There is a new book out called, LOVE JOHNNY CARSON, by Mark Malkhoff, with David Ritz. The book includes many wonderful stories about Carson's career and as host of the Tonight Show. One of the more scandalous things in the book is the Carson Hit List. This was a list of guests that were essentially banned from appearing on the Tonight Show.
Among the guests was film producer, director, Hollywood icon, and part time magician, Orson Welles. Apparently, Johnny was a huge fan of the director and had him on many times. But the episode that got him banned was when Welles told Johnny he was going to do some of his mentalism on the show. Now, for those unaware, this became a regular thing for Orson Welles in later years. It seemed every talk show he went on, he did some sort of mentalism. I saw him do some very unusual effects on TV over the years. In his book, The Inventive Magician's Handbook, Judge Gary Brown starts with a story about one of Orson's appearances on DINAH!, which was the Dinah Shore Talk Show. He did a spectacular effect on that show. I'd seen him on Mike Douglas and Merv Griffin do magic as well.
So he is on the Tonight Show and gets two guests out of the audience to participate in the pseudo mind reading demonstration. It failed. This wouldn't be the first time for Welles. But it sure was the first time with Johnny Carson. Is that what got him banned? Not exactly.
The ban came about when Johnny learned the two spectators from the audience were plants, or stooges, put there by Welles. Yet still they screwed up the trick. Johnny was said to be furious at Welles, not for screwing up the trick but for being dishonest. In his view, magicians should never use stooges, it was just inexcusable, Mark Malkhoff relayed in his book.
