Born Samuel Goldberg in Dorchester, Massachusetts, in 1912, Buddy Clark initially pursued a legal career yet began performing as a vocalist long before completing his studies. By 1934 he appeared under his adopted stage name on Benny Goodman's Let's Dance radio program, and between 1936 and 1938 he became a familiar presence on Your Hit Parade. Although his style remained rooted in popular song rather than jazz, bandleaders including Goodman valued his precise intonation and subtle phrasing, which also led to occasional recordings with artists such as Johnny Hodges. Signed to Vocalion Records by the middle of the decade, Clark reached the Top 20 for the first time with "Spring Is Here," a success that would not be repeated for nearly twenty years. During that interval he stayed active through session work, most notably supplying the singing voice for Jack Haley in Wake Up and Live, and he made an on-screen appearance in Seven Days' Leave. In the early 1940s he fronted his own septet while also performing with Goodman and Eddie Duchin.
Clark finally achieved sustained commercial success after moving to Columbia Records. In spring 1947 the single "Linda" held the top position for two weeks, inaugurating a run of hits that continued without interruption for the next two years. Subsequent releases included "How Are Things in Glocca Mora" from Finian's Rainbow, which entered the Top Ten, the chart-topping "Peg O' My Heart," and follow-ups such as "An Apple Blossom Wedding," "Don't You Love Me Anymore," and "I'll Dance at Your Wedding." Ten additional singles appeared on the charts in 1948, among them the million-selling number-one duet "Love Somebody." The following year brought further strong sellers, some recorded alone and others in tandem with Doris Day and Dinah Shore.
On 1 October 1949, Clark boarded a private aircraft with companions after attending a football game; the plane crashed in Los Angeles before reaching its destination. One month after his death, the posthumous single "A Dreamer's Holiday" provided a final chart entry.
