As host of “The Tonight Show” for 30 years, Johnny Carson was the king of late-night TV – the pre-eminent Hollywood talent broker, monologist, and national taste-maker. But the public rarely saw the private side of the man who helped tuck tens of millions of Americans into bed each night. Correspondent Jim Axelrod talks with Mike Thomas (co-author, with Bill Zehme, of “Carson the Magnificent”) about the late-night host’s enduring impact and private difficulties; comedians Robert Klein and George Wallace, who describe a “Tonight Show” appearance as comedy’s Mt. Everest; and actress Dyan Cannon, who says of Carson, “There was nobody as big a star.” (Originally aired March 2, 2025.)
The hidden side of Johnny Carson
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