Clark, Dick

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Dick Clark

Rock music promoter

Dick Clark has spent over thirty years as the host of the longest-running musical variety show in U.S. history, “American Bandstand.” Clark has given many of rock and roll’s brightest stars their first national television exposure and is credited with being one of the most important early promoters of rock music. Rock pioneers who made their television debuts on Clark’s show include Buddy Holly and Chuck Berry, and Clark’s influence has extended into the latter days of rock and pop, giving him the privilege of hosting the first television appearances of more modern superstars, such as Prince and Madonna. Clark has also branched out from strictly musical ventures into more general areas of television and film production and has gained a respected reputation with the heads of major networks for delivering successful projects on time and within budget limitations. As Nikki Finke Greenberg summed up in Newsweek, “In every aspect of the business, Clark shows himself to be a committed, hardworking professional.”

Born Richard Wagstaff Clark on November 30, 1929, in Bronxville, New York, his childhood ambition was to work in radio. This ambition intensified when his older brother, Bradley, was killed in World War II, leaving Clark to fight grief and loneliness by listening to radio programs like “Make Believe Ballroom” and “Battle of the Baritones.” His parents encouraged his interest and at the same time helped bring him out of depression by taking him to live radio shows and advising him to join the school dramatic clubs. Clark became popular in high school, serving as class president and being voted “Man Most Likely to Sell the Brooklyn Bridge.”

When Clark was in his late teens, his father took a job managing a relative’s radio station in Utica, New York. The young man worked at the station, WRUN, taking care of the mimeographing and the mailroom. When a weather announcer went on vacation, Clark was allowed to substitute; eventually he was promoted to broadcasting station breaks and reading the news on the AM affiliate. In 1946, Clark matriculated at Syracuse University. Though his major was advertising, he took a minor in radio, and served as a disc jockey on the university’s student radio station, WAER-FM. Just before his graduation he did weekend work as a news announcer and disc jockey for a country-music segment on a commercial Syracuse station.

Soon after Clark graduated in 1951, he returned to Utica and took a job at a small television station. WKTV was such a tiny setup that Clark found himself involved in almost every facet of its operation, including writing commercials and changing scenery backdrops. More importantly, he was the host of a country-music program called “Cactus Dick and the Santa Fe Riders.”

For the Record…

Full name Richard Wagstaff Clark; born November 30, 1929, in Bronxville, New York; son of Richard (a salesman and radio-station manager) and Julia Clark; married Bobbie Mallery, 1952 (divorced, 1961); married Loretta Martin (a secretary), 1962 (divorced, 1971); married Kari Wigton (a secretary), 1977; children: (first marriage) Richard, Jr.; (second marriage) Duane, Cindy. Education: Graduated from Syracuse University in 1951.

Worked in the mailroom of radio station WRUN, Utica, N. Y., c. 1945; disc jockey at WAER, and news announcer and disc jockey at WOLF, both in Syracuse, N.Y., 1946-51; worked as a news announcer, music-show host, and at various other jobs at television station WKTV, Utica, N.Y., 1951; music-show host, WFIL Radio, Philadelphia, 1952-56; host of “Bandstand” on WFIL-TV, Philadelphia, 1956; host of nationwide “American Bandstand” on ABC, 1957-c. 1988; host of various game shows, including “The $25, 000 Pyramid.” Founder of various music and television business ventures, including Dick Clark Productions, SRO Artists, Sea Lark, January Music, Swan Records, and Dick Clark’s Caravan of Stars. Has produced and appeared in films and authored books, including an autobiography.

Awards: Four Emmy Awards—one for “American Bandstand,” c 1982, two for hosting “The $25,000 Pyramid,” c. 1978 and c. 1985, and one for coproducing The Woman Who Willed a Miracle .

Addresses: Residence —Malibu, Calif.; and New York, N.Y.; Office— Dick Clark Productions, 3003 W. Olive Ave., Burbank, CA 91505.

