Review of "Carson: The Unauthorized Biography," by Paul Corkery

Review of

Carson: The Unauthorized Biography, by Paul Corkery ISBN 0942101006

Five out of five stars

Public image explained, private life revealed

 No person has dominated the American entertainment scene like Johnny Carson did. He projected a Midwestern everyman image when in front of the camera while having major difficulties in his personal life. As Corkery and others point out, specifically his good buddy Ed McMahon, Carson was basically a shy person. He was very uncomfortable within groups of people, especially at parties where he was expected to be actively involved.

 Born in Iowa and raised in a small town in Nebraska, Carson was the very definition of a self-made man. While he did have a few lucky breaks in his rise to the top, his success was largely due to his efforts. His personal life was full of difficulties, with multiple marriages and very high profile and expensive divorces.

 Corkery does an excellent job in describing Carson’s success and how good he was at what he did. Corkery also explains the fundamental dichotomy between marriage and being the star of a demanding television show. One of Carson’s ex-wives states that if Carson had been as driven to his marriage as he was to his show, then he would have not had the marital difficulties that he experienced. Of course, had he followed that path, he would not have been Johnny Carson, the television star.

 One of the most interesting points made is the reference to Carson’s wife revealing some of his business pursuits to others that made a profit in buying and selling stock. That wife and her cohorts were eventually charged with insider trading.

 Like all people that rise to a high level of success and wealth, Johnny Carson was a complicated person. To some he was a nasty man that held deep grudges, yet to others he was a man that went out of his way to express simple kindness. This book illuminates both sides and explains how he made it to the top and managed to stay there for long. He hosted over 4,500 episodes of the Tonight Show, beating all the competition hands down until he retired.