Sarah Clark

Born in Boston, Sarah Clark dreamed of being a rock star. But it was years of admiring the on-air style of Charles Laquidara, longtime morning show host at WBCN Boston, that ultimately steered her path. For the past 20 years, Clark has cohosted her own morning show, nearly half that time here in the Bay Area with Alice Radio (97.3 FM). On air, she says what most of us are thinking (sometimes), and she’s not out to make friends. While her honesty can make listeners cringe or laugh out loud, they’ve been fiercely loyal—putting the show in the number-one slot (for women age 25 to 44, according to the Arbitron rating service) many years in a row.

Despite her high-profile persona, once she gets home to Mill Valley, Clark morphs into a sorta-typical Marin mom. “I love to be at home in sweats and no shoes,” she says. “I spend a lot of time at my kids’ school, watching them ride their scooters or playing baseball.” She also enjoys “time-wasting games like Word Racer and Text Twist.” And as a serial house-flipper, she knows her way around a toolbox. If these talents don’t elevate her to coolest-mom status, perhaps her bit voice part in the movie Cars or her new TV show, Sarah and No Name After Dark, will do the trick.

Clark has used her celebrity to benefit causes close to her heart. Last year she and her Alice crew threw a “Karaoke for Cancer” party to raise funds for her friend Elizabeth and to benefit Search for the Cause. “It was just so gratifying to know that my silly job could raise so much money, and I got to see the direct result of it,” she says.

You could live anywhere. Why Marin? My husband and I only had two weeks to find a place before our cars and all our crap was coming on a truck from Philadelphia. At the last minute we found a two-bedroom rental in Sausalito. It wasn’t until we’d settled in that we realized how lucky we were.

What makes you happy in Marin? Besides my family, I love the Golden Gate Bridge, I love the views, I love the school my kids are at and the little-town feeling of Mill Valley. I also love the festivals and the giant oak trees in the middle of fields as you drive north. Basically, I love the natural beauty and sense of community.

What bothers you here? The bad rap that people who don’t live here give it…and that sometimes the bad rap is true.

What do you value every day? Besides my family: my free time and my privacy.

What is your personal idea of luxury? Having nothing to do and nowhere to go!

What person has influenced you the most? I can’t name just one. My parents are a huge influence. My husband, John, has really changed me (trained me) over the years and has shown me what’s important and what’s not and how to separate those things. I’m a lot neater now, too (he’s a total neat freak).

What has been the most fulfilling moment in your work? In my work, probably voicing a little part in the movie Cars. I just felt like, this is it, how can anything be more fun? It felt like the zenith of my career (I guess I’m on the downslope now).

What’s your desert-island favorite book or album? God, I just don’t know. Once I read a book I hardly ever reread it. Maybe a set of encyclopedias? That would keep me busy. And who wouldn’t get sick of a record after listening to it 50 million times? Maybe the Beatles anthology?

What’s your favorite place to unwind? On my deck.

Do you have a favorite Marin view? From the top of Strawberry Point, looking toward the city past Sausalito and Tiburon.

What do you like about yourself? I have nice hands. LOL! I don’t know!

How do you want to be remembered? As someone who spoke her mind. (Whether or not you agreed!)