The_Tonight_Show

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The Tonight Show The Tonight Show The Tonight Show Format Created by Starring Talk show, Variety show Sylvester L. Weaver Jr. Steve Allen (1954–1957) Jack Paar (1957–1962) Johnny Carson (1962–1992) Jay Leno (1992–present) United States 4,531 (under Carson) 3,645 (under Leno) as of October 28, 2008 Open House, which started in 1950; its format can be traced to the New York show hosted by Steve Allen and which premiered in 1953 on what is now WNBC-TV. The show was hosted by Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), and Jay Leno (1992–present). The former host of Late Night, Conan O’Brien, is scheduled to replace Leno on June 1, 2009. The longest-serving host to date was American comedian Carson, who hosted The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson for 30 seasons, from the fall of 1962 through the spring of 1992. History Steve Allen (1954–1957) The original host of Tonight was Steve Allen; his announcer was Gene Rayburn. When the show became a success, Allen got a primetime Sunday comedy-variety show, leading him to share Tonight hosting duties with Ernie Kovacs during the 1956–1957 season. To give Allen time to work on his Sunday evening show, Kovacs hosted Tonight on Monday and Tuesday nights, with his own announcer and bandleader. During the later Steve Allen years, regular audience member Lillian Miller became such an integral part, she was forced to join AFTRA, the television/radio performers union. Allen and Kovacs departed Tonight in January 1957 after NBC ordered Allen to concentrate all his efforts on his Sunday night variety program, hoping to combat CBS’s Ed Sullivan Show’s dominance of the Sunday night ratings. Country of origin No. of episodes Production Running time Broadcast Original channel Picture format Original run varies NBC 1080i HDTV September 27, 1954 – present The Tonight Show is a long-running American late-night talk and variety show airing on NBC whose current incarnation has been hosted by Jay Leno since 1992. Now in its 54th season, The Tonight Show is the third longest-running entertainment program in U.S. television history (after the soap opera Guiding Light and Hallmark Hall of Fame). The Tonight Show can date its origins to a local New York program called Broadway Tonight! America After Dark (1957) Rather than continuing with the same format after Allen and Kovacs’ departure from Tonight, NBC changed the show’s format to a news and features show, similar to that of the network’s popular morning program Today. The new show, renamed Tonight! America 1 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia After Dark, was hosted first by Jack Lescoulie and then by Al "Jazzbo" Collins, with interviews conducted by Hy Gardner, and music provided by the Lou Stein Trio. This new version of the show was not popular, resulting in a number of NBC affiliates dropping the show. The Tonight Show applause, Paar continued, "When I walked off, I said there must be a better way of making a living. Well, I’ve looked... and there isn’t." Transition to Carson (1962) Jack Paar left the show in March 1962, citing the fact that he could no longer handle the load of putting on the show five days a week. The Jack Paar Show moved to prime time and aired weekly, on Friday nights, through 1965. As for Tonight, Johnny Carson was chosen as Paar’s successor. At the time, Carson was host of the weekday afternoon quiz show Who Do You Trust? on ABC. Because Carson was under contract to ABC through September, he could not take over as host until October 1, 1962. The months between Paar and Carson were taken by a series of guest hosts, including Groucho Marx and Mort Sahl. The show was broadcast under the title The Tonight Show during this interregnum. Jack Paar (1957–1962) In July 1957, NBC returned the program to a talk/variety show format once again, with Jack Paar becoming the new solo host of the show. Under Paar, most of the NBC affiliates which had dropped the show during the illfated run of America After Dark began airing the show once again. Paar’s era began the practice of branding the series after the host, and as such the program, though officially still called The Tonight Show, was marketed as The Jack Paar Show. Paar also introduced the idea of having guest hosts; one of these early hosts was Johnny Carson. In the late 1950s, it was one of the first regularly scheduled shows to be videotaped in color. An English lady is visiting Switzerland. She asks about the location of the "W.C." The Swiss, thinking she is referring to the "Wayside Chapel", leaves her a note that said (in part) "the W.C. is situated nine miles from the room that you will occupy... It is capable of holding about 229 people and it is only open on Sunday and Thursday... It may interest you to know that my daughter was married in the W.C. and it was there that she met her husband... I shall be delighted to reserve the best seat for you, if you wish, where you will be seen by everyone." ——Censored joke dropped from the February 11, 1960 show. On February 11, 1960, Jack Paar walked off his show for a month after NBC censors