The Carson Podcast

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Host Mark Malkoff talks with guests about legendary talk show host Johnny Carson. Guests include stand-up comics who debuted on the Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, individuals that worked on the show, frequent guests, and top entertainers that were influenced by Carson.

Mark Malkoff

New York, NY


    • Sep 1, 2022 LATEST EPISODE
    • monthly NEW EPISODES
    • 1h 6m AVG DURATION
    • 388 EPISODES

    4.7 from 1,053 ratings Listeners of The Carson Podcast that love the show mention: tonight show, johnny carson, carson's, steven wright, mel brooks, late night tv, carl reiner, tv history, letterman, summer reading, show business, mark is a true, orson bean, mark does a great job, entertainment history, old enough to remember, johnny's, mark also, television history, parr.



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    Latest episodes from The Carson Podcast

    Robert Smigel and Dana Carvey

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 1, 2022 70:10


    Robert Smigel and Dana Carvey discuss their Carson sketches on Saturday Night Live, Carvey's 5 Johnny appearances, and their thoughts on Carson's 30-year run.

    James Comisar

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 7, 2022 139:22


    TV Curator, James Comisar, discusses Carson personally giving him the famous Carnac turban, how he got Carson's full Tonight Show set, & the amazing TV artifacts in his Comisar Collection.

    Gabe Kaplan

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 16, 2022 140:13


    Gabe Kaplan discusses his 40 appearances on Carson's Tonight Show, 18 times guest hosting the Tonight Show, how going on Carson led to Welcome Back Kotter, Battle of the Network Stars and Robert Conrad, friendship with Howard Cosell, Bob Hope, & Groucho Marx.

    Barry Gibb

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 9, 2022 58:42


    Barry Gibb discusses Carson, Bee Gees, brother Andy, Streisand, McCartney, Dolly, Letterman, Leno, Hope, Burns, & being knighted by Prince Charles.

    Tina Sinatra

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 2, 2022 55:08


    Tina Sinatra discusses Johnny Carson, her famous father, Don Rickles, Sammy Davis Jr, Suzanne Pleshette, David Janssen, and Dean Martin.

    Richard Lewis

    Play Episode Listen Later May 26, 2022 83:13


    Richard Lewis discusses his Carson appearances, nearly getting banned, an awkward airplane flight involving Carson, going on Letterman's NBC show, David Brenner's advice & Larry David.

    Carol Burnett

    Play Episode Listen Later May 19, 2022 40:25


    Carol Burnett returns to discuss Johnny Carson, working with Carson on The Garry Moore Show,the Carson appearance discussing her daughter's substance abuse issue, Carol Wayne, & Jimmy Stewart.

    Jan Schwarz

    Play Episode Listen Later May 12, 2022 76:38


    Jan Schwarz discusses her 15 years at the Tonight Show, her Carson interactions, working with Bobby Quinn, Carson's loyalty, the issues with sketch rehearsals, & Carson having her on the show on her final day working.

    Roger Cortes

    Play Episode Listen Later May 5, 2022 46:19


    Roger Cortes discusses working on The Tonight Show, the famous Malibu Restaurant sketch with Betty White, Tony Bennett, Linda Ronstadt, Alan King, Shelley Winters, Fred de Cordova, & Joey Bishop.

    Baxter Black

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 28, 2022 81:58


    Cowboy poet, Baxter Black, discusses his Carson appearances reading cowboy poetry, why it took years to get booked on Carson, turning down Johnny's request to do the show more often, & crying when Carson passed away.

    Franklyn Ajaye

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 21, 2022 90:47


    Franklyn Ajaye discusses his Tonight Show appearances, Carson's helpful advice, Why Make Me Laugh was more impactful than going on Carson, Richard Pryor, Freddie Prinze, & the 1976 movie Car Wash.

    Cathy Guisewite

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 14, 2022 30:59


    Cathy Guisewite discusses her Carson appearances, Johnny being a fan of the “Cathy” comic strip, Carson visiting her before the show, being a guest during the final months of Carson's Tonight Show, & her friendship with Charles Schulz. 

    Don Mischer

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 7, 2022 27:15


    Don Mischer discusses working with Carson on the 1993 Kennedy Center Honors, Bob Hope's 90th Birthday featuring Carson, asking Carson during  retirement to host the Oscars and Emmys, Don Rickles, & Garry Shandling.

    Rona Barrett

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 7, 2022 86:43


    Rona Barrett discusses going on Carson's Tonight Show, working with Tom Snyder, Steve Lawrence, Mae West, Frank Sinatra, Cher, Eddie Fisher, Michael Landon, and much more.

    Pete Hammond

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 31, 2022 50:44


    Pete Hammond discusses being an NBC Page, Johnny Carson, Ed McMahon, working at the Arsenio Hall Show, Lauren Bacall, Mel Brooks, & Bette Davis.  

