Clark Middleton: Role of His Life

Actor Clark Middleton has spent a lifetime defying limits and arthritis.

Art imitates life imitates art. Actor Clark Middleton, of NBC’s The Blacklist and Hulu’s The Path, is keenly aware of the parallels between his on-camera and off-camera lives.

“Acting is dealing with obstacles and problems, and I think I’ve learned how to be creative that way,” says Clark, 60. The New York City-based character actor, known for eccentric supporting roles in films from Birdman to Kill Bill: Vol. II (in a role Quentin Tarantino wrote specifically for him), earned his resilience and acting chops by living with juvenile arthritis since age 4.

Childhood Journey

In 1961, the Middletons of Louisville, Kentucky, learned that their 4-year-old son had juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (now calledjuvenile idiopathic arthritis). The doctor told Clark’s dad, Mel, that his son most likely wouldn’t survive another Kentucky winter. So Mel quit his job and moved the family to Tucson, Arizona.

“I will never forget riding in that ’55 station wagon on our voyage to Arizona,” Clark says. “My joints were so swollen that my dad created a bed in the back for me to lie down. He would brake very slowly at the hundreds of stoplights along Route 66 to avoid [causing] me pain.”

虽然亚利桑那州温暖的天气似乎有所帮助，但一位风湿病学家告诉克拉克和他的父亲，克拉克将坐轮椅，完全依赖他人。克拉克回忆说，当他们离开检查室时，他的父亲说:“我们绝不会听那些!”

“My dad refused to let me quit,” says Clark. “He constantly instilled in me that I could define my own reality by how I thought about myself and how I carried myself. He wouldn’t allow me to think of myself as a victim. He taught me a lot about determination and courage.”

Mel also taught him that if he wanted something, Clark had to work for it. “He knew how important it was for me to be independent, and not to expect any handouts just because I had a disability. I had to earn it,” says Clark.

Those lessons have paid off, he adds. “The consequence is a wonderful life.”

克拉克小时候又住过三次院，因为髋关节问题错过了一整个高中学年。从高中开始，他的关节炎就得到了控制，但包括颈部融合在内的关节损伤已经波及到了成年。据他估计，在14次手术中，他已经更换了10个关节，包括双膝、双髋、一个肩膀和一个肘部。

The Accidental Actor

Clark moved from Arizona to California and enrolled in junior college, unsure of what he wanted to do. “I knew whatever I did with my life, it had to be something I really loved,” he says. “Having been so sick as a kid, I understood the value of time.”

As a late registrant in school, the only elective available was a class in theater. He signed up and impressed the instructor with an emotional monologue, he recalls. “I got up there and started crying, which is the last thing I wanted to do.” But, he says, “Something clicked there. … I started doing scenes in class and thought, ‘This is unbelievably fun!’”

He was able to channel emotions from his own experiences into his acting. “I thought, ‘I can connect what these characters are doing with what I’m feeling,’” he recalls.

1982年，克拉克搬到纽约学习表演，一年后，在另一位老师、传奇女演员杰拉尔丁·佩奇的推荐下，他获得了自己的第一份专业演出机会。从那以后，他出现在舞台上，在许多电视和电影中扮演角色，包括新的《双峰》系列，他教表演，指导专业演员。

Clark continues to balance work with his health and strives to avoid stress. He manages his arthritis with methotrexate, a biologic and a daily anti-inflammatory. Heeats healthfullyandhits the pool for laps and water workoutsas often as six times a week.

He also advocates for others with arthritis. Clark spoke at the Arthritis Foundation’s2017 Advocacy Summitin Washington, D.C., and planned to speak at theArthritis Support Network’s 10th Annual National Gatheringin June. He also started The Young Mels, a support network named for his father for kids with JA.

“I’m living the dream and I want to be able to give back,” he says. “If I can help other kids with JRA make lemonade out of lemons, that’s important to me.”

By Bryan D. Vargo and Claire Villines