Dick Clark

Dick Clark

For other people named Dick Clark, see Dick Clark (disambiguation).

Richard Wagstaff "Dick" Clark (born November 30 1929) is an American television personality and businessman, best known for hosting long-running shows such as American Bandstand, The $10,000 Pyramid and Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve.

Clark has long been known for his continued youthful appearance, earning the moniker "America's Oldest Teenager", and also for his good health -- until he suffered a stroke in 2004. Confined to a wheelchair and with some speech ability still impaired, Clark made a dramatic return to his New Year's show on December 31, 2005, and appeared at the Emmy Awards on August 27, 2006, as well as that year's New Year's show on December 31, 2006.

Career

Dick Clark was born in Bronxville, and raised in the city of Mount Vernon, New York.

Clark's career in show business began in 1945 when he started working in the mailroom of radio station WRUN in Utica, New York (which was owned by his uncle and managed by his father). Clark was soon promoted to weatherman and news announcer. Clark attended Syracuse University and was a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity. He graduated from Syracuse in 1951 and began his television career at station WKTV in Utica. Clark's first television hosting job was on the "Cactus Dick and the Santa Fe Riders", a country music program. He would later replace Robert Earle (who would later host the GE College Bowl) as a newscaster.

In 1952, Dick Clark moved to Philadelphia and took a job as a disc jockey at radio station WFIL. WFIL had an affiliated television station with the same call sign which began broadcasting a show called Bob Horn's Bandstand in 1952. Clark was a regular substitute host on the show and when Horn left, Clark became the full time host on July 9, 1956. The show was picked up by ABC and was first aired nationally on August 5, 1957 and renamed American Bandstand. The show was a major success, running daily until 1963, then weekly until 1987; a spin-off of the show, Where the Action Is, aired from 1965 to 1967, also on ABC. Charlie O'Donnell, a close friend of Clark's and an up-and-coming fellow Philadelphia disc jockey, was chosen to be the announcer, which he served for ten years. O'Donnell to this day continues to work with Clark on various specials and award shows and was one of the announcers on the 1980s versions of Clark's Pyramid game show.

Clark produced Bandstand for syndication and later the USA cable network until 1989, again hosting in 1987-88 before giving up the emcee reins to David Hirsch in its final year.

Clark began investing in the music publishing and recording business in the 1950s. In 1959, the United States Senate opened investigations into "payola", the practice of music producing companies paying broadcasting companies to favor their product. Clark, as a major figure in both fields, was investigated and testified before Congress in 1960. Clark was not charged with any illegal activities but he was required by ABC to divest his publishing and recording interests.

On November 22 1963 Clark was in Dallas, Texas. As President John F. Kennedy was driven by Clark's hotel room, Clark waved at the president. (Clark was not in Dealey Plaza during the assassination of President Kennedy.)

Clark has been involved in a number of other television series and specials as producer and performer. One of his most well-known guest appearances was in the final episode of the original Perry Mason TV series (The Case of The Final Fadeout) in which he was revealed to be the killer in a dramatic courtroom scene.

In 1972, he produced and hosted Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve, the first of an ongoing series of specials still broadcast on New Year's Eve.

After two brief runs as a quiz-show host, presiding over "The Object Is" and then "Missing Links" (which in a near twist of irony, he replaced his former Philadelphia neighbor and subsequent "TV's Bloopers & Practical Jokes" co-host, Ed McMahon ), Clark hit the jackpot with The $10,000 Pyramid, which premiered on CBS March 26 1973. The show—a word association game created and produced by daytime TV legend Bob Stewart—moved to ABC from 1974 to 1980, during which time the top prize was upgraded to $20,000. After a brief 1981 syndicated run as The $50,000 Pyramid, the show returned to CBS in 1982 as The $25,000 Pyramid, and continued through 1988, save for a three month break. From 1985 to 1988, Clark hosted both the CBS $25,000 version and a daily $100,000 Pyramid in syndication.

Clark's daytime versions of Pyramid won nine Emmy Awards for best game show, a mark that is eclipsed only by the 11 won by the syndicated version of Jeopardy!. It also won Clark three Emmys for best game show host.

By this time Clark established himself as a producer/host comfortable with hard work, a trait that is as much his trademark as what has become his signature signoff over the last five decades: For now, Dick Clark—so long accompanied by a salute. On the week-ending episodes of the ABC Pyramid, Clark would close with the line We'll see you tomorrow on Bandstand before using his signature signoff. In converse, Clark would also plug Pyramid at the end of Bandstand during the mid-to-late 1970s.

