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Benjamin Robert Clark (August 5, 1939 – April 4, 2007) was an American film director and screenwriter. In the 1970s and 1980s, he was responsible for some of the most successful films in Canadian film history such as Black Christmas (1974), Murder by Decree (1979), Tribute (1980), Porky's (1981) and A Christmas Story (1983).[1][2][3] He won a trio of Genie Awards (two Best Direction and a lone Best Screenplay) with two additional nominations.

Key Information

Early life and education

[edit]

Clark was born in New Orleans in 1939,[4] but grew up in Birmingham, Alabama,[5] and later moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He grew up poor. His father died during his childhood and his mother was a barmaid.[6]

After attending Catawba College majoring in philosophy, Clark won a football scholarship to Hillsdale College in Michigan,[7] where he played quarterback. Eventually he studied theater at the University of Miami, turning down offers to play professional football.[8] He did briefly play semi-pro for the Fort Lauderdale Black Knights.[7]

Career

[edit]

Clark's career began with She-Man: A Story of Fixation (1967), which was released with the exploitation documentary Queens at Heart. Clark then transitioned into the horror genre in the early 1970s. His first film, Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things (1972), was a blend of comedy and graphic horror.

Clark and his collaborator for this film, screenwriter and makeup artist Alan Ormsby, would revisit the zombie subgenre in 1972's Deathdream, also known by its alternative title, Dead of Night, a Vietnam War allegory that takes its cue from the classic short story "The Monkey's Paw". The slasher film Black Christmas (1974) was one of his most successful films in this period, and is remembered today as an influential precursor to the modern slasher film genre.[9] Clark had moved to Canada, then a tax haven for Americans, and these Canuxploitation productions were small by Hollywood standards but made Clark a big fish in the small pond of the Canadian film industry of that era.[8]

Clark executive-produced the moonshine movie Moonrunners, which was used as source material for the TV series The Dukes of Hazzard. Clark later produced the 2000 TV movie The Dukes of Hazzard: Hazzard in Hollywood. Clark and others sued Warner Bros. over the studio's 2005 movie The Dukes of Hazzard, winning a $17.5 million settlement just prior to the movie's release.[10]

Turning toward more serious fare, Clark scored a critical success with the Sherlock Holmes film Murder by Decree, starring Christopher Plummer and James Mason, which won five Genie Awards including Best Achievement in Direction and Best Performance for both leads. He followed this with a movie of the Bernard Slade play Tribute, starring Jack Lemmon reprising his Broadway role, for which Lemmon was nominated for an Academy Award and 11 Genies including a win for Lemmon's performance.[8]

Clark returned to his B-movie roots, though, co-writing, producing, and directing Porky's, a longtime personal project. Clark had a detailed outline based on his own youth in Florida, which he dictated into a cassette recorder due to illness, and collaborator Roger Swaybill said of listening to the tapes, "I became convinced that I was sharing in the birth of a major moment in movie history. It was the funniest film story I had ever heard."[9]

Though set in the United States, the film would go on to gross more than any other English-language Canadian film.[8] The film was the third most successful release of 1982 and by the end of the film's lengthy initial release, in 1983, Porky's had secured itself a spot, albeit short-lived, as one of the top-25 highest-grossing films of all time in the US. The film was (also briefly) the most successful comedy in film history.

The overwhelming success of Porky's is credited as launching the genre of the teen sex comedy[11] so prevalent throughout the 1980s, and which continued into the millennium in such films as the American Pie series. Clark wrote, produced, and directed the film's first sequel, Porky's II: The Next Day (1983), which did not feature the title character, and introduced two new antagonists with perhaps greater relevance, a blustering fundamentalist preacher, and a sleazy local politician who cynically caters to his influence, while seducing a teenage girl.

Clark refused involvement with a third film, Porky's Revenge!.

