Plot
George Burns/Rodney Dangerfield/Michael Constantine/Shana Alexander
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
- Johnny forecasts the Carter administration. George Burns (The George Burns Special (1976), book "Living It Up"); Rodney Dangerfield performs stand-up; Michael Constantine (Sirota's Court (1976)); Shana Alexander (60 Minutes (1968), book "Talking Woman").
- In the comedy segment, Johnny reads psychics' predictions for the Carter administration from the National Enquirer; he then presents his own predictions for the incoming administration. George Burns talks about his TV special, on which Johnny appears. They also talk about his autobiography "Living It Up" and his philosophy that he doesn't believe in aging, because he's now too old for it. He describes his average day and talks fondly about Groucho Marx, who he says is probably three of the top five living comedians; Burns recalls a joke by Groucho that involved a 15-year set-up. He then talks about the film he is making with John Denver ("Oh, God!"), in which he plays God. Johnny shows still photos from Burns' early career; Burns tells a few stories from the photos. He then sings a couple of songs that will be heard on the special, including "Red Rose Rag" and a song by Marvin Hamlisch and Tim Rice. Rodney Dangerfield does a stand-up comedy routine, and has a brief interview in which he continues with more jokes. Michael Constantine talks about his new show "Sirota's Court". Asked what he would have done instead of acting, Constantine says he would be a bum because he hated every previous job he ever had. He decided he liked entertainment and thus decided to learn acting, not really knowing anything about how to go about it and having only vaguely heard of Broadway. He worked in small off-Broadway productions for free for six years, earning money working as a burger stand counterman and as a barker in a Manhattan shooting gallery that used Tommy guns instead of rifles. A clip from his sitcom is shown. Shana Alexander talks about her book "Talking Woman", and the difficulties of being a writer and how deadlines motivate her. She then discusses her father, who was a well-known Tin Pan Alley songwriter whose compositions include "Happy Days Are Here Again"; "Ain't She Sweet" was written about Shana on the day she was born. She also discusses her idea that some arguing can be good for a marriage. Finally she describes doing "Point/Counterpoint" on "60 Minutes".—lenab9011
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