John Clayton Birthday & Fun Facts

John Clayton Birthday Highlights

Birth Name

John Travis Clayton

Place Of Birth

Braddock, USA

Age

69 years old

Birth Date

May 11 1954

John Clayton Facts

Child Star?

no

Occupation

Sports Jounalist

Education & Qualifications

Duquesne University

Net Worth

$31,000,000

Current Partner

Patricia Clayton

Children

Gerald Clayton

John Clayton was a sports journalist, remembered for being the National Football League writer and ESPN senior writer.

On May 11, 1954, John Travis Clayton was born in Braddock, Pennsylvania. John Clayton graduated from Duquesne University in 1976.

Clayton started sports coverage when he was in high school. In early 1972, he did a cover of the Pittsburg Steelers two times a week for the Daily Press in St. Marys, Pennsylvania. Then Clayton worked for Steel City Sports, AP Radio, and CBS Radio. Following this, John Clayton worked under Pittsburgh Press and The News Tribune. Clayton also worked for the Seattle Radio station called KJR for some time. Then he worked as an ESPN anchor and senior writer.

In recognition for his prolonged coverage of the National Football League ( NFL) and other professional football, John Clayton was awarded the Dick McCann Memorial Award, presently known as the Bill Nunn Award, by the Pro Football Writers of America. He rose to fame for his ESPN commercial that he shot while working for ESPN. Clayton also did a weekly radio show for the ESPN station.

What was John Clayton's net worth?

He had amassed a high net worth from his primary career as a sports journalist, especially the National Football League( NFL) writer and ESPN anchor and writer. John Clayton had an approximate net worth of $31 million before he passed away.

How much did John Clayton earn per year?

John Clayton was paid $4 million every year as his salary while working as a writer for the National Football League. Then he joined ESPN, where he was paid $2 million more, making his total annual earnings around $6 million.

How tall was John Clayton?

John Clayton stood at 5 ft 7 in (170 cm).

How old was John Clayton?

Since John Clayton was born on May 11, 1954, in Pennsylvania, he was 67 years old when he died at Bellevue hospital, Seattle, in Washington on March 18, 2022.

The birthplace of John Travis Clayton was Braddock, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. There is no data about Clayton's family members and childhood.

John Clayton covered sports when he studied at Churchill Area High School, Pennsylvania. Following that, John Clayton went to Woodland Hills Senior High School. After graduating from the Woodland Hills High School, Clayton enrolled at Duquesne University. While attending college, Clayton worked for the Daily Press by covering the Pittsburgh Steelers. Subsequently, he worked as a journalist for radio stations, AP and CBS, and a writer for Steel City Sports. While working for the AP Station, John Clayton was credited for delivering multiple sound clips from locker room interviews, after the matches of the sports teams of Pittsburgh. John Clayton earned his bachelor's degree from Duquesne University in 1976.

Who was John Clayton's partner?

John Clayton married Patricia Clayton until his death from an undisclosed illness, and they had a son named Gerald Clayton. The couple met each when they were both working for Tribune in Washington, and Patricia Clayton was responsible for bowling coverage at that time.

The personal information about Gerald Clayton has not been revealed yet. Patricia Clayton also worked as a temporary worker for four successive years for the elections headquarters in Renton, Washington.

Best Known For…

After graduating from college, John Clayton worked for The Pittsburgh Press in Pennsylvania. In May 1978, Clayton was given the charge to do a cover for the Pittsburgh Steelers minicamp. In doing so, he detected the Steelers players violating a rule that prohibits wearing shoulder pads in minicamp, which Clayton reported. His report cost the Steelers their third-round draft selection. John Clayton called this incident the Shouldergate. Due to his role in this affair, Clayton became infamous suddenly and eventually became an unwelcome person in his hometown Pennsylvania for a short period.

To remove the unwelcoming image in his hometown, John Clayton worked really hard and covered many games of the Steelers. Subsequently, he strived his way up the ladder to become The Pittsburgh Press beat writer who covered the Steelers. Clayton left the Pittsburgh Press in 1986.

