Nicholas Clapp, the acclaimed documentarian, author, and amateur archaeologist often described as a “modern-day Indiana Jones,” has passed away at the age of 89. He died on Wednesday following a stroke, according to his daughter Cristina Clapp, just a day after he had been out hiking in Anza Borrego State Park in Borrego Springs, California, where he lived.
Clapp began his career with the National Geographic Society in the 1960s, eventually serving as producer and production manager on two Oscar-nominated documentaries:
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Journey to the Outer Limits (1973), narrated by Leslie Nielsen, chronicled a perilous climb in the Peruvian Andes.
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The Incredible Machine (1975), narrated by E.G. Marshall, took viewers inside the human body.
He also worked as an editor on The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau (1968), and produced/directed The Great Mojave Desert (1971) for National Geographic and CBS. Throughout his career, Clapp earned over 70 awards for his documentary work.
In the early 1980s, Clapp embarked on a legendary expedition to Arabia, searching for the lost city of Ubar, believed to be buried beneath the desert by divine wrath, as described in the Koran. His team of space scientists and geologists ultimately uncovered Ubar in modern-day Oman, a journey documented in the 1996 PBS film and his 1998 book, The Road to Ubar: Finding the Atlantis of the Sands.
As Clapp noted in a 1998 interview with the Los Angeles Times, being an amateur archaeologist allowed him to operate outside the constraints of academia:
“There are no reputations at stake, no colleagues looking over your shoulder… That freed me to perhaps do things others wouldn’t do.”
Born on May 1, 1936, in Providence, Rhode Island, Clapp came from a lineage of miners and entertainers. He lived among the Zapotecs in southern Mexico, which earned him a scholarship to Brown University, and later pursued a master’s degree in cinema at USC.
His first job in Hollywood was as an assistant editor on Get Smart. Throughout the late 1960s and 1970s, he directed and produced numerous National Geographic specials, including:
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The Haunted West (1973)
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The Sahara (1973)
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Big Cats (1974)
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British Naval History (1975)
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Animals People Hate (1976)
Clapp’s literary contributions further cemented his legacy, with books such as:
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Sheba: Through the Desert in Search of the Legendary Queen (2001)
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Who Killed Chester Pray? (2007)
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Gold and Silver in the Mojave (2012)
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Virginia City: To Dance With the Devil (2015)
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Old Magic: Lives of the Desert Shamans (2015)
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Bodie: Good Times & Bad (2017)
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The Outlaw’s Violin (2019)
Beyond film and literature, Clapp worked with Disney, producer David Wolper, director Mel Stuart, and even the White House. In later years, he became an advocate for the preservation of California’s deserts.
He is survived by his daughters Cristina and Jennifer, and his wife of 18 years, Bonnie. His first wife, Kay, was a key collaborator, often joining him on National Geographic expeditions and the famed Oman dig.
