Johnny Carson's post-retirement plans

Johnny Carson disappeared, pretty much, forever on May 22, 1992 when he left after 30 seasons of host as "The Tonight Show."  His only appearances after that were a phone call and some (brief) taped cameos on the "Late Show with David Letterman" (plus this memorable 1994 appearance, his last ever), a voice appearance on "The Simpsons," a monologue at Bob Hope's 90th birthday (1993) and a 2002 interview in "Esquire."  Apparently, he did commission a special at one point, which you can read about here.  Makes you wonder if David Letterman will ever consider a similar idea -- for starters, almost everyone mentioned in the Carson special is still alive (Don Rickles, Charles Grodin, Steve Martin, Bob Newhart, Tony Danza, Chevy Chase, Larry King, Alan Dershowitz, Cindy Crawford, Corbin Bernsen, Kirstie Alley, Doc Severinsen)!  The script is just sitting there; just saying...

And for completists, here's Johnny's two appearances with Dave when he was on "Late Night"...


This latter appearance was just hours after Johnny announced he was retiring at an NBC affiliate's meeting.

Is your battery dead?

Interesting and quick test for all those AA's in your house, courtesy of Yahoo News.  It's apparently all in how they bounce, or not.  See the short video.

NBC's 10th Anniversary of Television, 1949

New York's WNBT (now WNBC) put on a 10th anniversary special in 1949, marking 10 years since the medium was unveiled at the 1939 World's Fair.  Here's part one, with the other parts available there by link...

365 Things to Do in Cleveland

The Plain Dealer's list of 365 Things to Do in Cleveland this year is half-worthless!  Because it's almost June.  Other than that, I have no qualms with it.

Technics spokesman redux

He's back!  It's been several decades, apparently, but the Japanese spokesman in this Technics stereo ad (from 1979), has also turned up in the ad linked here.  I'm guessing it's for siding, but more importantly, WHO IS THIS MAN?  Is he Japan's answer to John Candy?  This proves that all people of any given ethnic group DO look alike.

Shangri-La Plaza pilot, 1990

Is it pilot season?  I can't remember.  Suck it, Hollywood, if THIS is what you're going to give us... the painful-to-watch 1991 pilot for "Shangri-La Plaza."  I have never made it past "Mercedes and Ladies" or whatever that first tune is called.  The whole thing makes "Glee" look like "MacBeth."  The best part about this video is the CBS Special intro at the top.  (Starring Terrence Mann, Jeff Yagher, Melora Hardin, Savion Glover, Carmen Lundy and Allison Mack.)

Little Richard, Cindy Crawford and the "Red Pepper" pilot of 1990

I remember hearing about this pilot way back in the early 90s.  I had no idea what to expect then, and I have no idea what to make of it (based on the opening credits) now.  I see the name of Tom Gammill (SNL, Seinfeld), so it must have been at least decent.  I know Mr. Gammill is proud to read that.  And they have Little Richard doing the theme!  Speaking of which, here he is with the First Lady of Song, Cindy Crawford, for Charlie Perfume.

Ebony and Ivory and SNL

Saturday Night Live closed its 7th season with host/musical guest Olivia Newton-John (aka "Olivia Neutron Bomb" according to the cold open).  The absolute classic sketch of this episode -- and of this era, period -- is Frank Sinatra singing "Ebony & Ivory" with Stevie Wonder.  Coincidentally, the song had just started its 7-week run at #1.  Anyhow, here is the sketch, plus a behind-the-scenes-look at the creation of the first really well-known impression of Frank Sinatra. #SNL4kidz

John Ritter dances his way through "Three's Company"

Until about 10 years ago, the only part of "Three's Company" I'd ever seen was the episode "Up In The Air" on a grainy black-and-white set, on a faraway (from our market) station that showed reruns during the day.  I think they paired this and an episode of "Three's A Crowd" that day!  Anyhow, John Ritter goes over-the-top in this scene.

#SNL4kidz

Jerry Lewis vs. Bing Crosby

In the news scoop of the century (this one AND the last), I must report that Jerry Lewis and Bing Crosby can be... on occasion... somewhat prickly.  (At least Bing was able to come across fatherly on-camera).  I had no idea there was a feud between the two, but as the well-made video shows, there was.  I have to take Bing's side in this one.  Frankly, I would take Bing's toupee's side in this one, too (although it was an open-secret... people often joked about his hair-loss on-the-air).  Note... the photo to the left looks to be from well after the 1952 telethon.  Maybe they made up and Jerry forgot?  Maybe they made up after the "eight years at Paramount"?  Maybe someone secretly invented Photoshop in the mid-60s and didn't tell anyone?  Jerks.