He instead collaborated with Jean Shepherd on A Christmas Story, which critic Leonard Maltin described as "one of those rare movies you can say is perfect in every way".[12] Although not a box-office smash in its theatrical release, A Christmas Story would go on to become a perennial holiday favorite via repeated TV airings and home video. A joint effort at a sequel in 1994, My Summer Story, did not fare as well; Maltin said that the studio waited too long, and Clark was forced to recast almost the entire film.[12] Three other film versions of the Parker family had been produced for television by PBS with Shepherd's involvement during the late 1980s, also with a different cast, but without Clark's participation.

Clark continued to stay active in the film industry until his death, with lower-budget fare mixed in with brief runs at higher targets. A The Hollywood Reporter critic, speaking after his death, described his career as "a very unusual mix of films", because he "at times was a director-for-hire and would do films that, to say the least, aren't stellar".[12] Some of his last output included Baby Geniuses and Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2.

Clark was nominated twice for the Razzie Awards as "Worst Director", for Rhinestone and Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2. At the end of his life, he was working with Howard Stern on a remake of Porky's, and, with Black Christmas having been remade, two of his other early horror films were slated for expensive remakes: Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things and Deathdream.[13]

Personal life

[edit]

Clark was divorced, and had two sons.[9]

Death

[edit]

Clark and his younger son, Ariel Hanrath-Clark, 22, were killed in a head-on car crash on the Pacific Coast Highway in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles on the morning of April 4, 2007.[14]

Filmography

[edit]

Film

[edit]
Year Title Director Writer Producer Notes
1966 The Emperor's New Clothes Yes Yes No Short film
1967 She-Man Yes Yes No Co-written with Jeff Gillen
1972 Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things Yes Yes Yes Co-written with Alan Ormsby
1974 Deathdream Yes No Yes
Black Christmas Yes No Yes Also portrayed Billy in scenes where the character is shown on-screen
1976 Breaking Point Yes No Yes
1979 Murder by Decree Yes No Yes
1980 Tribute Yes No No
1981 Porky's Yes Yes Yes
1983 Porky's II: The Next Day Yes Yes Yes Co-written with Roger Swaybill and Alan Ormsby
A Christmas Story Yes Yes Yes Co-written with Jean Shepherd and Leigh Brown
1984 Rhinestone Yes No No
1985 Turk 182 Yes No No
1987 From the Hip Yes Yes Yes Co-written with David E. Kelley
1990 Loose Cannons Yes Yes No Co-written with Richard Christian Matheson and Richard Matheson
1994 My Summer Story Yes Yes No Co-written with Jean Shepherd and Leigh Brown
1999 Baby Geniuses Yes Yes No Co-written with Greg Michael
I'll Remember April Yes No No
2002 Now & Forever Yes No No
2004 Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2 Yes No No
2008 Blonde and Blonder Uncredited No No Uncredited co-director with Dean Hamilton[a]

Executive Producer

Year Title Notes
1974 Deranged Uncredited
1975 Moonrunners
1991 Popcorn Uncredited
2006 Black Christmas Remake of his 1974 film of the same title

Television

[edit]
Year(s) Title Director Writer Notes
1979, 2000 The Dukes of Hazzard No Yes Episodes: ''Repo Men'', ''Hazzard in Hollywood''
1985 Amazing Stories Yes No Episode: ''Remote Control Man''
1993 The American Clock Yes No Television film
1995 Fudge Yes Yes Pilot film: ''Fudge-a-mania''
Derby Yes No Television films
1996 Stolen Memories: Secrets from the Rose Garden Yes No
1998 The Ransom of Red Chief Yes No
2000 Catch a Falling Star Yes No
2003 Maniac Magee Yes No
2004 The Karate Dog Yes No

Notes

[edit]