edited out a segment, taped the night before, about a joke involving a "W.C." (water closet, a polite term for a flush toilet) being confused for a "wayside chapel." As he left his desk, he said, "I am leaving The Tonight Show. There must be a better way of making a living than this." Paar’s abrupt departure left his startled announcer, Hugh Downs, to finish the broadcast himself. Paar returned to the show on March 7, 1960, strolled on stage, struck a pose, and said, "As I was saying before I was interrupted..." After the audience erupted in Johnny Carson (1962–1992) Marx introduced Carson as the new host on October 1; Ed McMahon was Carson’s sidekick. For all but a few months of its first decade on the air, Carson’s Tonight Show was based in New York City. In May 1972 the show moved to Burbank, California, (although it was announced as coming from nearby Hollywood) for the remainder of his tenure. Jay Leno (1992–present) Johnny Carson retired on May 22, 1992, and was replaced by current host Jay Leno amid controversy. David Letterman not only wanted to move into that earlier time slot from his late night spot after The Tonight Show, but was considered by Carson and others as the natural successor[1] (despite Leno having been Carson’s permanent guest host for several years). Letterman, having had his heart set on the earlier time slot, left NBC and joined CBS. Late Show with David Letterman, airing in the same slot, has been competing head to head against Leno’s The Tonight Show ever since. Conan O’Brien slid into the late night time slot vacated by Letterman, and has himself enjoyed success. Carson died on January 23, 2005. Although Leno, the last living host of The Tonight Show, never mentioned Carson’s name in the first official episode of his tenure as host, he 2 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia paid tribute to Carson soon after his passing. A dramatized version of the events was made into a TV film called The Late Shift. The Tonight Show Tonight Show. Jose Melis led the band for Jack Paar, and Hugh Downs was his announcer. For most of Johnny Carson’s run on the show, the Tonight Show’s band, then called "The NBC Orchestra" was led by Doc Severinsen, former trumpet soloist in Henderson’s band for Steve Allen. When McMahon was away from the show, Severinsen was the substitute announcer and Tommy Newsom would lead the band. On the rare occasions that both McMahon and Severinsen were away, Newsom would take the announcer’s chair and the band would be led by assistant musical director Shelly Cohen. Severinsen’s band featured several accomplished sidemen in addition to saxophonist Newsom, including trumpeter Snooky Young, pianist Ross Tompkins, drummer Ed Shaughnessy, trumpeter Bobby Shew, trumpeter Conte Candoli, saxophonist Pete Christlieb, and jazz trumpet legend Clark Terry. The band frequently appeared on camera in the "Stump the Band" segments, where an audience member would dare the band to play some obscure song title, and the band would comically improvise something appropriate. The routine was played for full comedy value and the band was not really expected to know the songs, but on two occasions the band did answer correctly, much to the maestro’s surprise. Severinsen was heard to ask incredulously, "You mean we actually...!" The first bandleader during Leno’s tenure was Branford Marsalis; he was replaced by Kevin Eubanks in 1995. On March 29, 2004, Leno’s long-time announcer Edd Hall was replaced by John Melendez from The Howard Stern Show. Conan O’Brien announced on the February 18, 2009 episode of Late Night that The Max Weinberg 7, the house band on that program, would be accompanying him to The Tonight Show as his version’s house band. It was announced February 23, 2009 that former "Late Night" sidekick Andy Richter will be O’Brien’s announcer. First Lady Laura Bush and Jay Leno Unlike Carson and Paar before him, Leno has rarely utilized guest hosts; reruns are broadcast during Leno’s absence. Conan O’Brien On September 27, 2004, the 50th anniversary of the show’s premiere, NBC announced that Jay Leno will be succeeded by Conan O’Brien in 2009. Leno explained that he did not want to see a repeat of the hard feelings and controversy that occurred following Carson’s retirement when he was given the show instead of Letterman. The final episode of The Tonight Show with Leno as host is scheduled to air in the 11:35 pm time slot on Friday, May 29, 2009. O’Brien will then replace Leno on The Tonight Show the following Monday, June 1 from a new studio in the Universal Studios backlot, ending an era (since 1972) of taping the show in Burbank. Both Universal Studios and NBC are owned by NBC Universal. Music and announcers Music during the show’s introduction and commercial segues is supplied by the Tonight Show Band. Skitch Henderson was the band leader during the Steve Allen and early Carson years, followed briefly by Milton DeLugg (who later went on to become the musical director of The Gong Show). Gene Rayburn served as Allen’s announcer and sidekick and also guest-hosted some episodes. The Lou Stein Trio provided musical accompaniment during the short run of