Dick Clark [is the] the music industry maverick, longtime TV host, and powerhouse producer who changed the way we listened to pop music with American Bandstand, and whose trademark Rockin’ Eve became a fixture of New Year’s celebrations.
(ABC News, April 18, 2012)
What more can one say?
Everybody knows about his involvement in the two pioneering shows mentioned above, but this guy also created, produced, and/or hosted other TV classics, including The $25,000 Pyramid, TV’s Bloopers & Practical Jokes, The American Music Awards, The Golden Globe Awards, and The Academy of Country Music Awards.
But what I appreciate most about Clark’s legacy is that he did more than anyone else to integrate the music industry. He did this by featuring – on what was effectively “White TV” in the 1960s – such Black entertainers as Chuck Berry, Chubby Checker, Little Richard, Stevie Wonder, The Supremes, the Jackson Five, and Gladys Knight and the Pips. Significantly, the national exposure these appearances provided led to the “cross-over” appeal that was indispensable to the commercial success these artists would go on to enjoy.
The use of Black artists not only served to popularize their recordings, it also reminded viewers of the link between rock-and-roll music and African-American culture.
(Blacks and White TV… Since 1948 by J. Fred MacDonald)
Mind you, Blacks did not only appear on stage during these early days. For what is too often overlooked is that Clark also brought in Black kids to integrate Bandstand’s studio dance floor. This aspirational part of the show made it must-see TV even for a little Black island boy like me; well, that is until Soul Train came along….
Of course, he also introduced America to a who’s who of rock and roll and pop (including Madonna) – with few notable exceptions (like the Rolling Stones).
Appropriately enough, Clark had a Peter-Pan persona that earned him the nickname “America’s Oldest Teenager.”
This is why it was so sad to watch him (struggling to) host his Rockin’ Eve show in 2006 – after suffering a stroke. Because he was not only severely speech impaired, he actually looked every bit his old age. The irony was palpable.
Clark died yesterday at hospital in Santa Monica of a “massive heart attack.” He was 82.