Andy the Clown was the performing name of Andrew Rozdilsky, Jr. (December 6, 1917 - September 21, 1995), a lifelong Chicago resident who performed, unofficially, as a clown at Chicago White Sox games at Comiskey Park for 30 years from 1960 to 1990.
Andy was always prominent at Comiskey Park, easily spotted in his bowler hat, black-rimmed glasses and polka-dotted costume with a ruffled collar, and easily heard crying out his trademark cheer, an elongated "Gooooo yooooouuuu Whiiiiite Sooooox!" But his most distinctive and well-known feature was his large red nose, which lit up whenever he shook hands with a child. Over the years, Andy became a beloved fixture at White Sox games, continuing to perform after Veeck sold the team in 1961 to brothers Arthur and John Allyn, and also after Veeck re-purchased the team in 1975; the team never made Andy an official employee, but did provide him with free admission. He also made unofficial appearances at hospitals and charity events.
Andy was a transitional figure between eras in entertainment at major league ballparks, being the last in a generation of clowns who appeared regularly in the majors; Al Schacht was retired, Max Patkin was by now performing primarily in the minor leagues, and legendary Ringling Bros. clown Emmett Kelly, who often performed at Brooklyn Dodgers games in the 1940s and 1950s, died in 1979. In the 1970s, the trend toward costumed team mascots began, primarily with the first appearances of The San Diego Chicken in 1974 and the Phillie Phanatic in 1978.
Andy could display an impish sense of humor, as at the exhibition game in August 1981 against the Cubs; he sat down in Mayor Jane Byrne's lap, lit up his nose, turned to her husband and said, "Jay, your wife is turning me on." He also overcame illnesses to make it to games, as in 1983 when he was at the park just one hour after being released from a four-day hospital stay for a bleeding ulcer.
