- Parke graduated from the University of Delaware with a degree in Political Science, and the dream of going to New York City to become an actor. Instead, Parke joined the US Navy and served his country as Executive Officer on a tank landing vessel in the Korean War. Upon leaving the US Navy, he finally moved to New York City where he attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and later studied with the famous drama teacher and coach Uta Hagen. After graduating from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, Parke acted on Broadway and in the National Touring Company of "The World of Suzie Wong," where he met the great love of his life, Flavia Hsu Kingman. They married and had two daughters, Laura and Andrea. Parke appeared in several Off-Broadway productions, most notably "Two by Coward" at the St. Mark's Playhouse and performed in various television series, including "Naked City," "The Blue Men," "Dennis the Menace" and "The Rookies".
- In between jobs as Production Stage Manager for "Theatres-in-the-Round," Parke began directing Children's Theater, then moved into television, directing both live and video-tape productions for KCET, PBS and several local television stations in Los Angeles. During this period, Parke also directed several productions for the American National Theatre Academy as well as special projects for IBM and Hewlett-Packard. In his capacity as Producer, Story Editor, freelance writer and Associate Producer, he wrote close to 100 television scripts for television series including the following: Spelling-Goldberg-20th Century Fox-ABC Television, starring Georg Stanford, Sam Melville, Gerald O'laughing, Kate Jackson, Michael Ontkean, Bruce Fairborn in "The Rookies" (1 episode, 1974); Spelling-Goldberg-20th Century Fox-ABC Television, starring David Soul and Paul Michael Glasser in "Starsky and Hutch" (3 episodes, 1975-1977); Paramount Television-ABC Television, starring Barry Bostwick in "Foul Play" (1981); Walt Disney Productions-NBC Television, "Wonderful World of Disney" (8 episodes, 1997-2005); Lorimar Productions-ABC Television, starring Dick Van Patten in "Eight is Enough" (4 episodes, 1997-1980); Michael Landon Productions-NBC Television, starring Michael Landon, Victor French in "Highway to Heaven" (8 episodes, 1985-1989); Lorimar Telepictures-Television-NBC Television, starring Wilford Brimley, Diedre Hall, Shannon Doherty, Chad Houlihan, Gerald O'Loughlin in "Our House" (5 episodes, 1986-1987); Lorimar Television-NBC Television, starring Michele Lee, Joan Van Ark, Ted Shackelford, Kevin Dobson, William Devane, Donnah Mills, Julie Harris in "Knots Landing" (9 episodes, 1985-1990); Eilena Productions Inc-MGM Television-NBC Television, starring Debbie Allen, Carlo Imperator, Gene Anthony Ray, Albert Hague, Ann Nelson, Ken Swofford in "Fame" (7 episodes, 1982-1984), for which Parke Perine was nominated for a Writer's Guild Award for his material..
- From humble beginnings, Parke Raymond Perine made a wonderful life for himself and his family. He achieved success as a television writer, director and producer. But his greatest success came as a father, husband, grandfather and friend. Parke passed away in Sherman Oaks on February 1, 2016 at 85 years of age, with his two loving daughters, Laura and Andrea, at his side. Born in Wilmington, Delaware, on May 25, 1930, Parke grew up at the height of the Great Depression. His father was a jazz musician who was presumed dead in a car accident when Parke was just three years old. Thirty years later, he would discover that his father was still alive. His mother, a housewife whose ancestry in Delaware dated back several generations, died when Parke was just eight. When his grandfather died one month later, Parke and his older sister were left on their own until their cousin, Andy, and his wife, Emily, stepped in. However, Andy was drafted into World War II and died in Germany at the end of the War. It would be Emily who raised Parke, and she did so with great love and affection. Eventually, they settled in Lewes, Delaware, a small coastal town where the Atlantic Ocean and the Delaware Bay converge, and where Parke gained his life-long love of the sea.
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