Early Years
Clash was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland. He developed an interest in puppetry at an early age, inspired by such children's shows as Kukla, Fran and Ollie. At the age of 10, he made his first puppet (some conflicting sources reporting his first puppet as a monkey named "Moandy" or a puppet of Mickey Mouse), which he assembled by using the lining from one of his father's coats. Clash's parents encouraged his creativity and, by the time he was a teenager, he'd created over 80 puppets. In high school, Clash began making puppets for the children's television program Romper Room. After graduating from high school, Clash transitioned to work as a professional puppeteer on local children's television programs Caboose and Mr. Rainbow's World. Clash's work on Caboose eventually led to a job on the national children's television program Captain Kangaroo.
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