U.S. Late Night TV Hosts Trivia Quiz

Answer: Johnny Carson

All listed hosted the show at one time or another, but it was Carson who became synonymous with late night television. Carson started as a radio comedian in Omaha, Nebraska in the early 1950s. He had his own variety show in the 1950s called "The Johnny Carson Show" which was not very successful.

He then became a game show panelist, and ultimately in 1957 was given his own game show called "Who Do You Trust" which lasted for five years. In 1960 he was being considered for the role of Rob Petrie in a Carl Reiner TV pilot.

The job was ultimately given to Dick Van Dyke, and Carson continued his game show until 1962. Carson was offered, and accepted "The Tonight Show" job after the former host quit the show. Carson taped the show in New York until 1972, when the show moved to California. Carson was given credit for launching the careers of dozens of comedians and new talents on his show.

He retired from television in 1992, and retired from public life as well, rarely appearing on television, and almost never giving interviews. Carson passed away in 2005.

Answer: Jay Leno

Leno picked up where Johnny Carson left off. He took the reins and has been out front of "The Tonight Show" since Carson's departure. He was scheduled to leave the show in May 2009, to become the host of his own show in prime time. Leno was born in New Rochelle, New York in 1950, just about the time that Carson was breaking into radio as a comedian. Leno became a stand-up comedian and reportedly said when his was growing up, that someday he would take over Johnny Carson's job. During the 1980s Leno had some small parts in some mostly unsuccessful movies, the exception to which would be a part in "American Hot Wax" which was the story of pioneering rock and roll disc jockey Alan Freed.

However, he has had success as a comedian, and continued to perform his stand up act, even as he hosted "The Tonight Show".

Answer: Jack Paar

Paar was another host that came to television via radio. Paar grew up in the Midwest (Ohio and Michigan) and became a radio announcer after leaving school. He tried motion pictures, but had little success, except for a starring role opposite Marilyn Monroe in the 1951 film "The Love Nest".

He did well as a radio game show host. He hosted "The 64,000 Question", and then moved to television, with appearances on "The Ed Sullivan Show", and two game shows, "Up To Parr", and "Bank On The Stars". Eventually he caught the attention of NBC who offered him the job on "The Tonight Show".

The format of interviewing guests who were promoting their latest film, song, or book, was what caught the attention of the public, and made the show so successful. Over his five year run, Paar battled censors and politicians, offended celebrities, and after his five year run, the grind became too much for him, and he quit the show in 1962.

Although Parr made occasional guest appearances on other talk shows, and even returned to television briefly in 1973, his run on "The Tonight Show" was the highlight of his career.

He passed away in 2004.

Answer: Steve Allen

Allen, born in New York City in 1921, got his start in radio, and was a radio personality in the Los Angeles area in the late 1940s and early 1950s. He also became the guest host of "Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts" which was similar to what "American Idol" is today.

He gained national exposure as a comedian, and was hired by NBC. He is credited with creating the idea for "The Tonight Show". Ironically, one of Allen's recurring guests was Johnny Carson, who would himself host the show in the future. Allen is credited with helping the careers of a myriad of performers of the era, such as the husband and wife singing team of Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme, Sammy Davis Jr., comedians Pat Harrington, Don Knotts, Louis Nye, and Bill Dana, just to name a few.

He also wrote over 10,000 songs, his biggest two being "Lets Go To Church Next Sunday" which was recorded by both Perry Como and Margaret Whiting, and "This Could Be The Start Of Something Big". Allen also authored over 50 books. Allen passed away in 2000.

Answer: Joey Bishop

Bishop started as a stand up comedian, born in the Bronx, New York in 1918. He started as part of a stand up comedy act with his brother and appeared many times on the Jack Paar and Steve Allen versions of "The Tonight Show". He was a frequent guest host, and starred in a successful situation comedy called "The Joey Bishop Show" from 1961 through 1965 where he portrayed, of all things, a talk-show host.

He got his own talk show in 1967 and that lasted until 1969 as a competitor to Johnny Carson's "Tonight Show".

