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Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular MusicA B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZCLARK, Dick(b 30 November 1929, Mt Vernon NY; d 18 April 2012, Santa Monica CA) Disc jockey and TV host. Joined Philadelphia radio WFIL in 1951 as an announcer, transferring to the TV channel '56 and replacing Bob Horn on the pop show Philadelphia Bandstand, which became American Bandstand when networked on ABC on 5 August 1957. The format of lip-synched hit records, 'Record Revue' slot and dancing by local high school kids brought the daily 90-minute show 60 per cent of the national audience, and inspired imitation (Chicago's Bandstand Matinee, etc). The kids on the show became mini-stars themselves (captured in John Waters's film Hairspray '88) (forty years later the dancing prancing children are the stars). The first part of the programme which was not networked was used for breaking new records; Clark played the wrong version of 'Tequila' until his audience wised him up. The show's success inspired a glut of local labels (Cameo, Chancellor, etc) which used it as a path to national hits; youngsters elbowed Tony Bennett, Al Martino etc out of the charts as Clark claimed to be monitoring national popularity, but Philly acts (Frankie Avalon, Fabian, Bobby Rydell) seemed to profit more than most. Spinoff Dick Clark Show ran concurrently from '58 for over two years from NYC; Clark diversified into Jamie, Swan, Hunt labels, SRO Management, a record factory etc and claimed to have made a million by age 30; he divested himself of these interests on the advice of ABC, losing millions of dollars as Congress began investigating payola '60. In those more innocent times, Clark was shocked by the government's behaviour (see Payola); in an interview in Rolling Stone '89 he observed that the whole thing had been about headlines: congressmen left the hearings early to make the evening TV news, while the most insulting interrogating lawyer would afterwards ask Clark for an autograph and to pose for a snapshot. The government had broken into his home and tapped his phone; he described the lawyers in Congress as pimps and was even more scathing off the record. What he learned from the payola hearings was 'Protect your ass at all times,' a new definition of the American Dream. The British Invasion '64 took the shine off Clark's star, but the USA's 'oldest living teenager' survived: spinoffs '60s/70s included Where The Action Is, In Concert, Soul Unlimited, and later anniversary programmes; he had a TV production company (successful quiz shows) and a dinner theatre. He never took himself too seriously and was always generous to his colleagues in broadcasting. In later years he was most famous for hosting New York City's live New Years Eve TV celebration. An autobiography was called Rock, Roll And Remember '78. |