Heeeeere's to Johnny!
David Ballarotto
just wanted to start a thread as a tribute to Johnny Carson. While I rarely
get a chance to see late night television these days, when I do, I just
can't help but thinking how much better it seemed to be when Johnny Carson
was on. At least he was an original, not trying to one-up the other guy at
his game like we see these days.
What was your favorite Carson moment, or favorite Carson segment? I used
to love that fake soap opera he'd do featuring members of the studio
audience. Carnac was great, too. And you can't forget Art Fern and the Tea
Time Movie.
So let's hear it for king of late night TV in the 70s (and 60s and 80s,
too).....Johnny Carson!
Lorrie
> What was your favorite Carson moment, or favorite Carson segment?
Being an animal person (?), I always loved it when Joan Embry came on with
animals from the San Diego Zoo. I have the 3 tape set of Johnny Carson
thoughout the years and there are so many funny things on those tapes. The
potato chip lady who had chips shaped like different things, and Johnny biting
into a chip almost giving the lady a heart attack, Ed Ames tomahawk throw, the
Jack Webb skit (copper clappers), and while not funny, I just love Jimmy
Stewarts poem about his dog Beau. Really brings tears to my eyes.
I can go on and on and on, but want to give others a chance too!
Lorrie
antipos...@my-deja.com
repartee with Ed McMahon. I also liked it when a guest would do
something unexpected, and Carson would be momentarily thrown off guard
and then, bam, he'd just play right along with it. He was a true master
of the late night talk show genre.
I must admit; I also miss the old afternoon talk shows - Mike Douglas,
Merv Griffin and Dinah Shore. As cheesy as these shows generally were,
there'd occasionally be a wonderful and memorable moment, as when Dinah
had Iggy Pop and David Bowie on as guests or when Andy Kaufman came on
the Mike Douglas show and just f**ked with everyone's heads. That was
just great. Plus, none of these hosts were as full of themselves as
their modern day counterparts. None took themselves as seriously as
Rosie O'Donnell or Oprah. They were simply happy to engage in inane
banter with the likes of Jim Nabors, Charo, and Charles Nelson Reilley
or to close the show with a musical medley, singing into those skinny
little microphones.
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.
Dixon Hayes
I can't tell you how many times I've responded to a thread in this group and
found some way to tie it into a memorable moment from Johnny Carson. It was
the first show I ever stayed up late to watch on a regular basis (I was 10 when
I started watching, much to my sister's chagrin). And you're right about the
one-upping thing... Johnny was funny as hell, but if another comedian came
on...anyone from Jack Benny to David Letterman...Johnny became part of the
audience, only asking questions for setups.
I remember those commercial parodies he did. One of them had him coming out of
a house of ill repute with sleazy-looking women on each arm, then suddenly
looks into the camera and says "Wow! I could've had a V-8!"
Carnac was always a favorite character of mine...I remember the night he held
up a card during the Iranian Hostage Crisis and exclaimed "Shisboombah" or
something like that (the name of a key player in the Iranian government), then
opened the card and said "Decribe the sound of a sheep exploding." He, Ed and
the entire audience spent the next couple of minutes rolling in the floor over
that one, the longest laugh in the show's history up to that point...
Another favorite: the animal segments with Jim Fowler and Joan Embrey (back
when she was cute as hell). I was actually watching the night the marmoset
peed on Johnny's head. That itself wasn't near as funny as the look on
Johnny's face.
Remember the toy demos he did every Christmas? One year he was demonstrating
that toy basketball player (small plastic thing with a spring-actioned arm) and
couldn't get a single basket with it. Then the next toy was an actual, small,
working cannon...you guessed it, Johnny blindfolded the toy basketball player,
said "So you're not going to dunk any baskets, eh?" then blew it away with the
cannon.
Recently I was going through a bunch of old tapes and I just happened up on the
last two "Tonight Show"s to be hosted by Johnny, as I had taped them off the
NBC affiliate in Birmingham. I cried all over again seeing Johnny cry at the
end of the last one...crying because he was gone and he is missed, and so are a
part of my life.