Tonight: America After Dark, which ran for six months between the Steve Allen and Jack Paar eras of the Broadcasting milestones When the show began it was broadcast live. It began its broadcast at 11:15 pm ET, following an affiliate’s 15-minute news broadcast. As more affiliates lengthened their local news programs to 30 minutes, the show began doing two openings, one for the affiliates that 3 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Host Steve Allen Ernie Kovacs From To Notes The Tonight Show September January 25, Variety show 27, 1954 1957 October 1, January 22, Monday–Tuesday host 1956 1957 Format switch to news program Tonight! America After Dark Replaced Lescoulie, who was moved to Today show Jack January 28, June 21, Lescoulie 1957 1957 Al "Jazzbo" Collins June 24, 1957 July 26, 1957 March 30, 1962 Jack Paar July 29, 1957 Various hosts Johnny Carson Jay Leno Conan O’Brien April 2, 1962 Format switch to talk show; also called Tonight Starring Jack Paar and the Jack Paar Tonight September Interlude between Paar and Carson eras. Temporary 28, 1962 hosts included Groucho Marx and Jerry Lewis. The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson The Tonight Show with Jay Leno The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien October 1, May 22, 1962 1992 May 25, 1992 June 1, 2009 May 29, 2009 Begin Date September 27, 1954 October 8, 1956 January 7, 1957 January 2, 1965 January 2, 1967 January 7, 1967 September 8, 1980 September 2, 1991 End Date October 5, 1956 January 4, 1957 December 30, 1966 January 1, 1967 September 5, 1980 September 28, 1975 August 30, 1991 present Nights Mon-Fri Mon-Fri Mon-Fri Sat or Sun Mon-Fri Sat or Sun Mon-Fri Mon-Fri Start 11:30 11:30 11:15 11:15 11:30 11:30 11:30 11:35 End 1:00 12:30 1:00 1:00 1:00 1:00 12:30 12:35 Notes Repeats Repeats joined at 11:15 and another for those who joined at 11:30. By early 1965, only 43 of the 190 affiliated stations carried the entire show.[2] Johnny Carson insisted that the show’s start time be changed to 11:30, eliminating the two-opening practice in December 1966.[3] On January 12, 1959, the show began to be videotaped for broadcast later on the same day, although initially the Thursday night programs were kept live.[4] Color broadcasts began on September 19, 1960.[5] The Tonight Show became the first American television show to broadcast with MTS stereo sound in 1984, although sporadically. Regular use of MTS began in 1985. On April 26, 1999, the show started broadcasting in 1080i HDTV, becoming the first American nightly talk show to be shot in that format. On March 19, 2009, The Tonight Show became the first talk show in history to have the sitting President of the United States as a guest, when President Barack Obama visited. Hosts Schedule Gag, skit, and segment highlights See also: The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno • "Man on the Street interviews" (Allen). Frequently featured actors as recurring characters, most notably Don Knotts, 4 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Louis Nye and Tom Poston, though Allen also performed impromptu bits with nonprofessional civilians. "Crazy Shots" (Allen). Later known as *"Wild Pictures." Allen’s supporting cast and guest stars would participate in quick visual gags while Allen played piano accompaniment. "Candid Camera" (Paar). The off-again, onagain show, hosted by Allen Funt since radio’s heyday, was a segment on The Tonight Show in 1958.[6] "Stump the Band" (Paar, later Carson). Audience members are asked to name an obscure song and the band tries to play it. If the band doesn’t know the song, it usually breaks into a comical piece of music. "Carnac the Magnificent" (Carson). Carson plays a psychic who is given sealed envelopes (that McMahon invariably states, with a flourish, have been kept "hermetically sealed inside a mayonnaise jar underneath Funk & Wagnalls’ porch since noon today"). Carnac holds an envelope to his head and recites the punchline to a joke contained within the envelope, then rips open the envelope and reads the matching question inside. Sample: "Saucepan... Who was Peter Pan’s wino brother?" If a joke falls flat with the audience, Carnac invariably passes a comedic curse upon them (e.g., "May a bloated yak change the temperature of your jacuzzi!"). "The Tea Time Movie", with "Art Fern" (Carson) and the Matinée Lady (originally Paula Prentiss, then a parade of one shots including Edy Williams, Juliet Prowse and Lee Meredith, then for many years Carol Wayne, then Danuta Wesley, and finally Teresa Ganzel). Carson once said that Art Fern was his favorite character: "He’s so sleazy!" Huckster Art usually wore a loud suit, lavish toupee, and pencil mustache, and spoke in the high, nasal approximation of Jackie Gleason’s "Reginald van Gleason III" character. A parody of 1950s-style, fast-talking advertising pitchmen, the Tea Time Movie consists of a rapid-fire series of fake advertisements for products and companies supposedly sponsoring a midafternoon movie. Invariably the jokes refer to his buxom Matinée Lady assistant, and at least once in every skit a variation of The Tonight Show the "Slauson Cutoff" joke