The Thin White Duke alleged to be a Nazi salute. Bowie denied this, saying that he was simply waving and the photographer captured his image mid-wave. As early as 1976, Bowie began disavowing his allegedly pro-Fascist comments and said that he was misunderstood. In an interview that year in the "Daily Express", he explained that while performing in his various characters, "I'm Pierrot. I'm Everyman. What I'm doing is theatre, and only theatre... What you see on stage isn't sinister. It's pure clown. I'm using myself as a canvas and trying to paint the truth of our time on it. The white face, the
Calgary White Hat white hatting faux pas of new mayor Rod Sykes when Sykes, who had not received the message that the Duke already possessed two Calgary White Hats from previous visits, welcomed the arriving royal with a white hat. Philip muttered, "Not another one". Then he remarked, "You must give out dozens of these things. ... I can always use it for carrying water around ... or to put flowers in when I get home". Today, thousands of white hatting ceremonies are conducted annually by Tourism Calgary and by volunteer greeters at Calgary International Airport. Tourism Calgary conducts white hatting ceremonies for