Principal Joe Clark, who inspired film âLean on Me,â dies at Florida home
Morgan Freeman starred as Clark in the 1989 film Lean on Me that was loosely based on Clarkâs tenure at Eastside High School in Paterson, N.J.
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In this 1988 photo, Joe Clark, principal of Eastside High School in Paterson, N.J., stands with rap group Run-DMC before the group gave a concert at the school in support of Clark s way of running his school. Clark died at his Florida home on Tuesday. [ PETER CANATA | AP ]
Published Dec. 30, 2020
GAINESVILLE â Joe Louis Clark, the baseball bat and bullhorn-wielding principal whose unwavering commitment to his students and uncompromising disciplinary methods inspired the 1989 film
Principal Joe Clark who inspired film Lean on Me has died gjsentinel.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from gjsentinel.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Joe Clark, a high school principal who served as the inspiration for the film
Lean On Me, has died. He was 82.
According to a statement from Clark s family, the retired New Jersey principal died on Tuesday in his Gainesville, Florida home after a long battle with illness. The family did not specify the illness. Get push notifications with news, features and more. + Follow
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Clark was the principal of Eastside High School in Paterson, New Jersey, where his quest to improve the school from within earned him national attention. As the statement from his family recalled, he once expelled 300 students for fighting, vandalism, abusing teachers, and drug possession in a single day.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) Joe Louis Clark, the baseball bat and bullhorn-wielding principal whose unwavering commitment to his students and uncompromising disciplinary methods inspired the 1989 film “Lean on Me,” died at his Florida home on Tuesday after a long battle with an unspecified illness, his family said in statement. He was 82.
Born in Rochelle, Georgia, on May 8, 1938, Clark’s family moved north to Newark, New Jersey, when he was 6 years old. After graduating from Newark Central High School, Clark received his bachelor’s degree from William Paterson College (now William Paterson University), a master’s degree from Seton Hall University, and an honorary doctorate from the U.S. Sports Academy. Clark also served as a U.S. Army Reserve sergeant and a drill instructor.