Let's talk about Johnny Carson

[Yong Fang]

I grew up during the later years of the Tonight Show and during its run I was a kid so I was in bed mostly when the show was on. The only late night show I was allowed to see late was Saturday Night Live since it was'nt on a "school night" and my parents would make popcorn and we would watch it together.

There are many stories about Johnny. Some say he wasnt a very nice person, or that the person we saw on stage was not the real person he was in life. I think this might hold true with actors who play a role we like and find out that they are far different than that role, but in the beginning we saw Johnny five nights a week for what used to be an hour and a half which was trimmed down to an hour by 1980 or so.

It has been said and this is true that ironically Johnny was a shy individual personally who basically eschewed parties and seperated himself from the greater Hollywood celebrity set. Basically he did his job and went home. He did have some friends and people he liked but he was content with being left alone. I think when he did have to go out and mingle with the famous people, he drank too much so that he could get through these occasions. Alcohol lessens fear and makes one more open and accesable. Problem is that Johnny would drink too much and the crazy would come out. Doesnt make the man bad, its the alcohol and I am not saying he was an alcoholic. （Although he did get a DUI in the 1980's）People of his generation drank a lot and alcohol was accepted as well as smoking like a chimney. That is what Johnny was addicted to, in his words, "Those damn cigarettes."

I think that was sort of his problem with his marriages was that he wanted to be left alone in his free time and be emotionally distant. His later wife Joanna would say that it was difficult to connect with him on any level. I am sure the wives wanted to go out and have fun, Johnny didnt. He again had a few close friends he enjoyed being with and that's it. He was married four times and the fourth marriage stuck probably because the fourth wife understood him. She probably craved privacy also.

I think his on screen persona was also him and the man was very friendly and charming. I say this because he would have "Regular folks" on like the very elderly (over 90 year old) farmer from Toulon Illinois (look this up on Youtube...Johnny talks with farmer...should take you there) and he was as nice, friendly and down home with this man as could be. Or when the lasy from the zoo (Joyce Embrey) came on with the animals and Johnny held the baby orangatan and it was just heartwarming, it wasnt fake on him, this was him.

There is going to be a movie about Carson in the near future starring Gordon Levitt (He uses three names but this is close enough) who does have a passing familarity to Carson. It should be interesting, but I hope they dont make him to be some awful person because he wasnt. He was a normal human being like the most of the rest of us (outside of sociopaths and serial killers which is why I say MOST). It should be interesting if done correctly.

Any thoughts. HEEEERES JOHHHHNY!

[Alan Brady's Hair]

I recall an episode from the 70s in which he debated with an author about his role in our culture. He was very decisively of the opinion that his job was to entertain, and not to be a spokesman for ideology.

[GentlemanJim]

I thought he was really good like 1968-1980. But after a while the show started feeling like the episodes were "cookie-cuttered" out. Maybe it was the guests who no longer interested me, maybe it was me that changed. but I believe he had been off the air a couple years before I "discovered" he was no longer the host.

In fact, I think it was only after hearing some commentary about Jay Leno's handling of the show, did I realize "oh, so Carson finally gave it up?

Yanno? I believe it was Joan Rivers who drove me away from that show..during her little substitute gigs...and one time came that I just never went back after Johnny returned.

[Duster76]

Gentleman Jim wrote:

"But after a while the show started feeling like the episodes were "cookie-cuttered" out".

I think you have a point, you mentioned 68-80, in September of 80 the show went from 90 minutes to 60 minutes, the iconic George Burns once commented to the effect that when The Tonight Show went from 90 minutes to 60 minutes it was no longer The Tonight Show. The monologue and the last half hour were the secret sauce of that show. The final half hour featured authors, off beat guests, celebrities' letting their hair down, a Bill Buckley or Truman Capote, or Gore Vidal might show up and stir up a hornet's nest. With that half hour lost the show seemed to lose its mojo, becoming instead a good hour of entertainment most nights, but nothing exceptional. It was no longer a water cooler show.

