Just heard on TV that he died today from emphezema. I grew up trying to stay awake to watch his monologue without getting caught. He was the perfect interviewer, able to get the guest to open up without being intrusive. Even though he faded from view (by his choice) when he retired in 1992, he will be missed.

I guess today is as good as day as any for me to quit smoking.

I guess today is as good as day as any for me to quit smoking.

I had the same thought, especially since overweight beer-loving Ed McMahon is still going strong.

There will never be another Johnny, he was a class act till the end.

He will be truly missed. :cry:

Carson was a class act and one of the greats in television history. A shame that the first 10 years of his run on the Tonight Show no longer exist because they were recorded on the then-new archival medium of videotape. The great thing about videotape? It can be recorded over. And was.

Same here, it was always a big deal when I was a kid to try and stay up and watch.
Time keeps ticking and generations are passing and new ones taking over.

My first professional job after graduating from college was working for Johnny Carson for three years. There, I went from lowly production assistant to full fledged editor. It was a great place to work and - even behind the scenes - Johnny was a true class act.Zorro - not sure they are all lost. I was the editor of the Tonight Show 35th Anniversary Special and after seeing the mountains of archival vaults of footage I'm not sure anybody really knows what all is there or lost. I worked with Johnny's son, Rick, and his nephew (who was our resident expert on the archives) - neither really knew what was there and what wasn't. It represented years of work to start wading through it and both were just to busy. I remember seeing stacks and stacks of cans of film that had some of the early Tonight Show transfers. This was in the early to mid eighties - whether they survive today is a good question.

Perhaps Carson WAS the most loved of classic talk show hosts? Allen and Parr were innovators as was Carson and funny too on this show.

The ONE thing I miss about the classic talk shows was that they had variety acts BEYOND singers and standup comics! Maybe not so true on TONIGHT but it was on Douglass and Griffin. These days, Marcel Marco could'nt get a gig on TV and he probably would bomb at a comedy club. When was the last time you saw a plate spinning act on TV?

Ya gotta watch Spanish Networks for variety acts but now it's harder to find novelty acts there too.

I wish I could've seen Carson when I as in elementary and Junior High school in the 60's and early 70's but I could've never kept awake past 9:30 pm or so.

Os

Steve Allen, Jack Parr, Johnny Carson.... they were all great in their own ways. But, to me, Johnny "was" the Tonight Show.

I enjoy watching Leno but, it just isn't the same. Like Osgood suggested, today's talk shows are pretty lame when it comes to variety. Anymore, I just watch the monologue and the first bit, then turn it off before any of the boring/illiterate/self-absorbed/untalented guests come out.

In Johnny's day we still had bonafide movie stars and celebrities who were interesting and who were worth staying up half the night to watch. But Johnny himself made the Tonight Show the success that it was.

- GJS

I talked about Johnny on the phone with a pal who said something that he's often said about Carson, nobody else has, even now with all the praises: Carson was TV's best interviewer. My pal thinks Carson alone LISTENED to his guests. Any of you agree?

Actually, in the early 70's, I graduated high school so it was still the 60's when I was in Jr high. Never saw Carson then dang it. I heard he sometimes did card magic on the show in the early years.

Os

My pal thinks Cavitt is underrated btw.

Os

All those nights in high school in the 70s when I couldn't sleep, Johnny kept me company (and entertained) till I dozed off.

:(


.

Over on imdb it does'nt have many praises about him. It does give things he did though like after he left the show, he went on Letterman to congratulate Dave on his successful show but he never went on Leno which made it seem Carson prefered Letterman. He did a cameo on Letterman in a skit too later.

Carson apearently invented the golf swing bit.

In the late 70's a guy told me something I heard for years after: to go on Carson was a sign you would be a success or were at that moment. Well he told me something else: Carson had a 'hi sign' or an OK sign he'd not give performers that often but when he did it was after a performance and it meant Carson thought the perormer was REALLY great.

