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by Charles River (Author)
*Includes pictures *Includes their own quotes about their lives and careers *Includes online resources and a bibliography for further reading From the day television existed as an entertainment medium, giant companies have battled each other for viewers, but in the history of television programming, no show was as consistently excellent in the ratings as The Ed Sullivan Show, a variety show that brought on all kinds of acts, from dancers to artists and singers. It was the longest running show to maintain one time slot, and today it is widely remembered for introducing the nation to the likes of Elvis Presley and The Beatles. When Elvis was on the show in 1956, over 82% of the nation's entire television audience tuned in, a rating that would make even the Super Bowl blush. Indeed, being booked on The Ed Sullivan Show became so important for performers that Aretha Franklin once noted, "And I was booked once to go on 'Ed Sullivan' and I got bumped and ran out the back door crying." The Ed Sullivan Show has been commemorated as one of the most influential programs in the history of American television, and behind it all was the seemingly unassuming man whose name was on it. Even after Ed Sullivan had become an American institution on the strength of his show, one critic from Time asked, "What exactly is Ed Sullivan's talent?" Or as comedian (and frequent guest) Alan King put it, "Ed does nothing, but he does it better than anyone else in television." Of course, Ed Sullivan did have plenty of talent, especially when it came to identifying others', and over the course of nearly two decades, he became America's biggest starmaker. While Elvis and The Beatles are most remembered, Sullivan helped open the door to Motown acts, and his show was so culturally significant that Reverend Al Sharpton said of those performances, "I grew up in the 1950s and '60s, when it was almost a holiday when a black act would go on Ed Sullivan." Perhaps the most ironic aspect of Sullivan's fame is that almost everyone tended to agree that he was stilted and unnatural in front of cameras. In 1955, one writer for Time colorfully described Sullivan as "a cigar-store Indian, the Cardiff Giant and a stone-faced monument just off the boat from Easter Island. He moves like a sleepwalker; his smile is that of a man sucking a lemon; his speech is frequently lost in a thicket of syntax; his eyes pop from their sockets or sink so deep in their bags that they seem to be peering up at the camera from the bottom of twin wells." At the same time, however, the writer conceded, "Yet, instead of frightening children, Ed Sullivan charms the whole family." Among America's comedians, few if any have had the kind of influence on pop culture and society like Johnny Carson, the iconic host of The Tonight Show from 1962-1992. In addition to winning too many awards to count, Carson is proof that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, as admitted by subsequent comedy show hosts like Jay Leno and David Letterman, who not only vied to replace Carson but also used his format for their own shows (and still continue to do so). For several years during the 1950s, Carson rotated around various daytime shows as host, meeting important friends like Ed McMahon along the way, but he made it big when he replaced Jack Paar as host of The Tonight Show in 1962. For the next 30 years, his mix of monologues, skits, and interviews would make his show must-see television on weekday nights, turning him into the highest paid television personality of the 1970s, and giving him the creative freedom to bring others along with him. In addition to bringing along his sidekick McMahon, Carson let guests host the show occasionally as well, thereby giving the spotlight to comedians like George Carlin, Letterman, Leno, and Joan Rivers. On the 25th anniversary of his debut on The Tonight Show, Carson earned a Peabody Award that labeled him "an American institution,"
