Merv Griffin and Johnny Carson Were Once Pitted Against Each Other. Here's How They Worked Past Their Feud

The late night hosts started on equal footing, but didn't stay there

NEED TO KNOW

• Merv Griffin and Johnny Carson were pitted against each other early in their late-night careers
• Griffin had a background in acting, while Carson’s was in game shows
• Griffin biographer Steve Randisi appeared on Nostalgia Tonight with Joe Sibilia, telling the host about how the dynamic between the two evolved from tension to mutual respect

Merv Griffin and Johnny Carson had a more contentious relationship than most realize.

In an interview on Nostalgia Tonight with Joe Sibilia, Griffin biographer Steve Randisi talks about how a rivalry between the two was created after each had a talk show launch on NBC on October 1, 1962, with the two even sharing the same studio.

"It began, believe it or not, in 1962, when they were both starting their respective talk show careers on NBC. What happened was they were working for the same company, and they on the same network… they were using the same studio, but there was this competition for getting the big-name guests," Randisi explained.

Griffin was established in Hollywood from his own acting career and had existing relationships with some of the biggest names of the day, while Carson had a different background, coming from game show hosting.

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“In 1962, Johnny Carson did not have the status, the stature that he would have a few years later when he became the king of late night, and rightly so. So they were fighting over guests," he noted.

One guest who intensified the discord between the two was comedian George Carlin, who was under contract with Griffin but wanted to appear on The Tonight Show as its success grew.

“George Carlin had a contract with Griffin and he wanted to go on The Tonight Show, and Merv said, ‘No, you can’t do that. We have a contract with you,' " Randisi said, noting that unions got involved in the tension there.

There was another incident where, during one Tonight Show broadcast, comedian Mickey Shaughnessy mentioned Griffin’s name, which was bleeped out by Carson's production team.

"That didn't sit too well with Merv," Randisi shared. "[Griffin felt like], 'We're talk show hosts on the same network, and you bleep my name out of the show, like it's a dirty word?' "

The same network piece changed in 1969, when Griffin's show moved to CBS. Now, the tension wasn't just between two hosts, but two networks. The energy lasted for some time, but as Carson and Griffin both got older, their fervor for conflict faded.

"When you got into the late ’70s and ’80s, and these guys… they're much older now, they don't have anything to prove anymore. They don't have to fight over guests, they certainly didn't have to fight over money and a friendship evolved.”

The Merv Griffin Show came to an end in Sept. 1986. The same night the final show aired, Carson invited Griffin onto The Tonight Show, marking Griffin's first appearance on the show since 1962. Carson would welcome Griffin back twice more before his own retirement in 1992.

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