No other person influenced more comics than Johnny.

On the afternoon of January 23rd, 2005, I was was waiting for some water to boil while making lunch for my kids when I decided to check my email. Out of habit, I hit reload on my browser to check the top news stories of the day when I saw a headline that hit me like a ton of bricks…

Johnny Carson had passed away.

I remember gasping and telling the kids, who had never seen Johnny in action, that he had passed away. It was then that I felt the wetness welling up in my eyes. Only one other celebrity’s passing before — Carroll O’Connor — had brought me to tears. As I wiped away the tears and headed back into the kitchen, my then 5-year old inevitably asked me who Johnny Carson was. Rather than trying to explain to her and my then 13-year old son, I showed them.

Bringing out The Ultimate Johnny Carson Collection on DVD, I began to fear that I’d be unable to give these two a glimpse of the reason why I was so moved at hearing about Johnny’s passing. After all, the man hadn’t been behind the desk of The Tonight Show since my son was less than a year old. But during that brief moment of doubt, I’d forgotten what had endeared Johnny to me and millions of others across several generations — his simple, gentle, perfectly timed comedic genius.

I hadn’t had the DVD in for more than a couple of minutes before all three of us were laughing. Be it a visit from animal trainer Jack Hannah that went awry or Johnny’s self-deprecating humor when he bombed a joke in his opening monologue, Carson’s smoothness and charm behind the microphone proved to me that his appeal is timeless.

Carson’s smoothness and charm behind the microphone proved to me that his appeal is timeless.

The passing of “The King of Late Night” brought emotional outpourings from some of the biggest names in entertainment, most notably the countless comedians who owed their entire careers to Carson. David Letterman, who I feel should have been Carson’s Tonight Show successor rather than humorless Jay Leno, had the priviledge of still receiving jokes from Johnny to be used in Letterman’s opening monologue right up to the time of Carson’s death.

The last time people had cried at Johnny’s expense came during his retirement from the show he had captained for thirty years. Bidding farewell on May 22, 1992, Carson left us with this teary gem:

And so it has come to this: I, uh…am one of the lucky people in the world; I found something I always wanted to do, and I have enjoyed every single minute of it. I want to thank the gentlemen who’ve shared this stage with me for thirty years, Mr. Ed McMahon…Mr. Doc Severinsen…and…you people watching, I can only tell you that it has been an honor and a privilege to come into your homes all these years and entertain you — and I hope when I find something that I want to do, and I think you would like, and come back, that you’ll be as gracious in inviting me into your home as you have been. I bid you a very heartfelt good night.

When Johnny signed off that night, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house. TV knew that it was losing a living legend…and Johnny rode off into the sunset, rarely granting interviews and even declined to participate in NBC’s 75th anniversary celebration.

One of my all-time favorite Carson moments came after he had retired from The Tonight Show and made an impromptu guest appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman in May, 1994. After having told the audience that Carson would be delivering the top ten list that night, Late Show regular Larry “Bud” Melman appeared and read the list, much to the audience’s chagrin. Dave brought it to everyone’s attention that the card he’d been given didn’t have the appropriate top ten list on it and called off-stage for Carson to bring it to him. No one, including myself, expected the real Johnny Carson to step onto the stage but someone dressed up like Carson instead…but Johnny came out. The audience went nuts, leaping to their feet to deliver a standing ovation. Letterman himself abdicated his chair, which Johnny quickly filled. It was apparent to anyone watching that Johnny was truly home. He went to open his mouth, paused, and then shook his head “no” before playfully getting up, waving to the audience, and walked off the stage to thunderous applause. The fact that Johnny could walk out on stage, not say a single word, and still command that kind of a response was a true testament to how well-loved he was by everyone.

Two days before he passed away, I purchased two index cards with Johnny’s autograph on them for a steal. Dissecting a People Magazine tribute booklet, I created a poster-sized piece with 24 individually cut and matted images from Carson’s career. The focal point? His autograph, placed beneath a picture of Johnny seated at his desk, wiping away a tear caused by laughter. The piece now hangs in my office at work.

This is the way I’ll forever remember Johnny Carson…laughing, joking, and making millions smile.

Thank you, Johnny.