Johnny Carson

In 1993, the late, great Nancy LaMott had this to say during a solo concert at the Russian Team Room: "Has anybody else noticed that the world has gotten a little strange lately? I mean, in the last year things have gotten really odd — Waco, Yugoslavia, Buttafuco. I noticed that things have really gone haywire lately, and I also noticed — just think back if you will — that all of this started happening about the same time that Johnny Carson went off the air. I don’t know, but I think that maybe he was the glue that held us all together. He was the anchor, and now we’re all like a bunch of free radicals floating around and around and doing weird things."

LaMott may have had a point. Life certainly seemed a lot simpler during Carson's reign as the king of late-night television. Like much of the country, I was surprised and saddened this past Sunday to learn of Carson's death. I have vivid memories of being introduced to "The Tonight Show" and its witty host by my late grandmother during a weekend stay at her home in Toms River, New Jersey. And, as I became more and more a fan of Broadway and the musical theatre's dynamic singing actresses, I would always make sure to scan the daily TV listings to see if any of my favorites would be appearing on the Emmy-winning NBC chat show.

This week I also spoke to a few of the actresses — Betty Buckley, Ellen Greene, Andrea McArdle and Bernadette Peters — who had the chance to impress Carson with their unique talents. Below are some of their thoughts about John William Carson.

Betty Buckley: "Johnny Carson was so good to me. He treated me so kindly. My first appearance on 'The Tonight Show' was actually with Joan Rivers as guest host. It was the first time I'd sung 'Memory' on the show, and we ran out of time, and I got cut off in the middle. They received so many phone calls and letters that they invited me back. And, Carson presented me like I was this special young artist. He was so dear and sweet to me. I sang 'Memory,' and was very well-received. He was just unbelievably generous to me. He treated me very gently because I think he perceived that I was a shy person. For a while, they kept calling me to come back on the show, so I went back another time and sang again. I didn't know that I was getting special treatment at the time. I didn't know that it was sort of extraordinary that they kept calling me back. When Cats happened, there was so much going on — with the Tonys and the media — and I think I was afraid to step out and accept all the attention I was getting. I recognize all these things now, but when you're young, you sometimes don't get it. I was just really amazed about being on 'The Tonight Show.' You're kind of like a deer in the headlights — I was so starstruck by him. He was just an elegant, lovely person, really human, very generous of spirit, very kind and, of course, had a tremendous sense of humor."

Ellen Greene: "Everyone tuned in for [Carson's] monologues because he was political, he was smart, he was sexy, and he had style. He was really bright and really powerful. There's nothing more of a turn-on than a man who is bright, and he was so bright. He was so sexy, and he had such a dear heart. And he loved talent. He loved pure talent, and that's why people were loyal to him. And, he also demanded it. You never could do his show and anybody else's, and if you did, chances are you wouldn't come back or you wouldn't get on right away. He demanded loyalty, and he got it because a shot on 'The Johnny Carson Show' changed everything . . . [One of his employees spotted me in the West Coast production of Little Shop of Horrors], and I came on as Audrey and did 'Somewhere That's Green.' Everybody who worked for Johnny were ultimate professionals. They knew what they were doing: the sound, the lights, the shots. It was run like a fine instrument. They were so organized. They wanted me to sing "Green," and they shot "Green" so beautifully. I don't usually watch my own stuff, but that was gorgeous. . . It was amazing to work with [Carson] because you never knew which of the questions [from the pre-interview] he was going to ask. It used to bother my agents [how I acted on the show]. They said, 'Ellen, you're so smart, why are you only acting ditzy?' [Laughs.] They wanted that side of me — they liked [women] who were kind of ditzy and funny and sexy. It was also exciting when they were pleased. When you landed a set-up for Johnny, you could tell. I got so much attention from that spot and from subsequent ones. I also want to give him one more [credit]. Because of the great camera work on the show and the lighting and the sound, I think that rendition of "Green" — me in my Audrey dress and my wig — I think that really helped convince Howard [Ashman], who championed me for the [Little Shop of Horrors] film, that I could take [Audrey] one step further and make it cinematic."

