Dick Clark fortune estimated in 'hundreds of millions'

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Dick Clark married music and television long before "American Idol." But his legacy extends well beyond the persona of the laid-back host of "American Bandstand" whose influence can still be seen on TV today.

He was the workaholic head of a publicly traded company, a restaurateur, a concert promoter and real-estate investor. Clark, who died of a heart attack Wednesday at age 82, left behind a fortune and is the model of entertainment entrepreneurship embodied today by "Idol" host Ryan Seacrest.

"Work was his hobby," said Fran La Maina, the longtime president of Dick Clark Productions Inc.

La Maina started as the production company's financial controller in 1966. He estimates Clark amassed a fortune that reached into the hundreds of millions of dollars.

"He had this never-give-up attitude. He was a great salesperson and a task master," La Maina said.