Nov. 20, 2019 4:40p
(WGTD)---A regionally-popular 50s and 60s band with several Kenosha ties is mourning the loss of its lead vocalist.
33-year-old- Ryan Clark of “Doo-Wop Daddies” died of a suspected drug overdose last weekend.
Although he lived with his girlfriend in New Berlin, Clark was a 2004 graduate of Tremper High School. Performance credits included various high school productions, “Kids from Wisconsin,” the Racine Theatre Guild and venues in the Wisconsin Dells and in Oklahoma. Clark had been with “Doo-Wop Daddies” on a regular basis for seven years.
Band leader and pianist Mike Sturino says as tough as it will be the band will honor a performance commitment in Neenah this weekend. "We will eventually be looking for a replacement but it's going to be a very tough replacement," he said. "This guy had so much charisma," Sturino said, adding that Clark always stopped and chatted with any fan who wanted to meet him. "He was a gem," he said.
Sturino says the 20-year-old band has had to deal with tragedies before with the deaths of its founder, two drummers, a bass player and a guitartist. "We've got a Doo-Wop Daddies 'light' group up in heaven."
Clark had been in and out of treatment for some time. "(Drug addiction) is not a choice. People misunderstand that," Sturino said. "It grabbed hold of him as it happens with anybody in addiction. It took over his life and it unfortunately got the best of him."
Clark leaves behind a three-year-old daughter.
Visitation will be at the Sturino Funeral Home in Racine Friday from three until seven. Incidentally, three of the band's eight members currently live in Kenosha. They are Paul Pulera, Mike Sorensen and Benny Barnes.
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