LOS ANGELES (AP) – Johnny Carson, the “Tonight Show” TV host who served America a smooth nightcap of celebrity banter, droll comedy and heartland charm for 30 years, has died. He was 79. “Mr. Carson passed away peacefully early Sunday morning,” his nephew, Jeff Sotzing, told The Associated Press. “He was surrounded by his family, whose loss will be immeasurable. There will be no memorial service.”
Sotzing would not give further details, including the time of death, the location or the cause of death.
The boyish-looking Nebraska native with the disarming grin, who survived every attempt to topple him from his late-night talk show throne, was a star who managed never to distance himself from his audience.
His wealth, the adoration of his guests – particularly the many young comics whose careers he launched – the wry tales of multiple divorces: Carson’s air of modesty made it all serve to enhance his bedtime intimacy with viewers.
“Heeeeere’s Johnny …” was the booming announcement from sidekick Ed McMahon that ushered Carson out to the stage. Then the formula: the topical monologue, the guests, the broadly played skits such as “Carnac the Magnificent.”
But audiences never tired of him; Carson went out on top when he retired in May 1992.
His personal life could not match the perfection of his career. Carson was married four times, divorced three. In 1991, one of his three sons, 39-year-old Ricky, was killed in a car accident.
Nearly all of Carson’s professional life was spent in television, from his postwar start at Nebraska stations in the late 1940s to his three decades with NBC’s “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.”
Carson choose to let “Tonight” stand as his career zenith and his finale, withdrawing into a quiet retirement that suited his private nature and refusing involvement in other show business projects.
In 1993, he explained his absence from the limelight.
“I have an ego like anybody else,” Carson told The Washington Post, “but I don’t need to be stoked by going before the public all the time.”
He was open to finding the right follow-up to “Tonight,” he told friends. But his longtime producer, Fred de Cordova, said Carson didn’t feel pressured – he could look back on his TV success and say “I did it.”
“And that makes sense. He is one of a kind, was one of a kind,” de Cordova said in 1995. “I don’t think there’s any reason for him to try something different.”
Carson was born in Corning, Iowa, and raised in nearby Norfolk. He started his show business career at age 14 as the magician “The Great Carsoni.”
After World War II service in the Navy, he took a series of jobs in local radio and TV in Nebraska before starting at KNXT-TV in Los Angeles in 1950.
There he started a sketch comedy show, “Carson’s Cellar,” which ran from 1951-53 and attracted attention from Hollywood. A staff writing job for “The Red Skelton Show” followed.
The program provided Carson with a lucky break: when Skelton was injured backstage, Carson took the comedian’s place in front of the cameras.
The appearance probably was Carson’s first monologue in front of a national audience, according to “The Complete Directory to Primetime TV Stars.”
Producers tried to find the right program for the up-and-coming comic, trying him out as host of the quiz show “Earn Your Vacation” (1954) and in the variety show “The Johnny Carson Show” (1955-56).
From 1957-62 he hosted the daytime game show “Who Do You Trust?” and, in 1958, was joined for the first time by McMahon, his durable “Tonight” buddy.
A few acting roles came Carson’s way, including one on “Playhouse 90” in 1957, and he did a pilot in 1960 for a prime-time series, “Johnny Come Lately,” that never made it onto a network schedule.
In 1958, Carson sat in for “Tonight Show” host Jack Paar. When Paar left the show four years later, Carson was NBC’s choice as his replacement and took over on Oct. 2, 1962.
Audiences quickly grew fond of Carson’s boyish grin and easy wit. He even made headlines with such clever ploys as the 1969 on-show marriage of singer Tiny Tim to Miss Vicki, which won the show its biggest-ever ratings.
The wedding and other noteworthy moments from the show were collected into a yearly “Tonight” anniversary special.
In 1972, “Tonight” moved from New York to Burbank. Growing respect for Carson’s consistency and staying power, along with four consecutive Emmy Awards, came his way in the late 1970s.
His quickness and his ability to handle an audience were impressive. When his jokes missed their target, the smooth Carson won over a groaning studio audience with a clever look or sly, self-deprecating remark.
Politics provided monologue fodder for him as skewered lawmakers of every stripe, mirroring the mood of voters. His Watergate jabs at President Nixon were seen as cementing Nixon’s fall from office in 1976.
He dispatched would-be late-night competitors with equal aplomb. Competing networks tried a variety of formats and hosts but never managed to best “Tonight” and Carson.
There was the occasional battle with NBC: in 1967, for instance, Carson walked out for several weeks until the network managed to lure him back with a contract that reportedly gave him $1 million-plus yearly.
In 1980, after more walkout threats, the show was scaled back from 90 minutes to an hour. Carson also eased his schedule by cutting back on his work days; a number of substitute hosts filled in, including Joan Rivers, David Brenner, Jerry Lewis and Jay Leno, Carson’s eventual successor.
In the ’80s, Carson was reportedly the highest-paid performer in television history with a $5 million “Tonight” show salary alone.
His Carson Productions created and sold pilots to NBC, including “TV’s Bloopers and Practical Jokes.” Carson himself made occasional cameo appearances on other TV series.
He also performed in Las Vegas and Atlantic City, N.J., and repeatedly hosted the Academy Awards from 1979 on.
Carson’s graceful exit from “Tonight” did not avoid a messy, bitter battle to fill his job.
Leno and fellow comedian David Letterman’s tug-of-war over the job inspired a satirical 1996 HBO movie, “The Late Shift,” based on the Bill Carter book of the same name.
Leno took over as “Tonight” host on March 25, 1992, becoming the fourth man to hold the job after founding host Steve Allen, Paar and Carson (Letterman moved to a competitive late-night job at CBS).
