He was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in After the war he started a career in radio, then moved to television and took over as host of the late-night talk show Tonight from Jack Paar in Carson remained an American cultural icon even after his retirement in He adopted a casual, conversational approach with extensive interaction with guests, an approach pioneered by Arthur Godfrey and previous Tonight Show hosts Paar and Steve Allen but enhanced by Carson's lightning-quick wit.
Former late-night host and friend David Letterman , as well as many others, has cited Carson's influence. There, Carson grew up and began developing his talent for entertaining. At age 12 he found a book on magic at a friend's house and immediately purchased a mail-order magician's kit. After purchasing the kit, Carson practiced his entertainment skills on family members with card tricks. He was known for following his family members around saying, "Pick a card, any card.
After graduating from high school, Carson hitchhiked to Hollywood , California. While in the Navy, Carson posted a 15β amateur boxing record, with most of his bouts fought on board Pennsylvania. Carson later said that the high point of his military career was performing a magic trick for U. Secretary of the Navy James V. In a conversation with Forrestal, the Secretary asked Carson if he planned to stay in the Navy after the war.
Forrestal asked him to perform, and Carson responded with a card trick. One of his routines involved interviewing pigeons on the roof of the local courthouse that would report on the political corruption they had seen. Carson supplemented his income by serving as master of ceremonies at local church dinnersβattended by some of the same politicians and civic leaders he had lampooned on the radio. The wife of one of the Omaha political figures that Carson spoofed owned stock in a radio station in Los Angeles , and in referred Carson to her brother, who was influential in the emerging television market in Southern California.
The following year, Skelton accidentally knocked himself unconscious during rehearsal, an hour before his live show began. Carson successfully filled in for him. Carson imitated Benny and claimed that Benny had copied his gestures. Benny predicted that Carson, who readily admitted Benny's substantial influence on aspects of his comedic delivery, would have a successful career as a comedian.