References

[edit]
[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Bob Clark

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Bob Clark (August 5, 1939 – April 4, 2007) was an American , , and renowned for his contributions to both horror and comedy genres, particularly the influential Black Christmas (1974), the blockbuster teen comedy (1981), and the enduring holiday classic (1983). Born in New Orleans, , he grew up in , before moving to Fort Lauderdale, , and attended several colleges, including studying theater at the , before embarking on a career that spanned low-budget independent films and major studio productions. In the 1970s, he relocated to , where he capitalized on the country's burgeoning and tax incentives to direct early cult successes like Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things (1972) and (1974), which helped pioneer elements of the slasher subgenre. Clark's transition to mainstream comedy in the 1980s marked his commercial peak; , a raunchy set in 1950s , became one of the highest-grossing Canadian films of all time, earning over $100 million worldwide and spawning sequels. He followed this with , adapted from Jean Shepherd's semi-autobiographical stories, which captured nostalgic Midwestern family life through the eyes of a young boy obsessed with a ; the film initially received mixed reviews but has since become a cultural staple, airing annually in marathons on television. Other notable works include the adventure Murder by Decree (1979), which won him five including Best Direction, the drama (1980), and the Sylvester Stallone-Dolly Parton musical (1984). Later projects, such as the family comedy (1999), received criticism but underscored his versatility across genres. Clark's life ended tragically on April 4, 2007, at the age of 67, when he and his 22-year-old son Ariel were killed at the scene in a head-on car crash on the Pacific Coast Highway in Pacific Palisades, California, caused by a drunk driver who swerved into their lane and was later convicted of DUI manslaughter. His legacy endures through films that blend humor, horror, and heartfelt storytelling, influencing generations of filmmakers and audiences.

Early life

Birth and family background

Benjamin Robert "Bob" Clark was born on August 5, 1939, in New Orleans, Louisiana. His early life was marked by significant family challenges, as his father passed away when Clark was a young child, leaving his mother to raise the family alone as a barmaid. This loss contributed to a childhood of financial hardship and instability for the Clark family. Following his birth in New Orleans, the family relocated to Birmingham, Alabama, during Clark's early childhood, before moving again to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where he spent his formative teenage years. In Fort Lauderdale, Clark grew up in relative poverty, often unsupervised due to his mother's demanding work, describing himself in later reflections as a "savage little being" who roamed freely on the local beaches. These circumstances fostered a resilient, independent spirit amid the economic struggles of a single-parent household.

Education

Clark began his postsecondary education at in , in the late 1950s, where he majored in . He later secured a football scholarship to in , attending from 1960 to 1963, where he played and participated in campus theater as a student actor with the Tower Players, which sparked his interest in performance and drama. Declining professional football opportunities, Clark transferred to the , where he studied theater and earned a degree in . During his time there, he directed his first short student film, (1966), starring veteran actor , providing early hands-on experience with filmmaking equipment and production techniques that shaped his future directing approach.

Career

Early career and horror beginnings

After completing a drama major at the , Clark embarked on his career in the mid-1960s, drawing on his theatrical background to experiment with low-budget productions. His directorial debut came with the The in 1966, which featured veteran actor and led to opportunities in feature-length work. This was followed by his first feature, She-Man (1967), a low-budget adult that Clark co-wrote with Jeff Gillen and later disavowed as an early misstep in his oeuvre. In the early 1970s, Clark relocated to , drawn by its status as a for American filmmakers, offering significant incentives for production costs and greater creative autonomy away from Hollywood constraints. He established operations in , which became a hub for his independent genre projects during this period. Collaborating closely with writer and performer , Clark focused on horror, employing practical effects and atmospheric tension to maximize impact on minimal resources. Clark's breakthrough in horror came with Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things (1972), a comedy-horror film directed by Clark, written by and starring Ormsby. Produced on a shoestring budget of approximately $70,000 and shot in just 14 days on a remote island off , the film utilized an improvisational approach with a cast of theater friends, blending dark humor with rising dread through practical makeup and eerie to evoke unease on a grand scale. This was followed by Deathdream (1974, also known as Dead of Night), another Ormsby-scripted horror that Clark directed and produced, exploring themes of and alienation through a returning soldier's transformation. Filmed in with a similarly constrained budget, it relied on innovative practical effects—like subtle injections and nocturnal settings—to build psychological tension and social commentary on the era, marking Clark's maturation in low-budget genre filmmaking.