The format was very similar and of course he had a co-host, as did Carson. Carson's was Ed McMahon. Bishop chose a relative newcomer to television at the time, a guy named Regis Philbin. Bishop was the last surviving member of the so-called "Rat Pack" which included Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Peter Lawford, and Sammy Davis Jr, as well as Bishop, who passed away in 2007.

Answer: Dick Cavett

Cavett was born in the Midwest (Nebraska), and grew up with dreams of being a magician. His first paying entertainment job was as a magician, making $35 a night in the early 1950s. He attended Yale University and became interested in drama. After graduation he was able to secure some bit parts in films but with little success.

He gave some written material to Jack Paar for use on "The Tonight Show" after reading an article about Paar's need for new material for his opening monologue, and this led to his being given a job as a talent co-ordinate and writer for the show.

He continued this after the change to Johnny Carson. Cavett began his own late night show in 1969, as a competitor to Carson. He was more flexible with his guest list, and with his slick interviewing style was often able to showcase people who were out of the mainstream entertainment field.

He frequently had authors, politicians, and musicians on the show. in 1969, he did a show featuring acts from "Woodstock" including performances by Joni Mitchell, David Crosby and Stephen Stills, Jefferson Airplane, with some of the performers coming directly from the concert. Also appearing in subsequent shows were the likes of Salvador Dali, Lester Maddox, Jimi Hendrix, Groucho Marx, Timothy Leary, Angela Davis and Norman Mailer, just to name a few.

His show ran until 1975, and although he has had others, this is probably his most well known.

Answer: Merv Griffin

Griffin, born in California in 1925, started out as a radio singer in the 1940s. He was discovered by actress Doris Day during one of his night club performances, and eventually went on to appear in a number of motion pictures. He turned his attention to television in the early 1960s, as a producer.

He produced such game shows as "Play Your Hunch', "Reach For The Stars", and a television version of "Monopoly". Griffin eventually was give a shot at a talk show which aired at various times throughout the day, depending on where in the U.S. you lived.

He often had controversial guests, and covered a number of subjects that were considered off-limits at the time. The Vietnam War was covered, much to the dismay of the network. However, in 1969, he was given his shot at late night, to compete with both Johnny Carson, and Dick Cavett, who were on rival networks.

The show only lasted a little over a year in the late night format, with Griffin doing constant battle over censorship of his guests and topics. Thank goodness for him that he had come up with the idea for a game show with questions and answers in 1964.

The game was "Jeopardy!" Griffin also came up with "Wheel Of Fortune" in the 1970s. In his later years, Griffin became a real-estate mogul, purchasing a number of hotels, and properties. Griffin passed away in 2007.

Answer: Arsenio Hall

Arsenio had a successful career going on as a comedian and actor. He had made a number of movies with his good friend Eddie Murphy. "Coming To America" and "Harlem Nights" were two of them. In 1989 he was tapped to host the FOX Network's "Arsenio Hall Show" which was a replacement of another late night entry which was canceled during the prior year.

The show was targeted to both a younger, and more urban audience than any of the other rivals on television at the time and it met with great success. Part of the show had Arsenio leading the audience in a "Woof, Woof Woof" type chant while rolling their fists in the air if they approved of something, in place of applause.

This allegedly came from seeing this done at a Cleveland Browns football game and a group of fans called "The Dog Pound". Stars such as Eddie Murphy and Andrew Dice Clay appeared, as well as his most famous guest, former President Bill Clinton, who made a 1992 appearance, and actually performed with his saxophone on the show. Of course, the show was not without controversy. An appearance by Nation Of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan sparked wild debate and anger, and according to Hall, turned off viewers, sponsors, and even some network affiliates, resulting in a downturn in ratings and an eventual cancellation of the show in 1994.

Answer: Joan Rivers

Rivers was a well known comedienne who had been around for many years. She was named permanent guest host of "The Tonight Show" in the early 1980s and would sub for Johnny Carson whenever he was away, as per her contract. Joan had an opportunity to host her own show on the new FOX network in 1986.

She took the job, much to the dismay of Carson, who banned her from his show, and it created a rift that was never healed, all the way to Carson's death in 2005. Rivers show was a dismal failure, and Rivers left the show in 1987.

