He also performed for the kids at the Arkansas School for the Deaf, which tied in nicely with another one of his talents.
"By the time I was 12, I was doing sign language for the deaf," Hogue said. "Now I'm a certified interpreter."
At 16, Hogue was having fun with Clinky the Clown. But as he got a little older, he realized that maybe this Clinky role could help him get through college. So he began performing for children's birthday parties and at other events.
Between the paid performances, he studied education at the University of Arkansas, with the intent of teaching deaf children.
But then he met his wife, Tammie, and realized that teaching wasn't going to pay the bills. So he went to work for Dillard's, where he worked with computers in the company's corporate office.
By that time, he'd retired Clinky the Clown.
Then, when his sons, were born, Clinky resurfaced when their dad started telling them Clinky the Clown bedtime stories.
Hogue's dad had a feeling this would happen.
"He trademarked the name," Hogue said. "My dad thought Clinky could be something."
With his father's foresight and some encouragement from his wife, Clinky the Clown was reborn into book form long after Hogue's sons outgrew the bedtime stories.
Called "Clinky the Clown and the Secret of Happyville," the book is a mystery for the 9-to-12 age group. Underneath the main mystery plot are subplots meant to educate children about honesty and obeying their parents.
It took Hogue two years to write the book. Intended as the first of a series the book, self-published by Hogue through iUniverse, it is available for purchase at almost all bookstores in the North Texas area, including Barnes & Noble and Borders.
And when Hogue has a book signing, it's anything but traditional. After Hogue's next book signing at 6 p.m. Sept. 13 at the Rita and Truett Smith Public Library in Wylie, none other than Clinky the Clown will perform a magic show.
Now that his first book is out, Hogue is busy working on the second book of the series. So far, he says he's satisfied with his first book, especially since he's added a different twist to it.
"There's a mystery part that the kids have to use brain power," he said. "It gets kids to using a little thinking and to using their imagination."
From an article in the July 19, 2004 edition of The Plano Star Courier (Plano, Texas), by columnist, Shawn Floyd.
Clinky the clown© is a trademark and copyright 2007 of Eric L. Hogue.