Johnny Carson hosted different personalities on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson from 1962 to 1992. Among his guests were memorable ones, some of whom Johnny hated having. His least favorite was comedian Bob Hope, who was renowned for his NBC specials.
Johnny did not hold any animosity towards Hope—he actually admired his place in the industry. However, they had different approaches to work. They did not get outside the show either, as Hope started to assume he was superior to Johnny.
Why did Johnny Carson hate hosting Bob Hope?
According to The Tonight Show producer Peter Lasselly’s account in Hope: Entertainer of the Century, Johnny simply underrated his work. Johnny was a natural and preferred to improvise on the spot, and Hope, on the other hand, needed writers to function.
Due to these differences, Johnny and Hope’s sessions were less interesting because they could hardly engage on the go. This annoyed Johnny over time because Hope could only have a pre-planned conversation, and should he ask something outside of that, Hope might go clueless.
Bob Hope made Johnny Carson furious at other times
Aside from having Hope as a guest on his show, Johnny had to deal with him again when Frank Sinatra had them work together at Ronald Reagan’s first inauguration gala. Carson was to headline the event, but Hope thought he could use some lines from him.
Carson felt insulted by Hope’s gesture, especially because he deemed him unoriginal and lazy at comedy. Regardless of Hope’s shortfalls, he raked in numbers for his network, and they gave him the privilege of guest-starring on Johnny’s Tonight Show as he wished. Unfortunately for Johnny, he was stuck with this underwhelming guest as he could not say no to NBC.