NY Times: Seth Meyers to Host Late Night

[TheBigA]

I agree. Someone should bring back Carnac the Magnificent.

Letterman actually has the hat...he's brought it out on his show a few times.

 

[Skynet74]

Then again, keep in mind these people aren't attemping to entertain people your age now

Oh that's good. Than that means they are succeeding.

 

[FredLeonard]

I agree. Someone should bring back Carnac the Magnificent.

Letterman actually has the hat...he's brought it out on his show a few times.

Actually, it's Paul who does Carnac.

 

[1069_KIFR]

I agree. Someone should bring back Carnac the Magnificent.

Someone should bring back "Stump The Band"

 

[anotherguyTN]

I agree. Someone should bring back Carnac the Magnificent.

Someone should bring back "Stump The Band"

Dave's done that at times as well. I think he had Johnny Carson's blessing to use both Carnac and Stump the Band.

 

[BD Sullivan]

Charles Rocket: Committed suicide

I think the combination of being part of perhaps the worst SNL group ever (Gilbert Gottfried was the only success of the group, I believe) and his infamous on-air F-bomb made him too toxic, which eventually led to his tragic suicide.

 

[FredLeonard]

To put it in proper context, when Jack Parr left, how did you feel about Johnny replacing him? Johnny who? Let's face it: Johnny's track record before Tonight was not well known. Failed game show host and amateur magician takes over for Parr? Really?

No one knows the future until it happens.

Then again, keep in mind these people aren't attemping to entertain people your age now, but rather your age then.

I admire how you say things with such certainty - especially when you're wrong.

Failed game show host? No way. "Who (sic) Do You Trust?" was doing very well (it crashed and burned when he left). It was, for a daytime show and for any show on ABC, a big critical success. As a comedy-game show, it ranked with Groucho Marx and "You Bet Your Life."

Johnny had also been guest-host of the Tonight Show in Parr's absence; he had a track record doing the show. He also appeared regularly as a panelist of various prime time game shows, such as "What's My Line?"

Johnny was generally recognized as a coming break-out star. Sheldon Leonard and Carl Reiner were interested in him for the part of Rob Petrie, until they decided to go with a performer who could incorporate occasional musical numbers into the show.

He was an amateur magician when he was a kid. So what? It wasn't part of his professional resume.

 

[LKellerIII]

To put it in proper context, when Jack Parr left, how did you feel about Johnny replacing him? Johnny who? Let's face it: Johnny's track record before Tonight was not well known. Failed game show host and amateur magician takes over for Parr? Really?

No one knows the future until it happens.

Then again, keep in mind these people aren't attemping to entertain people your age now, but rather your age then.

I admire how you say things with such certainty - especially when you're wrong.

Failed game show host? No way. "Who (sic) Do You Trust?" was doing very well (it crashed and burned when he left). It was, for a daytime show and for any show on ABC, a big critical success. As a comedy-game show, it ranked with Groucho Marx and "You Bet Your Life."

Johnny had also been guest-host of the Tonight Show in Parr's absence; he had a track record doing the show. He also appeared regularly as a panelist of various prime time game shows, such as "What's My Line?"

Johnny was generally recognized as a coming break-out star. Sheldon Leonard and Carl Reiner were interested in him for the part of Rob Petrie, until they decided to go with a performer who could incorporate occasional musical numbers into the show.

He was an amateur magician when he was a kid. So what? It wasn't part of his professional resume.

Also on Johnny's resume was Carson's Cellar - the local LA talk-variety show he hosted on CBS owned KNXT from 1951 - 53. Carson's abilities as a comedian, and host were well known by the time he took overThe Tonight Show


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJU-hByJndk

 

[TheBigA]

It was, for a daytime show and for any show on ABC, a big critical success. As a comedy-game show, it ranked with Groucho Marx and "You Bet Your Life."

You say "critical success," by which critics? How about ratings?

The point of this thread is to compare Johnny before Tonight to Seth Myers before hosting Late Night. Seth has been a part of a weekly network TV show for 12 years. Compared to Johnny, who did network TV for 5 years. Seth is head writer, a higher role than Conan had on the show. Seth has hosted the ESPY Awards twice. He's done movies. I'd say he compares quite favorably to Johnny in comparison.

 

[jwk1979]

Charles Rocket: Committed suicide

I think the combination of being part of perhaps the worst SNL group ever (Gilbert Gottfried was the only success of the group, I believe) and his infamous on-air F-bomb made him too toxic, which eventually led to his tragic suicide.

Eddie Murphy and Joe Piscopo were also members of that SNL cast and the only ones retained for the next season when everyone else was fired.

As far as Charles Rocket, he dropped his infamous F-bomb during the 1980/1981 season and didn't commit suicide until 2005 (nearly 25 years later), so I don't know that had anything to do with him killing himself. He appeared in a lot of movies in the 80s and 90s (Dumb and Dumber, Hocus Pocus, etc.) in minor roles granted.

 

[FredLeonard]

You say "critical success," by which critics? How about ratings?

