Early Wednesday morning, news broke that Kevin Clark—the actor/musician best known for his role as drummer Freddy “Spazzy McGee” Jones in Richard Linklater’s beloved 2003 comedy-musical School of Rock—died in a tragic biking accident in Chicago. As word spread of the 32-year-old’s death, tributes from those who knew him began to pour in. Actor/singer/comedian Jack Black, who starred alongside Clark in School of Rock and reunited with him for screenings and other events over the years, took to Instagram to post his own heartfelt remembrance, writing: “Devastating news. Kevin is gone. Way too soon. Beautiful soul. So many great memories. Heartbroken. Sending love to his family and the whole school of rock community.”
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Per a report from the Chicago Tribune:
“About 1:20 a.m., Clark, 32, of the 700 block of West Roscoe Street in Lakeview, was riding east on his bike on Logan Boulevard, approaching the intersection at North Western Avenue, police said. A silver Hyundai Sonata driving south on Western Avenue was coming up on a green light and drove into the intersection, hitting the bicyclist as he ran a red light, a witness and the driver both told responding officers, according to a crash report.”
Clark, who grew up in Highland Park, Illinois, learned to play the drums at an early age, which is how he came to land the coveted role in School of Rock. As Variety reported, Black and Clark last reunited at a Tenacious D show in late 2018, where Clark gave Black some custom items branded with Dreadwolf, the name of his band at the time. While music was still very much a part of Clark’s life, School of Rock was his only acting credit. You can watch a clip of Clark and Black from School of Rock below.
(Via Chicago Tribune)
