\u201cTell me the last time Jack Benny, Red Skelton \u2014 any comedian \u2014 used his show to do serious issues?\u201d Carson said, referencing two of the more famous comedians of the previous generation. \u201cThat\u2019s not what I\u2019m there for. Can\u2019t they see that?<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy do you think just because you have \u2018The Tonight Show\u2019 you must deal in serious issues? That\u2019s a danger. It\u2019s a real danger. Once you start that, you start to get that self-important feeling that what you say has great import. And you know, strangely enough, you could use that show as a forum. You could sway people, and I don\u2019t think you should as an entertainer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Since Carson was the most influential comedian and live performer of his era, that philosophy was embraced by seemingly every comic who sought his approval, and the chance to sit in the chair next to his desk. Until they didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
Today, anything that was is no more, including entertainment\u2019s take on an array of current events, or political issues. Since Donald Trump started to campaign for the presidency in 2015, political commentary wrapped in humor has become nearly cliche.<\/p>\n
Kathleen Madigan agrees with Johnny Carson<\/p>\n
While the material is sought after and enjoyed by a large enough audience to justify its practice, others reject it as a business decision. Because while it may be funny, the potential backlash and anger from those who don\u2019t like it is not worth it.<\/p>\n
\u201cI agree with [Carson], for me. Jay Leno said the same thing as well, echoing Carson,\u201d comedian Kathleen Madigan said in an interview with the Star-Telegram.<\/p>\n
Madigan is scheduled to perform at 7 p.m. Saturday at Will Rogers Auditorium in Fort Worth.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor what I do, I agree with that sentiment,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s weird, I used to do [Barack] Obama jokes because he was just so boring. In this current climate? I am not going near it.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2025, CBS announced that it was canceling its \u201cThe Late Show with Stephen Colbert,\u201d<\/a> with a targeted ending in May this year. The network said it was ending the franchise over financial concerns, even though Colbert holds the top-rated show for his time slot.<\/p>\n Critics of the decision said the move was a result of Paramount, which owns CBS, agreeing to a $16 million settlement<\/a> with Trump; the president had sued Paramount over what he claimed was \u201cdeceptive editing\u201d during an episode of \u201c60 Minutes\u201d with former presidential candidate Kamala Harris.<\/p>\n Colbert<\/a> has been one of Trump\u2019s biggest critics, and on his show, he described the move to end the program as a \u201cbig fat bribe.\u201d<\/p>\n Jimmy Kimmel controversy<\/p>\n For five days in September, another one of Trump\u2019s biggest critics in comedy, ABC late night show host Jimmy Kimmel, was suspended by the network<\/a> after he made comments about the murder of conservative podcaster Charlie Kirk. The suspension came after Brendan Carr, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, threatened action against ABC\u2019s parent company, Disney.<\/p>\n It actually served to unify elected officials of both major parties to agree that this move was a threat to free speech, and Disney ended the suspension<\/a>.<\/p>\n Few comedians can create this sort of attention, but for those who are on the road, grinding away and writing material to make a living, the threat of alienating their customers with political content isn\u2019t worth the easy grab.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople go to shows to escape all of that,\u201d Madigan said. \u201cI was never a political comedian to begin with. Maybe I had three or four jokes about [former Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney], but only because he was so boring.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s all so heated now. There is no reason to go to that fire. There are the TV hosts who go too one-sided, and it becomes an echo chamber. If it\u2019s too one-sided, you are alienating one side of your audience.\u201d<\/p>\n Johnny Carson\u2019s last show was May 22, 1992, and his retirement triggered an evolution in the approach to comedy, which today is a calculated business decision that some performers believe is awful for their careers.<\/p>\n Mac Engel<\/a><\/p>\n Fort Worth Star-Telegram<\/p>\n Mac Engel is an award-winning columnist who has covered sports since the dawn of man; Cowboys, TCU, Stars, Rangers, Mavericks, etc. Olympics. Movies. Concerts. Books. He combines dry wit with 1st-person reporting to complement an annoying personality.
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