He was the host of "The Clayton Willis Talk Show" on WPBR Radio, which featured interviews and commentaries on topical issues.
Mr. Willis was well known in broadcasting and journalism for over 50 years. He wrote for a wide range of publications, including The Albuquerque Times, Newsweek, The Hartford Courant, and The New York Amsterdam News and was a writer for the NBC network Tex and Jinx Show, the second talk show broadcast in the U.S. He also founded The Four Corners Chieftain, a Colorado community newspaper.
During his years in Washington, he was the president and chief correspondent of the Evening News Broadcasting Company, which provided the media with documentaries, photographs, columns and tapes from the White House. He maintained a lifelong interest in the National Press Club and returned to Washington for its prestigious yearly dinners.
In addition to his position as a journalist, Mr. Willis worked for several U.S. governmental agencies, including the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, under President Gerald Ford, where he was director of public affairs. He was advisor to the special assistant to the president for Hispanic Affairs, and also a consultant to the President's National Council on Indian Opportunity.
Mr. Willis' passion for travel took him to more than 100 countries. He was an expert on Haitian art and made over 30 trips to Haiti. He also nurtured a passion for genealogy and American history, and he went to great lengths to find his ancestral homes and distant relations from Germany, England and Scotland. His knowledge and quick wit made him a dynamic story teller, earning him an invitation to join the Pundits in Palm Beach.
Mr. Willis was a graduate of George Washington University and the Sorbonne at the University of Paris.
