18 REMINISCE.COM * JULY 2018
BY MARY-LIZ SHAW (^) » ILLUSTRATION by MICHAEL WITTE
When Johnny Carson took over The Tonight Show in 1962 ,
he was a sharp contrast to the previous host, the chatty, often
unpredictable Jack Paar. Carson had a sly humor viewers loved
and a pleasing midwestern steadiness they trusted. Jay Leno,
who succeeded Carson in 1992 , told The New York Times that
current host Jimmy Fallon is “probably closer to what Johnny was like than anybody in a long
time.” Fallon has Paar’s penchant for surprise and Carson’s boyish charm. Not a bad combo.
~ Johnny Carson ~ ~ Jimmy Fallon ~
Born
Sidekick
First Night
Guests
Moved Show to
Raised in
Also an Excellent
Host Duty
Personal Tragedy
He Talked
About On-Air
Popular Shtick
Wives
JOHNNY CARSON JIMMY FALLON
Oct. 23, 1925, in Corning, IA Sept. 19, 1974, in Brooklyn, NY
Ed McMahon
Joan Crawford,
Tony Bennett, Mel Brooks
and Rudy Vallee
Steve Higgins
Will Smith and U2; plus cameos by
Robert De Niro, Tina Fey, former
boxer Mike Tyson and others
“Beautiful Downtown Burbank,” CA New York, NY
Norfolk, NE Saugerties, NY
Magician Impressionist
October 1962–May 1992
Death of his son Rick, 39, in an
auto accident on June 21, 1991
February 2014–Present
Death of his mother, Gloria,
on Nov. 4, 2017
Carnac the Magnificent
Four
Lip Sync Battle
One
1962
Then &
NOwTONIGHT SHOW HOSTSSPOTLIGHT