Carson stayed out of the fray and, after leaving “Tonight,” took on the role of Malibu-based retiree with apparent ease. An avid tennis fan, Carson was still playing a vigorous game in his 70s. He was seen in the stands at professional matches including the U.S. Open and Wimbledon.
He and his wife, Alexis, traveled and dined out frequently. The pair met on the Malibu beach in the early 1980s; he was 61 when they married in June 1987, she was in her 30s.
Carson’s first wife was his childhood sweetheart, Jody, the mother of his three sons. They married in 1949 and split in 1963.
He married Joanne Copeland Carson in 1963; divorce came in 1972. His third marriage, to Joanna Holland Carson, took place in 1972. They separated in 1982 and reached a divorce settlement in 1985.
On the occasion of Carson’s 70th birthday in 1995, former “Tonight” bandleader Doc Severinsen, who toured with musicians from the show, said he was constantly reminded of Carson’s enduring popularity.
“Every place we go people ask ‘How is he? Where is he? What is he doing? Tell him how much we miss him.’ It doesn’t surprise me,” Severinsen said.
The brisk sale of videocassettes of the best of “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson,” released in the early ’90s, offered further proof of his appeal.
In 1993, he was celebrated by the prestigious Kennedy Center Honors for career achievement.
*****
Former ‘Tonight Show’ host Johnny Carson dead at 79: NBC
AFP: 1/23/2005
LOS ANGELES, Jan 23 (AFP) – Johnny Carson, the long-time host of NBC television’s “Tonight Show,” has died at the age of 79, NBC reported Sunday.
Carson, a pioneer of late night television comedy and the talk show format in the United States, stepped down as host of the “Tonight Show” in 1992, when he was replaced by the current host Jay Leno.
The Nebraska-born Carson had hosted the “Tonight Show” since 1962. He interviewed scores of celebrities during his years on the ground-breaking broadcast.
Beatles John Lennon and Paul McCartney appeared on the show in 1968. Carson’s final guests were singer Bette Midler and comedian Robin Williams. His last show was seen by an audience of 50 million across the United States according to NBC.
Carson was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 1987 and awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1992.
He underwent quadruple bypass surgery in 1999.
*****
Monologue From Johnny’s Last Show:
Johnny Carson’s final ‘Tonight Show’ monologue
Here is the monologue from Johnny Carson’s final “The Tonight Show” on May 22, 1992:
Around the studio, we are still on an emotional high from last night; we have not come down yet. I want to thank Robin Williams and Bette Midler for last night, for giving us an excellent show. They were absolutely sensational.
The show tonight is our farewell show; it’s going to be a little bit quieter. It’s not going to be a performance show. One of the questions people have been asking me, especially this last month, is, “What’s it like doing ‘The Tonight Show,’ and what does it mean to me?”
Well, let me try to explain it. If I could magically, somehow, that tape you just saw, make it run backwards. I would like to do the whole thing over again. It’s been a hell of a lot of fun. As an entertainer, it has been the great experience of my life, and I cannot imagine finding something in television after I leave tonight that would give me as much joy and pleasure, and such a sense of exhilaration, as this show has given me. It’s just hard to explain.
Now it’s a farewell show. There’s a certain sadness among the staff, a little melancholy. But look on the bright side: you won’t have to read or hear one more story about my leaving this show. The press coverage has been absolutely tremendous, and we are very grateful. But my God, the Soviet Union’s end did not get this kind of publicity. The press has been very decent and honest with me, and I thank them for that . . . That’s about it.
The greatest accolade I think I received: G.E. named me “Employee of the Month.” And God knows that was a dream come true.
I don’t like saying goodbye. Farewells are a little awkward, and I really thought about this — no joke — wouldn’t it be funny, instead of showing up tonight, putting on a rerun? NBC did not find that funny at all.
Next question I get is what am I gonna do? Well, I have not really made any plans. But the events of this last week have helped me make a decision. I am going to join the cast of Murphy Brown, and become a surrogate father to that kid.
During the run on the show there have been seven United States Presidents, and thankfully for comedy there have been eight Vice Presidents of the United States. Now I know I have made some jokes at the expense of Dan Quayle, but I really want to thank him tonight for making my final week so fruitful.
Here is an interesting statistic that may stun you. We started the show Oct. 2, 1962. The total population of the Earth was 3 billion 100 million people. This summer 5 billion 500 million people, which is a net increase of 2 billion 400 million people, which should give us some pause. A more amazing statistic is that half of those 2 billion 400 million will soon have their own late-night TV show.
Now, originally NBC came and said, what we would like you to do in the final show, is to make it a two-hour prime-time special with celebrities, and a star-studded audience. And I said, well, I would prefer to end like we started — rather quietly, in our same time slot, in front of our same shabby little set. It is rather shabby. We offered it to a homeless shelter and they said ‘No, thank you.’ I am taking the applause sign home — putting it in the bedroom. And maybe once a week just turning it on.
But we do have a V.P.I. audience — V.P.I. audience? We could have had that, too. What I did was ask the members of the staff and the crew to invite their family, relatives and friends, and they did; with some other invited guests. My family is here tonight; my wife, Alex, my sons Chris and Cory. My brother Dick and my sister Katherine, a sprinkling of nephews and nieces. And I realized that being an offspring of someone who is constantly in the public eye is not easy. So guys, I want you to know that I love you; I hope that your old man has not caused you too much discomfort. It would have been a perfect evening if their brother Rick would have been here with us, but I guess life does what it is supposed to do. And you acccept it and you go on.
About tonight’s show. This is not really a performance show. This is kind of a look-back retrospective. We are going to show you some moments in time. Some images of the many people, and there have been some 23,000 people. We are going to show you a little excerpt of how the show is put together, so go get some more cheese dip and we’ll be back in just a moment.
Copyright 1992, NBC’s “The Tonight Show”
