Customer Reviews

The Carson Collection - His Favorite Moments from The Tonight Show (1962-1992) [VHS]

5 star:		(80)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I himmed and hawed about purchasing the Carson DVD package. I always loved Johnny's anniversary shows where he would break out old clips from over the years along with the highlights of the year just ended. So the package seemed intringing, but I decided to rent first. Good decision.

It is not that the content of the shows is terrible. Far from it. It's just woefully short on material to justify the rather steep pricetag of a 3 disc set. Understanding that a lot of the tapes from the early years were destroyed years ago, there still had to be over 20 years of material to put together several more hours. Instead, there is a "Best of the 60s/70s", "Best of the 70s/80s" and "Best of the 80s/90s" segment, each about 45 minutes each. Many of the classics are here (the Ed Ames hatchet throw, George Gobel's brown shoes joke, the marmoset using Johnny's head as a restroom, Jimmy Stewart's poem about his dog Bo, even a very funny intro of future president Clinton), but there had to be more. There were no Floyd R. Turbo (who I consider the first right wing militant) bits nor was my favorite Carnac the Magnificent moment included (the answer is Sis-Boom-Bah, the question: What sound does an exploding sheep make). The latter omission is interesting because I seem to recall Carson saying at one time that that bit garned the biggest laugh in the show's history.

There's also Carson's last shows, which I actually already have on tape, so other than a better picture, it doesn't do it for me. There's also a show from 1982 when Johnny went back home to Nebraska to visit old hangouts and friends that was interesting.

In summary, some great moments, but there should have been more!

As one of the millions that sorely miss the wit and wisdom of Johnny Carson, I was especially pleased to receive this "best of" DVD collection. The three DVD's feature the best moments from the show - divided by decade - from the 60's through the 90's, and also include the complete second-to-last show (with Bette Midler and Robin Williams) and the final show, along with a documentary on Johnny I had never seen before. The remastering quality is great. There is a fun little short film called "Danger Johnny", and one of the most interesting things about the DVD's are the ISO CAMS, that allow you to pick the camera angles to view some of the programs. You can even view scenes from Johnny's perspective. The menu options are terrific, and the packaging very deluxe. If you are a fan of classic television, this is a great addition to your library - and I plan to send them as gifts to family members I know miss Johnny too.

No matter what happens, Johnny Carson was, is and always will be the greatest late night host ever and one of the most towering figures in television history. David Letterman is terrific, but even he pales next to Carson. It's amazing to think that it's already been ten years since Johnny retired. This DVD collection brings it all back and reminds us all of just how great Carson was. (The Ed Ames tomahawk throwing segment just might be the funniest moment in TV history) The only disappointing thing about this set is that it does not include that much material from the first ten years. It's sad that so much classic material was lost. However, the set has a very comprehensive sample of Carson's funniest moments from over the years and show why Johnny will always be the King of Late Night.

The boxed set goes straight to the very best of Johnnie. No fillers or wasted space, just one funny or interesting scene after another, from the famous tomahawk throwing sequence that Johnnie handles with magnificent adlibs to a scene wth Bob Hope, Dean Martin and George Gobel that is pricesless to his final show with Robin Williams and Bette Middler. We have watched these DVD's over and over. Makes you realize how Jay L. and Dave L. just don't come close to the one and only Johnny..

Other reviews have pointed out flaws in the disc mastering and "Best of" segments, so I won't repeat those.

My biggest disappointment was in the way the final two shows were absolutely butchered. The next-to-last show is missing an entire segment (the classic Ed Ames segment from 1965). The major part of the segment is on disc 1, but still, deleting it from the show is unforgiveable. The final show is missing a segment as well--a classic montage of the great musical talents who passed through Studio One.

Finally, the end of the final show--Johnny's farewell--is absolutely hacked. All of the shots of audience members--Johnny's staff and family among them--were deleted. Those are some of the shots that add to the emotion of the very end of the King's reign. When the video dissolved to credits, the music stopped--Doc and the band played to the end of the actual show.