Andrea McArdle: "The first time I was on, I think it was May or June 1977. This was a couple months after Annie opened. My audition song for Annie was 'Johnny One-Note,' so I sang that on the show and 'Tomorrow.' After I got done with 'Johnny One-Note,' [the audience] went crazy [because] I looked like I was eight or nine, although I was really thirteen. After the song, [Carson] called me over, and I sat down, and he said, 'You can come back anytime.' I leaned over to him and said, 'Oh my God, can you get me another vacation day?' [Laughs.] Because it's unheard of in a Broadway show [to get a day off to do a talk show.] And, no kid knew the first act [to Annie]. They waited to teach the [other kids] the first act, so I'd have to be there for at least half of the show [because] we had no microphones, and we were just learning how to sing that loud. . . Later, I went back and did the show when David Brenner hosted, and then I went back again when I was filming the Judy Garland movie. I remember being so into Olivia Newton-John, and they pulled her 'Hopelessly Devoted to You' [set] right from the 'Grease' set — because it was Paramount also — and so I went and did that on the show with him. I also went back again and did 'Over the Rainbow,' and Liberace played for me."

Bernadette Peters: "The first time I was on [in 1970] I sang 'What'll I Do.' There was a good reaction afterwards, really wonderful. People started to notice me when I would appear on his show. That was the great thing about [Carson]. He loved new talent — he loved to present new talent. If you think about it, there's not really a place like that anymore . . . You had a pre interview before the show, usually the day before, to figure out what you wanted to talk about [the next day with Carson]. He was just so good at [interviewing]. You always looked good with him, and he always let you have a moment, and he had a moment, and you had a moment together. It was working together to make something happen. I remember the last time I was on. We were talking about shoes, and he took his feet and he put them on the desk, and he showed me his shoes, and I said, 'Oh, those are coming back!' [Laughs.] We had good chemistry together . . . Who does what he did the same way? He would take risks, and he would have a great time with the guests. You could talk about anything, and he loved presenting and discovering talent. So many people got their breaks on that show and got exposure on that show. I got exposure on that show. And, people tuned in and watched him. He had something that everybody liked: He had boyish charm, he had sexuality, he had that bad-boy [appeal], he was funny — he really had everything. And he was a writer — he loved to be a comic and make something happen and be funny. The last time I saw him was at one of the Kennedy Center Awards a few years ago. He was as charming as ever. It's really sad that he's gone."

I think so many people tuned in to the "Tonight Show" before they went to sleep because Carson was such a calming presence. He also made the nation laugh, yet fans could be sure their favorite stars would be treated with dignity and respect. In fact, it was always exciting to witness Carson's enthusiasm for people I also adored. One of my very favorite Carson comments followed Bernadette Peters' rendition of Irving Berlin's "Let Me Sing and I'm Happy" during her June 1987 appearance. Carson simply exclaimed, "Damn, you're good!" So were you, Mr. Carson.

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Diva lovers might want to check out the Johnny Carson website (www.johnnycarson.com), which features a detailed list of Carson's guests on "The Tonight Show" during his run on the Emmy-winning NBC production. The website also includes what songs the various performers offered — song titles aren't always accurate — as well as a few details of their conversations with the late Carson. What follows is a list of songs performed by some of Broadway and cabaret's leading ladies.

Karen Akers — Nov. 1983: "Maybe"

Sarah Brightman — July 1989: "Dreamers" and "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again"; May 1990: "Love Changes Everything" and "Music of the Night"; Jan. 1991: "Capped Teeth and Caesar Salad" and unnamed Aspects of Love song

Betty Buckley — Jan 1984: "Over You" and "Memory"; April 1984: "Over You" and "Memory"; and Feb. 1985: "Wind Beneath My Wings"

Nell Carter — July 1978: "Get Some Cash for Your Trash" and "Honeysuckle Rose"; Feb. 1980: "Mean to Me" and "Cash for Your Trash"; Sept. 1980: "Honeycomb," "Wild Women Don't Get the Blues" and "Moonglow"; Feb. 1982: "Leave Me My Heart"; Jan. 1982: "Never Been So Glad"; June 1982: "Take It Home," "Stormy Weather" and "Since I Fell for You"; Nov. 1983: "You Are"; Jan. 1985: "Be Mine Tonight"; July 1985: "Walking on Sunshine" and "Ain't Misbehavin'"; March 1986: "Be Mine Tonight" and "Stormy Monday Blues"; June 1989: "It Breaks My Heart" and "When I Grow Too Old to Dream"