"The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" (1962) TV series 1962-1992

User Rating:

7.9/10   

Directors:

Dick Carson
Frederick De Cordova

Writers:

Hank Bradford (head writer) (1969-1975)
Johnny Carson (writer)

Seasons:

1 | unknown

Release Date:

1 October 1962 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Music | Talk-Show

Plot:

Host Johnny Carson performs comedy routines and chats with various celebrities.

Plot Keywords:

Sketch Comedy | Famous Opening Theme | Variety | Stand Up Comedy | Character Name In Title

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 11 wins & 33 nominations

Cast

Johnny Carson

...

Himself - Host / ... (1,926 episodes, 1962-1992)

Also Known As:

"The Best of Carson" (USA) (rerun title)

Runtime:

105 min (1962-1966) | 60 min (1980-1992) | USA:90 min (1967-1980)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (1962-1984) | Stereo (1984-1992)

Filming Locations:

NBC Studios - 30 Rockefeller Plaza, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Carson Productions

Trivia:

Many taped episodes (including appearances by Ayn Rand, and John Lennon and Paul McCartney) were lost in a fire at NBC's archive, and only clips made for other programs (show "best-of"s, promotion, news) have survived. NBC also recycled the original tapes of many episodes, without Johnny Carson's knowledge or approval. It was only once he learned of this that it was stopped.

Quotes:

[Ed is laughing to himself]
Karnack: [annoyed] Karnack is attempting to divine an answer and you're sitting here, giggling. May I have silence, please?
Ed McMahon: Of course. You've had it many times before.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Magic (1978)

A Living Legend

As great as Steve Allen and Jack Paar were, Carson took the ball, reshaped it, and sent it in for a shot heard round the world. There is a reason he hosted the show for 30 years, 4 times longer than his 2 predacessors behind him. He was brilliant at making anyone seem interesting. Steve could do it, and so could Jack (though not as well from what I've seen), but Johnny really had a grasp of finding the way to question people to fit their response style. He really was the first true King of Late Night. If others say it's Paar or Allen, then I say Carson became Emporer!

The skits were done cheaply, but they were so much fun, you laughed with them, not at them.

Originally, the Carson's show was 90 minutes, and it was trimmed to 60 in the early 80's since he felt he could not keep the level up like he had in the past, which made the way for David Letterman. Thank You Johnny!