There are still good things to recommend--"Johnny Goes Home" is an interesting look at the man and his background. The camera iso footage from the last show is a good "behind the scenes" kind of thing, and the "Danger Johnny" extra is some neat, rare footage from the 1960's.

Having said all of that, the quality of the entertainment make this worth having. We'll never see the likes of Johnny Carson again. And to be fair, take a look at the extra discs in the larger "Special Collector's Edition"-the clips are longer, and show each performer in better context. Very enjoyable.

In a free-association test, if you said "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" I think most people would respond with "Classy." Carson's show was always a class act that aimed high rather than low, and there was never a better interviewer than Johnny. Whether the guest was a Hollywood heavyweight or a 10-year-old spelling bee winner, Carson found the right questions, elicited surprising reaction (as opposed to Leno, who is a master only at stating and restating the obvious), and kept audiences laughing. Yet, like everyone else who was born to do what they do, he made it look effortless. And apparently for him it was. Carson was famous for arriving at the studio very late and doing little in the form of rehearsals. But who could knock what worked?

Carson was an enigma. He wanted to entertain crowds, yet he was reclusive, with few close relationships. He was charming yet distant. He could be petulant, but also a gentleman. He had a midwest "aw-shucks" personality coupled with an ego the size of Manhattan. He was known around NBC for being difficult as well as lazy--after the 1970s, he took off two nights a week, turning over Monday's show to a string of guest hosts and running repeats on Tuesdays. Yet he could get away with it, because he delivered the goods. All other late night entertainers were also-rans, and the list of performers who sank trying to take his crown is long and varied.

When you watch these DVDs, you realize how class and civility in the land of television has all but disappeared. And how much humor has been dumbed down. Not that Carson invited all Nobel Laureates to his show, but compared to Leno's guests--and Leno himself--they seem just about that! It's instructive to see, in one of the bonus features on this DVD set, a shot of the audience on his last show. They were much older than the audience that comes to a Leno taping. The emphasis has shifted to teens and early college-students, and boy does it show. As Homer Simpson once observed in a different context, Is there no place for a man with a 105 IQ?

The three discs contain much material from Carson's three decades on the air, but honestly, not enough, and that's one reason why I'm only giving it four stars. While the stuff is excellent, each disc is only filled to about half-capacity. Also, some of the extras are a little lame. For example, we're promised a gallery of magazine covers and the "More To Come" artwork. We don't get many of either (there were probably thousands of the "More To Come" graphics made over the years) and they're displayed very small on the screen--and I'm watching on a 46" TV. I can only imagine what you see on a more modest television set. There's no reason these items can't take up the full screen. Also, some of the behind-the-scenes features look like they were cut down from longer features. Why not just use the longer features?

But the material that's there is terrific. Guests include Elizabeth Taylor, Flip Wilson, Richard Pryor, Dean Martin, Eva Gabor, Steve Martin, Alan King, David Letterman, George Carlin, Jimmy Stewart, Gregory Peck, Albert Brooks, Tiny Tim, Pearl Bailey, Jane Fonda, Dolly Parton, and so many others, too numerous to mention. There's even a young, curly-haired Jay Leno, wearing a green suit that has to be seen to be believed. But the best guests are the animals. I don't know if Carson was the first to book animal acts, but no one interacted with the creatures better. Particularly noteworthy is a bird that can imitate other animals, and seems to actually understand Carson and answer his questions. This sort of material is far more entertaining than the beach-and-bikini-type antics that Jay Leno seems to uncover in skits such as "Jaywalking."