Dixon
P.S. Once in a speech class we had to do a pantomine of something and everyone
had to guess what it was. I pantomined Johnny doing a monologue (not saying a
word, mind you, just the expressions, the hand guestures, the one in the
pocket, the golf swing) and it was guessed pretty quickly...
=============
"I ain't got time to stand around and discuss trivial trivialities..."
--Barney Fife
Remember THE Hollywood Squares...the original and the best
http://www.geocities.com/screenjockey/classicsquares.html
Dixon Hayes
>The
>potato chip lady who had chips shaped like different things, and Johnny
>biting
>into a chip almost giving the lady a heart attack, Ed Ames tomahawk throw
I did remember those but I wanted to dig a bit deeper for my memories...
>the
>Jack Webb skit (copper clappers)
...but that one I forgot about! Man, that one breaks me up now just thinking
about it! "If I ever catch the clod who copped the copper clappers...I'll
clobber him!"
, and while not funny, I just love Jimmy
>Stewarts poem about his dog Beau. Really brings tears to my eyes.
I remember that...also Jimmy once stayed at a resort and kept tripping on a
step that was part of a beach stairway. He wrote a poem about that too. It
went something like:
"The 13th step on the Hotel Retreen is mean,
the residents it does harrass,
Because when they set foot on the 13th step,
It trips them right on their ass!"
That got a huge laugh...and went uncensored, at a time when the word "ass" was
considered taboo. (Who would want the job of censoring Jimmy Stewart?)
Dixon
Dixon Hayes
Gabor.
("Johnny, dear, would you like to pet my pussy?" "Sure, as soon as you move the
damn cat out of the way!") What did happen was...Jane Fonda told Johnny the
story when she appeared sometime around 1989 or so, and asked him if it were
true. Johnny stammered and said, "I...I think I would have remembered that."
Now *that* was priceless! (Johnny later said he wished that *had* happened,
that he really could take credit for such a one liner...but he couldn't.)
Dixon
recsec
"Dixon Hayes" <dixon...@aol.comspamless> wrote in message
news:20001130020310.22187.00002153@ng-> >the
> >Jack Webb skit (copper clappers)
>
> ...but that one I forgot about! Man, that one breaks me up now just
thinking
> about it! "If I ever catch the clod who copped the copper clappers...I'll
> clobber him!"
>
I remember this one. Let's see what are the facts to this. It seems that
cleaning woman Clara Clifford discovered the clean copper clappers kept in a
closet were copped by Claude Cooper, the kleptomaniac from Cleveland. Yeah
that one is hilarious.
Billy
recsec
"David Ballarotto" <ba...@stargate.net> wrote in message
news:t2b9hto...@corp.supernews.com...
> What was your favorite Carson moment, or favorite Carson segment
I used to love it when The Mighty Carson Art Players would be on there. Damn
I'm not getting any individual moments right now. Just the show as a whole.
I remember the first time I got to watch him was on Dec. 31st 1969. He
switched the camera over to Times Square to show the ball drop & ring in
1970. Dick Clark was on the other end. I remember the big fuss when he moved
his show to L.A. Also the fashion from the show what with the wild colors
that Doc would wear. Then of course Johnny had his own line of men's
clothing. I also liked it when the animals would be on there with Jim Fowler
& the description that Johnny would give of Jim's job on Wild Kingdom. "I'm
Marlin Perkins & while Jim is out stalking a nest of king cobra snakes in
his barefeet, I'll be here in the tent trying to deal with the heat &
humidity." Or something like that. And like Dixon I also have a tape with
the last 2 shows of his & then also the first episode of Letterman giving
his props to Johnny. My favorite co-host was David Brenner. My God this man
is HI-Larious!!!! I never liked it when that witch Joan Rivers was the
co-host. Wasn't there one skit where he was going to do a stunt man's type
fall from the top of the studio but chickened out?? Damn I miss him. I am
still pissed off as hell at Jay for not even acknowledging Johnny's tenure
on the show on his first night as the new host. I watch it now but still
wish that David had gotten it instead.
