# Challenge! Who is the man sitting with all the stars on Johnny Carson? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 30, 2014, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321 "2014-04-30T00:42:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 17
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/321 "2014-05-02T19:35:26Z")
**Stoid** - Where did you come across this picture? StG ---
**Author:** ![cococ173](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3ab097/32.png) [@cococ173](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cococ173)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/322 "2014-05-02T20:00:20Z")
I am awaiting a reply from willow2us with the man’s identity or at the very least info about how he got this photo and any info he knows. Had to track him down thru three sites, 2 blogs and finally found a way to contact him thru EBay of all places. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/323 "2014-05-02T20:02:15Z")
> [@StGermain](#): > > **Stoid** - Where did you come across this picture? From [this person’s](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=17340377&postcount=228) Facebook page. ---
**Author:** ![VernWinterbottom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/c67d28/32.png) [@VernWinterbottom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VernWinterbottom)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/324 "2014-05-02T20:04:00Z")
I’ve done more color correcting and it does seem, as mentioned earlier, that there was some colorization done or that adjustments were made to the color separations if this was printed in a magazine. That’s most obvious on the people in the back row. Doesn’t make id easier, but it’s a bit more natural looking. [Mystery Photo](http://fairhaventours.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Mystery-1024x772.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/325 "2014-05-02T20:13:19Z")
> [@cococ173](#): > > I am awaiting a reply from willow2us with the man’s identity or at the very least info about how he got this photo and any info he knows. Had to track him down thru three sites, 2 blogs and finally found a way to contact him thru EBay of all places. Could you get willow2us’s address for us? I’d like to drop by and, er, give him a nice, um, present. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/326 "2014-05-02T20:40:25Z")
This may be a longshot, but while googling “Photoplay Awards” I came up with a link to Sir John Hegarty, described as an ‘advertising legend’. But I couldn’t find how he was related to photoplay. Something about the company he worked for at the time being involved. However, his photos look very much like an older version of the person in the shot. At the time, he would have been in his mid to late 20’s - hard to tell the age of the guy in the Carson photo. [Sir John Hegarty](http://www.goldendrum.com/media/sir.john.hegarty.photo.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/327 "2014-05-02T20:53:25Z")
No dimple in the chin. Mystery man definitely has a dimple. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/328 "2014-05-02T21:17:54Z")
He does? I can see a very vague dark spot in the color-corrected photo above, but that could be anything from a shadow to a blemish on the original photo. It’s very hard to tell with this level of quality. Still, I did say he’s a longshot. I still can’t find what connection he had to photoplay, other than that he showed up in my google search. But the features are very close ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/329 "2014-05-02T21:18:46Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > No dimple in the chin. Mystery man definitely has a dimple. Maybe not–that could be an artifact. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/330 "2014-05-02T21:22:33Z")
So why _does_ this challenge grab us all so much? Obviously it does. But it seems like such a silly thing on its face (so to speak). ---
**Author:** ![randwill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@randwill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randwill)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/331 "2014-05-02T21:31:25Z")
Is the Mystery Man wearing pirate boots? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/332 "2014-05-02T21:34:19Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > So why _does_ this challenge grab us all so much? Obviously it does. But it seems like such a silly thing on its face (so to speak). Group of recognizable people with one person no one can name. I think this happened with the Sgt. Pepper album, there were a couple people not readily recognized. We think it must be someone that would be known, but as pointed out in this thread it could be someone we’ve never heard of and doesn’t fit in with the group. I wouldn’t be surprised if CNN starts 24 hour coverage trying to identify this guy. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/333 "2014-05-02T21:44:14Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > So why _does_ this challenge grab us all so much? Obviously it does. But it seems like such a silly thing on its face (so to speak). It’s grabbing others. I asked one of my kids who likes stuff like this. He shared it on a FB page focused on 60’s and 70’s celebrities. There are probably a hundred posts on that page, and one of them links back to here. 🙂 Hans Conreid is getting the most votes on the FB page. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/334 "2014-05-02T22:06:25Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > So why _does_ this challenge grab us all so much? Obviously it does. But it seems like such a silly thing on its face (so to speak). Damfino. But I subscribed to this thread just to follow the quest. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/335 "2014-05-02T22:24:12Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > Group of recognizable people with one person no one can name. … Also, there’s the odd situation of this being only _one_ photo of something that should have generated a few (at least). And, too, this event should have generated more of a document trail (even online, given the way a lot of mid-20th century Show Biz material has been uploaded to the Internet). So, in addition to the _'cool to be the one who IDs the Mystery Man_’ factor, there’s also the \*‘could this all be a hoax?’ \*factor. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/336 "2014-05-02T22:31:47Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > Also, there’s the odd situation of this being only _one_ photo of something that should have generated a few (at least). And, too, this event should have generated more of a document trail (even online, given the way a lot of mid-20th century Show Biz material has been uploaded to the Internet). > > So, in addition to the _'cool to be the one who IDs the Mystery Man_’ factor, there’s also the \*‘could this all be a hoax?’ \*factor. Yeah, but for me a hoax will just be a letdown. I’m sure there are others that are sure it’s a hoax and will be happy to hear it. Plus some who will see it as part of the Ultimate Conspiracy. ---
**Author:** ![randompattern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@randompattern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randompattern)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/337 "2014-05-02T22:34:41Z")
It’s an old piece of cold war propaganda designed to distract us while we’re quietly taken over by the commies. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/338 "2014-05-02T22:41:45Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > So why _does_ this challenge grab us all so much? Obviously it does. But it seems like such a silly thing on its face (so to speak). For me it’s because when I saw the photo my instant reaction was, “I know that guy!” I’m certain I’ve seen him before. My memory even tells me he’s relatively famous - someone I _should_ know. I’ll bet if I saw a video clip and saw his mannerisms and heard his voice I’d know exactly who he was. It feels like his identity is just slightly out of reach, and that’s maddening. If the ‘mystery person’ had been some old lady who clearly was just an ‘interesting person’ like so many Carson had on back then, I wouldn’t care one bit. ---
**Author:** ![cococ173](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3ab097/32.png) [@cococ173](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cococ173)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/339 "2014-05-02T22:49:42Z")
I had emailed willow2us and asked him the mystery man id but also where he found the pic and any other info attached to it. All I got back was this: hi, I am the same Lee but no I don’t know who that man is. You are not the first person from FanPop who has asked me about this. I know most of the people in the picture but not him. Sorry I emailed him again asking where he found the pic. No one answered today at Hollywood Reporter. Some show biz photo archivist somewhere knows who this is. The larger, color-corrected photo from VernWinterbottom is helpful. Here is another name I have not seen yet–James Arness. Yeah, probably not. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/340 "2014-05-02T22:51:53Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > For me it’s because when I saw the photo my instant reaction was, “I know that guy!” I’m certain I’ve seen him before. My memory even tells me he’s relatively famous - someone I _should_ know. I’ll bet if I saw a video clip and saw his mannerisms and heard his voice I’d know exactly who he was. It feels like his identity is just slightly out of reach, and that’s maddening. Exactly! I can’t believe how hooked I am over this inconsequential subject myself. I have to pull myself away to get anything done. Also I think there’s a competitive factor; everyone wants to be the person who figures it out. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321.md?page=16) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321.md?page=18)