Let's not leave out Carson's supporting cast. McMahon seemingly did little more than announce the opening with a burly voice and laugh like a drunken Santa Claus at Johnny's jokes, yet he was still lightyears more effective in his job than Leno's John Melendez or Edd Hall. But it's Doc Severson's swinging, zinging Tonight Show Band that really gave the show its signature. The catchy theme (penned by Paul Anka and Carson himself) was a guarantee for 30 years that you were about to have a good time, and honestly it still gets me excited to hear it. And some of that bridge music during commercials was so good that you almost wanted them to continue playing for the next ten minutes. Compare this to the awful Kevin Eubanks band and the shrill screams of the frizzy-haired vocalist Vicky behind him, on today's Tonight Show. And who can even *hum* the current Tonight Show theme? Think it will ever become the icon that Johnny's Daa-da-daa-duuum-duum is?

The first two discs are highlights from the 60s through the 90s. As I said, they could have been a lot longer: despite a fire in the NBC vaults that destroyed most of the early 60s material (including, sadly, the pilot show), there's still enough Carson episodes to fill a hundred DVDs. But what's there is a real treasure, and a master class for aspiring comedians. There's also a faded print of Carson's only prime-time special, wherein he returns to his home town in Nebraska. It's interesting, but not essential. Another extra is called "Danger Johnny" and consists of footage of stunts Carson performed for another show he hosted prior to The Tonight Show. It's mildy entertaining, but most Tonight Show fans probably won't care much. The last disc contains, complete, the final two shows--the last with guests (Robin Williams and Bette Midler in a now-famous performance saluting Carson) and finally the big goodbye, with Johnny alone on a stool. I saw them both back in 1992 and they are still a blast.

Once again, I seem to be stuck in the rut of saying things aren't as good as they used to be. (See most of my other reviews!) But watch these DVDs and you'll see how true it is. I realize this is a "best of" compilation and so it's going to have the cream. Still, Leno's been on the air more than 13 years now, and as far as I've seen he hasn't had one moment as good as any of those here. The other late night hosts--even Letterman--seem to be just weird for the sake of being weird, and don't really seem interested in their guests. No, there was only one Johnny Carson, and once he was gone, there was nothing left for any of his "heirs" to do.

If you have the VHS tape collection that was released in the 1990's, you may want to hold on to them. This collection contains the same episodes, however, there are some segments that were trimmed. For instance, within the actual video files themselves on the DVD are the opening title cards used on the VHS tapes, e.g. "KING OF LAUGHS!" The control files on the DVD, though, start playing the video after that. However, the major disappointment is in however actually authored these DVD's.


Sloppy and erroneous programming abounds on these discs. For instance, if you use your remote to try to access the main menu directly, the 1 to 2 minute opening introduction plays. You can Next skip past this BUT it loads the next video file in the stream, which on these discs can be any of the sub menus from the main menu. You're forced to watch through it or fast forward just to get to the main menu again. Disc 2 is entirely unforgivable because it's Scenes menu for The Best Of The 80's And 90's does not work at all on any player I tested, stand alone, computer, or otherwise! Select your favorite scene, and, oh! Nope! It acts as a Start button instead, playing the VERY FIRST scene. Regardless of the Scene you pick!


There are abundant video errors, too, converting the material. Granted, some of the source video is not the best. Many of the surviving Carson shows only exist on kinescope, basically using a film camera to record the broadcast off of a TV screen. Still, most of the errors are in existing color material that has aired fine before on the VHS tapes and on TV. For instance, one scene from Disc 1 clearly goes into off shades of solid green colors for a few frames. Another develops wavy static momentarily. Another has pixelated pink that shows up.


However, just in general, there's poor video conversion to begin with. Even stuff from the 1980's and 90's on Disc 2 is blurry when things move. Stuff appears to be slightly slow mo, too. Like the old experience of video on a PC, frames are dropped, even though the DVD picture quality is higher.


While offering some new material, what you have to sacrifice in exchange is most likely not worth the price.