Os

Cavett was almost the anti-Carson, which made his show memorable and worthwhile in it's own right. I still remember seeing Jimi Hendrix playing the guitar with his teeth on Cavett - which is something you weren't likely to see on any other "mainstream" show. But I also remember The Joey Bishop Show, which was Carson's other competition during that period or a little earlier, with Regis Philbin in the Ed McMahon role. It was no competition, and Joey's show didn't last more than a year or two. One of my favorite guests on Carson was Victor Buono, who would recite humorous self-penned poetry. It was always fun to see Jimmy Stewart do the same thing in his later years. Orson Wells would share magic tricks with an obviously delighted Carson. Johnny had less than stellar talent on his show too on occasion. Tiny Tim, Professor Irwin Corey, and Monty Rock III come to mind.

I just heard about this. What a sad day.

There's very few celebs that I would call "one of a kind" and Johnny tops that short list. He was Carson and there's no other entertainer who could say that - past, present or future.

Johnny had less than stellar talent on his show too on occasion. Tiny Tim, Professor Irwin Corey, and Monty Rock III come to mind.

Say what you like about Disco Tex ( and the Sex-o-lettes ) but, leave Herbert Buckingham Khaury and the Prof. outta this. They were a lot more talented than you give them credit!

- GJS

Who can forget the night that Herbie and Victoria May Buddinger got married on the Tonight Show!

imdb says Carson tried ventriloquism, I guess as a teen. I know Cavitt said he'd seen a young Carson do a magic show so I suppose he favored magic or thought he was better at it than at vent.

No doubt Bergen's great fame got many celebs into vent, even just to have a dummy and play around with it.

Os

Over on imdb it does'nt have many praises about him. It does give things he did though like after he left the show, he went on Letterman to congratulate Dave on his successful show but he never went on Leno which made it seem Carson prefered Letterman. He did a cameo on Letterman in a skit too later.


Read the excellent book, "The Late Shift", or catch the ok HBO movie based on the same. NBC wanted sign Leno to keep him from competing against Carson and the successor Carson wanted, David Letterman. Depending on who you believe, either Leno and/or his abrasive manager REALLY treated Carson shabbily both before and after he announced his retirement. Carson apparently never forgave Leno. And it was Carson who finally counseled a conflicted Letterman that he should leave NBC for CBS.

BTW, the book is a lot harsher to Leno than the movie.

I remember when a magician I knew showed me a recording he made of TONIGHT when Carson had Cavitt on. Cavitt too was a magic buff and the two spent maybe 15 minutes talking magic. Niether did tricks that I recall.

Cavitt had hosted an HBO or SHO magic special early in the channel's existence "Hocus Pokus it's Magic" it may've been titled that had major magicians on. Cavitt did a trick with a metal ring (a Chinese linking ring to you magicians) and a scarf.

Os

a great many magicians owe their success to johnny.

reading the tributes here, got my thinking about what made him unique. and i think, more than dave or jay will ever achieve, johnny seemed relaxed. like what you were seeing on tv was exactly the way he would speak or act if you struck up a conversation with him on the street.

his low profile since his retirement seems to have made the general public forget that during his heyday, he was not only the king of late night, but the king of television.

he is greatly missed.

One of my favorite guests on Carson was Victor Buono, who would recite humorous self-penned poetry.

I vividly remember an epidsode in the 70s where Buono guest-hosted while Johnny was taking a day off. I forgot who the guests were, but Buono did some of that poetry. Oddly enough, I remember that episode as being a lot funnier than an average Tonight Show! Buono was hysterical!

In a medium awash with imitators he was an original. The one true king of late night television.

Thanks for the laughs, Johnny.

From what I understand on another board, Carson invented the use of a sidekick and a monolog on a talk show. Maybe having a band too? He cowrote the theme music. How about those multi colored curtains, a Carson invention? I wonder if McMahan had any input?

Doc Severensen had to be the most charismatic band leader in TV history! The others including Lawrence Welk and Arthur Fiedler pale by comparison.

Os

I'll be surprised if Leno spends more than 30 seconds about Carson on tonight's show. He gave a statement but I don't know what it was. Be interesting if NBC had a Carson rerun tonight!

Os

Doc Severensen had to be the most charismatic band leader in TV history! The others including Lawrence Welk and Arthur Fiedler pale by comparison.

Os

Can you spell... "Understatement"? If anything, Doc was the polar opposite of Welk & Fiedler. Now, Liberace on the other hand - although not a band Leader - was certainly as flamboyant ( if not moreso ). But, the title of "Charismatic Band Leader" I would give to Kay Kyser. And a tip o' the hat to Spike Jones.

- GJS

Be interesting if NBC had a Carson rerun tonight!

