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Dick Clark, the man whose youthful exuberance earned him the moniker, "America's oldest teenager", has died of a massive heart attack in Santa Monica, aged 82.
It was as a teenager that Clark, flanked by the country's trendiest youth on either side of him, made his television debut on American Bandstand.
The show, which Clark hosted for 33 years, became a venue for many iconic moments in music history, including a young Madonna saying she wanted to "rule the world" before she topped the charts and the debut performance of a teenage Janet Jackson.
For many Americans, Clark was also the man who counted in the New Year, hosting his annual New Year's Rockin' Eve special, broadcast live from New York's Times Square.
With performances by over 200 artists, music was as much a part of New Year's Rockin' Eve as it was Bandstand.
Everyone from Florence and the Machine to Barry Manilow performed for the special, which became a staple in American homes in its 40 years on air.
Al Jazeera's Patty Culhane charts Clark's life.
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