Los Angeles resident
04-18-2012, 10:08 PM
The New York Times, Wednesday, April 18, 2012, 3:51pm EDT
DICK CLARK, NEW YEAR'S EVE ICON, IS DEAD AT 82
By BRIAN STELTER, The New York Times
The television legend Dick Clark, who originated “American Bandstand” and the perennial New Year’s Eve celebration on ABC, died Wednesday morning, his representative Paul Shefrin said.
Mr. Shefrin said that Mr. Clark, 82, had suffered a heart attack.
Mr. Clark and his countdown show, “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve,” have been synonymous with New Year’s Eve for decades. His role on the program was scaled back after he suffered a stroke in 2004, but he was back last December to count down to midnight and kiss his wife, Kari.
In an interview via e-mail last December, Mr. Clark said he presumed that for many viewers, it’s “comforting to see a familiar face who has been there for the past 40 years.”
He added that for viewers who have a physical disability, his appearances “may serve as a source of inspiration.”
For older generations of Americans Mr. Clark was best known as the host of “American Bandstand,” a groundbreaking music performance program.
It became, as John A. Jackson wrote in a 1997 book about the show, the beginning of a “pop music empire” for Mr. Clark.
Copyright 2012 The New York Times Company
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/04/19/business/dick-clark-decoder/dick-clark-decoder-articleInline.jpg
(ABC/Denis Plehn) Dick Clark, promoting his New Year’s Eve show in 1980.
DICK CLARK, NEW YEAR'S EVE ICON, IS DEAD AT 82
By BRIAN STELTER, The New York Times
The television legend Dick Clark, who originated “American Bandstand” and the perennial New Year’s Eve celebration on ABC, died Wednesday morning, his representative Paul Shefrin said.
Mr. Shefrin said that Mr. Clark, 82, had suffered a heart attack.
Mr. Clark and his countdown show, “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve,” have been synonymous with New Year’s Eve for decades. His role on the program was scaled back after he suffered a stroke in 2004, but he was back last December to count down to midnight and kiss his wife, Kari.
In an interview via e-mail last December, Mr. Clark said he presumed that for many viewers, it’s “comforting to see a familiar face who has been there for the past 40 years.”
He added that for viewers who have a physical disability, his appearances “may serve as a source of inspiration.”
For older generations of Americans Mr. Clark was best known as the host of “American Bandstand,” a groundbreaking music performance program.
It became, as John A. Jackson wrote in a 1997 book about the show, the beginning of a “pop music empire” for Mr. Clark.
Copyright 2012 The New York Times Company
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/04/19/business/dick-clark-decoder/dick-clark-decoder-articleInline.jpg
(ABC/Denis Plehn) Dick Clark, promoting his New Year’s Eve show in 1980.