In this episode, Bart glues clown masks to the teachers' faces, ruining Krusty's career, so he is sent to be rehabilitated.
However, it is revealed that the retirement was just a ruse so Skinner would finally blow the whistle on Bart after years of being pranked by him.
Lisa then convinces Krusty to turn into a serious actor, and he takes part in a parody play version of Death of a Salesman, called The Salesman's Bad Day, written by Llewellyn Sinclair (his second major appearance since "A Streetcar Named Marge"), which Krusty at first cannot do, until Sinclair motivates him, causing Krusty to become a serious actor until his clown self appears in his mind, telling him that he is still a clown and nothing else.
However, with the encouragement of Willie, Bart plans to pull the ultimate prank, staging a fake apology announcement at the gymnasium where above the crowd is a net full of water balloons.
During the play, as Krusty tries to quiet the voice inside his mind, he causes the audience to laugh.
When the book on 'The Simpsons' is finally closed...and the inevitable all-time episode rankings are compiled, 'Fears Of A Clown' is one of those installments destined to elicit blank stares, even from die-hard fans.
[4] Actor Dan Castellaneta was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance at the 70th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards for voicing Homer Simpson, Krusty the Clown, Groundskeeper Willie, and Sideshow Mel in this episode.