After graduating high school in 1947, Dick Clark started as an office worker at WRUN-AM in Rome, NY. Almost immediately he was asked to fill in for the vacationing weatherman, and within a few months he was announcing station breaks. His quick rise may have been helped by the fact that his uncle owned the station, and his father managed it.
By 1952, Clark was disc-jockeying at WFIL in Philadelphia, and subbed as host on a local TV show called Bandstand, with teenagers dancing to rock-and-roll records. Clark got the gig permanently when the show's first host, Bob Horn, was arrested for drunk driving. Bandstand went national as American Bandstand in 1957, and ran until 1989. Clark left the show in 1987.
Dick's son RAC produces the annual Academy of Country Music Awards telecast.
[1] St. John's Health Center, Santa Monica, CA.
Father: Richard A.
Mother: Julia
Brother: Bradley (killed in WWII)
Wife: Barbara Mallery (m. 28-Jun-1952, div. 6-May-1961, one son)
Son: Richard A. Clark ("RAC", b. 9-Jan-1957)
Wife: Loretta Martin (m. 25-Apr-1962, div. 1971, one son, one daughter)
Son: Duane (twin, b. 8-Jan-1965)
Daughter: Cindy (twin, b. 8-Jan-1965)
Wife: Karen Wigton (m. 7-Jul-1977)
University: BA, Syracuse University (1951)
Dick Clark Productions Founder (1957-2007)
Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity
Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame
Radio Hall of Fame 1990
Hollywood Walk of Fame Sunset & Vine (television)
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 1993
Daytime Emmy 1979 (game show host)
Daytime Emmy 1985 (game show host)
Daytime Emmy 1986 (game show host)
Daytime Emmy 1994 (lifetime achievement)
Stroke 8-Dec-2004 (mild, with some speech issues)
Heart Attack Santa Monica, CA (18-Apr-2012) fatal
Risk Factors: Diabetes
TELEVISION
TV's Bloopers & Practical Jokes Co-Host (1984-88)
The $10,000 Pyramid Host (1973-88)
Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve Host (1972-)
American Bandstand Host (1956-87)
FILMOGRAPHY AS ACTOR
Paul Williams Still Alive (11-Sep-2011) · Himself
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (31-Dec-2002) · Himself
Bowling for Columbine (15-May-2002) · Himself
Spy Kids (18-Mar-2001) · Financier
The Suburbans (25-Jan-1999) · Himself
Live Aid (13-Jul-1985) · Himself
Deadman's Curve (3-Feb-1978) · Himself
The Phynx (6-May-1970) · Himself
Killers Three (Nov-1968) · Roger
The Young Doctors (23-Aug-1961) · Dr. Alexander
Because They're Young (Apr-1960)
Jamboree (1957) · WFIL, Philadelphia
Official Website:
http://www.dickclarkproductions.com/
AKA Richard Wagstaff Clark