SNL at the movies: CB4

When "Wayne's World" became a smash hit in theaters -- and married rock and roll with SNL -- the show quickly spun-out three films ("Coneheads," "Stuart Saves His Family" and "It's Pat") which did poorly at the box office and with critics.  Each one has its moments, but the consensus was that you can't make a feature film from a short sketch.  However, Chris Rock went the opposite direction, creating "CB4" just as he prepared to leave the show.  The film has no real connection to any sketch, save perhaps "I'm Chillin'," which Rock acknowledges was an attempt to make a black "Wayne's World."
"CB4" is pretty much forgotten today, but did boast a stellar cast.  And while it was funnier than (and pre-dated) the Coneheads/Stuart/Pat assault on theaters, it gets lumped in today with those movies (as well as "A Night At the Roxbury," "The Ladies' Man" and "Superstar").
The film's trailer can be viewed here, where you can also purchase the movie if you want.

Eric Clapton KILLS IT with Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins

...and now you'll see why Carl Perkins is underrated, in this clip from "The Johnny Cash Show" (1970, ABC).  The backing band looks to be most of Derek & the Dominos.

NBC Radio Monitor

"Monitor" was a weekly show that would run all weekend on the NBC radio network, featuring everything under the sun: music, comedy, news, talk... it was a potpurri, and it was cancelled just a few months shy of its 20th anniversary.  Oh well.  The bizarre and terrifying Monitor "beacon" is available here, the only place I've found them online.  And for some reason, Teddy Phillips recorded the theme song at one point.

And as a bonus, you can hear the CBS news sounder (which is still used on CBS radio stations).

David Letterman vs. General Electric

It's December 12, 1985... Dave wouldn't even start thinking about leaving NBC for another 7 years, and yet you can see him basically sow the seeds of his departure during this Viewer Mail segment, when he makes fun of RCA's (and NBC's) new owners, GE.

David Letterman's Record Collection

A segment they don't do often enough, wherein Mr. Letterman shows off vinyl finds, courtesy of writer Steve O'Donnell.  Here's an installment that's been prolonged by a couple of cool cameos.

Jimmy Fallon and his Tight Pants

Here's a bit he did first with Will Ferrell on "Late Night," then recently on "The Tonight Show" with Jennifer Lopez.  Oddly affecting.  These are #SNL4kidz safe if you mute out some of Lopez' dialogue.

Angry Monkees

Not Davy Jones; he's dead. Here's two videos of actual monkeys doing what they do second-best (first best being gross stuff).
First, a monkey in India gets even.
And below, Johnny Carson battles what's termed a punk-rock monkey.

Cat Mother and Jimi Hendrix

Cat Mother and the All-Night News Boys only had one really big hit, "Good Old Rock 'n Roll," produced by Jimi Hendrix.  Even though it came out in 1970, the song seems to encapsulate (literally) rock history up to the day before the Beatles invaded America.

Elvis Presley - Yoga Is As Yoga Does

Years ago, a very enterprising bootlegger (of music) compiled some of the most laughable Elvis performances onto one album, "Elvis' Greatest Shit," on the fictional "RCA-Victim" (not Victor) label, complete with a prescription pad blank from Dr. Nick.  If none of this makes sense, you have a looooooong way to go before understanding The King, and pop culture.  Are you even American?
Anyhow, one of the songs on the album is "Yoga Is As Yoga Does," from the film "Easy Come, Easy Go."  For more information on the bootleg album (and the industry itself, from its Californian beginnings in the late 60s, until CD-Rs and downloads killed it in the mid-90s), checkout the excellent "Bootleg" by Clinton Heylin.

SNL goes to Jingleheimer Junction

SNL kicked off its 24th season on September 26, 1998, with host Cameron Diaz and a very rowdy crowd (I remember reading years ago that a large group of Diaz's friends in the audience had quite a buzz on... no idea if that is really true).  One of my favorite sketches of this era is Jingleheimer Junction.  Enjoy.

David Letterman: A Life On Television

Watched "David Letterman: A Life On Television" tonight, putting a cap on Dave's career (granted, with a couple weeks to go).  The clipfest gave a good overview of what his show has been like since 1982; thanks to Executive Producer Vinnie Favale, who has been a Dave-o-phile from the start (see this entry by Mark Evanier, whose blog you are probably reading instead of this one).

I did miss seeing a few guests (although, granted, they could have flown by and I missed them):

-The musical montage was sadly lacking Nirvana, R.E.M., The Grateful Dead, Roy Orbison and Sly Stone (from the NBC years) plus Green Day and Phish (from the CBS run).

-No glimpses of stand-ups Norm MacDonald, George Miller, Brian Regan, Mitch Hedburg or Tom Dressen... nor of frequent guests Siskel & Ebert, Martin Short, Tony Randall or Charles Grodin.

-There was a nice tribute to Johnny Carson's connection with Dave, but no mention of Paul Newman (whose only talk show appearances were on the "Late Show").

