sad day. Johnny Carson dead at 79

[pirate44]

i cant find the story online yet, but the tv just said he past away today. He was a classic and will be missed.

[Bulldog_12]

That is sad. I just saw that too. I wasnt old enough to see him at the time, but since, I have seen some of his old stuff and it was pretty stinking funny.http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/msnbc/Components/Art/COVER/041116/STG_HZ_JohnnyCarson_1210p.jpg
This is all that is out as of now on the internet. NBC just released the info.

[SintonFan]

We lost one of the best entertainers around. RIP Johnny....

[pirate44]

Originally posted by Bulldog_12
That is sad. I just saw that too. I wasnt old enough to see him at the time, but since, I have seen some of his old stuff and it was pretty stinking funny.http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/msnbc/Components/Art/COVER/041116/STG_HZ_JohnnyCarson_1210p.jpg
This is all that is out as of now on the internet. NBC just released the info.
i didnt appreciate him when he was on the tonight show like i should have. he was a genious in his field. he was confident and sure of his talents. almost Rat-Pack-esque. Letterman and Leno are from a newer generation and in my opinion cant hold a candle to Carson. Now im dreading the passing of Joey Bishop. He seems to outlast everyone from that generation.

[LH Panther Mom]

Wow! I always liked Johnny on the Tonight Show - my favorite regular skit was the Swami. It was greatness. It took me a while to get accustomed to Leno as his permanent replacement - I saw him as the Doritos guy. (Yes, I know.....I'm old. ;) )

RIP Johnny. :(

[44INAROW]

Rest in Peace Johnny :)

[ILS1]

By LYNN ELBER, AP Television Writer

LOS ANGELES - Johnny Carson (news), the "Tonight Show" host who served America a smooth nightcap of celebrity banter, droll comedy and heartland charm for 30 years, died Sunday. He was 79. NBC said Carson died of emphysema at his Malibu home.

"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."

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 America never tired of him; Carson went out on top when he retired in May 1992.

McMahon said Sunday that Carson was "like a brother to me."

"Our 34 years of working together, plus the 12 years since then, created a friendship which was professional, family-like and one of respect and great admiration," McMahon said in a statement. "When we ended our run on 'The Tonight Show' and my professional life continued, whenever a big career decision needed to be made, I always got the OK from 'the boss.'"

Carson's 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."

Carson spent his retirement years sailing, traveling and socializing with a few close friends including media mogul Barry Diller and NBC executive Bob Wright. He simply refused to be wooed back on stage.

"I just let the work speak for itself," he told Esquire magazine in 2002.

Carson did find an outlet for his creativity: He wrote short humor pieces for The New Yorker magazine, including "Recently Discovered Childhood Letters to Santa," which purported to give the youthful wish lists of William Buckley, Don Rickles and others.

Carson made his debut as "Tonight" host in October 1962 and quickly won over audiences. He even made headlines with such clever ploys as the 1969 on-show marriage of eccentric 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 he 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 1974.

He made presidential history again in July 1988 when he had then-Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton (news - web sites) on his show a few days after Clinton came under widespread ridicule for a boring speech at the Democratic National Convention. Clinton traded quips with Carson and played "Summertime" on the saxophone in what was hailed as a stunning comeback.

Competing networks tried a variety of formats and hosts to challenge Carson, but never managed to best "Tonight."

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, Jerry Lewis and Jay Leno, Carson's eventual successor.

Rivers was one of the countless comedians whose careers took off after they were on Carson's show. After she rocked the audience with her jokes in that 1965 appearance, he remarked, "God, you're funny. You're going to be a star."

"If Johnny hadn't made the choice to put me on his show, I might still be in Greenwich Village as the oldest living undiscovered female comic," she recalled in an Associated Press interview 20 years later. She tried her own talk show in 1986, quickly becoming one of the many challengers who could not budge Carson.

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 was host of the Academy Awards (news - web sites) five times in the '70s and '80s.

