Johnny Carson - R.I.P.
 

Johnny Carson, beloved talk show host of "The Tonight Show" for 30 years , has passed away early Sunday morning, at the age of 79 from emphysema.

I did not know that.

This is very sad news! He was my favorite television talk-show host. RIP

Oh man, I loved Johnny. He was one of the funniest men I have ever seen and he was truly the epitome of television talk show hosts.

i just heard this and it's very sad news...i loved this man...he was a brilliant late night host...i will always remember him as carnac which was a favorite skit of mine....he will be missed...

For those of us old enough to remember when he was on the The Tonight Show: Johnny Carson was present in our bedroom 5 nights a week, and sometimes during love-making ;).

Sad news... But how wonderful to be missed by so many.

I watched some of his clips from the Tonight Show last night and earlier today... and the man was hilarious…


R.I.P.

Agreed.

R.I.P., Johnny. You were truly original and unlike any other.

funny funny guy. almost as sad if not sadder than when we lost bob hope. both of em were better than anyone today.

He was funny yet, he wasn't offensive. We will miss him.

AMPAS President Frank Pierson (screenwriter of Cool Hand Luke, Dog Day Afternoon, The Anderson Tapes) had a nice brief mention of Carson before the Oscar nominees were read this morning.

You kids won't remember anybody back further than Billy Crystal, but Johnny hosted the Oscars five times from '79 to '84, and did it with the same apparent ease as his own "Tonight Show". Bob Hope will always be the Oscar host, but Carson was held in the same esteem as Hope even though he hosted the show far fewer times. I expect there will be a nice tribute at the awards next month, which will be great because unlike "The Tonight Show" clips of Johnny on the Oscars aren't shown very often.


Steve Martin apparently almost coaxed Johnny back into the spotlight for one more Oscar monent when he hosted for his second time in 2003. Steve's idea was that at some point in the middle of the show, Martin would start being self-congratulatory about his performance, saying that he was clearly the best host in the history of the Oscars. At this point, Billy Crystal would appear on stage. The two would argue for a bit about which of them was truly the best, and then as a real surprise Johnny Carson - who has made only a handful of public appearances since his retirement in 1992, would slowly walk onto the stage. Martin and Crystal would stop arguing, Carson would simply stare them down for a moment, then Steve and Billy would start grovelling at Johnny's feet.

It would have been a GREAT bit, but even though Steve and Johnny had been great friends for years (Martin was part of the legendary circle of weekend poker players who met at Johnny's house for many years, also including Don Rickles, Bob Newhart and Chevy Chase - man to be a fly on that wall!), he ultimately nixed the idea. Carson was notoriously shy outside the "Tonight Show" setting, generally hated talking about himself, and could hardly stand being praised for his work. He knew the second he walked out on that stage there would be a tremendous and long standing ovation, and he simply wasn't comfortable with that kind of attention. Too bad, as it would have been an all-time classic Oscar moment. But saying no to such a nice and great idea for sake of his own comfort and humilty was very much in keeping with who Johnny Carson was.

Thanks for that Holden. That's really nice to know. You do got admit his fans sure did love him. My dad and mom were real upset with the news.