Book Review: "Love Johnny Carson: One Obsessive Fan's Journey to Find the Genius Behind the Legend" by Mark Malkoff with David Ritz

 

 I have read many books about Johnny Carson. Three Carson books have been released lately, not far apart. The last two that came out were disappointing. They did not have as much information as was expected. I wanted something that took a deep dive into the life of Johnny Carson, the king of late night. I had high hopes for this latest book since it was written by Mark Malkoff, who was the host of my favorite podcast of all time, "The Carson Podcast." I listen to lots of podcasts, such as "Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend," "Fly on the Wall," "The Letterman Podcast," "Late Night Playset" and others. Mark's podcast had interviews with big stars such as Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner, Carol Burnett and many others. Often times, the best guests were the behind-the-scenes people such as writers, segment producers and technical crew members. The research for the podcast was impressive and extensive, so I knew it would be the same case with the book. The book is broken up into three sections: 1962-1972, (the first decade of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, based in New York City) 1972-1982 (the first decade with the show based in Burbank, California) and 1982-1992 (the final decade of Johnny's show, which wrapped up on May 22, 1992). The final section also covered Johnny's retirement years, in which he traveled to exotic locales like Russia and Africa and spent time on his 130 foot yacht, The Serengeti. This book is great since it has many anecdotes from the show, offering behind-the-scenes insights. This book reveals a lot of facts you never knew about Johnny and his landmark show. The quality of Johnny's show was impeccable, and the show ran like a well-oiled machine. Everyone on the staff was the best at their craft. There are many myths or urban legends about Johnny's show. This book tells if they are true or false. You can read about David Letterman, Freddie Prinze, Byron Allen, Joan Rivers, David Brenner, Ellen DeGeneres, Frank Sinatra, Paul Anka, Rodney Dangerfield and so many other stars. The sensitivity of Johnny is discussed, as well as his feuds, his shortcomings and his generosity. He demanded loyalty and if he was double crossed, he would hold a grudge. He was competitive, and he wanted to be #1, which he was for his 30-year run. Johnny was something special, and part of his success with the show was his breadth of knowledge in many different topics. He had a thirst for knowledge. He loved animals, travel, drumming, jazz music, astronomy, studying languages, comedy, magic and tennis. Producer Peter Lassally called Johnny the most well read person he ever met. Johnny was not a flawless person, but no one is. The book looks at the fact that Johnny was not a perfect father or husband, and he had challenges with alcohol. At the same time, this book presented an optimistic picture of television's premier entertainer. Johnny was a different person off the air as opposed to when he was on the air, and this book takes a deep dive into the complexities of his personality. This book presents an in-depth look into the iconic Johnny Carson, and it's highly recommended for any fan of Johnny, late night TV, or entertainment in general. 

The Carson Podcast

Being a show biz junkie, who always wants to learn more about entertainment, I listen to a lot of podcasts. My main interest is the history of late night TV. These days, it seems like everyone has a podcast. So, one must be discerning about which ones we dedicate time to, otherwise we spend our whole lives listening to podcasts. The very best podcast I have found is no longer in existence, but all episodes are still online. The Carson Podcast was active from 2014 to 2022. Over the 8 year period, they had 391 episodes! Host Mark Malkoff interviewed those who worked for Johnny's show, those who appeared on Johnny's show, and top entertainers who were influenced by Johnny Carson. This podcast is the best way to learn about every aspect of Johnny Carson's career. Often times, I felt that the most interesting guests were those who worked on Johnny's show, such as the segment producers, the writers and the musicians. They often had the best anecdotes. Malkoff interviewed many of the crew members, such as stage managers, the audio engineers, Johnny's publicist, secretary and assistants. These people often had the best insights since they saw the operation of the show, day in and day out. The show largely deals with Johnny's reign as the host of NBC's Tonight Show from 1962-1992. But, some shows talk about Johnny's earlier projects or his time after leaving the show. Johnny had a life that was turbulent at times, and he had struggles and triumphs like anyone else. He was not always rich and famous. He had to pay his dues, and some of his shows were not successful. Johnny admitted that he was not the perfect husband or father. This podcast looks at the ups and dows of Johnny's life, and what made him so extraordinary as a late night host. Time and time again, podcast guests bring up Johnny's strong ability as an interviewer. He truly listened to his guests. It was not an interview, it was more like a conversation. Johnny did not need to hog the spotlight for himself. He wanted his guests to shine, since that made the show look good as a whole. I think it helped that Johnny was very smart and multi-faceted. He could talk about anything. He had many hobbies, such as astronomy, listening to jazz, drumming, tennis, travel, and of course comedy. He loved to showcase new comedians. Many comedians credited Carson for their success. He showcased comics such as Joan Rivers, Jerry Seinfeld, Rodney Dangerfield, Roseanne Barr, Ellen DeGeneres, Drew Carey, George Carlin, Richard Pryor, Jonathan Winters, Don Rickles, Robin Williams and many more. The Carson Podcast has appearances from some of the biggest names in show biz, such as Carol Burnett, Carl Reiner, Mel Brooks, Steven Wright, Dick Cavett, Charles Grodin, Rich Little, Richard Lewis and many more. I feel that one of Mark's best guests was Peter Lassally. He knows late night TV better than anyone else, due to his stellar resume. He worked as a producer for Johnny, David Letterman, Craig Ferguson and Tom Snyder. Before working for Johnny, Lassally worked for the mercurial Arthur Godfrey. People talk about Johnny being the king of late night, but I feel that as far as behind-the-scenes folks, the king of late night is Lassally. In his interview with Mark, Lassally was very candid about the inner workings of Johnny's show. Sometimes the podcast had mutiple guests at once, like a writer's round table or a stage manager's round table. Several stand up comics were on at once, so they could bounce ideas off of one another, as they recalled appearing with Johnny. The shows with talent coordinators, also called segment producers, were fascinating since they often had interesting anecdotes about booking celebrities and figuring out what they would do on the show. Writer Bill Carter appeared on the podcast multiple times. Few people know more about late night TV than he does since he wrote the book The Late Shift, (which became an HBO movie about Carson, Letterman and Leno), and was the TV writer for The New York Times. NBC photographers did the podcast, and even the guy who drew several of the "More to Come" bumper graphics. Irving Davis was on the podcast multiple times. He is the one who held open the rainbow curtain for Johnny before he came out for his monologue. He has a persoective on the inner workings of the show like few others. I was excited when I saw that Mark had secured Jim Mullholland as a guest. He wrote for Johnny, David Letterman and Dean Martin. Letterman producers Rob Burnett and Robert Morton were guests on the podcast. Bandleader Doc Severinsen and other band members appeared on the podcast. As a musician, that was the ultimate gig. Steady pay, no travel, and a place to practice your craft each night. Johnny's Tonight Show was big time show biz at its finest. Many of the crew members mentioned how the show operated like a well-oiled machine. We don't have time machines, and the story of Marty McFly was just fiction, but I have often thought it would be a dream to go back to the period of NBC Burbank where Johnny was doing his iconic show, and be a fly on the wall to see how it all came together. Listening to this podcast is the next best thing.