February 6, 2011
The Eras of Late Night Memory Test
I’m fairly good at associating the U.S. presidents of my lifetime with the decades in which they were in office. But, I find myself unhinged in time when it comes to the late night talkshow hosts. I am constantly surprised upon hearing, say, how long Leno has been on.
You too? Let’s find out. Here’s a quiz. (All answers authenticated by the experts at Wikipedia.)
Year Steve Allen started The Tonight Show.
Year Jack Paar took over.
Start and end years of Johnny Carson’s hosting of The Tonight Show.
When did Carson move the show from NY to Hollywood?.
What year did the Tomorrow Show (which came on after the Tonight Show) start?
During what years did the Dick Cavett Show run on ABC as a late night show?
What year did Late Night with Letterman start?
Whom did Letterman replace? That is, who had been the host of the Tomorrow Show?
Who was host of The Tonight Show during most of the years that The Arsenio Hall Show was on?
Who was President during the year that Jay Leno first took over The Tonight Show?
When did Conan O’Brien take over Letterman’s Late Night?
What year did Jimmy Kimmel’s late night show begin?
Extra Credit
What road served as a bizarre euphemism for “penis,” expressing a ritualized fear of castration, on Carson’s Tonight Show ?
What object did Ed Ames accidentally turn into a surrogate penis, resulting in the longest laugh in Tonight Show history?
Do we sense a disturbingly Freudian pattern here?
Who played the non-endearing but frequent guest on the Tonight Show who went by the name “Aunt Blabby”?
What game show host had a late night talk show on a major network for a season?
What did Merv Griffin create that is probably known by the most people?
Name the funniest sidekick on any late night talk show?
Have you ever seen a complete episode of Jimmy Kimmel’s late night show?