Mainstream breakthroughs

Bob Clark's mainstream breakthrough came with Black Christmas (1974), a proto-slasher film that starred as sorority leader and innovated the genre through its use of subjective point-of-view shots from the killer's perspective, creating a sense of inescapable dread, all set against a chilling Christmas holiday backdrop. The film achieved strong performance in upon its October 1974 release, grossing approximately $4 million worldwide against a modest budget and paving the way for a wider U.S. distribution in 1975, which helped establish Clark's reputation beyond independent horror. Building on those early horror techniques of atmospheric tension and subtle scares, Clark ventured into period mystery with Murder by Decree (1979), casting as in a narrative that blended detective intrigue with Jack the Ripper-inspired horror elements. The film earned critical acclaim for its meticulous Victorian-era production design, including foggy streets and opulent interiors that enhanced the story's gothic mood. Clark reached his commercial zenith in the early with the teen sex comedy Porky's (1981), which followed a group of high school boys navigating pranks and rivalries in and grossed over $160 million worldwide, becoming one of the highest-earning Canadian films of its era and inspiring two sequels. He followed this with the classic A Christmas Story (1983), an adaptation of Jean Shepherd's semi-autobiographical stories that captured nostalgic family humor through the eyes of young Ralphie Parker obsessing over a amid Midwestern chaos. These films marked Clark's awards recognition in Canadian cinema, including a Best Achievement in Direction Genie Award for Murder by Decree in 1980, and a Best Screenplay Genie Award for A Christmas Story (1983).

Later projects and challenges

Following the success of his earlier comedies, Clark directed the sequel Porky's II: The Next Day in 1983, expanding on the teen antics with a plot involving a high school group's battle against religious fundamentalists attempting to censor their production of Romeo and Juliet. The film received mixed reviews for its uneven blend of humor and social commentary, earning a 10% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on contemporary critic assessments. Clark had minimal involvement in the third installment, Porky's Revenge! (1985), which shifted focus to a more formulaic teen romance without his directorial oversight. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Clark ventured into buddy-cop comedies, directing Loose Cannons (1990), starring as a veteran detective paired with Dan Aykroyd's character, who suffers from multiple personality disorder amid a Nazi conspiracy plot. The film faced sharp criticism for its tonal inconsistencies and convoluted script, with noting that the leads' professional performances were "consistently undercut" by the material's awkward execution. Similarly, the described it as having a "foredoomed feel" despite Clark's genial style, contributing to its 0% score. Clark later pivoted toward family-oriented films, directing (1999), a comedy about super-intelligent infants plotting against a corporate exploiter, featuring and . The movie was widely panned for its poor special effects, juvenile humor, and illogical premise, receiving a 2% approval rating on and criticism from for appearing "competently made" in trailers but devolving into incompetence on screen. He returned for the sequel, Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2 (2004), which amplified the original's flaws with even weaker execution and drew comparable derision for failing to deliver engaging family entertainment despite its commercial aspirations. Throughout this period, Clark encountered significant career challenges, including studio interference and budget constraints that hampered his projects' creative control. These issues, combined with persistent tonal mismatches in his genre-blending efforts, led to a broader decline in critical and commercial reception after the mid-1980s. By the 1990s, he increasingly shifted toward executive producing roles on films like (1991) and various low-budget ventures, amassing over 20 directorial credits across his career while focusing more on production oversight.

Personal life and death

Family and relationships

Bob Clark was previously married and divorced, maintaining a relatively private personal life away from the public eye. He had two sons: the elder, Michael Clark (born circa 1979), and the younger, Ariel Hanrath-Clark (born November 23, 1984). The family resided in Pacific Palisades, California, where Clark balanced his filmmaking career with fatherhood. He demonstrated a supportive role as a parent by involving Ariel in his professional projects, casting him as an extra in My Summer Story (1994) and giving him a supporting role in Baby Geniuses (1999), fostering his son's emerging interests in acting and music. Little additional information is publicly available about Clark's relationships or non-professional interests, reflecting his preference for privacy.