is made (e.g., "You can find our store by heading down Hwy. 101 until you get to the Slauson Cutoff. Get out of the car, cut off your slauson, get back in the car."), as is a reference to "Drive until you get to... (a map is unfolded to reveal a table fork) the fork in the road!" Art would then return us to today’s movie (like "Tarzan and Cheetah Have to Get Married" or "Rin Tin Tin Gets Fixed Fixed Fixed," etc.), followed by an antique, four-second film clip. Back to Art, caught necking with the Matinée Lady before announcing another movie and another commercial. • "Headlines" (Allen, later Leno) In the first few years of his tenure Leno had a series of oddball characters he would appear as, most of which were dropped over time. • • • • International broadcasts The Tonight Show is also seen around the world. It is broadcast on CNBC Europe, usually three nights after it has been shown in the U.S. The show is screened at 11:00 pm AEDST weeknights on The Comedy Channel in Australia, where new episodes are shown hours after its American broadcast. In Sweden, Kanal 5 has shown The Tonight Show (as Jay Leno Show) since the late ’90s with one week’s delay. Since October, 2006, it is also being aired in India on Zee Cafe 12 hours after the show is shown in the USA. [7] An early attempt at airing the show in the United Kingdom during the 1980s was unsuccessful, sparking jokes by Carson. On the October 23, 1984 broadcast, guest Paul McCartney had this to say of the show’s British run: Carson: (throwing to commercial) ...we have to pay some bills here. It’s not like British television which just goes and goes till they end it. McCartney: Oh you’re just mad because they didn’t like your show. Shows such as Des O’Connor Tonight and Wogan were considered by many to be the UK equivalent of the show. • See also • List of late night network TV programs 5 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Country Australia Canada Dominican Republic Europe India Israel Mexico Pakistan The Philippines Portugal Romania Sweden Finland TV Network(s) The Comedy Channel A & Access Cable de Tricom (as Tonight Show with Jay Leno) CNBC Europe Zee Cafe yes stars Comedy (as Jay Leno) American Network (as Tonight Show with Jay Leno) CNBC Pakistan (as Tonight Show with Jay Leno) Jack TV (as Tonight Show with Jay Leno) SIC Mulher (as Jay Leno) Antena 3 (as Jay Leno Show) Sub (as The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien) CNBC (as The Tonight Show with Jay Leno) The Tonight Show Weekly Schedule (local time) Weeknights 11 pm eastern, 10:30pm central, 9 pm western Simulcast with NBC’s broadcast Simulcast with NBC’s ET broadcast Weeknights 12 am CET, Weekends 9 pm CET Weeknights 10 pm IST Monday to Friday 6 am / Tuesday to Saturday 11 pm Weeknights 12:25 am Weeknights, Daytime, Starting from 4th of June 2009 Weeknights 11 pm Kanal 9 Kanal 5 (as Jay Leno Show) Weeknights, Daytime South Africa CNBC Africa (as Jay Leno Show) United Kingdom References [1] "New York Post". Carson Feeds Letterman Lines. http://pqarchiver.nypost.com/nypost/ access/ • The Tonight Show from the Museum of 781543221.html?dids=781543221:781543221&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Jan+20%2C+2005 Broadcast Communications website Retrieved on December 17 2006. • Tonight! (1953) at the Internet Movie [2] Laurence Leamer, King of the Night: The Database Life of Johnny Carson, HarperCollins, • Tonight! America After Dark (1957) at the 2005, p. 183. ISBN 978-0060840990. Internet Movie Database [3] Encyclopedia of Television, 2nd ed., • The Jack Paar Show (1957) at the Internet Museum of Broadcast Communications, Movie Database 2004, p. 2356. ISBN 978-1579584115. • The Tonight Show interregnum (1962) at [4] "Paar Set On Tape", The Washington the Internet Movie Database Post, Jan. 11, 1959, p. G3. "Visitors to • The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson the TV Studios", New York Times, Feb. (1962) at the Internet Movie Database 22, 1959, p. X14. • The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (1992) at [5] "Hollywood Tie-Line", The Washington the Internet Movie Database Post, Sept. 18, 1960, p. H5. • The Tonight Show with Jay Leno is filmed [6] Candid Camera Online! in Burbank, California [7] Essel Group Corporate Communications & Information Services of ZEE Convergence Group External links Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tonight_Show" 6 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The Tonight Show Categories: Tonight Show, NBC network shows, Television talk shows, Variety television series, 1950s American television series, 1954 television series debuts, 1960s American television series, 1970s American television series, 1980s American television series, 1990s American television series, 2000s American television series, Burbank, California, Late night programming on NBC This page was last modified on 26 May 2009, at 09:03 (UTC). All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. (See Copyrights for details.) Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a U.S. registered 501(c)(3) taxdeductible nonprofit charity. Privacy policy About Wikipedia Disclaimers 7