Eric, I think you're painting some of the people in Hollywood with too broad a brush.

Following reports out of Hollywood over the years, there has never been a lack of individuals who have acknowledged the role Carson and the Tonight Show played in jump-starting their now-successful careers.

Within the television industry (of which I occupy a VERY small, peripheral niche), he is credited with taking a promising television daypart and turning it into a major factor in the broadcast day ... not creating the late night viewing audience, but 'growing' it substantially.

A number of industry awards (Peabody, etc.) and the testimony that accompanied their presentation have formally recognized these same contributions.

Heck, even when Carson 'guest starred' in an animated feature like "The Simpsons" (which has never hesitated to lampoon the high-and-mighty in the entertainment industry), his character was treated with respect.

Thanks for reporting this sad departure. I learned of Johnny's death here....

This is a hard one for us of a certain age to take. In the mid 60's my two best friends and I, here in Midland, used to consider Friday nights a special treat as we could stay up late enough to watch Johnny....usually at my friend Bill Stallings house at 1709 Community Lane. We thought we were pretty sophisticated staying up till 11:30 and watching The Tonight Show. Thanks for the memories.....Johnny.

Jeff, I didn't make myself clear. Carson was widely beloved and respected by his peers and those who followed him; that wasn't my point. My point is that they never figured out how to emulate him -- his knack for laughing with people instead of at them, his respect for others that led him to avoid the cheap shot. He apparently raised the bar so high that his successors have (mostly) been content to simply walk under it.

I'm just showing my age, I guess.

Thanks for letting me know - not that I have ever seen his programme, but over here, we still knew who he was and all about him.

He always seemed a personal friend, didn't he? We were all the richer for "knowing" him. Kman and I were both saddened by the news. Like "The Day the Music Died" belonged to Buddy Holley, "The Day the Laughter Died" belongs to Johnny.

Rachel, you're too young to have seen him in his prime, but if you ever get a chance to rent one of his "Best of" DVDs, you'll see what we're going on about.

CP, I had forgotten how much I missed him until I saw some of the tributes throughout the day today. He had a way of pulling you into his humor, rather than forcing it on you. Some of it was silly, sure...but you knew that he knew it was, and we all agreed to have fun with it.

"I'm just showing my age, I guess."

Hardly. You're just refusing to swallow whatever the television tells you is "entertainment". You're refusing to alter your personal standards to the ones promoted by some programming executive. These days mean spirited programming is the way to go. Appeal to people's worst impulses, encourage them further, and you've got a sure fire success.

Why else would shows like Punk'd get produced?

Would Johnny Carson ever indulge in that kind of viciousness with his guests? Of course not. Even the format was different. People on the show were guests, not victims. Maybe courtesy and Carson's style of class were more common in the past, but those virtues will never go out of style, even if they become increasingly less visible on television.