Meltzer, Mark

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Meltzer, Mark

PERSONAL:

Male.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Atlanta, GA. Office—Atlanta Business Chronicle, 3423 Piedmont Rd., Atlanta, GA 30305. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Journalist and writer. Atlanta Business Chronicle, Atlanta, GA, editor.

WRITINGS:

WITH CLARK HOWARD

Clark Howard's Consumer Survival Kit, Longstreet Press (Atlanta, GA), 1993, revised and expanded edition, 1995.

Clark Howard's Consumer Survival Kit III, Longstreet (Atlanta, GA), 1998.

Get Clark Smart: The Ultimate Guide for the Savvy Consumer, Longstreet Press (Marietta, GA), 2000.

Get Clark Smart: The Ultimate Guide to Getting Rich from America's Money-Saving Expert, Hyperion (New York, NY), 2001.

Clark's Big Book of Bargains, Hyperion (New York, NY), 2003.

Clark Smart Parents, Clark Smart Kids, Hyperion (New York, NY), 2005.

Clark Smart Real Estate, Hyperion (New York, NY), 2007.

ADAPTATIONS:

Clark Howard's Consumer Survival Kit was adapted in a CD-ROM format, Mescon Group (Atlanta, GA), 1994.

SIDELIGHTS:

Mark Meltzer is a journalist who has written several books with Clark Howard. A radio-show host, Howard first built a chain of successful travel agencies in Atlanta and essentially retired at the age of thirty-one. However, an appearance on a radio program led Howard to go into radio himself and to eventually become host of the syndicated Clark Howard Show. On his show, Howard answers consumers' questions and provides the latest in consumer news. Howard eventually teamed with Meltzer to write books aimed at educating the consumer.

Meltzer's foray into writing books with Howard began with Clark Howard's Consumer Survival Kit, followed by a series of other consumer advocate books, such as Get Clark Smart: The Ultimate Guide for the Savvy Consumer and Get Clark Smart: The Ultimate Guide to Getting Rich from America's Money-Saving Expert. Meltzer and Howard focus on helping people with limited finances in Get Clark Smart: The Ultimate Guide for the Savvy Consumer, which was published in 2000. In their book, the authors write about how to stay out of debt, how to get good deals on everything from cars and homes to travel and insurance, and how to create a good financial foundation for the future. They also cover more unusual topics, such as how to be prepared for funerals and identity theft. "What sets this apart from similar publications is the comprehensive Internet guide" for getting good deals and comparing prices, noted David Siegfried in Booklist.

Howard and Meltzer's 2007 book, Clark Smart Real Estate, provides a realistic look at making money in the real estate market. The book is divided into five sections: buying, selling, investing, financing, and taxes and insurance. "Honest and direct advice," wrote Barbara Jacobs in Booklist.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, May 1, 2002, David Siegfried, review of Get Clark Smart: The Ultimate Guide to Getting Rich from America's Money-Saving Expert, p. 1492; March 15, 2007, Barbara Jacobs, review of Clark Smart Real Estate, p. 9.

Indianapolis Business Journal, November 5, 2001, Jim Cota, "National Public Radio," p. 59.

Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine, March, 2002, Jane Bennett Clark, "Cheap Talk: Does Clark Howard Have a Deal for You!," p. 112.

Mediaweek, July 31, 2000, Katy Bachman, "Consumer Advocates Proliferate," p. 15; February 4, 2002, "Jones' Radio Syndie Stable in Flux," p. 30; December 9, 2002, "Radio's Howard Renews with Jones," p. 24.

Publishers Weekly, September 10, 2001, John F. Baker, "Big Buy for Radio Star," p. 16.

Wall Street Journal, June 18, 2001, Rodney Ho, "Why Would a Guy with No Kids Buy a Carful of Diapers? For Radio Miser Clark Howard, the Price Was Just Right; Brown-Bagging It to Riches," p. 1.