Dick Clair
Writer · Died December 12, 1988, aged 57 · San Francisco, California, USA
Dick Clair was born Richard Jones in San Francisco, California. He served in the military for two years from 1955 to 1957. He never married or had children. In the early 1970s, Clair performed husband-and-wife comedy routines for The Ed Sullivan Show and The Dean Martin Show with his writing partner Jenna McMahon. Clair was a screenwriter for episodes of The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Bob Newhart Show in addition to his Emmy Award winning writing for the comedy-variety TV program The Carol Burnett Show. With Jenna McMahon he wrote and produced the television sitcoms It's a Living, The Facts of Life, and Mama's Family. Clair was active as an early member of the Cryonics Society of California in the 1960s. In 1982 he contributed $20,000 to the cryonics organization Trans Time so that a husband and wife could remain cryopreserved in liquid nitrogen. He was diagnosed with AIDS in 1986. When he was hospitalized in 1988 he faced opposition from the hospital and the State of California concerning his desire for cryonics treatment. The ensuing court battle (Roe v. Mitchell, with Clair as "John Roe") ended victoriously, establishing the legal right of persons to be cryonically preserved in the state of California. Clair died on December 12, 1988, of multiple AIDS-related infections at the age of 57. He was cryopreserved at the Alcor Life Extension Foundation. -from wikipedia
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Biography from TMDB.
- November 12, 1931
- December 12, 1988 (aged 57)
- San Francisco, California, USA
- Writer
- 13 on MovieCove · 22 credits in all
Known for
What are Dick Clair's films like?
Across a limited sample of 4 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Self.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 1 · Wry 0 · Earnest 3
Light 4 · Serious 0 · Dark 0
Grounded 3 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 0
Gentle 2 · Charged 2 · Intense 0
Steady 3 · Shifting 0 · Whiplash 1
Straight-faced 0 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 4
Slow burn 2 · Even-paced 2 · Relentless 0
Casual 4 · Engaged 0 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 4 · Affecting 0 · Heavy 0
Resolved 4 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0
Moods and endings
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Dick Clair's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 10 of their 13 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (7).
Subscription and free streaming for Dick Clair's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
22 credits, 13 with a MovieCove page; 3 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Midcredits score: 35th percentile of all films
Mama's Family(1983)
Midcredits score: 67th percentile of all shows
Newhart (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)
Eunice (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)
Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all films
It's a Living(1980)
Midcredits score: 43rd percentile of all shows
Flo(1980)
Midcredits score: 9th percentile of all shows
A New Kind of Family (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1979)
240-Robert (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1979)
The Facts of Life(1979)
Midcredits score: 45th percentile of all showsCarol Burnett & Company (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1979)
Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films
'Twas the Night Before Christmas (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)
Soap(1977)
Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all shows
The Bob Newhart Show(1972)
Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all shows
Maude(1972)
Midcredits score: 59th percentile of all shows
Son of Blob(1972)
Midcredits score: 4th percentile of all filmsThe Funny Side (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)
Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all shows
The Rehearsal (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)
My Mother the Car (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)
Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all shows
Career shape
A full career of 20 titles from 1959 to 2001.
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
How do Dick Clair's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 43rd percentile, the median of all 4; across a limited sample of 4 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 40th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up3
- 50th to 74th5
- 25th to 49th3
- Below 25th2
Shape of the crowd
6 of their 13 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved3
- Universally Panned1
- Divisive1
- Cult Classic1
- Crowd Pleaser6
- Mixed1
Reviewers score the dialogue 41/100 and the plot and story 31/100 in their films, across 4 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Who does Dick Clair work with?
People who share at least 2 of Dick Clair's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Jenna McMahon shares the most, 3.
Writers
- Jenna McMahonShared titles: The Facts of Life Reunion (2001), The Facts of Life Goes to Paris (1982), The Grass Is Always Greener Over the Septic Tank (1978)See all 3 shared titles with Jenna McMahon
- Jerry MayerShared titles: The Facts of Life Reunion (2001), The Facts of Life Goes to Paris (1982)See all 2 shared titles with Jerry Mayer
Actors
- Charlotte RaeShared titles: The Facts of Life Reunion (2001), The Facts of Life Goes to Paris (1982)See all 2 shared titles with Charlotte Rae
- Kim FieldsShared titles: The Facts of Life Reunion (2001), The Facts of Life Goes to Paris (1982)See all 2 shared titles with Kim Fields
- Lisa WhelchelShared titles: The Facts of Life Reunion (2001), The Facts of Life Goes to Paris (1982)See all 2 shared titles with Lisa Whelchel
- Mindy CohnShared titles: The Facts of Life Reunion (2001), The Facts of Life Goes to Paris (1982)See all 2 shared titles with Mindy Cohn
