He opened his office to students and colleagues. He even made up quizzes about theater history for other faculty to take for fun.

Dr. Clark kept coming into his office and working until he was no longer physically able to do so.

“He made it seem like it was no big deal, and he still kept busy researching and discussing passionately on acting, theater history and directing with his colleagues and students,” said David A. Crespy, director of undergraduate studies for the MU Department of Theatre. “He was an upbeat and positive guy.”

Dr. Clark died Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014, in Columbia. He was 82.

He joined the MU faculty in 1966 as an assistant professor of speech and dramatic art and was named dean of the College of Arts and Science in 1988. He also worked as associate provost chair of the MU Department of Communication and as chair of the Department of Theatre.

“He was an encyclopedia of information about early 20th-century American theater history,” Crespy said.

“His imprint was large. He was a major leader in both theater practice and in the scholarship of theater,” he said.

Dr. Clark taught acting, directing and the history of American theater at MU and co-wrote the acting textbook, “Acting is Believing.” He established the doctoral program in theater at MU. He also founded the university’s Summer Repertory Theatre in 1969 and directed 32 plays for it and the University Theatre.

“He was himself a perfect combination of a practicing theater artist, as well as a working theater scholar,” Crespy said. “He represents a generation of professors who created the discipline of theater on the collegiate level.”

Dr. Clark was one of the founding members of the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival and a founding member and president of the Association for Theatre in Higher Education.

He was also a past national chair and president of the American Theatre Association, and past president of the University and College Theatre Association. He was named a Fellow of the American Theatre by the Kennedy Center in 1985. He also received the Kennedy Center Gold Medallion for his dedication to theater education.

Besides his scholarly reputation, Dr. Clark was remembered as an inspiring, kind and “incredibly welcoming presence.” He made a positive impression on not only his students but also his co-workers.

Mark Fauser, a former student, said Dr. Clark guided him through his final year in college.

“He really taught me a lot of lessons there,” said Fauser, now a California-based actor and a writer.

“He is one of the reasons that … I applied for the jobs here and why I took the job here,” said Suzanne Burgoyne, a professor in the Theatre Department.

The year she joined the faculty, she said she signed up for Dr. Clark’s American theatre history class. “I wanted to have the opportunity to learn from him,” Burgoyne said. The class turned out to be inspiring, she said.

The Department of Theatre was always full of joy when Dr. Clark worked as  chair, his colleagues said. His leadership and inspiring personality glued the department together.

“He made everything around him positive,” said James M. Miller, a theater professor. He knew Dr. Clark and worked closely with him for years.

“He made you feel wonderful about yourself,” Miller said.

Getting Dr. Clark’s approval was one of the reasons he worked so hard, Miller said.

Crespy recalled a meeting with Dr. Clark before the fall 2014 semester.

“He barely stopped talking. He was very curious about my work with Edward Albee and the New York theater scene and wanted to know everything about everything.”

“He was a huge influence of all of us,” Crespy said.

Dr. Clark and Yvonne Clark, his wife of 60 years, adopted his nephew, Marcus Murray, when the boy was a senior in high school.

Dr. Clark is survived by his wife; his son; a daughter-in-law, Rhonda Murray; and three grandchildren, Jessica of Las Vegas, Joe of Chicago and Julia of New York City.

A memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. Jan. 7, 2015, at Memorial Funeral Home, 1217 Business Loop 70 W., in Columbia.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to First Christian Church, Capital Campaign, 101 N. Tenth St., Columbia MO 65201; or to the National Parkinson Foundation, Gift Processing Center, P.O. Box 5018, Hagerstown MD 21741-5018.

The story is published at Columbia Missourian, a local newspaper.