Documentary reveals a different side of late night king Johnny Carson

Foxnews.com ^ | May 07, 2012 | By Hollie McKay

[US Navy Vet]

This year marks the 50th anniversary of Johnny Carson taking over “The Tonight Show” stage from Jack Paar. It is also the 20th anniversary of Carson’s retirement. But how much do most people really know about the television legend away from the lights and cameras?

In a new documentary, “American Masters Johnny Carson: King of Late Night,” filmmakers Peter Jones and Susan Lacy peel back the many layers of the comedian’s life and career, offering an unprecedented glimpse into the man who won the collective heart of a nation.

“The gift Johnny had was that he just had a magical way of connecting with the audience in a way no one had done before, or has done since,” Jones told FOX411’s Pop Tarts column. “He was able to connect with everyone -- from young and old -- while maintaining his own sense of self. He was the most famous man in America, and yet we really didn’t know who he was.”

[drew]

Occasionally, when he was really bombing, the band would start playing and he would do a soft shoe routine as a last resort. Cracked me up every time.

[Deb]

Yep. Just about every famous comedian working today including Dave Letterman, Jay Leno, Roseanne Barr, Tim Allen, Paul Reiser, Robin Williams, Ellen, Jerry Seinfeld and on and on, got “called over” to the couch. Some were told they could stay there for the rest of show. Show biz heaven.

[skinkinthegrass]

gay. I'm sure his 4(?) wives would question that. :-\
your right; liberal queers are prone to stating that accusation.

[NonValueAdded]

thanks for those memories :)

[donna]

Just beyond talented:

Johnny Carson & Julio Iglesias - “To All the Girl’s I’ve Loved Before” on “The Tonight Show” - 1984
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l61kKhbAHeo

[Robert DeLong]

My favorite was when he was interviewing Arnold Palmer's wife and asked her if she did anything special before a tournament.

She replied, "I kiss his balls".

Carson responded, "I'll bet that makes his putter stand on end".

[JediJones]

I just have to say...Chicken McNuggets!

[tarheelswamprat]

Since Carson, the networks have chosen only professional clowns to do late-night. They don’t have anyone who can mix it up a bit. Leno can’t. Letterman can’t. Don Imus does both types of interviews, but sucks at both.

In addition, unlike these others, Carson was never ideological, petty or just plain mean.

[Williams]

Carson was great. One thing that saddened me was when he announced the older shows were lost because NBC reused the tapes.

[tarheelswamprat]

Without looking it up, I believe the line was something like “I’ll bet that straightens out his putts(putz)”

[southernnorthcarolina]

Perhaps the most poignant aspect of the documentary is the exploration into Carson’s painful relationship with his mother. While at his peak Carson commanded a nightly audience of 15 million viewers, double that of Leno and Letterman combined, he could never get the approval that he longed for from his mom, who never thought her son was funny enough, good enough, successful enough.

Such codswallop. This is the standard dime-store psychiatric analysis of just about every notable person in the world. "He never got the approval of [either or both parents], which caused him to [whatever]." No way to disprove such an assertion, but little reason to believe it, either.

[Robert DeLong]

Supposedly, the whole story is bogus. It never happened. Guess I heard that somewhere and fell for it. Still makes for a great story.

[nicksaunt]

Thanks for posting, I am anxious to see the documentary next week. We were great fans of Johnny and miss him terribly. He was smart, funny and had a lot of class. As with many of his generation there is no one today like him. He was one of a kind.

I am very grateful that I still was able to see many of the great ones while growing up in the 60's and 70's. Young people today are exposed to so little talent and have no clue as to what they have missed.

[Dubh_Ghlase]

LOL! That's the one I was going to post!

Great minds and such...!

[GSWarrior]

I like how Johnny vanished off the radar after he retired....not one of those performers who feels the need to be “on.”

[Vinnie]

I’ll never forget the night Ed Ames threw the tomahawk at the human outline on the sheet of plywood!

LOL..

IIRC they claimed that was the longest sustained laughter ever on the show.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGeN0QkZmmY

[Vinnie]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGeN0QkZmmY

Johnny Carson & Ed Ames

[Robert DeLong]

I know for a fact that the story has been around a lot longer than the internet. I have been telling it for years, decades even. Probably will continue to do so since it is such a great story. LOL

[Joe 6-pack]

One of my all time favorite "Tonight Show" moments...

Jimmy Stewart and Johnny Carson

[allmendream]