Billy
Endymion9
to his head going "Bush...no Gore...no Buchanon"
--
Dennis/Endy
~dancing us from the darkest nights is the rhythm of love powered by the
beating of hearts~
http://home.mindspring.com/~endymion9/index.htm
"David Ballarotto" <ba...@stargate.net> wrote in message
news:t2b9hto...@corp.supernews.com...
Endymion9
Dixon Hayes
>With this election snafu I keep picturing Johnny/Carnac holding ballots up
>to his head going "Bush...no Gore...no Buchanon"
No doubt...Johnny would have had a field day with this, in fact the stuff that
happened over the last eight years in general. Sometimes I wonder if he even
pictures himself standing in front of that multi-colored curtain, cracking wise
about Newt Gingrich or Monica Lewinsky. I know I do.
Bill McKenzie
have a Bette Midler tape with her singing "One More for the Road" to Johnny...I
heard he cried : (
Nancy
David Ballarotto
"Endymion9" <endy...@mindspring.com> wrote in message
news:905d87$31b$1...@slb7.atl.mindspring.net...
> With this election snafu I keep picturing Johnny/Carnac holding ballots up
> to his head going "Bush...no Gore...no Buchanon"
>
I see him doing Judge Saunders Sauls on the telephone with those officials
in Miami and Palm Beach counties, which is almost as entertaining as the
real Johnny Carson.
Man, I wish he would come out of retirement and do a special!
Chris Siciliano
takeoff of the late night commercials mostly the used cars salesman. "Folks
we are all over the place, Get on any freeway, get off at any exit and you
will find us"
PS. Carol Wayne always added a couple of things to those sketch's
Chris Siciliano
cut off you Slauson.
"recsec" <rec...@flash.net> wrote in message
news:E9HV5.23802$6W1.1...@news.flash.net...
>
> "Chris Siciliano" <OCEA...@PRODIGY.NET> wrote in message
> news:907ceb$3fmu$1...@newssvr06-en0.news.prodigy.com...
> You forgot the most important piece of direction there. When you come to
the
> fork in the road. . . .take it!!!!!
> Billy
>
>
recsec
Dixon Hayes
> My favorite sketch was the Tea Time Movies with Art Fern. They always had
>a
>> takeoff of the late night commercials mostly the used cars salesman.
>"Folks
>> we are all over the place, Get on any freeway, get off at any exit and you
>> will find us"
>>
>> PS. Carol Wayne always added a couple of things to those sketch's
>>
>>
>>
>
>You forgot the most important piece of direction there. When you come to the
>fork in the road. . . .take it!!!!!
>Billy
Now, back to Katherine Hepburn, Audrey Hepburn, George Burns, Bernie Kopell and
Oscar the Wonder Lizard, in "Mr Moto Lances a Hickey"!
recsec
"Dixon Hayes" <dixon...@aol.comspamless> wrote in message
Then quickly switch to a scene of cowboys & indians for 2 seconds then come
back to Johnny kissin' on Carol.
Billy
Tiny Dancer
>Being an animal person (?), I always loved it when Joan Embry came
>on with animals from the San Diego Zoo.
I loved it when they brought the animals on, you just never knew what
mischief they'd get up to and, best of all, what Johnny's reaction would
be to.
>I have the 3 tape set of Johnny Carson thoughout the years and there
>are so many funny things on those tapes.
I have the same set, Lorrie! :-)
>The potato chip lady who had chips shaped like different things, and
>Johnny biting into a chip almost giving the lady a heart attack,
The look on his face when she turns to him in shock is priceless. And
I'll bet someone like Dave would have taken *much* longer to put the
woman at ease and show her the seperate bowl of chips, they're evil :-)
>Ed Ames tomahawk throw, the Jack Webb skit (copper clappers),
Two solid classics that still hold up, especially the Jack Webb one.