The point of this thread is to compare Johnny before Tonight to Seth Myers before hosting Late Night. Seth has been a part of a weekly network TV show for 12 years. Compared to Johnny, who did network TV for 5 years. Seth is head writer, a higher role than Conan had on the show. Seth has hosted the ESPY Awards twice. He's done movies. I'd say he compares quite favorably to Johnny in comparison.

Look it up yourself. I'm not doing your homework for you. Public libraries have newspapers indexed and on microfilm; check the TV reviews. The show got a lot of buzz in the popular press and in the trade press when Johnny took over, after a fair to middling performance by Edgar Bergen as host (who was also noted for his quick ad lib ability, at least when his dummy was talking). At this time, Groucho was still on the air and Carson was favorably compared to Groucho. Groucho thought enough of Johnny to come on the Tonight Show to introduce Johnny his first night.

The other two networks kept putting up various shows against Who Do You Trust:
CBS: The Verdict Is Yours (trial reenactments with Jim McKay - thrill of acquittal, agony of conviction), The Edge of Night (a daytime mystery drama based on Perry Mason), To Tell The Truth (game show), The Millionaire (reruns of prime time drama in which an anonymous benefactor gives random people a million bucks to see how it affects their lives) .
NBC: Queen For A Day (a popular radio reality show where housewives compete by trying to tell the best sob story, later moved to ABC as lead in to "Trust"), Matinee Theater (live dramas each day), From These Roots (a soap), Our Five Daughters (another soap), Young Doctor Malone (yet another soap brought over from radio), You Don't Say (game show).

Who Do You Trust continued for several months after Carson left with Woody Woodbury as host. Woodbury had some comedy albums that had done well but "Trust" wasn't the same. Sometimes lightning doesn't strike twice. Even Bill Cosby couldn't fill Groucho's chair when You Bet Your Life was "regurgitated" in the 90s.

 

[TheBigA]

Look it up yourself. I'm not doing your homework for you.

I'm not asking you to do my "homework." You made a statement, and I'm asking you to back it up.

Too much work? No problem. I'll ignore your statement.

 

[LKellerIII]

It was, for a daytime show and for any show on ABC, a big critical success. As a comedy-game show, it ranked with Groucho Marx and "You Bet Your Life."

You say "critical success," by which critics? How about ratings?

The point of this thread is to compare Johnny before Tonight to Seth Myers before hosting Late Night. Seth has been a part of a weekly network TV show for 12 years. Compared to Johnny, who did network TV for 5 years. Seth is head writer, a higher role than Conan had on the show. Seth has hosted the ESPY Awards twice. He's done movies. I'd say he compares quite favorably to Johnny in comparison.

Nothing against Meyers - he may be great for all I know. But I'll point out that just because you've written comedy and been in movies doesn't make you a talk show host. Exhibit 1: Chevy Chase.

 

[TheBigA]

Using that logic, hosting a game show doesn't make you a talk show host. Example 1: Pat Sajak.

 

[FredLeonard]

Look it up yourself. I'm not doing your homework for you.

I'm not asking you to do my "homework." You made a statement, and I'm asking you to back it up.

Too much work? No problem. I'll ignore your statement.

Please do. All of them.

 

[vchimpanzee]

Good choice. SNL putting a rerun in prime time each week got me interested enough to watch, although I could have been taping all this time. "Weekend Update" is my favorite part of the show, though they do need to update that map of Africa since Southern Sudan is not on it.

 

[nomadcowatbk]

There will never be another Johnny Carson again

Well, sure. Another Johnny Carson would be a knock-off. That doesn't mean there won't be somebody who can rise to that level on his own terms.

Johnny was smart enough to know there would never be another Jack Parr and he'd be foolish to try.

Part of the problem is the only source of new talent for shows these is comedy clubs (via SNL). Local broadcasting is dead and network broadcasting has no farm system. Carson did local morning drive radio in a medium market, local TV in LA, worked as a writer on a comedy-variety show, hosted a game show and through all those stages got to hone his craft. Comedy clubs and SNL just don't give the same opportunity.

Consolidation has killed localism outside of news or sports, youtube might be the new farm system. There are no more horror flick or afternoon kids block hosts.

 

[TheBigA]

Consolidation has killed localism outside of news or sports, youtube might be the new farm system. There are no more horror flick or afternoon kids block hosts.

Nope...YouTube is what killed localism. There is no local anymore. The kid block hosts, for the most part, went away in the 70s.

 

[nomadcowatbk]

Consolidation has killed localism outside of news or sports, youtube might be the new farm system. There are no more horror flick or afternoon kids block hosts.

Nope...YouTube is what killed localism. There is no local anymore. The kid block hosts, for the most part, went away in the 70s.

Kids block hosts continued into the 90s, at least in my town. One of them came to my 3rd class to read a book and tape a PSA about reading. I don't know what happened to them but they went away after $inclair bought the station and switched to WB from Fox Kids. Localism died before youtube.

 

[LKellerIII]

Consolidation has killed localism outside of news or sports, youtube might be the new farm system. There are no more horror flick or afternoon kids block hosts.

Nope...YouTube is what killed localism. There is no local anymore. The kid block hosts, for the most part, went away in the 70s.

In LA, most kid block hosts were gone prior to the 70s - more like 1967-68, with the exception of the iconic Sheriff John, who made it to the mid 70s.