Death and immediate aftermath

On April 4, 2007, Bob Clark and his son Ariel Hanrath-Clark were killed in a head-on collision on the Pacific Coast Highway in Pacific Palisades, . The 67-year-old Clark was driving a 1997 QX4 southbound with his 22-year-old son as a passenger when Hector Manuel Velazquez-Nava, 24, lost control of his northbound GMC , crossed into the oncoming lane without a valid license, and struck their vehicle around 2:20 a.m. Both Clarks were pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics. Velazquez-Nava, who sustained moderate injuries, was hospitalized and tested with a blood-alcohol level of 0.24—three times 's legal limit of 0.08—according to the initial police investigation. Velazquez-Nava, a Mexican national in the U.S. illegally, was arrested at the hospital and charged with two counts of while intoxicated. He pleaded no contest in August 2007 and was sentenced on October 26, 2007, by Hector M. Guzman to six years in state prison under a plea deal, with credit for ; he faced proceedings after his release. During sentencing, Velazquez-Nava expressed remorse, stating through an interpreter, "I would like to say I'm sorry for the pain I've caused." Immediate tributes poured in from Hollywood peers, highlighting Clark's warmth and contributions to cinema. , who starred as Ralphie Parker in Clark's 1983 film and later became a , described him as "a kind and generous man who will be sorely missed." , who played Flick in the same movie, called it "a tragic day for all of us who knew and loved Bob Clark," adding that "Bob was a fun-loving, jellyroll kind of guy who will be sorely missed." Clark's , Lyne Leavy, confirmed the details to and noted the profound loss to his family. Clark was cremated following his death, with memorial services held privately for family and close friends; specific arrangements were not publicly detailed, though his ashes' final disposition remains private. 's surviving family, including his older son Michael, expressed deep sorrow over the double tragedy.

Legacy

Influence on horror and slasher genres

Bob Clark's 1974 film Black Christmas is widely recognized as a proto-slasher that pioneered key elements of the subgenre, including anonymous harassing phone calls from the killer, a setting that subverts festive cheer into terror, and the introduction of the "" archetype through protagonist , who survives as a resourceful, independent woman confronting the threat. These innovations established a template for intimate, domestic horror where the danger invades everyday spaces like a sorority house, emphasizing psychological tension over overt violence. The film's influence extended directly to John Carpenter's Halloween (1978), which adopted similar POV shots, masked anonymity, and a surviving female lead, helping propel the slasher cycle of the late 1970s and 1980s. In (1974), Clark further advanced psychological horror by weaving trauma into a narrative of familial dysfunction and return, portraying the Andy as a vampire-like figure whose bloodlust symbolizes the alienation and moral decay of returning soldiers. The film builds atmospheric dread through confined suburban locations, subtle , and escalating unease rather than graphic gore, creating a slow-burn tension that critiques societal neglect of veterans without explicit war footage. These techniques influenced later horror explorations of war's psychological toll, blending undertones with realistic human conflict to heighten emotional impact. Clark's horror works collectively contributed to a broader shift in the genre from supernatural monsters to human perpetrators as primary threats, foregrounding real-world anxieties like and isolation in urban settings, which resonated in the post-Watergate era. This evolution is evident in Black Christmas's focus on a human killer's inscrutable motives, paving the way for slashers like (1980) that prioritized relatable, everyday vulnerability. In archival interviews, Clark emphasized his intent to innovate by rooting horror in psychological realism and auditory suspense, such as the disembodied phone voices that blur the line between intruder and intimate. The film won Canadian Film Awards for (Margot Kidder), Best Editing, and Best Sound Editing, underscoring its technical achievements in genre storytelling. By the 2020s, retrospectives marking Black Christmas's 50th anniversary in reaffirmed its foundational status, with 4K restorations and scholarly analyses highlighting its role in modern slasher conventions and its prescient commentary on gendered violence.