[stevea]

In the 90 minute format they had more room for the all the trademark bits--the Mighty Carson Art Players (Teatime Movie with Carol Wayne), Carnac, Aunt Blabby, Stump the Band (which you never see in syndication), etc. They almost always had a comedy bit after his monologue, and there was plenty of time for everything.

But as time went on Carson became more greedy--reduced to 60 minutes, Mondays off, more money.

Still, there is no late night show now that has any talent that even approaches his.

[GentlemanJim]

Yep, and additionally after doing some research.....recalling now how starting in 1981, Carson got a new contract where he only worked 37 weeks a year, and only 3 nights a week during those weeks, with every tuesday being a "Best of Carson" re-run.....I really had enough.

When it became a "wait, what night is it?" affair,...I drifted away for good.

[1960'sTVfan]

The 90 minute shows from the 70's are the classics, I stopped watching in the 80's when the show was reduced to an hour and Carson was seemingly absent half of the time with a substitute host in his place.

[Yong Fang]

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1t8-x3uOSqY

A favorite video.

[Jamey Greek]

I am sure you would have been allowed to stay up Friday night to watch it. TV announcer Randy West has a book coming out called TV Inside Out which documents TV stars behind the scenes and will talk about Johnny extensively. In fact, he is on the cover! He has plenty to talk about with the Johnny-Joan debacle as well as a fight with Tom Snyder in the early 70s at Chassen's restaurant.

[icecream]

Originally Posted by Duster76

The final half hour featured authors, off beat guests, celebrities' letting their hair down, a Bill Buckley or Truman Capote, or Gore Vidal

Gore Vidal might be the most boring guest I have ever seen on Johnny Carson.

[Yong Fang]

Johnny's least favorite guest was Bob Hope. The two had personality differences and different approaches to comedy. However, Bob Hope had the right by the network to just show up and be on that night's show, which probably rankled Carson and the staff because someone would have to be bumped to have Hope on there with Johnny having to play nice to the guy he didnt really like.

Johnny to me shined when he had "regular folk" with a story to tell or special ability/talent. They got this one guy on there who made jewelry out of bird feces. The guy was a farmer from Union, South Carolina (which Johnny had no idea where this was, I knew it because of Susan Smith drowning her kids). The guy dressed like he just got off the tractor. Another guy was a 95 year old farmer from Toulon, Illinois. This is where Johnny shined to me, having these off beat folks on. The lady who worked in the zoo bringing animals on the show was interesting and Johnny seemed to have a love for animals, and once she brought to baby orangatans and Johnny held one as a baby. The ape did have a diaper on which would be my concern holding the animal, to not get peed on.

Who can forget back in the early 1960's, B&W days when he had the axe thrower on the show and where the axe thrower hit the target. Youtube this and if you have the clip, add this to this thread (I cannot).

Plus I think the 1970's and 1980's, there just seemed to be a better class of celebrities and we find it more interesting now perhaps since most all of them are now dead. If nothing else, there was Don Rickles!

I am very happy that YouTube has many, many Carson clips

[MA]

Johnny Carson's YouTube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/c/johnnycarson/videos

[scotchnh2o]

"Who can forget back in the early 1960's, B&W days when he had the axe thrower on the show and where the axe thrower hit the target."

That was ED AMES. A member of the AMES BROTHERS singing group.
He Also played MINGO, Fess Parker's Indian sidekick on Daniel Boone in the late 50's.

[stevea]

Carson was always in color, but a lot of tapes were wiped before he finally intervened. The Ames clip is from a black and white kinescope that was made for whatever reason.

According to this clip's intro, its the oldest surviving color clip, from 1964:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eg-R9tnEXso

EDIT:

Of course, here's another one, slightly older--more stuff is always being found. This cool one even includes the NBC peacock open:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TW0_npkgG_M

[stevea]

Here's one more from 1968. Interesting thing here is that they go immediately to a commercial before Carson is introduced --

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cx7QVHhn7wk