Dick Clark was a brilliant media impresario whose influence on multiple generations of Americans was matched by his kindness, generosity and indomitable spirit.
Most will remember Dick as the host of American Bandstand, the television show that shaped popular music for three decades, and as the master of ceremonies for his annual New Year’s Rockin’ Eve. Yet few realize his greater impact on our popular culture, and even fewer know about the incredibly vision that enabled him to succeed and become a true television innovator.
I had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know Dick Clark in 1990 as part of the public relations team that opened his American Bandstand Grill in downtown Miami. Ever the entrepreneur, Dick would come to town for a few days to manage progress on the restaurant before returning to California to oversee his massive production company. He and his wife, Kari, made final decisions on all aspects of the project from architecture and management to decor and menu.
Already a venerated broadcast legend, Dick could have easily delegated his restaurant project to others or given it token supervision, but that was not his way. All of his projects had to meet his exacting standards of quality and taste, which required his personal involvement.
That is the way that he built Dick Clark Productions into an Emmy Award-winning television powerhouse. Dick always had his fingers on the pulse of popular tastes and was determined to develop the next new wave in programming. This drive led him to produce some of the earliest reality series on television, extravagant awards broadcasts, fabulous music specials and internationally popular game shows.
In the golden age of television, Dick Clark Productions was one of the few entertainment companies with shows on all three major networks and in syndication. Television executives knew that Dick Clark produced winners and they regularly hitched rides on his ever-rising star.
In 2004, Dick suffered a stroke that hampered his ability to walk and speak. It must have been particularly difficult for this man — one of the most recognizable voices in broadcasting history — to struggle for words.
Yet he returned to television in 2005 to once again usher in the new year and give a passionate kiss to Kari at the stroke of midnight on his national New Year’s Rockin’ Eve telecast. He continued to make appearances as recently as this year, becoming a hero to fellow stroke victims everywhere and a highly visible reminder of the power of perseverance.
Dick Clark was a star both in and out of the spotlight. He was a true gentleman whose presence and influence will be missed.