Cultural impact of holiday and comedy films

Bob Clark's 1983 film A Christmas Story initially underperformed at the , earning approximately $19 million domestically against a $3.3 million budget and quickly fading from theaters. However, repeated airings on beginning in 1985 transformed it into a staple, with viewer demand turning a one-off broadcast into an annual tradition. By 1997, TNT launched the film's iconic 24-hour marathon, which has aired continuously each Christmas season since, drawing millions of viewers and cementing its status as a nostalgic touchstone for American family life in the mid-20th century. The film's enduring appeal has inspired adaptations, including a Broadway musical that premiered in and a direct sequel, , released in 2022, further embedding it in holiday culture. Clark's 1981 comedy played a pivotal role in popularizing the raunchy teen sex comedy genre, grossing over $111 million worldwide on a modest $4 million budget and becoming one of the highest-grossing Canadian films of all time. Its plot of high school boys navigating pranks, , and sexual awakenings in 1950s spawned a wave of similar films, directly influencing later hits like the American Pie series through its blend of crude humor, ensemble antics, and exploration of adolescent rites of passage. The movie sparked significant controversy, facing bans in countries like —where it was initially prohibited before an appeal allowed its release—and prompting censor edits to explicit scenes, such as peeping sequences, which drew debates over and youth-targeted content. Clark's holiday films highlight an ironic duality in his oeuvre, juxtaposing the warm, nostalgic Americana of A Christmas Story with the chilling terror of his 1974 horror Black Christmas, a contrast celebrated in recent analyses as emblematic of his versatile take on seasonal storytelling. This thematic tension has been explored in 2023 and 2024 articles, underscoring how Clark's comedies offer escapist joy amid darker yuletide undercurrents. Following Clark's death in 2007, his comedies saw renewed revivals through expanded releases, including deluxe editions of that boosted its accessibility on streaming platforms. Fan conventions and events at the preserved in have drawn enthusiasts annually, fostering community celebrations of its themes. Scholarly works, such as Caseen Gaines's 2013 book A Christmas Story: of a Holiday Classic, have analyzed the films' evocation of nostalgic Americana, examining their role in shaping post-war family ideals and comedic tropes.

Filmography

Feature films

Bob Clark directed the following feature films, listed chronologically with key details on genre, runtime, and principal cast members.
YearTitleGenre(s)Runtime (min)Key Cast
1967She-Man: A Story of FixationComedy, Drama68Leslie Marlowe, Wendy Roberts, Dorian Wayne, Crystal Hans
1972Children Shouldn't Play with Dead ThingsHorror86Alan Ormsby, Valerie Mamches, Jeff Gillen, Bob Sherman
1974DeathdreamHorror, Thriller88Richard Backus, Lynn Carlin, John Marley, Anya Ormsby
1974Black ChristmasHorror, Mystery, Thriller98Olivia Hussey, Keir Dullea, Margot Kidder, John Saxon
1976Breaking PointCrime, Drama, Thriller92Bo Svenson, Robert Culp, John Colicos, Belinda Montgomery
1979Murder by DecreeMystery, Thriller124Christopher Plummer, James Mason, Anthony Quayle, David Hemmings
1980TributeDrama123Jack Lemmon, Robby Benson, Lee Remick, Colleen Dewhurst
1981Porky'sComedy94Dan Monahan, Mark Herrier, Wyatt Knight, Roger Wilson
1983Porky's II: The Next DayComedy98Dan Monahan, Wyatt Knight, Mark Herrier, Tony Ganios
1983A Christmas StoryComedy, Family93Peter Billingsley, Melinda Dillon, Darren McGavin, Ian Petrella
1984RhinestoneComedy, Music, Romance111Sylvester Stallone, Dolly Parton, Richard Farnsworth, Ron Leibman
1985Turk 182!Action, Comedy, Drama102Timothy Hutton, Robert Urich, Kim Cattrall, Robert Stack
1987From the HipComedy, Drama111Judd Nelson, Elizabeth McGovern, John Hurt, Darren McGavin
1990Loose CannonsAction, Comedy, Crime94Gene Hackman, Dan Aykroyd, Dom DeLuise, Ronny Cox
1994It Runs in the FamilyComedy85Charles Grodin, Mary Steenburgen, Kieran Culkin, Colin Quinn
1999Baby GeniusesComedy, Family, Sci-Fi97Kathleen Turner, Christopher Lloyd, Kim Cattrall, Peter MacNicol
1999I'll Remember AprilDrama, Family94Pat Morita, Trevor Morgan, Pam Dawber, Haley Joel Osment
2001Now & ForeverDrama, Romance101Mia Kirshner, Dylan Walsh, Adam Beach, James Kidnie
2004Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2Comedy, Family, Sci-Fi88Jon Voight, Scott Baio, Vanessa Angel, Myles Jeffrey

