Clark Middleton

Clark Tinsley Middleton (April 13, 1957 – October 4, 2020) was an American actor born in Bristol, Tennessee, who went on to build a career spanning theater, television, and film. He grew up in Tucson, Arizona, and was diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis at the age of four and a half. The condition affected him throughout his life, distorting his hands, limiting movement in his neck by age eight, and requiring cortisone treatment that caused additional physical changes. At fifteen, his hip snapped, necessitating surgery and the use of crutches, and a later injury involving a broken leg left him reliant on canes. He stood 5 feet 4 inches tall.

Middleton's path into acting began with a fifteen-dollar class at a California junior college. After working in theater in Los Angeles, he relocated to New York City to pursue formal training, studying at the Herbert Berghof Studio under Geraldine Page. His screen debut came in the 1983 television film Miss Lonelyhearts. In 1997, he wrote and performed a one-person play titled Miracle Mile, which drew on his lifelong experience with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, presenting it in New York City and elsewhere across the United States.

His television work included a recurring role on Law and Order as forensics technician Ellis during the 1990s, as well as the recurring character Edward Markham, a rare book dealer, in the science-fiction series Fringe. He became widely recognized for his role as Glen Carter, a DMV worker who moonlights as a tracker, in The Blacklist. In 2017, he joined the cast of Twin Peaks: The Return on Showtime, playing Charlie, the husband of Audrey Horne, in the sequel to the original 1990s series. His film credits include Kill Bill: Vol. 2, Sin City, and Snowpiercer.

Middleton appeared on Broadway in 2018 in The Iceman Cometh, Eugene O'Neill's celebrated drama. His final performance came in July 2020, when he played a weary Times Square hotel night clerk in O'Neill's one-act play Hughie, performing the role via Zoom from his bedroom.

He married Elissa Meyers in 2006. Middleton died on October 4, 2020, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center from complications related to West Nile virus, at the age of 63. He was survived by his wife. Following his death, his character on The Blacklist was written out of the series in season eight, episode six, with the episode dedicated to Middleton and featuring Huey Lewis as part of the character's memorial.