10 guests who were banned from The Tonight Show (and why)

For decades, The Tonight Show has been the standard for all late-night talk shows. Johnny Carson made it an institution, and any star or comedian knew landing a spot would boost their career. They also knew that keeping on Johnny’s good side was vital, as if you crossed him, he’d hit a ban that would harm a career. That was kept up by Jay Leno as being banned from The Tonight Show was a big deal. 

Some supposed “bans” aren’t really true, like Sylvester Stallone. It’s also tricky to see if some stars were banned or just fell out of popularity. However, there are clear-cut cases of bans by Tonight Show hosts as these ten celebrities committed some affront to prevent themselves from sitting on that famous couch. 

Joan Rivers

For years, Joan Rivers and Carson were good friends, and it was a fun partnership. Rivers guest-hosted The Tonight Show a few times and cited her appearances as a key to her stardom. But in 1986, Rivers decided to accept an offer from Fox for her own late-night talk show. She made the huge mistake of not talking to Carson first, so when word of the deal leaked, he didn’t take it well. 

Carson not only banned Rivers from his own show but made it clear that anyone who appeared on her show could forget ever being on the Tonight Show. That limited the guests Rivers could book with her tenure as host ending in about a year before the show was eventually changed to Arsenio Hall’s now famous run. Rivers claimed to have extended an olive branch to Carson, but he never spoke to her before his 2005 death, and Joan regretted this wedge between them. 

Rich Little

For a while, Rich Little was a popular face on The Tonight Show, thanks to his master impressions of numerous celebrities. That included Carson with Little nailing the man in various nightclub appearances, awards shows and, yes, The Tonight Show with Carson seemingly enjoying it. Behind the scenes, however, Carson wasn’t happy with Little mocking him so much.

Little’s appearances stopped in 1982 and he claimed in his autobiography he was banned by Carson for it although Carson’s producers claimed it was because Little’s act got boring. Little got the last laugh by appearing as Carson in the HBO movie The Late Shift. 

Bobcat Goldthwait

When someone talks about “being on fire,” they shouldn’t be taking it literally. On the May 9, 1994 episode of The Tonight Show, Bobcat Goldhwait made an appearance. Known for his crazy antics on screen and off, Bobcat went out of his way to live up to that persona. Goldhwait then crossed the line by literally setting his chair on fire on air, with the audience not grasping this wasn’t a planned stunt.

Goldhwait was arrested and fined $2700 (plus the cost of the chair) and barely avoided jail time by doing PSAs on fire safety. Leno did have him make a brief cameo in a bit where he was buried in dirt. However, it’s understandable why producers never wanted Bobcat back. The fictional Larry Sanders Show mocked the whole thing with the talk show trying to get Goldhwait to repeat the stunt for ratings. 

Howard Stern

Howard Stern was pretty friendly to Jay Leno when Leno first got The Tonight Show in 1992. Stern had a memorable appearance on the show that year where he defended Leno against folks slamming him like Ed McMahon. Stern was invited back in 1995, where he showed up with two bikini-clad models, having them kiss each other and some other lewd stuff.

Leno just walked off the stage rather than thank Stern for his appearance and made sure some of the wilder stuff was edited out of the broadcast. That was Stern’s last appearance on the show and he would spend years afterward bad-mouthing Leno. The pair seemed to have made peace with each other, but Stern was just too wild for Leno. 

Kathy Griffin

It might be easier to count the number of talk shows Kathy Griffin hasn’t gotten herself banned from. The red-haired comedian takes pride in how her mouth has gotten her into hot water with scores of people. Griffin is known for going off on tangents with a serious potty mouth, something Jay Leno didn’t want on The Tonight Show. 

Not helping is Griffin was famously banned from Late Show With David Letterman, allowed back, and then proceeded to strip to her underwear on air. Put it all together with her open enjoyment of the backlash and no wonder Griffin could earn so many bans. 

Howie Mandel

Sometimes, someone is banned after one bad appearance. Howie Mandel is different as he was a popular face on The Tonight Show. He marked 21 appearances as he rose up as a comic and one of Carson’s better guests. Appearance 22 was different. Mandel was a last-minute substitute when original guest Sammy Davis Jr. was forced to bow out due to health issues. 

Mandel decided to make the most of it by bringing out a 12-foot saber-tooth tiger prop, which he had problems with. Carson was not happy about the gag, which he knew nothing about, and the segment fell flat. After that, Mandel’s Tonight Show appearances ceased and while he’s had a good career since, he probably wishes he’d skipped this gag.

Dana Carvey

As a breakout star on Saturday Night Live, Dana Carvey got a couple of Tonight Show appearances to promote the show. He and Carson seemed to get along well at first, but, like Rich Little, Carvey’s impressions crossed a line. First, Carson was outraged at an SNL skit of “Carsenio,” where Carvey portrayed Johnny as an Arsenio Hall wannabe, mocking him as old and out of touch. Carvey then did a spin on the impression right to Carson’s face. 

That led to Carson cutting Carvey off, not even letting him do promotion on Tonight Show for the Wayne’s World movie. Carson was nearing the end of his run, so it wasn’t that long a ban yet telling how he spent his last year punishing Carvey for the impression.

Wayne Newton

Carson mocking celebrities was nothing new. Most stars took it as an honor for Carson to poke fun at them. Wayne Newton was a notable exception. For a while, the two got along great, with Newton making thirty Tonight Show appearances and building up his fame. That changed in 1980 when Newton outbid Carson for ownership of the Aladdin Hotel in Las Vegas. 

Carson started skewering Newton in his monologues while his invitations to the show ceased. Carson’s jokes took on not just Newton’s appearance but even hinted at Mafia ties, which caused a lawsuit. Newton actually went to Carson’s offices to deliver a warning to knock it off or else. Carson cut down on the jokes but never invited Newton back as their friendship was ruined. 

Lola Falana

At one point, Lola Falana was one of the biggest music stars around. After rising up as a singer on shows like Carson, she landed a regular gig in Las Vegas and soon “The Queen of Vegas” with sold-out performances. However, when on The Tonight Show to promote the gig, Falana spoke frankly on her views of race and open bigotry, which took Carson off guard.

There was also how Falana’s Vegas engagement happened to be at the Aladdin, so she got drawn into the Carson-Newton conflict. Thus, Falana’s Tonight Show appearances ended, although she kept up as a Vegas headliner for a while. 

Artie Lange

Conan O’Brien’s Tonight Show run may have lasted only seven months but he still managed to get a ban in that time. It was Artie Lange, who made a name as a comic and sidekick for Howard Stern. Lange had made several appearances on Conan’s previous show, with his addiction issues becoming more and more obvious. So much so that when Conan took over The Tonight Show, he refused to let Lange on until he got himself cleaned up. 

As it happened, the message got through. Lange would later make appearances on Conan’s TBS show to say he bore no grudge and thank Conan for the help in getting him sober. Thus, this ban ended up being a good thing for Lange.