Biography

Affectionately known as “America’s oldest teenager,” Dick Clark was significant in transforming the record business into an international industry. As host of American Bandstand, Clark provided many acts with the opportunity to reach a national audience via television, spreading the gospel of rock and roll to teenagers across the country.  Born Richard W. Clark on November 30, 1929, in Mount Vernon, New York, he entered the music business as a sales manager for an upstate New York radio station at the age of 17. He then became a news anchor on WKTV, a television station in Utica, New York. In ...