    Carson Round Table 3

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 24, 2022 65:07


    Carson Writers Round Table 3 with Tony DeSena, Andrew Nicholls, & Darrell Vickers discussing writing meetings at Carson's home, Misery Bingo, buzz words to elicit laughs, & writing Carson's famous long intro for Bill Clinton.

    Saundra McClain

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 17, 2022 26:26


    Saundra McClain discusses working on Carson's NY Tonight Show, her funny incident with Carson, Ed McMahon, Joanne Carson, Sidney Poitier, & Paul Newman.

    Brian Ross

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 10, 2022 51:34


    Brian Ross discusses his NBC News 1980 investigative report on Wayne Newton and the mob, talking to Johnny Carson, Newton and Carson bidding on the Aladdin Hotel, & Newton suing Ross and NBC.

    Albert Fisher

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 3, 2022 60:04


    Albert Fisher discusses working with Carson & Ed McMahon, his 5 years at the Merv Griffin Show, Richard Pryor, Lucille Ball, 1962 NY World's Fair, Carol Channing, Red Skelton, & Jonathan Winters.

    Roger Owens

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 24, 2022 64:30


    Famed Dodgers peanut vendor, Roger Owens, discusses how his 1976 Carson appearance changed his life, teaching Carson how to throw peanut bags, Mel Brooks casting him in a film, & being a judge on The Gong Show.

    Carson Writes Round Table Returns

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 17, 2022 70:26


    Carson Writers Round Table returns with Darrell Vickers, Tony DeSena, & Andrew Nicholls discussing writing for Carson, their favorite sketches, joke topics that were off-limit, & why writing Carnac jokes were hard.

    Marc Summers

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 10, 2022 64:51


    Marc Summers discusses interviewing Carson, visits to Carson's show, working with Ed McMahon, Jack Benny, Andy Kaufman, Frank Sinatra, Joan Rivers, Sonny & Cher, & his infamous Leno appearance with Burt Reynolds.

    Richard Zoglin

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 3, 2022 52:44


    Richard Zoglin discusses Carson, his definitive Bob Hope biography “Hope”, book “Comedy on the Edge: How Stand-Up In the 1970's Changed America”, David Letterman, Arsenio Hall, Tom Snyder, & Robin Williams.

    Tom Dreesen Returns Again

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 27, 2022 62:07


    Tom Dreesen returns to discuss Carson guests Richard Jeni, Michael Keaton, Jay Leno, Johnny Brown, Maureen Murphy, David Letterman, Liz Torres, Richard Belzer, Lola Falana, Johnny Yune, Garry Shandling, & Bob Hope.

    Scot Morris

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 20, 2022 33:13


    Scot Morris discusses his 7 Carson appearances, being the games editor of Omni Magazine which Carson was a big fan of, Jerry Seinfeld, & Garry Shandling.

    Joe Drago

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 13, 2022 80:03


    Joe Drago discusses working on Carson's Tonight Show, Johnny's famous cigarette box and lighter being stolen, Ed McMahon, Peter Lassally, John Denver, & Fred de Cordova.

    Cheryl Ladd

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 6, 2022 31:41


    Cheryl Ladd discusses going on Carson, Bob Hope, Carol Burnett, Gene Kelly, guesting on The Muppet Show, Gregory Peck, & Battle of the Network Stars.

    Shelley Herman

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 30, 2021 77:30


    Shelley Herman discusses being an NBC page in Burbank, Carson's Tonight Show, Freddie Prinze, Jimmy Stewart, Redd Foxx, Janet Leigh, Andy Kaufman, & Buddy Hackett. 

    Michael Klein

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 23, 2021 77:11


    Michael Klein discusses being an NBC Burbank exec, his Carson encounters, Frank Sinatra going on Carson in 1976, Muhammad Ali, Lucille Ball, Redd Foxx, Don Rickles, Joe Namath, Nell Carter, Fred Silverman, Gary Coleman, & Brandon Tartikoff.

    Woody Woodbury

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 16, 2021 61:15


    Woody Woodbury discusses following Carson as host of “Who Do You Trust?”, his friendship with Ed McMahon, Don Rickles, being in the Marines with Ted Williams, Jerry Lewis, & Steve Allen.

    Fred Kayne

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 9, 2021 39:23


    Fred Kayne discusses his 16 years as Carson's stock broker, playing tennis with Carson, Don Rickles, John DeLorean, & his wife's memorable visit to Carson's home.

    Peter Poriss

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 2, 2021 34:51


    Peter Poriss discusses his four Carson appearances, his 1971 best selling book “How to Live Cheap”, upsetting guest Tony Randall, & telling Carson viewers not to buy his book.