Television and other credits

Bob Clark directed several made-for-television movies during the and early , often focusing on family-oriented dramas and literary adaptations that aligned with his interest in heartfelt storytelling seen in his feature work. These projects typically featured shorter runtimes of 90-120 minutes and emphasized ensemble casts exploring themes of loss, growth, and . One of his notable television directing efforts was the 1993 TNT adaptation of Arthur Miller's play The American Clock, a 110-minute drama depicting the impact of the Great Depression on an American family, starring Darren McGavin, Mary McDonnell, and David Strathairn. In 1995, Clark wrote and directed the 90-minute pilot TV movie Fudge-a-mania for ABC's short-lived sitcom Fudge, based on Judy Blume's children's books, featuring Jake Richardson as Peter Hatcher and Luke Tarsitano as his brother Fudge, alongside Eve Plumb. He followed with the 1996 CBS TV movie Stolen Memories: Secrets from the Rose Garden, a 100-minute family drama about a boy uncovering family secrets in the 1950s South, starring Mary Tyler Moore, Linda Lavin, and Shirley Knight. In 1998, Clark directed the Showtime TV movie The Ransom of Red Chief, a 93-minute comedy adaptation of O. Henry's short story, featuring Christopher Lloyd, Michael Jeter, and Alan Ruck as hapless kidnappers dealing with a mischievous boy. He continued with the 100-minute CBS TV movie Catch a Falling Star in 2000, a romantic comedy starring Sela Ward as a disillusioned actress who rediscovers life in a small town, with supporting performances by Rebecca Jenkins and Andrew Jackson. Clark's later television directing credits included the 2003 Nickelodeon TV movie Maniac Magee, a 100-minute adaptation of Jerry Spinelli's Newbery Medal-winning novel about a young orphan bridging racial divides, starring Michael Angarano, Jurnee Smollett, and Orlando Brown, and his final one, the 2004 Animal Planet TV movie The Karate Dog, an 84-minute family comedy about a martial arts-proficient dog solving crimes, voiced by Chevy Chase and featuring Jon Voight and Jaime Pressly. In addition to directing, Clark took on producing roles for television projects, contributing to over a dozen credits across the and 2000s, often in collaboration with networks like and . A key example is his role as on the 2000 CBS TV movie : Hazzard in Hollywood, a 96-minute reunion special for the iconic series, written by and starring the original cast including John Schneider and . These producing efforts frequently overlapped with his feature career by involving similar themes of Americana and ensemble dynamics but were tailored for broadcast formats with tighter budgets and episodic pacing. Other credits include minor contributions such as uncredited cameos in television specials related to his holiday films, though no major unreleased television projects were completed before his death in 2007.

