School is just a fraction of our lives, though there's a small urge in many of us to know what the heck happened to the classmates we graduated with, especially the ones who brightened up the classroom. So, I recently asked people in the BuzzFeed Community, "What happened to the 'class clown,' or funny person, of your school? And wow, I wasn't expecting some of these:
1. "I've known one of our class clowns since second grade. We're almost 30 now, and to my awareness, he is still funny. He started doing stand-up comedy, and he's married to a woman who thinks he's hilarious. He's also best friends with the other class clown — that guy got a degree in law enforcement, moved to another city, and got married. He was working as a prison guard in that other city, then got caught smuggling drugs using spare pairs of gloves in his pocket to hide them. He went to jail for a couple of years, but he's out now. He's happily married to a wife who still loves him in spite of his legal issue. And he's still funny."
2. "I was the class clown. I don’t think I’m particularly funny, but I was really good at getting a reaction out of teachers and pissing them off which in turn made my peers laugh. Now, I'm a special education teacher. I still enjoy getting a rise out of others at our staff and district-wide meetings, just with a little more tact. I guess annoying my superiors is just part of my personality."
—Anonymous, California, 32
3. "He became a psychologist and is a self-described 'hedonist.' I kid you not. Like he has a whole blog about it."
4. "He wasn't particularly good-looking, but his humor made him popular. He dated and married one of the most beautiful women in school. They're still together and happy."
5. "He hated school, and he was told he’d never graduate. Not only did he graduate, he went on to graduate from university with honors and now has a great job. I would know since I’m married to him and we have a 1-year-old kid together. He is still the exact same clown and makes our daughter laugh until she falls over every day."
6. "It was me, and I’m married with a child I regret having. I have done basically nothing with my life other than make very bad choices."
7. "Our class clown lost a lot weight, became a first aid responder, and is now making big bucks. He also has four baby mamas. His personality is still the same class clown, but on Facebook."
8. "He moved to Hollywood and went into the entertainment business a few years after graduation. I'm not totally sure what all he does, but he seems to be living his best life. He got to sit in on a few big-name awards shows too, including the Grammys. I'm really happy for him."
9. "I was the class clown. I am now a middle school English teacher. Yes, I get paid back every single day."
10. "The class clown from a couple years ahead of me graduated and built his own street art company. His company has not only been commissioned to do major art pieces in our hometown, but I've seen his art on buildings in quite a few of the surrounding towns as well!"
11. "Drugs. So many drugs. In jail for doing drugs, then selling drugs."
12. "He was actually a super nice guy and very funny. He lives in Los Angeles now and even co-starred in a few episodes of NCIS."
13. "I actually had a crush on the class clown in high school. Everyone liked him, including the teachers. We had a high school football rivalry with another school. Our high school colors were white and blue and our rival high schools were red and black. Every year on homecoming week, he would paint and dress himself in red and black while everyone was in blue and white. He never liked doing group activities. He never sat still or stayed quiet. He made light of everything. He always said he wanted to leave our town. When I looked him up, I learned that he never left. He became a firefighter and married a former bodybuilder. He's a board member of the local Chamber of Commerce, and many other things. Also, I'm pretty sure he's a Trump supporter. He's the opposite of everything he was in high school now. "
—Anonymous
14. "My husband was the class clown. He even went to college for comedy writing, did stand-up, and starred in plays for a while. Now, he's a pharmacy assistant and hockey scout. He still jokes around at work a lot."
15. "This one kid and I used to be the two class clowns. He had ADHD, I had autism, and we got along great. We were your typical Appalachian hillbillies. He was the one reason I was hesitant to move to the west coast, but I knew at least one of us had to get out of our home. I recently found out from an old friend that he died. That news really made me really look at my own life and re-evaluate things."
16. "He dropped out right before graduation and robbed a gas station. I don't know what he’s doing now, but I hope he got his life together."
17. "The three class clowns I can think of are all doing well. Well, most of them. All three of them never tried in school, and were told they weren't going to make anything of themselves. One became a radiologist, and seems to have really grown up, personality-wise. Another owns a constructions business, and is still immature. The last guy, I was most proud of. I remember our history teacher having what I would consider a private conversation, with him, in front of the whole class about how he was a failure who would amount to nothing. Classic. He dropped out, and went on to become a trucker. He had a family and a nice house. He really seemed to turn it all around and was proof that you did not need to go to college or be what others considered smart, or booksmart, to be happy and successful. Unfortunately, he's in jail right now for abusing a child."
"I hope he rots there."
18. "My younger brother used to be the class clown. He ended up dropping out of school when he went into foster care and is now training to become a mechanic. It's been a long journey to get back to school for him."
19. "Class clown here! Even though I never thought I’d grow up, I did and became a teacher. I work with students who need learning support. Something I wish was given to me while I was going through school. I love the class clown in every class I’ve had and try to show them the whole variety of gifts and abilities they have, besides just making others laugh!"
20. "I was the class clown. I’m now a physical therapist. Most of my patients still think I’m funny. It definitely helps to have my kind of personality in healthcare."
"I do have anxiety and depression, which has affected me in different waves of my life."
21. "I actually married him! We're still pretty young and so far things are going good — we went from being two kids who had been through too much to being our own little family with cats, goats, our own place, and our own goals and plans for our lives together. He still makes me laugh and smile like an idiot every day, even though he doesn't try as hard to be that funny guy for everyone anymore. I'll never regret looking past his jokes back then and actually getting to know him. He was a much deeper guy behind all of that, more than I think most people ever realized. He wasn't comfortable sharing his full self with most people, and he got through his life with humor."
What happened to the funny person you graduated with? Let us know in the comments.
Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.