Bad Guests
Johnny often interviewed guests on his talk show and it’s only natural he enjoyed the presence of some guests more than others. He spoke openly about the fact that Bob Hope was one of the guests Carson hated interviewing most. Hope was another TV celebrity, but he was not seen as funny as Carson. Instead of sitting down and having an engaging conversation, Carson said Hope brought in pre-scripted jokes, making Carson’s job rather difficult. Since everything in Hope’s head was scripted, there was nothing for Carson to talk to him about. Carson was an intelligent person who wanted to discuss real-world problems with his guests. He couldn’t do this with Bob Hope.
Bad Guests
Hopeless Situation
Even though Carson didn’t enjoy having Bob Hope on the show, he kept inviting him back on and seemed to regret it each time he did. Carson kept getting angry about Hope not being able to understand the questions he was trying to ask. Hope’s team gave Carson notes for the show that he had to follow meticulously since Bob would study the answers he should say in that exact order. If Carson did anything out of order, it could be embarrassing since Hope might answer a different question. Hope’s age and health were catching up with him, and that was no secret. Johnny wasn’t so sensitive to the topic of aging, however. He once told one of his writers, “If I ever end up like that, guys, I want you to shoot me.”
Hopeless Situation