Clarence Alexander Avant (1931 - 2023)

Born 25 Feb 1931 in Climax, Guilford County, North Carolina, USA

Ancestors

Husband of Jacqueline Alberta (Gray) Avant — married 1967 in New York City, New York, USA

Died 13 Aug 2023 at age 92 in Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, USA

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Biography

Clarence Avant is Notable.

Clarence Alexander Avant was an American music executive, businessman, and film producer, who was known as "The Black Godfather" to Afro-American recording artists, movie stars and civil rights leaders. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2021. ^[1]

Early Life

Clarence Alexander Avant was born on 25 February 1931 in Climax North Carolina, USA (about 10 miles south of Greensboro). ^[2]He was the son of Gertrude Avant and Eddie Wood. He was the oldest of eight children and attended a one-room school in Greensboro until the eighth grade before transferring to Dudley High School in Greensboro for his first two years of high school. Clarence dropped out of school in 1947 and moved to Summit, New Jersey, USA to live with his aunt, and escape his abusive father.

Recording Industry and Hollywood

In the 1950s Clarence began working in the music business as a manager for Teddy P's Lounge, owned by jazz musician, Teddy Powell. He caught the attention of R&B singer Little Willie John, who hired Clarence as his manager, becoming the first of a log list of recording artists and song writers including Bill Withers and Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, to be managed by Clarence.

Though the 1960s and 1970s Clarence was involved in several recording companies including Venture Records Inc., Sussex Records Inc., Tabu records and Avant Garde Broadcasting - the latter bought the first African-American owned FM radio station in metropolitan Los Angeles on 03 March 1973.

Clarence was a sgifted negotiator and earned several of his clients large contracts with more established record labels. He also "knew who to know" in both the recording industry and in Hollywood and helped launch the acting career of Jim Brown after Brown retired from football. He also helped Atlanta Braves slugger Hank Aaron secure major commercial indorsements from several industried, including Coke A Cola, prior to Aaron breaking Babe Ruth's home run record. The story as related by Aaron was that Clarence just "walked into the office of Coke's president and said that Black people, not just White people, drank Coke" and should be represented in their advertizing. He assisted Mohamid Ali with his entertainment projects after Ali retired from boxing.

In 1973 Clarence joined with Paramount Pictures in producing Save the Children which premiered at the Appolo Theater in Harlem in September of the year. The film mixed performances of top Black entertainers with footage depecting conditions Black children often were found including as refugees from war ravaged countries and as victims of malnutrition.

Clarence boosted the careers of many of today's notable Black entertainers, including Michael Jackson, Cicely Tyso, Quincey Jones, Whitney Houston and Pharrell Williams.

Clarence recieved a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame in October, 2016 for his contributions.

Politics

By the 1970's, Clarence was a major fundraiser for both the civil rights movement and Democratic politicians. He raised money for his friend, Andrew Young for Young's various political campaignes. Clarence is credited with securing the keynote speaker slot in the 200 Democratic National Convention for the little known Senator from Illinois, Barack Obama.

Clarence was responsible for pulling together the first major Hollywood fundraiser for Democratic presidential canidate Jimmy Carter which led to many other fundraising events, including a fundraiser for President Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.

Clarence erved as an informal advisor to Clinton throughout his presidency and urged him not to give in or give up when Clinton's presidency was in jeopardy. At one time he even stayed in the Lincoln Bedroom in the White House. Growing up “We were poor, man. I’m talking about poor, poor, poor,” he said. Humble beginnings for a man who would be recognized as a a behind-the-scenes titan of managing, deal making and problem solving across the full spectrum of Black entertainment.

Clarence was always interested in helping other Afro-Americans to advance in business, politics or as cultural figures. "My job, so far as I'm concerned, is to move us forward, period" he said.

Personal Life

In 1967, Clarence married Jacqueline "Jackie" Gray, a hospital technician and model for Ebony Magazine at a fundraising event. They had two children, a son, Alex who is a talent agent, actor and producer; and a daughter, Nicole, who produced a Netflix documentary on her father in 2019 titled "The Black Godfather" and who was appointed the US Ambassador to the Bahamas during the Obama adminstration.

Jackie was fatally shot during a home invasion in 2021.

“If you don’t ask, you don’t get,” Clarence said in the Netflix documentary, looking back on his career. “Life is about one thing — numbers — nothing else. What did Tina Turner say? ‘What’s love got to do with it?’ Not a … thing, man. That’s why I tell people, ‘Life begins with a number and ends with a number."

Clarence died at the age of 92) on 14 August 2023 in Los Angeles, California.^[2]

Sources

1. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarence_Avant
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Obituary: "United States, GenealogyBank Obituaries, Births, and Marriages 1980-2014"
   citing Digital film/folder number: 112457180; Image number: 35
   FamilySearch Record: 6L6M-T8L6 (accessed 10 September 2023)
   FamilySearch Image: 3QHN-PQLN-L7MQ
   Name: Clarence Alexander Avant; Birth Date: 25 February 1931; Birth Place: Greensboro, Guilford, North Carolina, United States; Obituary Date: 14 August 2023; Obituary Place: Michigan, United States; Death Date: 14 August 2023; Death Place: Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States; Age: 92 years; Source Newspaper: Detroit News, The: Web Edition Articles; System Of Record: SLS.

• Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarence_Avant

"The Black Godfather" https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10289996/

Washington Post Obituary - https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2023/08/14/clarence-avant-dead-black-godfather/

LA Times Obituary - https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2023-08-14/clarence-avant-obituary-dead