The venerable Pyramid also provided another of Clark's (and television's) most famous signature phrases during the tense Winner's Circle bonus round: Here is your first subject. GO!

In 1973, Clark created the American Music Awards show, which he produces annually. Intended as competition for the Grammy Awards, in some years it gained a bigger audience than the Grammys due to being more in touch with popular trends.

In 1984, Clark produced and co-hosted (with Ed McMahon) the NBC series TV's Bloopers & Practical Jokes. The series ran through 1988 and continued in specials hosted by Clark (sometimes joined by another TV personality) into the 21st century, first on NBC, later on ABC and TBS. Clark and McMahon are longtime Philadelphia acquaintances, and McMahon has praised Clark for first bringing him together with future TV partner Johnny Carson when all three worked at ABC in the late 1950s.

The "Blooper" franchise stems from the Clark-hosted (and produced) NBC "Blooper" specials of the early 1980s, inspired by the books, record albums and appearances of Kermit Schafer, a radio and TV producer who first popularized outtakes of broadcasts.

For a period of several years in the 1980s Clark simultaneously hosted regular programmes on the 3 major American networks: ABC ("Bandstand"), CBS ("Pyramid") and NBC ("Bloopers"). He is the only person to have ever done this.

From 2001 to 2003, Clark was a co-host of The Other Half with Mario Lopez, Danny Bonaduce, and Dorian Gregory, a syndicated daytime talk show intended to be the male equivalent of The View.

Clark produced the television series American Dreams about a Philadelphia family in the early 1960s whose daughter is a regular on American Bandstand. The series ran from 2002 to 2005.

Clark also had a brief stint as a radio Top-40 countdown show host. In 1982, he created The Dick Clark National Music Survey for the Mutual Broadcasting System, which counted down the Top 30 contemporary hits of the week, in direct competition with American Top 40. After he left Mutual in 1985, he took over hosting duties of another show, Countdown America, whose previous host John Leader had left to create yet another similar program.

Currently, Clark hosts a weekly weekend radio program distributed by his own syndicator, The United Stations Radio Networks. The program is an oldies program entitled Dick Clark's Rock, Roll, and Remember (named after his 1976 autobiography) However, due to his 2004 stroke, United Stations has been re-issuing old issues of Rock, Roll, and Remember to affiliates.

Clark's illness and return

In 2003, it was revealed that Clark had Type 2 diabetes. Then, on December 8, 2004, Dick Clark was hospitalized in Los Angeles after suffering what was initially termed a minor stroke. Clark's spokeswoman, Amy Streibel, said that he was hospitalized but was expected to be fine. However, on December 13, 2004 it was announced that Clark would not be able to host his annual New Year's Eve broadcast; Regis Philbin was announced as the substitute host.

This was only the second time Dick Clark was unable to host his annual New Year's Eve broadcast. The other time was in 1999, due to the airing of ABC 2000 Today, ABC News's coverage of the new millennium, hosted by Peter Jennings. However, during the broadcast, Clark did get to do his New Year's countdown from New York, doing so with ABC's Jack Ford, who had been in Times Square during the broadcast. The transcript of the broadcast, released by ABC News, reported that he was a correspondent. When introducing Clark, Jennings said that "we could not gather in Times Square on a New Year's Eve without Dick Clark." Clark won a Peabody Award for his coverage of the millennium.

While having not been seen in public anywhere since his stroke, on August 15, 2005 Clark announced in a statement that he would be back in Times Square for the annual tradition, bringing on Hilary Duff and American Idol host Ryan Seacrest as co-hosts and Seacrest as co-executive producer. Also in the press release, it was announced that Seacrest would eventually take over as the sole host in the event Clark could not continue with the program.

On December 31 2005, Clark made his return to television, returning to the Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve broadcast. He looked well and was able to smile, but had noticeable difficulty speaking and his speech, including his famous countdown to the new year, was a bit slurred, and his count was apparently one second ahead, possibly due to the stroke (but also possibly due to technical difficulties).

