TONIGHT SHOW STARRING JOHNNY CARSON, THE {ELSA LANCHESTER; TRINI LOPEZ; FREDERICK FORSYTH, SHARON JOHANSEN} (TV)
Summary
One in this series of late-night talk/variety programs hosted by Johnny Carson. His guests for this program are singer Trini Lopez, actress Elsa Lanchester, author Frederick Forsyth, and dog trainer Sharon Johansen.
In his opening monologue, Carson touches on the following topics, among others: the arrival of Halloween and the NBC Orchestra's wild party; and the fourth wedding anniversary of Jackie and Aristotle Onassis. Carson then chats with announcer Ed McMahon about his last-second appearance at a midnight show, replacing Sonny and Cher, which caused him to become "a little silly." McMahon shares the harrowing story of a recent serious injury to his thumb caused by a vegetable slicer during his act at the Playboy Club, and Carson describes falling off a poorly lit stage and highlights several other mishaps experienced by "Tonight Show" staffers.
The first guest, Johansen, then takes the stage with two Old English sheepdogs and discusses how she trains dogs as well as their owners; why many dog owners lack the "patience and time" to appropriately teach their pets; ideas for house-training a Yorkshire terrier; the six-week training process and how to reward a dog for correct behavior; and what to do if one is attacked by a dog. Johansen and Carson then each take charge of one of the sheepdogs and attempt to demonstrate effective commands; Carson is somewhat less successful.
Next, Lopez performs "Freedom Come, Freedom Go," and then chats with Carson about his movie role in "Antonio" (1973); his interest in creating a Mexican science-fiction movie; his gift for Carson of extremely hot and possibly aphrodisiacal jalapeños, to which the host has a rather extreme reaction; how one can become "immune" to spicy foods over time; and his longtime bachelor status and surprising romantic past with Johansen. He then performs "Y Volvere" from his record "Viva."
Following this, Lanchester takes the stage and discusses filming a horror scene in a rain-drenched cemetery earlier in the day; why she prefers "artificial" movie violence to more realistic-looking gore; how famed "Frankenstein" director James Whale used beauty and emotion to create empathy for his scary characters; meeting her husband of more than three decades, Charles Laughton, in a play in 1928; and how "having things in common" strengthened their long marriage before his death in 1962. Lanchester then performs "The Ballad of Sister Anne," a spooky theatrical poem by Osbert Sitwell in which an elderly woman, Miss Weatherby, grows increasingly frightened of scary noises and is "comforted" by her loyal nurse, Sister Anne. She also sings a snippet of a bawdy nightclub song.
Finally, Forsyth joins Carson to discuss his new novel, "The Odessa File," a fictionalized account of Nazi war criminals who have escaped justice and explains why many former SS officers sought refuge under sympathetic Argentinian dictator Juan Perón; whether he was in danger while writing the novel; the ongoing pursuit of elusive Nazis by Israeli intelligence; real-life details that were "even more weird" than his invented ideas; debate about a statute of limitations on prosecuting war crimes; his preference for being a "free agent" instead of a married man; his experiences with multi-lingual interviews; the political challenges of traveling to America from overseas; explanation of the extremely posh and refined "BBC voice"; and why Brits are generally "very keen gardeners." Includes commercials.
Details
- NETWORK: NBC
- DATE: October 31, 1972 11:30 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:15:31
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:73278
- GENRE: Talk/Interview
- SUBJECT HEADING: Talk/Interview; Comedy/Variety; Halloween; Dog trainers; Music; Authors
- SERIES RUN: NBC - TV series, 1962-1992
- COMMERCIALS:
- TV - Commercials - Budweiser beers
- TV - Commercials - Calgon bath oil beads
- TV - Commercials - Contac cold medication
- TV - Commercials - Dubonnet wines
- TV - Commercials - Dutch Masters cigars
- TV - Commercials - Hormel chili
- TV - Commercials - Mobil detergent gasoline
- TV - Commercials - Purina Cat Chow cat food
- TV - Commercials - Revlon Flex shampoo and conditioner
- TV - Commercials - Reynolds Brown-in-Bag turkey bags
- TV - Commercials - Scott's Liquid Gold wood cleaner
- TV - Commercials - United Airlines
- TV - Commercials - Volkswagon Beetle automobile
- TV - Commercials - Whirlpool appliances
- TV - Commercials - Wurlitzer Orbit III musical instruments
CREDITS
- Fred de Cordova … Producer
- Peter Lassally … Associate Producer
- Dick Manley … Commercial Producer
- Bobby Quinn … Director
- Hank Bradford … Writer
- Mike Barrie … Writer
- Eric Cohen … Writer
- Thomas Moore Jr. … Writer
- Jim Mulholland … Writer
- NBC Orchestra, The … Music by
- Doc Severinsen … Conductor
- Johnny Carson … Host
- Ed McMahon … Announcer
- Trini Lopez … Guest, Performer
- Elsa Lanchester … Guest, Performer
- Sharon Johansen … Guest
- Frederick Foresyth … Guest
- Sonny Bono
- Cher
- Charles Laughton
- Aristotle Onassis
- Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
- Juan Perón
- Osbert Sitwell
- James Whale