No.124 "about the idea of, you know, me hosting, you know,
a primetime news show.
As you know, late night is very similar,
in terms of the 'A' of the people
who've dominated late night, you know, since the 1950s.
You know, Johnny Carson, of course,
being the guy who made late night into late night,
-Yeah. -created this incredible platform
that you, you know, are blessed to continue
and that we're thankful that you're continuing, so.
But you also know that the platform
has generally been about a breath, right?
It's like Walter Cronkite at 6:00 and then, a deep breath
-Yeah! -for late night, when you can just chill.
-Yeah. -Right? And that's what it was.
But Johnny had an ethos.
Johnny, he was a little, you know,
he was a little bit of a social 'B', a little bit.
He was like, ""I'm a little 'B' with this.
I'm gonna do something big.""
He took this platform and he gave it to the first Black man
to ever host in late night,
and that Black man is Harry Belafonte.
February 1968, middle part of the civil rights movement.
You know, violence and riots had been going on
over police killings and abuse of Black people.
It was a really difficult time in America.
You know, Johnny Carson hands this week over
to Harry Belafonte and he says, ""Do whatever you want with it.""
And Harry says, ""You know what I'm gonna do with it?
I'm gonna go big.
Yes, I'm gonna have on Aretha Franklin,
Buffy Sainte-Marie, like great entertainers.
But I'm also gonna have on my political friends,""
political people, and he had on the two biggest,
in terms of social gospel --
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
-I've seen it. -and Robert F. Kennedy.
And he does the last --
the interviews, especially with Dr. King,
I think this was his last recorded interview.
-It's a great documentary.
It's called ""The Sit-In.""
It's on Peacock currently"

🖊

☑️

⭕️

[[ AnswerCalc[0] ]] %

A

[[ AnswerCalc[1] ]]

[[ d.CommentTxt ]]

🏠 >   JimmyFallon >