Dick Clark died today. I'm not sure of the cause...I've just heard the news via family and blurbs online. I guess it's true.
I recall that...
Many call Clark the perennial teenager.
Many associate him with ABC's Rockin' New Year's Eve celebrations.
Many associate him with American Bandstand.
Me, I see him as the celebrity in my generation who gave popular performers and groups a national stage on which to play. (Those older than me would probably think of The Ed Sullivan show.) For rock musicians it was *the* show to be invited to perform on.
A person has to have an open mind to even imagine listening to, much less promoting all the musicians that took the stage of American Bandstand. Clark admitted to Larry King on CNN that he had to grow to like rock music - after all, he was of the big band generation.
I recall....
I recall American Bandstand as the TV show my parents wouldn't let me watch. Like all children when told they couldn't do something, I have since watched clips and shows about it. :)
I recall it as featuring the then young musicians. The clips we watch and laugh at now seeing how they once looked and/or sounded and realizing how the musicians have turned out. Some, like Madonna, are still going strong. Funny. There are many others we don't even miss.
I recall it as being the show that featured the the dance, fashion, and hairstyle trends that took over the United States. Who could ever forget the Hustle? the bell bottom pants and platform shoes? and the afro?
I recall it playing the top music of the nation.
In my mind's eye I can recall it like it was yesterday.
Thank you, Mr. Clark, for all that you did for America's popular musics.
Dick Clark is dead.
Hopefully we recall enough to give tribute to his legacy.
All we can do now is "recall."
