Jack Paar, host of NBC's The Tonight Show, walks off the program to protest censorship on this day in 1960. NBC had recently started taping the show, rather than airing it live, and censors now had the power to edit segments. Infuriated when censors cut a joke about a "water closet," claiming it was in poor taste, Paar stormed off the set in tears and did not return to the show for a month.
Paar, a young game show and talk show host and comedian, had joined The Tonight Show as host in 1957 after Steve Allen retired from the popular late-night program. The witty but often emotional Paar was a master of the interview, as well as comic sketches. Regulars on his show included Hugh Downs, bandleader Jose Melis, Tedi Thurman, and Dody Goodman. Florence Henderson, Betty White, and Buddy Hackett also appeared frequently. The mostly humorous show also included serious moments: Paar railed against the Cuban dictatorship under Fulgencio Batista and praised Fidel Castro's revolution, trying to arrange a trade of tractors for prisoners from the Bay of Pigs invasion. He also did some telecasts from the Berlin Wall.
Paar later fought with Ed Sullivan, whose rival show aired on CBS, about the amount of money that guest stars were paid (Paar's guests received $320, while Sullivan's were paid thousands of dollars). Paar left The Tonight Show for good in 1962, and the show was hosted by a series of substitutes until Johnny Carson took over later that year. Carson's 30-year reign became the longest in The Tonight Show's history. Late-night stars Jay Leno and David Letterman vied for his spot when Carson left the show in 1992. Leno ended up in the seat, and Letterman launched The Late Show with David Letterman opposite The Tonight Show the following year.
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