Even better for a public avid for novelty, Allen Ginsberg turned out to be a character, a bald-headed bearded lump in sandals, never short of a lively opinion and, if there was a photographer around, happy to play the buffoon.

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Just as he is adored by the poor, Estrada is scorned by the moneyed classes, the business sector and the Church, all of whom view him as something of an incompetent buffoon unqualified for the top job.

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The move is a deliberate break from how men are often portrayed in advertising, as an "alpha male, Ferrari-driving, dates the supermodel kind of guy, " or the "fumbling, bumbling buffoon, " Mr. Candelino says.

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But to be a buffoon is also to mock the respectable behaviour of the laughing audience.

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Over the years, Ballmer has made a buffoon of himself while turning out wrong call after wrong call on products, markets, and people.

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Not the responsible and orderly transfer of power undertaken by Boris Yeltsin, until recently the object of scorn as a "buffoon" by Brent Scowcroft, Mr. Bush's much-touted strategic aide.

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But Custard Clown Uncle Colin and his prankster pal Mr Woo, sporting a bright red wig, rosy cheeks and garish checked suit, were on hand to buffoon around and warm up the crowds.

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They quickly expose him as a phony, a buffoon, and a talentless hack, and then spend the rest of the movie punishing him.

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