William Clark, Jr. was a diplomat in the United States Foreign Service

United States Foreign Service

The United States Foreign Service is a component of the United States federal government under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of approximately 11,500 professionals carrying out the foreign policy of the United States and aiding U.S...

 and a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor. He was named Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to India in 1989. He succeeded John R. Hubbard

John R. Hubbard

John Randolph "Jack" Hubbard was the eighth president of the University of Southern California between 1970-80. He succeeded Norman Topping and was succeeded by James Zumberge. He had served as USC vice president and provost in 1969 after spending four years in India as chief education adviser to...

.

Clark was born in Oakland, California

Oakland, California

Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...

. Prior to his ambassadorial appointment, Mr. Clark served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Department of State Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs. Prior to this, he served for 4 years as Minister and deputy chief of mission for the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo, Japan

Embassy of the United States in Tokyo

The Embassy of the United States in Tokyo represents the United States to Japan. Along with consulates general in Osaka, Nagoya, Sapporo, Fukuoka, and Naha, the embassy provides assistance to American citizens and issues visas to foreign nationals who wish to visit or immigrate to the United...

; and as deputy chief of mission and Chargé d'affaires

Chargé d'affaires

In diplomacy, chargé d’affaires , often shortened to simply chargé, is the title of two classes of diplomatic agents who head a diplomatic mission, either on a temporary basis or when no more senior diplomat has been accredited.-Chargés d’affaires:Chargés d’affaires , who were...

 for the U.S. Embassy in Cairo

Cairo

Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...

, Egypt.

After his tour as ambassador, Clark was president of the Japan Society, Inc. As of 2007, he was Managing Director of Hills and Company.

Mr. Clark received a bachelor's degree and honorary Doctor of Letters from San Jose State College

San José State University

San Jose State University is a public university located in San Jose, California, United States...

. He studied at the University of Southern California Law School

University of Southern California Law School

The University of Southern California Law School , located in Los Angeles, California, is a law school within the University of Southern California...

 and Columbia University

Columbia University

Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...

School of International Affairs. He served in the U.S. Navy, 1949 - 1953.

Ambassador Clark received numerous awards, including the Order of the Sacred Treasure Gold and Silver Star, conferred by the Emperor of Japan (2000), and the Department of State Distinguished Honor Award (1989). Mr. Clark was married and had one son.