Television history for the day

The History Channel has this:

He wasn't merely the biggest thing on television. For three decades, Johnny Carson was television. Amiable. Comforting. Witty. The third host of The Tonight Show (later retitled The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson) was the star who transformed late-night television into the nation's trusted bedtime companion and he still reigns as the standard by which his "descendants" are measured.
Carson was magic. And he loved magic. At twelve, he found a book on magic at a friend's house, bought a mail-order magic kit and soon was performing for three dollars an appearance. He never really stopped performing, even in the Navy, where his magician's skills once entertained the Secretary of the Navy.
His easy manner helped him succeed in radio and daytime television, so much so that NBC wooed him away from ABC, then waited six months for his contract to expire so he could occupy The Tonight Show seat (photo) left by Jack Paar, taking over on 1 October 1962.
Almost thirty years—and 4,531 shows—later, on 13 May 1992, Carson signed off: "And so it has come to this," he said at the end of the last telecast. "I am one of the lucky people in the world; I found something I always wanted to do, and I have enjoyed every minute of it...."