Ironically, I recently grabbed a small .wav file clip of this to use on our
site's upcoming sound gallery. Not quite '70s but Carson certainly was
and there aren't a lot of sound files with him out there. Anyway, neat how
I grabbed this one and here we are talking about it.
>and while not funny, I just love Jimmy Stewarts poem about his dog Beau.
>Really brings tears to my eyes.
Classic, two of my favorite people. I taped the last three shows as well
as an appearance with Mel Brooks and Crosby, Stills and Nash on the
same show. Talk about letting the comedy guests just run the show, Mel
took over and had everyone including CS&N laughing their butts off. There
will never be another like Carson, he was an original and Jay should kiss
a picture of Johnny's butt every day!
Cheers,
TD
The years have passed so quickly
One thing I've understood
I am only learning
To tell the trees from the wood
from John Lennon's "I Know (I Know)"
Webmistress of the official a.c.u '70s site
http://members.nbci.com/oroborus12/70s.html
The Sesame Street Lyrics and Sounds Archive
http://i.am/tinyd
Tiny Dancer's X-Files Episode Guide
http://www.insanity.com.au/td/
Dennis McGee
rip-off of Jonathan Winters' little old lady character (whose name escapes
me right now).
Don Rickles was a great guest, especially for the occasional zingers Carson
would slip in when Rickles finally shut up for two seconds.
And Rodney Dangerfield always slayed me, with Johnny playing straight man.
--
_--_ "What the people need,
/ `--''> ,,, is a way to make 'em smile."
| / I I |||||||||[:::]
\ oo ,-._> ''' Super Seventies RockSite!
`--' http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/8678/
The Wanderer
--
Buddy
from Brooklyn
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Thebes/5591/
And I've been knocking
But no one answers
And I've been knocking for most of the day
Oh I've been callin' Oh hey, hey Johnny cant you come out to play
Johnny cant you come out to play in your empty garden
Johnny cant you come out to play
in your empty garden
"Tiny Dancer" <ti...@idirect.com> wrote in message
news:3a2bc0b6...@news.idirect.com...
> And so the word went out from truet...@aol.com (Lorrie):
>
> >Being an animal person (?), I always loved it when Joan Embry came
> >on with animals from the San Diego Zoo.
>
> I loved it when they brought the animals on, you just never knew what
> mischief they'd get up to and, best of all, what Johnny's reaction would
> be to.
>
> >I have the 3 tape set of Johnny Carson thoughout the years and there
> >are so many funny things on those tapes.
>
> I have the same set, Lorrie! :-)
>
> >The potato chip lady who had chips shaped like different things, and
> >Johnny biting into a chip almost giving the lady a heart attack,
>
> The look on his face when she turns to him in shock is priceless. And
> I'll bet someone like Dave would have taken *much* longer to put the
> woman at ease and show her the seperate bowl of chips, they're evil :-)
>
> >Ed Ames tomahawk throw, the Jack Webb skit (copper clappers),
>
> Two solid classics that still hold up, especially the Jack Webb one.
> Ironically, I recently grabbed a small .wav file clip of this to use on
our
> site's upcoming sound gallery. Not quite '70s but Carson certainly was
> and there aren't a lot of sound files with him out there. Anyway, neat how
> I grabbed this one and here we are talking about it.
>
> >and while not funny, I just love Jimmy Stewarts poem about his dog Beau.
> >Really brings tears to my eyes.
>
The Wanderer
--
Buddy
from Brooklyn
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Thebes/5591/
And I've been knocking
But no one answers
And I've been knocking for most of the day
Oh I've been callin' Oh hey, hey Johnny cant you come out to play
Johnny cant you come out to play in your empty garden
Johnny cant you come out to play
in your empty garden
"Dennis McGee" <den...@InfoAveNoSpam.Net> wrote in message
news:dennmac-ya02408000R0412001326150001@news...
