Johnny Carson is one of those legends whose legacy has taken a bit of a hit the last few years. Was he the classy, funny entertainer the older folks remembered? Or was he a control freak who could hold decades-long grudges and went through marriages like tissues during flu season. As per usual to anyone who reads biographies, it’s a bit of all of the above.
Mark Malkoff breaks it all down for us in his excellent Love Johnny Carson. To be clear, Malkoff is a superfan and is not going to write a hit piece on the king of late-night. However, most importantly, he doesn’t shy away from the sharp edges, either. Carson was a flawed human just like anyone else and some things look worse with time.
That said, this is mostly a celebration of the man. Malkoff takes him from the cradle to the grave and tells all the stories you would expect to hear (along with some you didn’t even know about). For me, books like this really nail it when you start to think about rewatching work from the subject. I know I wanted to go back and find some Carnac or a Rickles clip. It’s exactly the book you want to read when you hear the title.
(This book was provided as a review copy by the author.)
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