John Clayton moved from east to west, from Pittsburgh all the way to Washington, to work for The News Tribune in Tacoma. There he was given the charge of covering the Seattle Seahawks of Washington. From 1986-1998, Clayton worked as the beat reporter responsible for covering the Seattle Seahawks for the Tribune. During this time, Clayton started making appearances concerning 'The Fabulous Program', a program highlighting segments on NFL, where Nanci Donellan was the host. It aired on KJR (AM), the Seattle Sports radio network. When ESPN selected it for nationwide distribution, John Clayton eventually became the correspondent or reporter for the National Football League (NFL). The appearance on Donnellan's show was a breakthrough for Clayton, as the episode would make him become an NFL correspondent, a well-sought position for a sports journalist, and pave his way to be a part of the distinguished sports channel ESPN.

In 1995, John Clayton became a part of the ESPN station as its reporter. After working as a reporter for some time, Clayton increased his responsibilities by doing a weekly radio show during the offseason days of the NFL. He hosted the weekly radio show along with the retired quarterback NFL Sean Salisbury. To make it enjoyable, the show featured a segment called Four Downs, where Clayton had a debate with Salisbury on the current issues of the NFL. Most of the time, their arguments turned quite heated, in which Clayton underscored the way that Salisbury merely began 12 additional games in the NFL than him. Although John Clayton stated that the duo had a good camaraderie, he wanted to defeat Salisbury in the debates. Due to their heated debates, the magnitude of the animosity underlying between Salisbury and Clayton remains a debatable topic.

John Clayton rose to fame for notably appearing in an ESPN commercial,' This Is SportsCenter'. Initially, Clayton was hesitant to make an appearance in the advertisement as he feared that the humorous nature would tarnish his reputation of doing serious reporting, an image that he had cultivated for years. However, the ad was famous, and it made him achieve a new level of stardom, which he never expected. After working for over two decades for ESPN, John Clayton was terminated from the channel due to mass layoffs on May 31, 2017.

John Clayton is recognized for his NFL insights and is perhaps best known for the ESPN commercial he took part in years ago. He is also remembered as the senior writer for ESPN and NFL.

Jon Clayton was a regular contributor to the KJR station, where he joined the network as its radio talk show host in 1990. He was the 'Sports Saturday Show' host, which aired on Saturday mornings. Due to his distinguished career, John Clayton often made appearances on various sports-talk radio stations across the country. Following Seattle's KIRO transformation to an entire format for sports, Clayton moved his show to a new branch of ESPN. After getting terminated by ESPN, he continued to work at KIRO. At the beginning of February 2021, John Clayton served as a contributor for 104.3, The Fan, and radio station website in Denver.

What awards did John Clayton win?

John Clayton had won awards and received recognition because of his exemplary work. He received Dick McCann Memorial Award from the Pro Football Writers of America in 2007, recognizing his extensive and outstanding contribution to the coverage of professional football, especially the NFL. The award placed John Clayton in the reputed segment of the writer's wing of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

In 2001, John Clayton was inducted into the Duquesne University, his alma mater, sports hall of fame. Braddock, Clayton's hometown, declared March 18, 2018, as John Clayton Day as a form of commendation.

• The birth sign of John Clayton is Taurus.
• John Clayton was a longtime National Football League and Seattle Seahawks analyst and insider.
• John Clayton was one of the most distinguished sports journalists in the history of the National Football League.
• He was the most popular sports journalist born in Pennsylvania.
• While co-hosting a radio show with Sean Salisbury, the duo during the Four Downs segment, often gave nicknames to each other. Clayton called Salisbury Cryptkeeper and Peabody because of his geeky appearance, while Salisbury called Clayton Mr. Backup as he had limited leisure time in his NFL career.
• Clayton's Chinese zodiac sign is the Year of the Horse. 
• He was active as a journalist from the years 1972–2022.

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