Buddy Clark (born Samuel Goldberg, July 26, 1912 – October 1, 1949) was an American popular singer of the

Big Band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s an ...

era. He had some success in the 1930s, but his career truly blossomed in the late 1940s, after his return from service in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and he became one of the nation's top crooners. He died in a plane crash in 1949.

Life and career

Clark was born to Jewish parents in

Dorchester, Massachusetts Dorchester (colloquially referred to as Dot) is a Boston neighborhood comprising more than in the City of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Originally, Dorchester was a separate town, founded by Puritans who emigrated in 1630 from Dorchester ...

, Tillie (Leibowitz), from Romania, and Nathan Goldberg, from Russia. He made his

singing debut in 1932 as a

tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...

, with

Gus Arnheim Gus Arnheim (September 4, 1897 – January 19, 1955) was an American pianist and an early popular band leader. He is noted for writing several songs with his first hit being "I Cried for You" from 1923. He was most popular in the 1920s and 1930s. He ...

's orchestra, but was not successful. Singing

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

, he gained wider notice in 1934, with

Benny Goodman Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader known as the "King of Swing". From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing big bands in the United States. His co ...

on the '' Let's Dance'' radio program. In 1936 he began performing on the show '' Your Hit Parade'', and remained until 1938. In the mid-1930s he signed with

Vocalion Records Vocalion Records is an American record company and label. History The label was founded in 1916 by the Aeolian Company, a maker of pianos and organs, as Aeolian-Vocalion; the company also sold phonographs under the Vocalion name. "Aeolian" was ...

, having a top-20 hit with " Spring Is Here". He continued recording, appearing in movies, and dubbing other actors' voices until he entered the military, but did not have another hit until the late 1940s. In 1946 he signed with

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

and scored his biggest hit with the song " Linda" recorded in November of that year, but hitting its peak in the following spring. "Linda" was written especially for the six-year-old daughter of a show business lawyer named

Lee Eastman Lee Eastman (born Leopold Vail Epstein; January 12, 1910 – July 30, 1991) was an American show business attorney and art collector from New York City.Jack Lawrence Jack Lawrence may refer to: *Jack Lawrence (songwriter) (1912–2009), American songwriter *Jack Lawrence (artist) (born 1975), British comic book artist and animator * Jack Lawrence (bluegrass) (born 1953), American bluegrass guitarist * Jack Lawre ...

, wrote the song at Lee’s request.Salewicz, Chris, ''McCartney'' (Macdonald, 1986), p. 198; Lee, Laura, ''The Name's Families: Mr. Leotard, Barbie, and Chef Boyardee'' (Pelican Publishing Company, Inc., 1999), p. 293. Linda Eastman grew up and married Beatle

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

. 1947 also saw hits for Clark with such titles as "

How Are Things in Glocca Morra? "How Are Things in Glocca Morra?" is a popular song about a fictional village in Ireland, with themes of nostalgia and homesickness. It was introduced by Ella Logan in the original 1947 Broadway production of '' Finian's Rainbow''. Production T ...

" (from the musical ''

Finian's Rainbow ''Finian's Rainbow'' is a musical with a book by E. Y. Harburg and Fred Saidy, lyrics by Harburg, and music by Burton Lane, produced by Lee Sabinson. The original 1947 Broadway production ran for 725 performances, while a film version was re ...

''), which made the Top Ten, "

Peg O' My Heart "Peg o' My Heart" is a popular song written by Alfred Bryan (words) and Fred Fisher (music). It was published on March 15, 1913 and it featured in the 1913 musical ''Ziegfeld Follies''. The song was first performed publicly by Irving Kaufman ...

", "An Apple Blossom Wedding", and "I'll Dance at Your Wedding". The following year he had another major hit with " Love Somebody" (a duet with

Doris Day Doris Day (born Doris Mary Kappelhoff; April 3, 1922 – May 13, 2019) was an American actress, singer, and activist. She began her career as a big band singer in 1939, achieving commercial success in 1945 with two No. 1 recordings, " Sent ...