-No mentions of announcer Bill Wendell or director Hal Gurnee, both of whom appeared regularly on-air until they retired in the mid-90s.

Again, I could have just missed them; leave a comment below if I did!

And while you're at it, let Ken Tucker know that Dave's first guest on his 1980 morning show was NOT Bill Murray... it was photojournalist Jon Alpert.

Award season for The Beatles

Although The Beatles won few Grammys in their day, John and Ringo were in-demand to present at the ceremonies in the 1970s.  And they've shown up other times to accept, of course.  Here's a few of their appearances (not just at the Grammys)...

-Paul & Linda accept a Grammy for "Let It Be" from John Wayne, 1971
-Quincy Jones accepts an Oscar for "Let It Be" on behalf of the group, 1971
-Ringo accepts the Grammy for "Concert for Bangladesh" in 1972
-Ringo and Harry Nilsson on the Grammys, 1973
-John and Paul Simon with Andy Williams... and Art Garfunkel, 1974
-Ringo with Paul Williams, 1976
-Paul and Madonna, 1999 (as some odd stuttering)
-Beatles inducted into the Rock Hall, 1988
-John Lennon inducted into the Rock Hall by Paul, 1994
-Paul McCartney inducted into the Rock Hall, 1999
-George Harrison inducted into the Rock Hall, 2004
-Ringo Starr inducted into the Rock Hall by Paul, 2015

#SNL4kids

Where is NBC David Letterman?

Colleen Boyle was on the “Late Show with David Letterman” last week.  If you don’t know who that is, you probably didn’t have a fanatical devotion to Dave’s NBC show, “Late Night.”

On August 7, 1986, Dave answered Boyle’s letter chastising him for his footwear (sneakers) by visiting her Hicksville home and, later, workplace.  It made for one of the show’s most popular bits but, like Dave’s entire 11-year run, it is sadly available only on YouTube (mostly sourced from reruns on the short-lived, long-dormant cable channel Trio).

Boyle was in the audience on Friday’s show, looking even more lovely than she did 29 years ago.  During the pre-show Q&A, she apparently asked Dave again about his shoes, and he even referenced this on-air during the Top 10 list.  It was only after running a montage of guest highlights did he note that she was the same person who asked about his footwear years ago.

The guest montage (like the ones for Steve Martin and Jack Hanna last week), contained nothing from Dave’s NBC run.  I kept hoping they might re-run Colleen Boyle’s segment, but no such luck.  It seems that Dave is following precisely in Johnny Carson’s footsteps and not running anything from his first decade.  In Johnny’s case, though, those tapes didn’t exist: NBC re-used tape in the 1960s and ‘70s, so there’s little existing “Tonight Show” from before 1972 (and that means the Steve Allen and Jack Paar years are lost, as well).

In Dave’s case, his acrimonious (for NBC) move to CBS in 1993 meant his first decade was legally off-limits… for a time.  As early as 1997 -- for his 15th Anniversary – Dave was able to show some NBC clips, as he has on occasion over the years.  Why not now?

CBS has recently been using stills from those years as bumpers when a long-time guest (Jerry Seinfeld, Jack Hanna) has appeared.  By adding the date, as well, perhaps CBS can argue it's fair use for news purposes.  But running whole segments/clips must be out-of-the-question, for now (the clips are jointly owned by NBC, Carson Productions and, in some cases, Dave’s company: Worldwide Pants).

In Dave’s final weeks at NBC (May-June, 1993), he did trot out some of the best clips, knowing they would soon be off-limits forever.  For now, his 10th Anniversary special (February, 1992) stands as the best way to experience that first groundbreaking decade in Dave’s funhouse…. Where anything can happen, and usually does… so check your funnybones…

Bing Crosby, Ray Bolger and Marvin Hamlisch 1976

I'll let YouTube user "Vladmir Zworkin" (get it?) tell the story..."In March 1976, Johnny Carson hosted Bing Crosby, Ray Bolger and Marvin Hamlisch to promote an upcoming TV movie version of 'The Entertainer' starring Jack Lemmon and Ray Bolger (Hamlisch wrote the music). Here, Crosby joins Bolger, with Hamlisch at the piano, performing, 'The Only Way to Go.'"  It's catchy...




As a bonus, here's Hamlisch on "Late Night with David Letterman" delivering his new hit, "Peaboy!"

And here's an interview with Hamlisch shortly before he died... I find this comical because of the interviewer's lengthy introduction.  Regardless of what you think of Hamlisch's music, he's a true gentleman to wait his turn to speak.

More Bill Cosby

Without commenting on his recent allegations, we must stress that the phrase "that's what she said" was changed to "that's what Bill Cosby said" around 1997, in my dorm, by me.  That is all.