Synopses & Reviews
Johnny Carson was a phenomenon, the most successful performer in the history of television. For the better part of three decades, the enormously popular host of "The Tonight Show" was welcomed into millions of American homes -- as a friend, an entertainer, and an inexhaustibly sage and witty commentator on our lives and times. But there was a dark side to this charming and inscrutable enigma that only those closest to Carson ever saw -- a sadness, mistrust, and cruelty behind the glitter and glamour, intensified by a lifelong pursuit of power, wealth, and fame.
Based on more than two years of intensive research including more than 700 personal interviews with ex-wives, ex-friends, colleagues, and celebrities -- with all-new, never-before-published material on Johnny's post-"Tonight Show" life, from his retirement through his final days -- Laurence Learner's King of the Night is an intimate and powerful portrait of an unforgettable personality, at once a tribute and a revelation.
About the Author
Laurence Leamer is the author of thirteen books, including The Kennedy Women and Fantastic: The Life of Arnold Schwarzenegger, with many bestsellers among them. Leamer was on the staff at Newsweek, and has written for The New York Times Magazine, Harper's, Playboy, and many other publications. He lives in Palm Beach and Washington, D.C.