Bozo The Clown dies

Los Angeles - Larry Harmon, the man who turned Bozo the Clown into one the most enduring characters in American media died Thursday aged 83 from heart failure, according to a press release from his publicist.

Larry Harmon bought the rights to the clown icon in 1956 from its originator and trained hundreds of others to appear as Bozo in regional shows and television stations throughout the United States.

 Although not the original Bozo, Harmon portrayed the popular clown in countless appearances and, as an entrepreneur, he licensed the character to others, particularly dozens of television stations around the country. His career lasted over 50 years but his most successful years were in the 1980s and 1990s when shows featuring the character were a staple of kids entertainment in the US.

 Harmon once estimated that the icon had been associated with more than 5,000 commercial products and generated over 10,000 hours of TV shows.//dpa