RIP Matt Clark

 

American character actor Matt Clark died on March 15^th IN Austin, Texas, he was 89. After serving in the U.S. Army, Clark attended George Washington University before dropping out. After working at various jobs, he joined a local D.C. theatre group and later became a member of New York's Living Theatre company and worked off-Broadway and in community theatre in the late 1950s. Clark was one of those unsung actors whose face is instantly recognizable although one may not recall the name. With his broad features and dark Irish looks, he was cast on both sides of the law in many Westerns and detective films. Born in Washington, DC, on November 25, 1936, Clark settled in New York City in the early 1960s and trained for the stage with Uta Hagen, Herbert Berghof and William Hickey. He landed the leading role of Stephen Dedalus in an Off-Broadway version of James Joyce's "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man" (1963). Clark did double duty as stage manager and understudy to Martin Sheen on Frank Gilroy's award-winning Broadway play "The Subject Was Roses." Around the same time, his film career began to gather steam with a featured turn in Norman Jewison's Oscar-winner "In the Heat of the Night" (1967). Matt appeared in 28 western films and TV series. He’s probably best remembered for his role as Pete in 1972’s “The Culpepper Cattle Co.” and more recently as the bartender in 1990s’ “Back to the Future Part III” as the bartender. Matt appeared in one Spaghetti western as Grover in 1975’s “Kid Vengeance with Lee Van Cleef, Jim Brown and Leif Garrett.