    Alan Hamel

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 25, 2021 75:25


    Alan Hamel discusses Carson, being mentioned in Carson's monologue, his wife Suzanne Somers' Carson debut, hosting the Alan Hamel Show, being called The Johnny Carson of Canada, Steve Allen, Carol Wayne, Groucho Marx, & Rodney Dangerfield.

    Robert Shields

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 18, 2021 74:48


    Robert Shields discusses his 4 Johnny appearances as part of the mine duo “Shields & Yarnell”, Groucho Marx, Marcel Marceau, Flip Wilson, Cher, Hope, & Sinatra.

    Joan Van Ark

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 11, 2021 42:36


    Joan Van Ark discusses appearing on Carson, Dom LeLuise, Richard Chamberlain, Michael Landon, Ava Gardner, & Battle of the Network Stars.

    Cathy Rich

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 4, 2021 57:20


    Cathy Rich, daughter of Buddy Rich, discusses her Carson appearances, Carson's friendship with Buddy, Carson speaking at Buddy's funeral, Judy Garland, & Frank Sinatra.

    Susan Sullivan

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 28, 2021 65:46


    Susan Sullivan discusses Carson and her 19 appearances on Carson's Tonight Show, Joan Rivers, Garry Shandling, Cary Grant, & Charlton Heston.

    Suzanne Charny

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 21, 2021 34:47


    Suzanne Charny discusses going on Carson, her friendship with Sammy Davis Jr, doing Bob Hope specials, Bob Fosse directing her in Sweet Charity, & dancing with Danny Kaye.

    Todd Yasui

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 7, 2021 100:53


    Todd Yasui discusses working for Helen Kushnick at Leno's Tonight Show, Carson leaving, booking the infamous Hugh Grant appearance, having guests that Carson wouldn't have on, and his 5 years as Leno segment producer.

    Dr. Michael W. Fox

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 7, 2021 26:41


    Dr. Michael W. Fox discusses his Carson appearances, Shelley Winters, Fred de Cordova, Dick Cavett, and being on with guest host Kermit The Frog.

    Remi Messenger

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 7, 2021 32:28


    Remi Messenger discusses working at Carson's Tonight Show in NY, Doc Severinsen, the show's Burbank trips, Joey Bishop, & the Carson writers.

    Carson Stage Manager Round Table

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 30, 2021 66:55


    Carson Stage Manager Round Table with Kevin Quinn and Dan Ford. Topics include Carson, Rodney Dangerfield, Walter Matthau, Ray Charles, Mel Brooks, anniversary parties, & both being guests on Carson's show.

    Dan Pasternack Returns Again

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 23, 2021 77:33


    Dan Pasternack returns again to discuss Carson, Jonathan Winters, Joan Rivers, Milton Berle, Jay Leno, Carol Burnett, and Mel Blanc.

    John Mendoza

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 16, 2021 66:57


    John Mendoza discusses his Carson appearances, being Carson's NY chauffeur,  Fred de Cordova, going on Letterman, Ed McMahon, Jay Leno, & Larry David.

    Karen Morrow

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 9, 2021 72:27


    Karen Morrow discusses going on Carson, Buddy Hackett, singing on Ed Sullivan, Joan Rivers, Jim Nabors Hour, Dick Shawn, President Lyndon Johnson, & Sid Caesar.

    Carson Stand-Up Comic Round Table

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 2, 2021 90:54


    Carson stand-up comic round table with Mark Pitta, Al Lubel, & John Wing discussing appearing on Johnny Carson's Tonight Show. Topics include how they got booked on Carson, backstage stories, Robin Williams, & favorite Carson guests growing up.

    Tim Reid

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 26, 2021 101:27


    Tim Reid discusses his Carson appearances, WKRP in Cincinnati, The Richard Pryor Show, his comedy team with Tom Dreesen, Frank's Place, Della Reese, & Robin Williams.

    Mark Simone Returns

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 19, 2021 71:21


    Mark Simone returns to discuss Johnny Carson, Skitch Henderson, Jackie Mason, Ed Sullivan, & Rodney Dangerfield.

    Dan Pasternack Returns

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 12, 2021 64:45


    Dan Pasternack returns to discuss Carson's Tonight Show, Jonathan Winters, Joan Rivers, Jay Leno, Bonnie Hunt, and Carol Burnett.

    Irving Davis Returns Again

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 5, 2021 46:56


    Irving Davis returns again to discuss working for Carson, Joan Rivers, Bob Hope, Della Reese, Milton Berle, Linda Hopkins, Wayne Newton, and Jay Leno.

    Carson Talent Coordinator Round Table

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 29, 2021 72:00


    Carson talent coordinator round table with Paul Block, Pat Bradford, & Howard Papush discussing working for Johnny Carson's Tonight Show. Topics include favorite guests they worked with, challenging guests, & discovering new talent.

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