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Created Jun 28, 2012 10:35PM PST • Edited Dec 23, 2014 11:10PM PST

1. Quality

2. Summary

   Great 4.0

   Here’s Johnny – blessedly again – in a documentary that reveals the man behind the curtain and reminds us why we treasured him above all others in front of it. It also suggests that his position as arbiter of pop culture will never exist again. Hundreds of cable channels and the web have seen to that. Thus Johnny Carson: King of Late Night is both time-capsule and delightful reunion with one of the most likable stars ever to be beamed down from Tinseltown.

   If you were up at 11:30 when the Carson Show ran, this two hour doc is a fascinating delight. If you missed it, all will be clear after viewing Johnny Carson: King of Late Night. The Great Carsoni never fails.

4. Acting

   Great 4.0

   Johnny Carson himself is preternaturally assured, always saying the perfect thing … with perfect timing. The panoply of celebrities and wives who talk about him, not so much. Thus things haven’t changed. Johnny effortlessly glides above those around him.

   For instance, his successors are disappointing in describing Johnny’s influence on them. Leno, Letterman and Conan are particular duds. No wonder none rises to Carsonian levels.

   That said, the documentary presents an impressive litany of those in Johnny’s life, famous and not. But hell, let’s focus on the laundry list of celebs, including Muhammad Ali, David Brinkley, Mel Brooks, Drew Carey, Dick Cavett, Ellen DeGeneres, Angie Dickinson, Arsenio Hall, Jerry Seinfeld, Doc Severinsen, and of course, Ed McMahon.

   Of equal interest are the peeks into his childhood, his impossible-to-please Mother, his sons and his WAGs.

   Kevin Spacey does a fine – if invisible – job as the narrator.

5. Male Stars Perfect 5.0

6. Female Stars Very Good 3.5

7. Female Costars Very Good 3.5

8. Male Costars Very Good 3.5

10. Film

    Great 4.0

    The film gets behind the curtain of Carson’s private life, including his lifelong inability to please his Mother, to his life as a loner and to the many, many women he squired.

11. Direction Really Great 4.5

12. Play Great 4.0

13. Music Great 4.0

14. Visuals Great 4.0
15. Content

16. Edge

    Tame 1.5

17. Sex Titillating 1.6

18. Violence Gentle 1.0

19. Rudeness Salty 1.8

21. Reality

    Natural 1.0

    Damn, he was good, perhaps the best comeback comedian ever. Several of his impromptu rejoinders are truly hilarious. He was also unique in being even more likable when his jokes weren’t working, as often happened during his monologues. None of his successors are in the same league, even if Jay is a better stand-up and Dave a smarter comedian.

    The documentary also reminds us how much Carson loved to laugh and therefore wanted his guests to be the stars of the show (another quality his successors lack). It’s a treat to see him doubled over in laughter while being entertained by Richard Pryor or Jerry Seinfeld or Leno.

22. Circumstantial Natural 1.0

23. Biological Natural 1.0

24. Physical Natural 1.0