Roy Linwood Clark was born and raised in Virginia and graduated from Chamberlain Vocational High School in Washington, D.C. He received $7.50 for one night’s work on stage with his father’s band at age 16, worked briefly as a local car hop, and had a paper route for the Washington Star. He played on the legendary stage of the Grand Old Opry and toured for two years with Jimmy Dean’s band, followed by hit records, national and international television appearances, and co-hosting “Swinging Country.” He was co-host of the long running nationally syndicated country music program “Hee-Haw” beginning in 1966. Clark was the first country music artist to host Johnny Carson’s “Tonight Show” on NBC, the first to headline a major Las Vegas hotel and the first to sell out New York City’s Carnegie Hall and Madison Square Garden. His awards include the top Academy of Country Music and the Country Music Association Awards, Oklahoma’s Ambassador of Goodwill, and a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame. He was one of the pioneers of Branson, Missouri’s world-renown music community and supported Tulsa’s Children’s Medical Center and other philanthropic projects around the nation.