References

  1. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/director-clark-son-killed-pch-133475/
  2. https://www.theguardian.com/news/2007/apr/12/guardianobituaries.obituaries
  3. https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0163706/bio/
  4. https://cfe.tiff.net/canadianfilmencyclopedia/content/bios/bob-clark
  5. https://variety.com/2020/film/news/a-christmas-story-bob-clark-1234874982/
  6. https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0163706/
  7. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/18770492/bob-clark
  8. https://tv.apple.com/us/person/bob-clark/umc.cpc.58ms1s2wccr3br4hdg602gj5t
  9. https://www.bhamwiki.com/w/Bob_Clark
  10. https://www.popmatters.com/bob-clark-films-2646125288.html
  11. https://www.starnewsonline.com/story/news/2007/04/12/bob-clark-the-late-christmas-story-director-had-north-carolina-connections/30442162007/
  12. https://hillsdalecollegian.com/2016/12/hillsdales-christmas-story-2/
  13. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0068370/
  14. https://movieweb.com/best-canadian-horror-movie-black-christmas-streaming-nov-2025/
  15. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071222/
  16. https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Black-Christmas-%28Canada%29%281974%29
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  18. https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/murder_by_decree
  19. https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1004151-christmas_story
  20. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0085334/
  21. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079592/awards/
  22. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086129/
  23. https://www.nytimes.com/1990/02/09/movies/reviews-film-hackman-and-aykroyd-in-loose-cannons.html
  24. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-02-09-ca-35-story.html
  25. https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/loose_cannons
  26. https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/baby_geniuses
  27. https://www.popmatters.com/depth-of-field-the-incredibly-inconsistent-career-of-bob-clark-2495757769.html
  28. https://variety.com/2007/film/markets-festivals/bob-clark-67-director-1117962526/
  29. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2007-apr-05-me-crash5-story.html
  30. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2007-apr-06-me-crash6-story.html
  31. https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/man-charged-in-crash-that-killed-director-bob-clark-could-face-deportation-1.679693
  32. https://www.whittierdailynews.com/general-news/20071029/driver-in-death-of-director-regretful/
  33. https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2007/04/06/film-festival-to-show-late-directors-work/
  34. https://www.today.com/popculture/christmas-story-director-son-killed-crash-1c9424071
  35. https://www.slashfilm.com/729216/how-black-christmas-changed-slasher-movies-forever/
  36. https://bloody-disgusting.com/editorials/3597308/original-final-girl-legacy-jess-bradford-black-christmas/
  37. https://www.perisphere.org/2019/12/10/black-christmas-the-godfather-of-slasher-genre/
  38. https://blogs.iu.edu/establishingshot/2023/12/06/merrily-we-go-to-hell-black-christmas-and-the-slasher-film/
  39. https://offscreen.com/view/deathdream
  40. https://www.avclub.com/black-christmas-deathdream-bob-clark-political-horror
  41. https://wizzley.com/retro-horror-review-deathdream-aka-dead-of-night-1974/
  42. https://researchportal.northumbria.ac.uk/files/33411764/Jones_Done_to_Death.pdf
  43. https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1608063/FULLTEXT01.pdf
  44. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071222/awards/
  45. https://variety.com/2024/film/news/american-genre-film-archive-black-christmas-50th-anniversary-4k-rerelease-1236214645/
  46. https://cinemaretro.com/index.php/archives/12933-REMEMBERING-BLACK-CHRISTMAS-A-50TH-ANNIVERSARY-INTERVIEW-WITH-LYNNE-GRIFFIN.html
  47. https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2016/11/how-a-christmas-story-became-an-american-tradition
  48. https://nypost.com/2023/12/21/entertainment/a-christmas-story-24-hour-annual-marathon-explained/
  49. https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0084522/
  50. https://fortlauderdalemagazine.com/porkys-muse/
  51. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWB1DYcvpwE
  52. https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/the-connection-between-black-christmas-and-a-christmas-story
  53. https://comicbook.com/horror/news/a-christmas-story-bob-clark-black-christmas-1974-slasher-billy-remake-reboot/
  54. https://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Story-Behind-Holiday-Classic/dp/1770411402
  55. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0183766/
  56. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0084522/
  57. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118665/
  58. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0155754/
  59. https://variety.com/1993/tv/reviews/tnt-screenworks-arthur-miller-s-the-american-clock-1200432923/
  60. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-01-07-ca-17224-story.html
  61. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114549/
  62. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0117439/
  63. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0175245/
  64. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0246063/
  65. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0270882/
  66. https://www.themoviedb.org/person/12698-bob-clark
  67. https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/bob_clark
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