Some temporary hosts were tried on the show, but it was not until 1989 when Arsenio Hall took over that the show became successful. Rivers has recovered from her failed effort, and has subsequently become a successful radio host, as well as a host for cable television's "TV Guide" channel.

Answer: Jimmy Kimmel

Jimmy was born in Brooklyn, but spent his teen years growing up in Las Vegas. He began in radio while still in high school, and traveled around to various jobs as a sportscaster/comedian. His break came in 1997 when he was signed by cable television channel, "Comedy Central" to host "Ben Stein's Money", a comedic quiz show featuring Ben Stein, who was an political commentator and speechwriter for former Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, as well as an actor (see "Ferris Bueller's Day Off"). Kimmel hosted this show for three years, as well as another Comedy Central entry called "The Man Show", and also "Crank Yankers". Kimmel left Comedy Central to host "Jimmy Kimmel Live" which debuted in January 2003.

While it was similar in format to "The Tonight Show" it generally drew younger audiences.

The show still airs as of January 2009.

Answer: Tom Snyder

Tom Snyder was a newscaster who had worked in various venues around the country including New York, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Philadelphia and Los Angeles, before hosting "The Tomorrow Show" from 1973 through 1982. Snyder's unique interview style and propensity for getting controversial and interesting guests made the show the success that it was.

Some highlights of the show include John Lennon's last televised interview, author Sterling Hayden, philosopher Ayn Rand, the band Kiss, and the first American television appearances by the band U2, and "Weird Al Yankovic". Snyder reprised the role in 1995, with "The Late Late Show" which he piloted until 1999. Snyder passed away in 2007.

Answer: Alan Thicke

Thicke had already some experience with a successful talk show in his native Canada, and was signed by MGM Productions to enter the late night TV market in the U.S. via syndication. Amid a world of hype, the show debuted in the fall of 1983, and was destroyed by the critics.

Although many talented personalities appeared on the show, Thicke could not approach the ratings of Johnny Carson's "Tonight Show" and the show was canceled after one season. Thicke did hang around though and one year later became a major television personality in the U.S. with the debut of the sitcom "Growing Pains".

Answer: Bob Costas

Costas hosted "Later" which was the final late night talk show of the viewing day. He hosted the show between 1988 and 1994. In a total departure from his work with NBC Sports, "Later" was a half-hour interview show typically with one guest. The guest was almost never an athlete, but more often a celebrity or newsmaker. Costas left the show after the 1994 season to concentrate on his sports ventures with NBC. Costas has worked for NBC Sports since 1980 and has covered events in every major sports, as well as the Olympics.

He has also worked for ESPN, and spent time as a guest host for the news program "Larry King Live", on CNN.

Answer: Conan O'Brien

O'Brien, is a Massachusetts native, and a Harvard graduate. He moved to Los Angeles after college, and got a writing job on HBO's show "Not Necessarily The News". In 1988 he was hired as a writer for "Saturday Night Live", and in 1991, became a writer for "The Simpsons". On the advice of "Saturday Night Live" producer Lorne Michaels, O'Brien tried out for the vacant host's spot on "Late Night", and he got the job.

The show was considered weak for the first couple of years, but since the ratings at that time of night carried less weight than prime time, the show stayed on the air. Conan's show and writing improved, and the show began to get a following.

He has gone on to more late night hosting heights.

Answer: David Letterman

Letterman, who is from Indiana, began as a weatherman in Indianapolis. After a short stint as a daytime talk show host in 1980, he was given a try in the late, late night slot following Johnny Carson's "Tonight Show" in 1982. He stayed with NBC for eleven years, and built a tremendous following, so much that the network refused to change his time slot to a more favorable hour. Letterman was offered a contract by rival network CBS, to host a late night show at 11:30 pm EST to compete against "The Tonight Show".

He accepted the offer and although Jay Leno's "Tonight Show" still had better rating, Letterman held his own and the two shows were neck and neck for a number of years, with each star having a very loyal following. Many of the features that Letterman began on his NBC show carried over to his new show, such as "Stupid Pet Tricks" and the famous "Top 10 Lists". Letterman had heart surgery in 2000, but his career and show are still going strong as of 2009.