Carson's graceful exit from "Tonight" did not avoid a messy, bitter tug-of-war between Leno and fellow comedian David Letterman to take over his throne. Leno took over on May 25, 1992, becoming the fourth man to hold the job after Steve Allen, Jack Paar and Carson. Letterman landed on rival CBS.

Born in Corning, Iowa, and raised in nearby Norfolk, Neb., Carson 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.

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), the variety show "The Johnny Carson Show" (1955-56), the game show "Who Do You Trust?" (1957-62).

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 Paar. When Paar left the show four years later, Carson was NBC's choice as his replacement.

After his retirement, Carson took on the role of Malibu-based retiree with apparent ease. An avid tennis fan, he was still playing a vigorous game in his 70s.

He and his wife, Alexis, traveled 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 that same year, but divorced nine years later. His third marriage, to Joanna Holland Carson, took place in 1972. They divorced in 1985.

On the occasion of Carson's 70th birthday, 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.

Carson won a Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, in 1992, with the first President Bush (news - web sites) saying, "With decency and style he's made America laugh and think." In 1993, he was celebrated by the prestigious Kennedy Center Honors for career achievement.

His nephew said there will be no memorial service.

___



Johnny Carson Story (http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=514&u=/ap/20050123/ap_on_en_tv/obit_carson_15)

:(

[LH Panther Mom]

Goodness - I had forgotten that I watched Tiny Tim & Miss Vicki get married. I really am old. :(

[Leopards,class of 75]

This is the first I have heard about this. Has he been sick or does anyone know? Johnny will be missed by millions.

[CheerMom]

We will all miss Johnny.:( I used to love to watch him on the Tonight Show. I haven't watched it since he retired.

[Leopards,class of 75]

Originally posted by CheerMom
We will all miss Johnny.:( I used to love to watch him on the Tonight Show. I haven't watched it since he retired. Same here!

[TXMike]

Originally posted by Leopards,class of 75
This is the first I have heard about this. Has he been sick or does anyone know? Johnny will be missed by millions.

From E-Online.com:

The late-night fixture had been beset by health problems since his reitrement more than a decade ago. Carson underwent a quadruple-heart bypass in March 1999. Some reports said the comic had suffered a heart attack, necessitating the emergency surgery.

In September 2002, he confirmed he was battling emphysema.

[NSUTrumpet08]

Johnny Carson will be missed! I can't believe he passed away!

[pirate4state]

Truly a sad day. :( It seems I had just heard about Johnny writing some jokes for Letterman and know he's gone. :(

[lepfan]

I have not watched the Tonight Show much since he retired...when my son was a itty bitty one...one of his first phrases was "heeeeres Johnnnny"

[pirate44]

Originally posted by pirate4state
Truly a sad day. :( It seems I had just heard about Johnny writing some jokes for Letterman and know he's gone. :(
same for me. i heard that story and even though he was such a private guy, i was sure he was going to end up as a guest on letterman. i have photos of a stand-up show he did at Caesars Palace Las Vegas in 1969 or 1970 when my grandmother went to see him. she said he was pretty vulgar in his live performance, but extremely funny. i would have loved to see him in person or on his show.:(

[setex]

Originally posted by lepfan
I have not watched the Tonight Show much since he retired...when my son was a itty bitty one...one of his first phrases was "heeeeres Johnnnny"

I was a big Jonnny Carson fan. He treated all his guest with respect. The skits were corny but good, especially Karnac

It was a show you could watch with your parents and either one not get embarrassed. I can take Letterman, Leno isn't funny to me.

[sinton66]

Elvis is referred to as the "King" in the music world. Johnny will forever be the "King" in comedy. The only person who ever even came close to Carson was the original Tonight Show host, Steve Allen. I didn't think they could ever find anybody funny enough to replace him. Parr was kinda funny, but Johnny rocked. I managed to forget all about Steve Allen. Rest in peace, Johnny.

[gobbler grad]

I always loved watching Johnny Carson...he could always make you laugh...we will miss him...