Television Talk

Bernard M. Timberg is Associate Professor of Communication Arts at Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, North Carolina.

"Bernard Timberg's work on talk shows reminds us all of how intimately we have been connected to this delightfully complicated form of television. It is difficult to imagine America in the twenty-first century without the talk show, and now it is difficult to imagine the talk show without Timberg's rich historical perspective." - Horace Newcomb, editor of Encyclopedia of Television

• Introduction by Horace Newcomb1. History of Television Talk: Defining a Genre IntroductionUnspoken RulesHistoryThree Major SubgenresCyclesStar HostsTalk Worlds2. The First Cycle (1948-1962): Experimentation, Consolidation, and Network Control-CBS Introduction to the First CycleFounders at CBS: Murrow and Godfrey Close-up: "The Case of Milo Radulovich," See It Now, October 20, 19533. The First Cycle: Experimentation, Consolidation, and Network Control-NBC and DuMont Sylvester "Pat" Weaver: NBC's Executive Visionary of Television Talk (1949-1955)Dave Garroway (1952-1961)Arlene Francis and Home (1954-1957) Close-up: Arlene Francis' Last Home Show, August 9, 1957, NBCSteve Allen, Jack Paar, and Tonight! Founding Traditions of Late-Night Entertainment Talk (1954-1962) Close-up: Jack Paar's Walk Off the Set of The Tonight Show, February 1960Mike Wallace: The Grand Inquisitor of Television Talk (1956-1958)Conclusion4. The Second Cycle (1962-1974): Network Consolidation and New Challenges IntroductionJohnny Carson and The Tonight Show (1962-1967)Mike Wallace: "The Grand Inquisitor" Returns (1962-1967)Barbara Walters: The "Tender Trap" (1962-1967)Challenges to Network Domination (1969-1974)Phil Donahue (1967-1974)5. Competitive Ferment in the Late Second Cycle: The Late-Night Talk-Show Wars (1967-1974) IntroductionThe Challengers: Bishop, Frost, Griffin, and Cavett Close-up: Norman Mailer vs. Gore Vidal on The Dick Cavett Show, ABC, December 1, 1971Johnny Carson (1967-1974)Conclusion6. The Third Cycle (1974-1980): Transitions 1974: A Year of ChangeWatergate as National Talk EventNew Voices in Syndication: Phil Donahue and Mike DouglasAn Independent Voice: Bill MoyersThe Voices of Women: Barbara Walters and Dinah ShoreBattling from Within: Johnny Carson and NBC (1974-1980) Close-up: Johnny Carson's Tonight: "The Execution Game," A Censored Monologue Routine, January 18, 1977, NBCConclusion: The End of the Network Era7. The Fourth Cycle (1980-1990): The Post-Network Era IntroductionDavid Letterman and the Reinvention of the Late-Night Talk Show Close-up:Late Night with David Letterman"America Held Hostage": The Genesis of ABC's Nightline with Ted Koppel Close-up: News Talk, Entertainment Talk, and the Chernobyl Nuclear Reactor Disaster of 1986New Hosts, New AudiencesJoan Rivers and the Late-Night Talk-Show Wars of 1986-1987Oprah WinfreyGeraldo RiveraArsenio HallNew Consciousness of the Power of TV Talk8. The Fifth Cycle (1990-1995): News as Entertainment IntroductionLeno, Letterman, and the Late-Night Talk-Show Wars (1990-1995)News Talk as Entertainment and Politics: McLaughlin and King (1992-1995)The O. J. Simpson Verdict as a National Talk Event (1995)9. The Fifth Cycle (1996-2000): Trash Talk, Nice Talk, and Blended Talk Ricki Lake and the National "Trash Talk" DebateWhen Words Break Down: Jerry Springer (1991-)Rosie O'Donnell's "Nice Talk" (1996-)New BlendsBill Maher and Politically IncorrectGarry Shandling and The Larry Sanders Show (1992-1998)Conclusion10. ConclusionAppendixA Taxonomy of Television Talk by Robert J. Erler and Bernard M. TimbergA Guide to Television Talk by Robert J. ErlerNotesSourcesIndex