The two clowns Gaston, left, and Rolf, in action in the program of Circus Knie in 1979.
Keystone / Str
Well-known Swiss clown Gaston Häni from the Conelli circus died of cancer on Wednesday at the age of 72, as announced by the Zurich Christmas circus on Thursday.
Born in 1951, Gaston and his colleague Roli were an integral part of the Conelli Christmas Circus every winter.
Together with Rolf Knie and the white clown Pipo Sosman, Gaston toured with the Swiss National Circus Knie from 1973 to 1977. In 1976, Gaston was invited to the Circus Festival in Monte Carlo for the first time – and was honoured by the then Prince Rainier of Monaco.
From 2011, he was engaged with Roli in the Swiss Circus Nock, where he first appeared in 1968 alongside his mother Carola – herself a gifted clown.
Gaston and Roli completed their last Swiss tour with Circus Nock in 2015. In 2017, Clown Gaston received the “Lifetime Achievement Award” at the international circus festival in Val d’Oise-Dumont near Paris.
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