Os

I'd be up for a week of Carson reruns. But I'm not holding my breath.

- GJS

Carson: "It sure was Hot in downtown Burbank today"

Audience: " How Hot was it?"

Carson: " It was so Hot, that my car's St. Christopher statue melted down into a tiny Quasimoto!"

- GJS

On one TV channel this morning, this reporter said it ws unclear if Leno would pay homage to Carson and nobody knew what Leno would do if anything. Twenty minutes later on the radio, the news reporter said Leno would remember Carson.

I guess he yelled "UNCLE!" after NBC execs twisted his arm behind him for 15 minutes!

Os

Johnny was the last of the ORIGINAL vaudville acts.
I remember doing a lot of travelling around in the 1980's, but if I was awake late at night in a motel room far from home and switched on the TV and saw Johnny Carson doing his monologue or having some animal act on, well, I just felt a lot less "homesick".
A class act all the way!

I'll be surprised if Leno spends more than 30 seconds about Carson on tonight's show. He gave a statement but I don't know what it was.

" No single individual has had as great an impact on television as Johnny. he was the gold standard" - Jay Leno


- GJS

I'll be surprised if Leno spends more than 30 seconds about Carson on tonight's show. He gave a statement but I don't know what it was. Be interesting if NBC had a Carson rerun tonight!

Os

NBC doesn't have the rights to the shows Jonny was on.
They gave them to him to keep him from leaving one year.

Letterman's statement went something like Carson can't be replaced, that there'll never be another like him.

Leno probably was planning a homage but no announcement wa made until after that TV reporter was on. I would'nt think he hated Carson.

Os

I always liked the stunts that (a younger) Carson did, following in the footsteps of Steve Allen. Letterman also followed suit (such as the Alka Seltzer or Velcro suits!). Always made me think it was the price he paid that endeared him to Carson, whereas I've never seen Leno do anything that far out.

I think a combination of the points everyone has made are what made Johnny what he was.

I didn't miss too many episodes of The Tonight Show between '72 & '92 and while there were changes in the format (90 minutes to 60 and a few others to keep pace with the times), Johnny always remained Johnny. I can recall a few "bloopers" that were actually aired on the original broadcasts and Johnny just lost it...I believe he truly loved what he did.

I also think what he accomplshed became more valuable by his reclusiveness after his retirement

Yes, he listened to his guests, he was relaxed and it always felt like having an old buddy drop by when he was on.

Farewell old friend...

:cry:

One of my favorite Carson skits was the soap opera take-off - "The Edge of Wetness". The reaction shots of individual audience members at the moment they realized they were being featured was priceless. And remember the late, great (and bodacious) Carol Wayne as the Tea-Time Movie Lady?

And remember the late, great (and bodacious) Carol Wayne as the Tea-Time Movie Lady?


I always used to love the "Tea Time" segments. first of all, Carol could fill out a low-cut top like few women before or since. Plus I'm old enough to remember when the shows that showed movies during the day (or very late at night) were hosted by hucksters just like that. Especially when we lived in California when I was a kid. I can remember my mom rushing people off the phone between 1pm-3pm, because that's when the "Million Dollar Movie" guy would call people "picked at random from the phonebook" during commercial breaks. Despite the title the sums he gave away were much smaller than a million bucks.

I haven't been back to the wrong coast since I was about ten, any of you west coaster's know if Cal Worthington and his dog Spot are still alive and doing commercials?

I never saw much Carson from the early 60's to his last few years but did see maybe a 3rd of his last year. I'm glad I got the dvd set but I guess it's not the same.

Know what Syndex is? It's something that's plagued my TV viewing on the central coast of Calif since the late 80's or so. Basically I hav'nt seen any LA area tv ads since then. All the 'local' advertising has been MY area local stuff, even on cable channels! For all I know 'ol Cal W is in Car Dealer Heaven. I liked his ads a lot.

Os

http://www.calworthington.com/home/caltiger.jpg

http://www.calworthington.com

- GJS

You guys can ridicule Severinsen if you want but IMO he was way better than the sorry lot of band leaders since. Never saw Kilborn so I don't know about his guy. I never saw Jimmy Kimmel's talk show much either. Don't know if he had a band.

I wish Andy had stayed on Conan dammit.