, selling a million and reaching #1 on the charts) and nine more chart hits, and extended his success into 1949 with a number of hits, both solo and duetting with Day and Dinah Shore. He also was the narrator of the Disney 1948 musical anthology, Melody Time. A month after his death, his recording of "

A Dreamer's Holiday "A Dreamer's Holiday" is a popular song. The music was written by Mabel Wayne, the lyrics by Kim Gannon. The song was published in 1949. Hit versions of the song were recorded by Perry Como and Buddy Clark. 1949 versions *The version by Perr ...

" hit the charts.

Death

On Saturday, October 1, 1949, hours after the 37-year-old had completed a '' Club Fifteen'' broadcast on

CBS Radio CBS Radio was a radio broadcasting company and radio network operator owned by CBS Corporation and founded in 1928, with consolidated radio station groups owned by CBS and Westinghouse Broadcasting/Group W since the 1920s, and Infinity Broadc ...

with The Andrews Sisters—subbing for ailing host

Dick Haymes Richard Benjamin Haymes (September 13, 1918 – March 28, 1980) was an Argentinian singer and actor. He was one of the most popular male vocalists of the 1940s and early 1950s. He was the older brother of Bob Haymes, an actor, television host ...

—Clark joined five friends in renting a small plane to attend a

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

vs.

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

game in Stanford, California. On the way back to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

after the game, the plane ran out of fuel, lost altitude, and crashed on Beverly Boulevard in

West Los Angeles West Los Angeles is an area within the city of Los Angeles, California. The residential and commercial neighborhood is divided by the Interstate 405 freeway, and each side is sometimes treated as a distinct neighborhood, mapped differently by di ...

. Clark did not survive the crash. Clark's last radio broadcast found him in very high spirits, clowning with Maxene, LaVerne, and Patty Andrews. He joined them for a comical rendition of "

Baby Face Babyface or Baby Face can refer to: Nicknames * Lester Joseph Gillis a.k.a. Baby Face Nelson, an infamous 1930s bank robber * Roosevelt "Baby Face" Willette (1933–1971), an American hard bop and soul-jazz musician * "Baby Face", Jimmy McLarnin ...

," during which Buddy amused the CBS studio audience, as well as the famous swing trio of sisters, with his spot-on Al Jolson impression. He is buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in

Glendale, California Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census the population was 196,543, up from ...

, near his widow and daughter. Clark had previously been married to Louise Hitz, stepdaughter of famed hotelier

Ralph Hitz Ralph (pronounced ; or ,) is a male given name of English, Scottish and Irish origin, derived from the Old English ''Rædwulf'' and Radulf, cognate with the Old Norse ''Raðulfr'' (''rað'' "counsel" and ''ulfr'' "wolf"). The most common forms ...

in 1935. They had two children (Tommy and Katherine) together before divorcing in 1941. Jerry Vale's first album, ''I Remember Buddy'' (1958), was a tribute to Clark. For his contributions to the music industry, he has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on 6800 Hollywood Boulevard.

Hit songs

*"An Apple Blossom Wedding" (1947) *" Baby, It's Cold Outside" (1949) (Duet with Dinah Shore) *" Ballerina" (1948) *" Confess" (1948) (Duet with

, flip side of '' Love Somebody'', Columbia 38174; also a hit for

Patti Page Clara Ann Fowler (November 8, 1927 – January 1, 2013), known professionally as Patti Page, was an American singer and actress. Primarily known for pop and country music, she was the top-charting female vocalist and best-selling female ar ...

) *"Don't You Love Me Anymore" (1947) *"

" (1949) (bigger hit for

Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an Italian-American singer, actor and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, after signing ...