But in 1952, Clark saw a better career opportunity and moved to Philadelphia to work at radio station WFIL. He knew the station had a television affiliate, and exposure in Philadelphia was a step up from exposure in Utica. He was soon given his own daily radio show, “Dick Clark’s Caravan of Music.” The young disc jockey continued successfully at the station for a few years. Meanwhile, WFIL’s television affiliate had spawned a popular afternoon music program called “Bandstand.” When one of its hosts, Bob Horn, went on vacation in 1955, Clark took his place. And when Horn was jailed for drunk driving the following year, Clark became the show’s permanent host.

Within a year, Clark’s presence had helped transform “Bandstand” into Philadelphia’s best-known daily television show, and the American Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) chose to pick it up for nationwide viewing. The name was changed to “American Bandstand,” but the program kept its format of dancing teenagers, record playing, and star appearances and interviews. “American Bandstand” was so successful nationally that not only did Clark receive fan mail, but so did many of the show’s regular dancers. Singers and musicians of the caliber of Bill Haley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Mathis, and Neil Sedaka came to lip-sync their latest hits before the program’s cameras. The dancers started national dance crazes such as the twist, the Watusi, and the stroll. Clark also did a weekly nighttime program which traveled to cities throughout the United States; one of these editions of “The Dick Clark Saturday Night Show,” done in Atlanta, was also one of the first racially integrated rock concerts in the South and was picketed by the Ku Klux Klan.

“American Bandstand” would provide Clark with a steady income for over thirty years, but he did not stop there. He invested heavily in the music industry, forming the music-publishing firms Sea Lark and January Music and starting Swan Records. He had to divest himself of these businesses, however, at the request of ABC, when he came under investigation by a U.S. Congress subcommittee during the payola scandal of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Payola referred to the taking of money for playing new records, and though Clark did not do this, his holdings in the music business were perceived as a conflict of interest.

Though the program was still going strong in the 1960s, Clark himself lost interest in music during the psychedelic era. He began to branch out into other areas of television, including game shows like “Missing Links” and “The Object Is.” He also appeared in movies and produced such films as Psych-Out, The Savage Seven, and Killers Three. As Clark tried to become a larger force in the television industry, however, the youthful good looks that enabled him to be a convincing host for his teen-oriented show worked against him. As Greenberg reports, “for many years he couldn’t get anyone to take him seriously.” Clark told her that he “would leave a meeting, bang his fist against a wall and say, ’They don’t know how smart I am.’”

Eventually, in the late 1970s, he began to close large deals with the major television networks. Meanwhile, Clark became the host of “The $25, 000 Pyramid,” a game show. At one time, according to Christopher P. Andersen in People, “only he simultaneously [hosted] hit shows on all three networks and in syndication.” His production company has also been responsible for ratings-grabbing specials, and television films like Elvis, Murder in Texas, Copacabana, which featured pop star Barry Manilow, and The Woman Who Willed a Miracle, which earned Clark an Emmy Award as coproducer. Though he is now seen as a major figure in television, who can be counted on to produce shows that get good Nielsen ratings, Clark has garnered some criticism for the lack of quality in his productions. He claims he provides what the television audience wants, and gave this rebuttal to Greenberg: “If I were given the assignment of doing a classical-music hour for PBS, it would be exquisite and beautifully done.” Clark’s other productions include the 1985 box-office film Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins, and the annual special “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve.” He also cofounded United Stations, the second largest radio network in the United States.

On the subject of his youthful appearance, which has lasted for decades, “America’s oldest living teenager” told Andersen, “It’s … like being a female sex symbol. They’re constantly told how wonderful they look, but it gets to be a drag after a while, because someday the looks have gotta go. It would be nice to be allowed to age gracefully.” Apparently, Clark has begun to do just that, relinquishing his role as host of “American Bandstand” to a younger man in 1988.