In today's era of David Letterman and Jay Leno, younger generations should remember that Johnny Carson (along with his "Tonight Show" predecessors Jack Paar and Steve Allen) defined the talk-show format which made late-night television an enduring and immensely profitable enterprise. From 1962 to 1992, Carson reigned supreme as a comedian and broadcaster. Unlike Letterman and Leno, Johnny did his homework when it came to nightly conversation. No matter who sat on the couch, he remained an astute and observant host. "The Ultimate Johnny Carson Collection" is an expanded three-DVD set of "Tonight Show" highlights selected by Johnny himself, with the welcome addition of his final two programs. The set also includes the 1982 NBC special "Johnny Goes Home" - a nostalgic, affectionate look at Carson's return to his hometown of Norfolk, Nebraska. Loaded with extras (and some recently discovered film clips from the early 1960s), the DVD collection provides first-rate material at a reasonable price. If this set leaves you wanting more, the six-DVD "Timeless Moments" series is highly recommended.

Despite the name, this DVD collection is not really the Ultimate Johnny Carson collection. For those of you old enough to remember, this collection was first released on VHS videocassette way back in the mid-1990's. However, something happened during the transition from VHS to DVD as there are some scenes that have been edited out of the DVD version.

I find it ironic that on the box of the DVD collection, it mentions Madonna as being one of the guests, yet her clip never made it to the DVD version. However, she is in the VHS version. It fact, it appears that about 5 mins or so have been cut from each of the main shows (Best of the 60's & 70's; Best of the 70's & 80's; and Best of the 80's & 90's), to make room for some additional backstage footage. Or, what the footage that was cut out because Johnny no longer felt those scenes were some of his greatest moments? Or, maybe the scenes were cut because of the very lengthy intro each of the disc's have (just push the menu button on your DVD player's remote control to get to the main menu).

For those of you lucky enough to have the VHS version don't throw out your VHS tapes just yet, as you actually will be missing out on some of the funniest scenes. Because of this, I did not give the overall collection a perfect 5 stars. Instead, I 'discounted' stars as a result of the editing.

I found the bonus prime-time special "Johnny Goes Home" rather boring actually, and actually took away from the funny 'show' moments seen in each of the three main shows listed above. Also, when viewing some of the back-stage footage, my DVD player froze on me twice, to the point that I actually had to turn it off and re-boot the DVD player. Maybe this was just my collection, I am not sure if others also have had this problem.

Despite these some of the shortcomings mentioned above, this is a good collection of Carson's work and unfortunately will probably only be the only collection every offered. But, most of the scenes are with Johnny and his guests, which really don't show Johnny shining at his best, and that of course would be when he was performing the monologue. Instead of the 'Johnny Goes Home' special, I wish the producers of this DVD collection instead put together some of Johnny's best monologue jokes over the years - because it was the monologue where Johnny really did shine.

For those too young to really remember Johnny Carson, or believe that the current Leno/Letterman late night war is where it is at, really missed out on a good thing and an amazing entertainer. To paraphrase Letterman on his tribute show to Carson, it was actually very upsetting to the audience to tune into the Tonight Show and find out that there was actually a guest host on instead of Johnny. After I heard that statement from Letterman, I do remember that when I used to watch the show and sometimes would just turn off the TV set in disappointment because Carson himself - the real deal- was not hosting that night.

I truly feel that Letterman's kind and truthful words just show what a late night monarch Carson was and how he will be so sadly missed in a world of late-night pretenders.

It's great, I've had it since it was released but as I observsed on Leno's tribute show for Johnny on the Monday following his death, there's a lot more in that vault. Just the bit with Johnny, Frank Sinatra and Don Rickles that was shown that night was terrific.

Here's how I see it: Cull throught each of the years that survived on tape, find the best guests and maybe show their entire interview or performance. Going that route, we could be watching "new" Johnny shows for years to come. Also many of those shows were 90 minutes long (before commercials)so the wealth of material has got to be staggering.

Sure, the Ed Ames bit is classic and had to be included in the first set, but we've seen it a million times. Time to dig deeper into the vault, especially now that Johnny's gone. Pop it into your DVD at 11:30 PM and pretend you're back there in the good old days(minus commercials). If you have the $$$, spring for the bigger set, also in the Amazon top ten as I write this.