Fuck Jay Leno and what he's done to the Tonight Show. That Letterman didn't get it was an unbelievable error by NBC. Just want to make that perfectly clear.
Not that I watch Letterman anymore. But I'm just sayin'.
...but here's some real news - and proof that Johnny knew that Leno fuckin' blew. Johnny was writing jokes for Dave after he retired.
Still, there was one part of his former life he simply could not leave behind entirely. Having spent 30 years reading and watching the news every day and instantly conjuring the events into monologue jokes, jokes that provided a running commentary on the political and cultural scene, Mr. Carson found he simply could not give up the routine....and read Wolcott on Carson.
"He really missed doing the monologue," Mr. Lassally said. "So he started doing them for me."
Sometimes once a week, sometimes more often, Mr. Carson would call Mr. Lassally and, over the phone, perform his little monologues - for an audience of one. "They were always funny," Mr. Lassally said, and one day about a year ago the jokes struck him as so funny that he had a suggestion.
"I told Johnny he should call Dave and give them to him," said Mr. Lassally, who, after Mr. Carson retired, went to work as executive producer for David Letterman.
Thus began a quiet collaboration, which delighted Mr. Carson in his final months. "He was like a little kid when Dave would do one of his jokes," Mr. Lassally said. "He was not blasé about any of it."
Of course, one reason Mr. Carson would never want to be public about the collaboration was that he never wanted to be seen taking sides in the enduring conflict between Mr. Letterman and Jay Leno, who succeeded him as host of "Tonight," over who was his rightful heir in late-night comedy.
...Salto's Own Mom wants me to write that she believes that Johnny made more people laugh than anyone in history. And, furthermore, will hold that record forever. Salto agrees.
