# 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:** 19
**Author:** ![randompattern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@randompattern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randompattern)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/361 "2014-05-03T04:54:03Z")
What we know: There doesn’t seem to have ever been a Tonight Show with all these people listed as guests at the same time. We have the date narrowed down to sometime in 1970 more or less. The people in the photo were winners or nominees for awards that year. Ideas I have: Could this have been a posed photo-op from before or after a show? They have done posed photos on this set before. [http://s1369.photobucket.com/user/pablo628/media/8C8724844-tdy-130823-NBC-page-07blocks\_desktop\_medium\_zps2ed1fa4a.jpg.html?sort=3&o=1](http://s1369.photobucket.com/user/pablo628/media/8C8724844-tdy-130823-NBC-page-07blocks_desktop_medium_zps2ed1fa4a.jpg.html?sort=3&o=1) Since this all started I wondered why Johnny wasn’t in the picture. Is it possible, just maybe, that MM is Johnny caught at an odd angle in the middle of turning his head? Maybe he’s sitting in that chair rather than behind the desk so they can all fit in the picture. This pic from Sept 1970 looks pretty good as far as hair, ear, jawline, etc. [http://s1369.photobucket.com/user/pablo628/media/120702\_johnny\_carson\_1970\_ap\_328\_605\_zpsebc3e2b2.jpg.html?sort=3&o=0](http://s1369.photobucket.com/user/pablo628/media/120702_johnny_carson_1970_ap_328_605_zpsebc3e2b2.jpg.html?sort=3&o=0) I’m wondering if they were getting ready to do a publicity photo and maybe someone cracked a joke as the camera clicked, maybe there are more, but they don’t seem to exist. What’ya think folks? Is it possible? ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/362 "2014-05-03T05:08:27Z")
It couldn’t possibly be Johnny Carson. He has a short, small, somewhat pointy nose, and MM has a rounder and much more prominent nose. ETA - Here’s a picture of Hans Conried with a slight smile. It’s not inconsistent with MM’s smile. [![](https://www.otrcat.com/z/hans_conried.jpg) ](https://www.otrcat.com/z/hans_conried.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/363 "2014-05-03T05:13:09Z")
> [@randompattern](#): > > Is it possible, just maybe, that MM is Johnny caught at an odd angle in the middle of turning his head? > Maybe he’s sitting in that chair rather than behind the desk so they can all fit in the picture. > This pic from Sept 1970 looks pretty good as far as hair, ear, jawline, etc. > [Photo Storage](http://s1369.photobucket.com/user/pablo628/media/120702_johnny_carson_1970_ap_328_605_zpsebc3e2b2.jpg.html?sort=3&o=0) > > I’m wondering if they were getting ready to do a publicity photo and maybe someone cracked a joke as the camera clicked, maybe there are more, but they don’t seem to exist. > > What’ya think folks? Is it possible? Johnny hosted the Emmys from '71 to '74 so maybe they all stopped by his set to hang out. ---
**Author:** ![Wiseguy70005](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b19c9b/32.png) [@Wiseguy70005](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wiseguy70005)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/364 "2014-05-03T05:55:48Z")
> [@crucible](#): > > I don’t know if you will solve the mystery, or not, but I know one of my favorite episodes of Carson came when George Goebel, a sort of unknown comedian at the time, was on with a couple of famous guys, and they were all sitting on the benches. By the time he got done with his one-liner responses to what was being said, everyone but him were rolling around in their seats, laughing their asses off. > > Remember? > > [http://rubytooth.com/link/56711](http://rubytooth.com/link/56711) Is that the one where he says something like he feels like a pair of brown shoes in a roomful of tuxedos? ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/365 "2014-05-03T06:00:32Z")
> [@VernWinterbottom](#): > > No, but on my monitor the white shirts and tables in yours had a very pink cast. D’oh! I’m red-green colourblind, but I thought I’d managed to overcome it. ---
**Author:** ![Wiseguy70005](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b19c9b/32.png) [@Wiseguy70005](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wiseguy70005)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/366 "2014-05-03T06:01:38Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Not only does it not look anything like David Soul, this would have, assuming the photo was taken in 1970, been a few years before he hit it big with _Starsky and Hutch_. He was a co-star of \*Here Come the Brides \*from 1968 to 1970 so he wasn’t exactly unknown. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/367 "2014-05-03T06:07:04Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > I believe he’s British, based on his demeanor. > > Except for the British part and the whole time travel thing, [this](https://www.google.com/search?q=alan+tudyk) is who I think it is. Anyone else see a resemblance? He certainly doesn’t resemble anyone born in 1971. If I absolutely had to guess, I’d say Hans Conried. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/368 "2014-05-03T06:15:15Z")
> [@Wiseguy70005](#): > > Is that the one where he says something like he feels like a pair of brown shoes in a roomful of tuxedos? No, he said that after 2 or 3 superstar guests (probably comedians) who were spectacular. It was, I think, an anniversary show. And anyway, George Gobel was not at all “unknown” at the time. He had had his own successful comedy show for 7 years. ---
