Letterman gets help from a friend

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. — Almost 13 years after Johnny Carson retired, it probably doesn't matter to much of anybody but David Letterman, Jay Leno and their friends, but the question of who is the real successor to the longtime late-night king has been publicly answered.

Leno got "The Tonight Show"; Letterman got Carson's legacy.

Reclusive, 79-year-old Carson, it turns out, sometimes sends jokes Letterman's way.

Peter Lassally, who was Carson's executive producer and is now a senior vice president of Letterman's production company, Worldwide Pants, is still in regular contract with his old boss/friend. And, while Carson hasn't appeared on television in years, he still watches.

"He's interested in all of television," Lassally said. "I talk to him regularly on the phone, and he still is interested in literature, politics and all worldly things that he always was interested in."

And, while Carson doesn't regret retiring, "I think the thing he misses the most is the monologue. When he reads the paper in the morning, he can think of five jokes off the bat that he wishes he had an outlet for."

As it turns out, he does. "He does once in a while send the jokes to Letterman," Lassally said. "And Letterman has used Johnny's jokes in the monologue, and Johnny gets a big kick out of that."

You may recall that, driven by his then-manager, the show-business lunatic Helen Kushnick, Leno — then Carson's permanent guest host — managed to shove Johnny into retirement and grab "The Tonight Show," leaving longtime heir-apparent Letterman to exit NBC's "Late Night" for CBS. And igniting a feud of sorts that's never ended.

There was immediate controversy when Leno took over "Tonight" and failed to in any way pay tribute to Carson — something he later blamed on Kushnick. And even after Leno eventually fired Kushnick to save his own job, and though he has since paid homage to his predecessor, the rift never healed.

Carson's only late-night appearances since his retirement came years ago on Letterman's show — a brief walk-on, a taped bit and a phone call. And, as it turns out, the jokes he sends to the "Late Show" host.

While there have been reports that Carson's health isn't good, Lassally, said he's doing all right.

"Johnny, as you probably know, has emphysema, which he's had for a long time, and recently has had some breathing problems. But he's fine. He's just fine."