During the program, Clark remained behind a desk, and was only shown in limited segments. On-air, Clark said, "Last year I had a stroke. It left me in bad shape. I had to teach myself how to walk and talk again. It's been a long, hard fight. My speech is not perfect but I'm getting there." He also appeared to have limited use of his right arm. But, before counting down to 2006, he mentioned he "wouldn't have missed this [the telecast] for the world."

Reaction to Clark's appearance was mixed, reported CNN.com. While some TV critics (including Tom Shales of The Washington Post, in an interview with the CBS Radio Network) felt he was not in good enough shape to do the broadcast, stroke survivors and many of Clark's fans praised him immensely for being a role model for people dealing with post-stroke recovery.[1]

Clark also appeared on the 2006 Emmy Award telecast on August 27, 2006. Clark was introduced by American Idol judge Simon Cowell, after the show paid tribute to his successful career that has spanned decades. He was shown seated behind a podium, and although his speech was still quite slurred, was able to address the audience and introduce Barry Manilow's performance.

On December 31, 2006, Clark returned to "New Year's Rockin' Eve," co-hosting with Ryan Seacrest. Although Clark showed notable improvement in his speech and movement, he was still several seconds off during the countdown.

Personal life and accolades

Clark has been married three times. His first marriage was to Barbara Mallery in 1952; the couple had one son, Richard A. (named after his father), and divorced in 1961. Clark married Loretta Martin in 1962; the couple had two children, Duane and Cindy, and divorced in 1971. Clark has been married to his current wife, Kari Wigton, since 1977.

Accolades

Clark received Emmy awards in 1979, 1983, 1985, and 1986, the Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1994, and a Peabody Award in 1999. He is an inductee at the Hollywood Walk of Fame (1976), the Radio Hall of Fame in (1990), the Broadcasting Magazine Hall of Fame (1992), the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (1993), and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame (1993).

Dick Clark is also a successful entertainment executive, as chairman and CEO of Dick Clark Productions.

Dick Clark's American Bandstand restaurants

He has a stake in a chain of music-themed restaurants called Dick Clark's American Bandstand Grill. There are currently two free-standing locations, one in Overland Park, Kansas and the other in Cranbury, New Jersey, as well as four airport locations in Indianapolis, Indiana; Newark, New Jersey; Phoenix, Arizona; and Salt Lake City, Utah. Another location opened as part of Clark's American Bandstand Theater in Branson, Missouri in June of 2006.

Another Clark entertainment venture, Dick Clark's American Bandstand Theater, opened in Branson, Missouri in April of 2006.

Youthful longevity in popular culture

Clark's continuous youthful appearance has drawn some attention for a long time to the point of becoming a subject of jokes in other forms of comedy entertainment, including his famous nickname of "America's Oldest Living Teenager."

He is featured in the well-known comic strip The Far Side (where he suddenly ages 200 years in a few seconds on a talk show) and the less-known computer game Superhero League of Hoboken (where he is discovered living in a 23rd century wasteland looking exactly the same). In The X-Files, during the sixth season episode "Tithonus", when a man is discovered to have not aged for over thirty years, an agent remarks, "This guy's a regular Dick Clark!" In The Simpsons Halloween special Treehouse of Horror X, the story "Life's a Glitch, Then You Die" begins with Dick Clark at New Year's Rockin' Eve in Springfield (as opposed to New York) on December 31, 1999. When midnight strikes, the feared Y2K problem occurs and Dick Clark is revealed to be a robot as he malfunctions. He is also described as the antichrist in many of Bill Hicks' early stand-up comedy acts as a result of his apparent not-aging.

Another reference is in Friends, where Ross and Monica are invited by Joey's then girlfriend (played by Elle McPherson) to dance on Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve. They popularly perform their "routine" on the show - to which it is remarked that they should keep it for the Bloopers show. He also appeared in a 1995 episode of Mad About You, where the ball does not complete its drop on New Year's Eve (a contrivance to allow Paul and Jamie Buchman to kiss before midnight). Rather than being at his usual spot in Times Square, however, Clark was pictured sitting at home, regretting that he had taken the night off.

Clark has also taken part in some of the longevity jokes at his expense; one example is his appearance in Police Squad!, where he is seen to take a special anti-aging cream from the omniscient shoe-shine man and hurriedly apply it to his face hoping that no one else is watching. Another was in a commercial for M&Ms candy in 1999, in which he declines doing a millennium special as he had "been around for the first millennium."

External links

• Dick Clark Productions
• Dick Clark at IMDb