Os

CARNAK: (Holding envelope to his forehead) Susan B. Anthony.

ED: (As Carnak opens envelope) Susan B. Anthony. (Carnak shoots "dirty look" to Ed).

CARNAK: (Reading letter) Who you discover Susan be after you pick her up in Van Nuys at 2 a.m.

one of the funniest things i've ever seen was when Ed Ames ( Mingo on Daniel Boone ) was going to show Johnny how to throw an axe . they had this plywood(?) cutout of a man and when Ed threw the axe it hit .....well you know where . not only that but the handle was sticking up .
Ed walks over to get the axe and Johnny ( who by this time was in tears laughing ) grabs his arm , i think they went to comercial .
many of the best laughs ever for me watching the tube came from his era .
hb

I just saw the first disc of the dvd set: 60's and 70's then 70's and 80's. I can live with those hair styles and half the clothes but the other half.....the loud patterns, bright colors and crushed velvet.

Must be that fashion designers were on drugs then!
And I thought LIS had funky colors.

Os

according to a news report i heard today, during the trasition, leno's people treated johnny rather shabbily, and he harbored very hard feelings towards jay and company since.

i wasnted to add this because i was reminded of it today. did anyone else see tom snyders tomorrow show interview of carson? carson never said a word during the whole thing, just gave the camera his trademark looks. snyder's crew were cracking up, snyder on the other hand.... well lets just say that johnny, without uttering a word, made snyder look like the jerk he actually was. i dont think anyone had a more inate sense of his medium than carson.

I hope more dvd sets come out! I hope they include McMahan with Johnny exchanges, Muppets and Bergen with his dummies, Hope, Martin, Davis Jr, Burton, Goble and other classic Hollywood stars.

Buono would be swell, Jackie Vernon, Jonathan Winters and magic acts AND Charles Schulz.

Os

It's impossible for me to sum up Johnny Carson in just one sentence or even paragraph. All I can say is that I will miss him terribly. He was truly unique and there is no one else out there like him.

I like Carl Reiner's idea of starting over from the earliest Carson Tonight Show shows in the library, and just replaying them again nightly in their entirety for the next 26 years. I know that I could certainly see them all over again.

Johnny left me with one more side-splitting belly laugh as I was watching the Today show tribute on him this morning. In a previously-unseen video clip, he was standing outside the NBC Burbank studio next to his designated parking place, making comments about revisiting this particular spot during his retirement:

Johnny Carson, with his usual deadpan wit:

"When I retire, this will be a nice place to return to - to come by and feed the squirrels. If, down the road, I suffer a reversal of fortune, you will see me down here eating the squirrels."

I laughed out loud until I was in tears! Even in death, he can still surprise me and make me laugh like no one else.

I will truly miss him.

Keep 'em laughing through all eternity in heaven, Johnny.

I was told Carson came up with the sidekick idea and I may've said it here BUT the man who came up with it plus the ideas for using a band, desk, couch/chairs for guests and talking to them in this setting was STEVE ALLEN.

I saw clips of Carson as a guest on shows in the 50's and on his first network TV show, the man knew his stuff then! He subbed for Parr once. He had a radio show while in the Navy in the mid 40's.

Cavitt thinks Carson did'nt think of himself as being some TV legend of greatness. Cavitt said Merv had believed talk Carson was being forced off the show and told people such. Nobody knows for sure that was the case.

Os

Cavitt said Merv had believed talk Carson was being forced off the show and told people such. Nobody knows for sure that was the case.

Os

Actually, it was pretty well documented in the book "The Late Shift", in which all the major participants were interviewed. It was a sad mess that could have easily been avoided, and shows how networks work. Here's the short version:

1) NBC wanted to sign up Leno, not to have succeed Carson, but to keep him from competing against Carson and his believed successor, Letterman. CBS was already trying to woo Leno to sign with them, and NBC signed a contract with Leno to prevent this from happening. Some of the NBC execs were less-than-thrilled with Letterman' anti-NBC antics, and hinted as much to Leno.

2)Leno's manager Helen Cushnik leaked to the LA papers that Carson was retiring, and that Leno would be taking over the "Tonight Show". At this point Carson had made no announcement about his retirement. Leno has maintained he had no knowledge of the release, some people say that's true, other's maintain Leno knew about Cushnik's ploy and turned a blindeye. Cushnik was supposed to be a very abrasive and confrontational woman. Carson and Letterman both were furious when the story appeared.

