ED DANAHUE

George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985)

One of television’s best-known personalities, Johnny Carson,
the iconic host of "The Tonight Show" for 30 years, was born
on this day in history, on Oct. 23, 1925.

Carson had Midwestern roots and was born John William
Carson in Corning, Iowa.

Phillip John Donahue (December 21, 1935 – August 18, 2024)

WASHINGTON (TND) — The host and creator of the"The Phil
Donahue Show" died Sunday after a lengthy illness.

According to a family statement, the television pioneer died 
at his home on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. 

Shure model SM33 ribbon microphone.

The microphone was saved from a trash bin by "The Tonight
Show" chief boom operator Stan Sweeney.

An anonymous bidder in 2005 snatched a piece of TV history,
offering $50,787 for the microphone that sat prominently on
the desk of late-night king Johnny Carson until the 1980s.

The offer was about twice that expected at auction.

The fourth incarnation of the Tonight Show franchise debuted
on May 25, 1992, three days after Johnny Carson‘s retirement
as host of the program. The program originated from NBC
Studios in Burbank, California, and was broadcast Monday
through Friday at 11:35 p.m. in the Eastern and Pacific time
zones (10:35 p.m. Central/Mountain time). Unlike Carson or
his predecessor Jack Paar, Leno only once used a guest
host, preferring to host the series in person.

Billy Crystal (left) was the first guest on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Leno’s first opening monologue featured a joke about Vice President Dan Quayle and the controversy over Murphy Brown
becoming a single mom.