The Manitoulin Expositor has reported that the home of John Turner, of the Canadian horror clown duo Mump and Smoot, was destroyed by fire on January 4th. Luckily, John, his partner Julia Winder and their dog escaped the blaze unharmed.
However, their home was completely lost as well as Mr. Turner’s clown costumes and props. “All the clippings from when we first started were lost,” said Mr. Turner. “The costumes and props built up over the years are gone.”
In response to this lost, Shelley Switzer, producer of the Edmonton Street Festival, is spearheading an initiative to gather Mump and Smoot archive material to try to replace what was lost in the fire.
Ms. Switzer requests that Albertan theatre artists and theatre-going audiences to please go through any and all of your archives, pictures, media clippings and gather as many Mump and Smoot related items that you can.
Email anything you might have to producer@edmontonstreetfest.com and use the subject heading FOR MUMP AND SMOOT. Ms. Switzer will gather as much as we can and present it to Mike and John in April when they are in Edmonton to debut their new show.
Please pass this on to any friends and organizations that you know that might help i.e. any of the Fringes or theatres they have performed in. Thank you for your help!