**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 3, 2014, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/369 "2014-05-03T06:24:16Z")
I wonder if he’s Michael Zannella, Carson’s talent coordinator. Here’s a blurb from the Sumter Daily Item about Carson broadcasting 13 shows from LA starting Nov. 11, 1970 with most of the people in the photo scheduled to appear. A [full paragraph](http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1979&dat=19701107&id=0oUiAAAAIBAJ&sjid=JKoFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4407,782563) is devoted to Zannella, as though his participation in booking guests for the show was a fairly big deal. Won’t help much if he is though, because there doesn’t seem to be a single photo of him anywhere online. That also is strange because he was apparently an actor and producer in addition to his Tonight Show work, and several articles on Carson show up under his byline. Yet not a photo is to be found anywhere. ---
**Author:** ![randompattern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@randompattern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randompattern)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/370 "2014-05-03T06:52:28Z")
Curiouser and curiouser. ---
**Author:** ![Wiseguy70005](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b19c9b/32.png) [@Wiseguy70005](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wiseguy70005)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 6:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/371 "2014-05-03T06:54:41Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > BTW, the caption includes Ted Bessel, but that doesn’t mean a thing. How would the writer have known who it was? > > At best, he bears a faint resemblance to Bessel. But it ain’t he. Anyway, if it were, wouldn’t he be seated next to Marlo Thomas? :dubious: Well, Marlo’s not sitting next to her father either. ---
**Author:** ![Wiseguy70005](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b19c9b/32.png) [@Wiseguy70005](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wiseguy70005)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 7:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/372 "2014-05-03T07:00:16Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > He certainly doesn’t resemble anyone born in 1971. You mean anyone “alive” in 1971? Someone born in 1971 would only resemble the Gerber baby. ---
**Author:** ![Wiseguy70005](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b19c9b/32.png) [@Wiseguy70005](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wiseguy70005)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/373 "2014-05-03T07:02:45Z")
> [@randompattern](#): > > I tried hunting down Carol Burnett but no dice. What did Carol Burnett ever do to you? ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/374 "2014-05-03T07:45:08Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > I believe he’s British, based on his demeanor. > > Except for the British part and the whole time travel thing, [this](https://www.google.com/search?q=alan+tudyk) is who I think it is. Anyone else see a resemblance? I don’t think he is British. I’m British myself, and remember the early 70s tolerably well. I’m pretty sure that any Briton who could have been a guest Johnny Carson’s show would have been an instantly recognisable household name here in the UK, no matter how obscure he might have been in the US. And I really don’t recognise him. Though as others have said, he does seem maddeningly familiar. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/375 "2014-05-03T07:59:35Z")
In seems irrefutable that the photo is from the November 11,1970 broadcast, and that seems like more than enough to be able to find the answer. Dammit! ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 8:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/376 "2014-05-03T08:20:38Z")
> [@Wiseguy70005](#): > > Well, Marlo’s not sitting next to her father either. That does seem a bit odd, but they would have been honored for separate achievements and probably not introduced in that order. Ted and Marlo, on the other hand, were co-stars of a nominated TV series and likely would have come out together. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 8:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/377 "2014-05-03T08:31:25Z")
Question about Richman’s daughter: All she said was “No, that’s not my father”? On what does she base this belief? Childhood memories? Scrapbook collections? Could she have asked dad himself? My dad was a dead ringer for John Wayne, and if you showed me an anonymous picture of the young Duke, I would be hard pressed to differentiate between the two. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 8:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/378 "2014-05-03T08:37:00Z")
> [@Wiseguy70005](#): > > Is that the one where he says something like he feels like a pair of brown shoes in a roomful of tuxedos? Yes. He looks at Dean Martin and Bob Hope, whom he followed on the show, and says “Did you ever feel like the world was a tuxedo and you were a pair of brown shoes?” Have you watched the clip? :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 8:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/379 "2014-05-03T08:38:57Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > Johnny hosted the Emmys from '71 to '74 so maybe they all stopped by his set to hang out. Maybe they were held at NBC Burbank? :dubious: 😕 ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 8:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321/380 "2014-05-03T08:39:00Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Question about Richman’s daughter: All she said was “No, that’s not my father”? On what does she base this belief? Childhood memories? Scrapbook collections? Could she have asked dad himself? It would seem that he gets asked about this photo regularly, including [this very week](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=17341578#post17341578), so she may be aware of that by now. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321.md?page=18) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/challenge-who-is-the-man-sitting-with-all-the-stars-on-johnny-carson/687321.md?page=20)