Obviously when Johnny Carson took over and did it for 30 years it really was raised into the stratosphere as an icon of American entertainment.
If you were a comedian, that was the show you wanted to break your career on, and if you were good enough you wanted to host it. I think The Tonight Show just became this gold standard of both television programming and comedy. Other countries have tried it with not much success, but America has really great comedians that can do this. It’s a uniquely American form it was invented by American television. So it really is one of the eternal pillars of television. Today Show and Tonight Show, Meet the Press, shows like that.īILL CARTER: That got cancelled. What is it that’s so important about this institution of The Tonight Show?Ĭlick here for a full transcript of this interview.īILL CARTER: There are only a couple of shows now that basically go back to the beginning of television. JESSE THORN: Bill, tell me why this battle keeps happening. Bill, welcome to The Sound of Young America, it’s great to have you on the show.īILL CARTER: It’s great to be with you, Jesse. His latest book, The War for Late Night: When Leno Went Early and Television Went Crazy, is the story of the improbable second act of that drama in which Leno fought it out with Conan O’Brien for that most coveted of television programs. His first book, The Late Shift, was a best-selling story of the battle between Jay Leno and David Letterman for the Tonight Show.
He’s also made a name of himself as a chronicler of late night television programming. My guest, Bill Carter, is the national media reporter for the New York Times. JESSE THORN: It’s The Sound of Young America, I’m Jesse Thorn. His most recent book is The War for Late Night: When Leno Went Early and Television Went Crazy, a behind-the-scenes look at the Sturm und Drang of the late night wars over Jay Leno, Conan O’Brien, and The Tonight Show. Bill Carter is the author of two books about the politics and people of late night television, and a media reporter for the New York Times.
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