COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo (KOAA) — Keith Isley spent five decades making rodeo fans laugh while keeping cowboys safe, and now the longtime entertainer is being honored with the sport's highest recognition — an induction into the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame.
The North Carolina native never wanted to be a rodeo clown. He started as a rider and a bullfighter. One night, he was bullfighting at a rodeo, and the rodeo clown was injured to the point where he had to sit the rest of the night out. As the only other person with makeup on, Keith found himself in the spotlight.
"I was a nervous wreck. Nervous wreck! They said you just became the entertainer. So I run to his trailer and I got this little act that I seen him do a thousand times. I went out and done that and got a few laughs," Isley said.
He describes himself as shy, saying he’d be nervous around a group of ten people. However, when he puts the makeup it gives him an entirely different personality that allows him to go out in front of thousands of people.
That character — baggy pants, red hat and all — became one of rodeo's most recognizable entertainers. Over his career, Isley worked seven National Finals Rodeos and won some of the sport's top honors, including Clown of the Year.
“There's a tunnel that you go to into the Thomas and Mack [arena]. And I don't care who you are, what event you're in, what you do in rodeo,” Isley said. “When you walk down that that tunnel you get a different feeling that comes over your body when you're walking into that Thomas and Mack Arena.
In 2024, Isley stepped out of the arena for the final time.
"I went back to my trailer and put my microphone up. Started taking my makeup off and I'm thinking man I'm never going to do this again. After so many years that was very tough," Isley said.
Now his career comes full circle with a place in the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame.
"The induction to the hall of fame is just like writing a really good book and at the end of the last sentence you put a period," Isley said.
Isley says while he misses performing, he is enjoying life at home with his family and horses after decades on the road.
_____
Watch KOAA News5 on your time, anytime with our free streaming app available for your Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and Android TV. Just search KOAA News5, download and start watching.
