"Remarkable story about a kid from Terry, Montana." I hadn't even heard the sad news that Norm Clarke had passed away, but that's how a friend on Facebook described the obituary in honor of the man who became known as "the Gossip King of Las Vegas."

Norm Clarke. What a class act and a Montana legend. And he always enjoyed seeing fellow Montanans down in Vegas.

Several years ago, I was doing my statewide radio show from Las Vegas for a big convention. I was set up on radio row. My friend Bob Gilbert heard I was gonna be down there. He told me I needed to interview his friend Norm Clarke.

Norm Clarke is the Terry, Montana native who got his start in journalism right here in Montana. He eventually worked for the Rocky Mountain News before starting his very popular column in Las Vegas. He became known as "The Gossip King of Las Vegas."

When Norm Clarke popped in to join me on radio row, one of the local guys said- "wow, that's Norm Clarke!" Soon, everyone on radio row wanted to chat with Norm. One of the stories Norm told me back then was how he once got "bit*h slapped by Pete Rose."

When Pete Rose passed away, Norm wrote a tribute just for us and our Montana radio listeners last Fall.

As I wrote back in 2022, Norm never forgot his Terry, Montana roots. He wrote a great tribute to a World War II veteran from Terry- combat photographer John Schwarz, who had spent his final days in the Eastern Montana Veterans Home in Glendive.

John Katsilometes, a colleague and friend of Norm's at the Las Vegas Review-Journal penned a great column remembering Norm. "Kats" will join us on Monday's Montana Talks statewide radio show at 940 a.m..