3) Carson, who of course had his contacts in LA, had the leak tracked down. He called Leno and asked him bluntly was he behind the story, Leno swore he had nothing to do with it. Carson never talked to Leno again.

4)Carson, who was furious at NBC, announced his impending retirement at a NBC function without warning or preparing anyone. This left NBC a little pissed at Johnny, and they had to scramble to sew up the replacement. At this point, Letterman still had two years left on his "Late Night" contract. The suits at NBC figured they had Letterman either way, but they had to give Leno what he wanted to keep him from CBS. Without speaking to Carson or Letterman first, they announced Leno was the new host.

5) Letterman was shocked, he and everyone else at both the "Tonight Show" and "Late Night" thought he was Carson's replacement. The same NBC suits now came to Letterman, and told him he might get "The Tonight Show" if Leno failed, or in two years when his contract was up for negotiation.

6) An insecure Letterman is at first relieved that he'll eventually get the "Tonight Show", untill people point out it's a maybe at best. After agonizing a while, he finally calls Carson and ask what he should do. Carson says Leno may not fail, and in two years it won't be "The Tonight Show" anymore, not the Carson version. He also points out Dave will look like a douchebag if he causes Leno to be forced out in two years, and that NBC is treating him shabby.
In the meantime, Leno sneaks into a NBC exec meeting, listening over a speaker phone he hears their promises to Letterman, now he's pissed, and uses the information to get a better iron clad deal from NBC, who still don't want him to go to CBS.

7) The final nail in the Leno and Carson relationship is on Leno's first episode of the "Tonight Show".Because of a rider on Leno's contract when NBC was wooing him, Cushnik, with no experience, becomes producer of the Tonight Show. Helen Cushnik absolutely refuses to allow Jay to make any acknowledgement, comment, or thanks to Carson, to the absolute horror of NBC execs, who now are less than thrilled with their choice. Again, Leno swears he had no idea about whats going on,and that Cushnik told him not to thank Johnny because it was "Sucking up". Leno has said since it was a poor judgement on his part. NBC starts to rethink their position about Letterman, but by now Letterman hired infamous agent Michael Ovitz, who finds a loophole in Dave's contract.

8) Ovitz fields offer from everybody, since Letterman wants a Network show, not a syndication deal, Ovitz counsels CBS is the best offer. Again, out of respect and because he's probably the only guy on the planet who can understand it all, Letterman again goes to Carson. Carson advises him to take the CBS deal, some think this just the right decision, others think it was Carson's last FU to NBC, probably it was a bit of both. Either way, Letterman goes to CBS. and Carson has nothing to do or say with NBC or Leno ever again. NBC "encourages" Leno to fire Cushnik after it's revealed in the trade papers that she's threatening to blackball guest who appear on other talk shows.

I take some encouragement to know that at least some fence-mending has taken place since the early days of the Leno incarnation of The Tonight Show.

I was watching The Arsenio Hall show one night and I actually heard Arsenio Hall call Jay "that punk ass Leno". Yikes. If somebody told me that second hand, I wouldn't have beleived it. You don't call somebody "punk ass" by name on national TV. But I heard it with my own ears.

Some time later (years), Arsenio appeared on the Tonight Show with Leno and he has appeared with him several times subsequently. They seem to be getting along famously. I suspect there is a lot of truth to the belief that much of the early aninmosity was the result of bad management and awful advice.

Last night I assumed both Leno and Letterman would do their Carson homages and I decided I'd see Letterman's. I'm switching back and forth and it turned out Letterman is a rerun so I watch Leno.

I assume Letterman will do his soon? I like that they did'nt do it simultaneusly.

Os

Funny...all the conflicting stories about his retirement and replacement brings to mind an article I read in the paper today that Johnny knew of his retirement WELL in advance...according to this report his retirement date was set in his final contract renegotiation with NBC in 1981. True or not...I have no way of knowing.

I can't imagine Letterman not making mention of Johnny's passing on Late Night, but he already released a statement to the press, so who knows? Oddly enough, though the paper printed quite a few statements from other celebs, there wasn't one word from that monkey-jawed a_ _wipe Leno (sorry, never liked the guy). Did he say ANYTHING on The Tonight Show?