Johnny Carson: A Revisionist View

Entertainment critic Ken Tucker dares to challenge all the fawning over the late Mr. Carson:

"...millions don't recall that the late-'70s-to-late-'80s was a fallow period for Carson. He was increasingly out of touch, with his wide-lapelled suits drawn from the closet of his own clothing line, mildly contemptuous of post-Beatles popular culture; his monologues slowed to a series of 'It was so hot today… ,' followed by the audience's chant, 'How hot was it?' He doled out yuks and the sort of bipartisan political humor whose toothlessness was exceeded only by the gummy suck-up of a Bob Hope TV routine."

Ouch, did he really have to make a jab at the suits? Didn't everyone wear bad clothing then? But he does have a valid point. Reminds me of Dana Carvey's old SNL impersonations of Carson, which absolutely hinged on the theme of Carson being out of touch. "That is some weird, wild stuff".