Clark Booth is Dead

Zedia

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 17, 2005
6,988
Pasadena, CA
I grew up in the 80s watching channel 5 and my parents revered Booth and so did I as a child. Yet, my sense is SoSH has considered him an old stick in the mud for lack of a better metaphor. Anyway, he is dead now. What is his legacy, so say you SoSH?

http://www.wcvb.com/article/longtime-newscenter-5-journalist-clark-booth-dies/22577350
I grew up in the 80s and I know Booth was a thing, but I don’t really remember his work. But I can attest to the bolded. I was a thoughtful, smart, writer-type as a kid and I remember my mom hoping I’d grow up to do TV think pieces, “like Clark Booth”. And one time me and my dad went to a PawSox game that drew Boston media attention (probably someone rehabbing, or maybe a Mark Fydrich start?). “Holy shit, It’s such a big deal they sent Gammons,” my dad said. “Uh, no, Clark Booth, Channel 5,” Clark Booth replied. My dad was mortified.
 

ifmanis5

Member
SoSH Member
Sep 29, 2007
63,777
Rotten Apple
It's really hard to do what Clark did well and he was as good as anyone. In today's media climate, even if you do it well it doesn't play anymore. The public's taste and patience for observational criticism and video essay has disappeared. There won't be another Clark or likely even an Andy Rooney. The roll of critic, opinion piece, commentary and essay in mainstream media died a while ago replaced by entertainment 'news' and interviews. The audience seems to be saying 'don't tell me what to think' but what they're really saying is 'I don't want to think.' Clark was a local treasure. It's a minor tragedy that both what he did and the kind of audience he spoke to have passed on. RIP.
 

bankshot1

Member
SoSH Member
Feb 12, 2003
24,661
where I was last at
Clark Booth was smart, funny and articulate and brought a new literacy to Boston TV sports coverage. He was among the new breed to began to take over in the '70s from the Don Gillis/Bob Starr talking heads, and fit in with the extraordinary sports coverage that Boston fans were spoiled by (Gammons, Ryan, Fitzgerald, Collins, Shank, at the Globe, George Kimball at the Phoenix, then Herald). He had a different take, and was a very good writer. The guy was real good.
 

dcmissle

Deflatigator
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Aug 4, 2005
28,269
Keith Olbermann, who worked with Booth, described him as “a poet on a deadline.” That seems right.

His sensibilities, honesty, seriousness of purpose and integrity — combined with his talent — are sorely missing.

The hits keep on comin.’
 

Red(s)HawksFan

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 23, 2009
20,676
Maine
Mike Lynch tweeted a video of a stand-up he did with Booth and Jack Edwards at Fenway immediately after Game 7 of the 1986 ALCS. Such a nostalgia trip that led me down a rabbit hole of old Boston news clips on Youtube last night.