Roy Clark, Country Guitar Ambassador And Icon, Dies At 85

Singer-songwriter and country music guitarist Roy Clark has died at the age of 85, from complications of pneumonia, at his home in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

"Roy Clark was a revered figure in country music," said Recording Academy President/CEO Neil Portnow. "The country music community has lost one of its most cherished musicians. He will be dearly missed, and our thoughts are with his loved ones during this difficult time."

Emerging as a headliner in the 1960s, Clark's good-natured outlook and musical excellence became more widely known when the television show "Hee Haw" premiered in 1969. Co-hosting with Buck Owens, Clark was an ambassador for country music to mainstream audiences who learned to laugh with country entertainers while being impressed and even moved.

In 1983 Clark opened the Roy Clark Celebrity Theater in Branson Missouri, one of the earliest country stars to make Branson the entertainment destination it has become today. In 1987, he was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry. A virtuoso instrumentalist, Clark's first performance at the storied venue was in 1950 when he won a national competition for excellence on the banjo.

Clark was devoted to music. "Music was my salvation, the thing I loved most and did best," he said.

Clark won Best Country Instrumental Performance at the 25th GRAMMY Awards for "Alabama Jubilee." He has a total of eight GRAMMY nominations. A memorial service in Tulsa will be announced.

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Roy Clark, Country Guitar Ambassador And Icon, Dies At 85

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