Roy Clark, country music star and host of the long-running Hee Haw, passed away on November 15, 2018 due to complications from pneumonia. He was 85 years old.

Clark was born on April 15, 1933 in Virginia and grew up in Staten Island, New York before moving to Washington, D.C. as a teen; his father worked at the Navy Yard in Washington. As a young teenager he picked up a variety of instruments, including banjo, guitar, and mandolin, and by 15 had won two National Banjo Championships. Though he also had an interest in pursuing a career in pro sports, he ultimately went down the artistic path, and at just 17 years old he made his first appearance on the Grand Ole Opry.

Clark became a regular on Jimmy Dean’s D.C. television show by 1955, but was fired for his perpetual tardiness. He’d later go out to Vegas, working as a guitarist in a band led by Hank Penny, and by the early 1960s he regularly appeared in the backing band for Wanda Jackson. When Dean became the host of The Tonight Show, he had Clark appear on the program, which introduced Clark to a national audience. He soon had a recurring role on The Beverly Hillbillies as Roy Halsey (as well as Roy’s mother, Myrtle), and appeared on The Odd Couple and the Jackie Gleason Show.

Alongside Molly Bee and Rusty Draper, Clark co-hosted NBC’s daytime Swingin’ Country show, which was cancelled after just two seasons. But in 1969, Clark and Buck Owens were brought on to host Hee Haw, a show that would run until 1997 – one of the longest-syndicated shows ever. Originally airing over the course of 26 seasons, the show filmed in Nashville and accrued 655 episodes over its tenure across multiple networks. Reruns are still regularly shown in syndication today. Besides acting as host, Clark also played in the Million Dollar Band and also regularly participated in the show’s comedy sketches.

Outside of television, Clark was a prodigious country music artist, recording numerous studio and live albums over the course of his career and picking up nine Country Music Awards along the way. In 1982 he also won the Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental Performance for his recording of “Alabama Jubilee.” In 2009 he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Clark typically ended his performances by saying, “We had to come, but you had a choice. Thanks for being here.”

He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Barbara, and their four kids.