) *"Girl Of My Dreams" (with Mitchell Ayres and His Orchestra) *"

" (1947) (bigger hit for

) *"I'll Dance at Your Wedding" (1947) (flip side of ''These Things Money Can't Buy'') *" I'll Get By (As Long as I Have You)" (with Mitchell Ayres & His Orchestra) *"I Love You So Much It Hurts" (1949) *"

It's a Big, Wide, Wonderful World "It's A Big, Wide, Wonderful World" is a popular song written by John Rox and published in 1939. The song first appeared in the short-lived 1940 Broadway musical play ''All in Fun'' when it was introduced by Walter Cassel and Wynn Murray. A versio ...

" (1949) (with Mitchell Ayres and His Orchestra) *" Linda" (1947) *" Love Somebody" (1948) (Duet with

) *"Matinee" (1948) *"May I Have the Next Romance?" (1936) *"

My Darling, My Darling "My Darling, My Darling" is a popular song, written by Frank Loesser and published in 1948. It was originally introduced by Byron Palmer and Doretta Morrow in the Broadway musical ''Where's Charley?'' (1948). Charted versions were by: *The most w ...

" (1948) (Duet with

) *" Now Is the Hour" (1948) (bigger hit for both

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

and

Gracie Fields Dame Gracie Fields (born Grace Stansfield; 9 January 189827 September 1979) was an English actress, singer, comedian and star of cinema and music hall who was one of the top ten film stars in Britain during the 1930s and was considered the h ...

) *"

" (1947) (bigger hit for Jerry Murad and the

Harmonicats Jerry Murad's Harmonicats were an American harmonica-based group. Background The band was founded in 1947. Originally they were named The Harmonica Madcaps and the group consisted of Jerry Murad ( chromatic lead harmonica), Bob Hadamik (bass ha ...

) *" Powder Your Face with Sunshine" (1949) (Duet with

) *"Rosalie" (with Mitchell Ayres & His Orchestra) *"The Rhythm of the Rhumba" (Duet with Joe Host and the

Lud Gluskin Ludwig Elias "Lud" GluskinState of New York Certificate and Record of Birth, January 4, 1899. (December 16, 1898 – October 13, 1989) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader.Donnelly, K.J. and Philip Hayward (2012''Music in Science Fiction ...

orchestra) (1936) *"Serenade" (1948) *"She Shall Have Music" (1936) *"South America, Take It Away!" (with Xavier Cugat and His Orchestra) *"Spring Is Here" (1938) *"Take My Heart" (1936) (flip side of ''These Foolish Things'') *"

These Foolish Things "These Foolish Things (Remind Me of You)" is a standard with lyrics by Eric Maschwitz, writing under the pseudonym Holt Marvell, and music by Jack Strachey, both Englishmen. Harry Link, an American, sometimes appears as a co-writer; his input w ...

" (1936) *"These Things Money Can't Buy" (1947) (flip side of ''I'll Dance at Your Wedding'') *"

The One I Love (Belongs to Somebody Else) "The One I Love (Belongs to Somebody Else)" is a popular song composed by Isham Jones with lyrics by Gus Kahn. The song was recorded by Isham Jones' Orchestra on December 21, 1923, at Brunswick Studios in New York City, and published on January ...

" *"The Treasure of Sierra Madre" (1948) *"Until Today" (1936) *"Where the Apple Blossoms Fall" (1948) *"You Are Never Away" (1948) *"

You're Breaking My Heart "You're Breaking My Heart" is a popular song, which was first published in 1948. Though credited to Pat Genaro and Sunny Skylar, (with acknowledgements to the owners of the copyright in "Tis the Day") the song is an English version of the famou ...

" (Orchestra & Chorus Conducted by Harry Zimmerman)

References

External links

Buddy Clark
biography on Yahoo! site

biography by Frank Dee

biography on the Interlude Era site * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Buddy (Singer) 1912 births 1949 deaths Musicians from Boston Jewish American musicians Accidental deaths in California American crooners American people of Romanian-Jewish descent American people of Russian-Jewish descent Traditional pop music singers Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) 20th-century American singers People from Dorchester, Massachusetts 20th-century American male singers Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1949 Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the United States Musicians killed in aviation accidents or incidents 20th-century American Jews

Life and career

Death

Hit songs

References

Further reading

External links