Most Influential Talk Shows 1920-Current

  • Johnny Carson's Birthday

    Johnny Carson's Birthday
    Johnny was born October 3rd in Corning, Iowa.
  • Joe Franklin's Birthday

    Joe Franklin's Birthday
    Joe was born March 9th in Bronx, New York.
  • Larry King's Birthday

    Larry King's Birthday
    Larry King was born on November 19th in Brooklyn, New York.
  • Johnny Carson Show

    Johnny Carson Show
    He was given his own show, which debuted on August 1, 1949. The Johnny Carson Show went on the air for forty-five minutes in the morning.
  • Phil McGraw's Birthday

    Phil McGraw's Birthday
    Phil was born on September 1st 1950 in Vinita, Oklahoma.
  • The Marilyn Monroe Story

    The Marilyn Monroe Story
    Marilyn Monroe was a guest on Franklin's show and later they co-authored the "Marilyn Monroe Story."
  • Oprah Winfrey's Birthday

    Oprah Winfrey's Birthday
    Oprah was born January 29th in Kosciusko, Mississippi.
  • The Tonight Show

    The Tonight Show
    The "Tonight Show," with host Steve Allen, premieres on NBC.
  • Whoopi Goldberg's Birthday

    Whoopi Goldberg's Birthday
    Whoopi's real name is Caryn Elaine Johnson. She was born on November 13th in Chelsea, New York.
  • Larry King Changes His Name

    Larry King Changes His Name
    After changing last name from Zeiger to King, he begins a radio career as a disc jockey at WAHR-AM in Miami.
  • Ellen DeGeneres's Birthday

    Ellen DeGeneres's Birthday
    Ellen was born January 26th in Metairie, LA.
  • Johnny Carson Debut

    Johnny Carson Debut
    The Tonight Show staring Johnny Carson began on October 1st.
  • The Book Club Begins

    The Book Club Begins
    Oprah changed the face of the publishing industry with the debut of her immensely popular book club. Winfrey’s picks have historically gone on to receive incredible acclaim following her stamp of approval.
  • Larry Kings Arrest

    Larry Kings Arrest
    Financier Lou Wolfson gave King $5,000 to give to Jim Garrison, who was involved in the Kennedy assassination investigation. King allegedly spent the money paying his back taxes and was arrested for grand larceny.
  • Rachel Maddow's Birthday

    Rachel Maddow's  Birthday
    Rachel was born on April 1st Castro Valley, California.
  • The Tonight Show Wins Four Emmys'

    The Tonight Show Wins Four Emmys'
    "Tonight" wins the first of its four Emmys under Carson.
  • Ellen's Interview

    Ellen's Interview
    Ellen Degeneres had an interview with Oprah, telling her she was gay.
  • Oprah Winfrey

    Oprah Winfrey
    Was moved from news anchor to the WJZ-TV morning talk show host of People are Talking with Richard Sher Also hosted the local version of 'Dialing for Dollars'
  • Oprah

    Oprah
    January 2: First episode of A.M. Chicago. Show was extremely successful in the ratings
  • Larry King Live Debut

    Larry King Live Debut
    Larry King Live debut was on June 3rd, 1985.
  • Oprah Goes National

    Oprah Goes National
    On this day in 1986, The Oprah Winfrey Show is broadcast nationally for the first time. A huge success, her daytime television talk show turns Winfrey into one of the most powerful, wealthy people in show business and, arguably, the most influential woman in America.
  • Oprah's Debut

    Oprah's Debut
    The Oprah Winfrey show first debut was on September 8th, 1986.
  • Harpo Productions

    Harpo Productions
    In 1988 Winfrey founded Chicago-based Harpo Productions, becoming only the third woman in American entertainment to own her own production facility; Harpo’s acquisition the same year of the “Oprah Winfrey Show” made her the first woman to own and produce her own talk show.
  • Courtroom Sciences

    Courtroom Sciences
    In 1989, he founded a company called Courtroom Sciences. The venture helped trial lawyers build cases via mock trials, behavioral analysis, jury selection and mediation.
  • The last show

    The last show
    After hosting The Tonight Show 4,531 times for millions of people over thirty years, Carson decided to retire from the show. On Friday, May 22, 1992, Johnny Carson did his famous golf swing for the last time.
  • Larry Kings Live Election

    Larry Kings Live Election
    "Larry King Live Election Coverage 1992" wins a Peabody Award.
  • Oprah Winfrey

    Oprah Winfrey
    Best Foreign TV Personality - Female
  • Rachel Maddow Wins an Award

    Rachel Maddow Wins an Award
    Maddow became an activist for the SIDS organization ACT UP. She won an award for her volunteer work, making her the first openly gay U.S Resident to win the award.
  • Ellen is an Advocate of LGBT rights.

    Ellen is an Advocate of LGBT rights.
    In 1997, she came out as gay, and became a staunch advocate of LGBT rights.
  • Joseph Franklins Doccumentary

    Joseph Franklins Doccumentary
    In 1997, Franklin starred in the documentary film "50,000,000 Joe Franklin Fans Can't Be Wrong", directed by Joshua Brown.
  • Dr. Phi; Helps Oprah Win a Case

    Dr. Phi; Helps Oprah Win a Case
    After helping her win the case in 1998, Dr. Phil became a regular expert on Oprah, dealing with life strategies and relationships.
  • King Wins a Emmy

    King Wins a Emmy
    Wins a News and Documentary Emmy for Outstanding Interview/Interviewer for the show with Karla Faye Tucker.
  • Franklin's Memory Lane Restaurant

    Franklin's Memory Lane Restaurant
    In 1999, Joe Franklin joined Riese Restaurants to open "Joe Franklin's Memory Lane Restaurant" in Manhattan's Theater District.
  • Oprah Winfrey

    Oprah Winfrey
    Oprah won Outstanding Talk Show
  • Dr.Phil Debut

    Dr.Phil Debut
    The Dr. Phil show began on September 16th, 2002.
  • Carson Donates Money

    Carson Donates Money
    In 2002 he donated seventy-five thousand dollars to build a skateboard park in his hometown of Corning, Iowa. Many people think that every host of late-night television has a show today because of what Johnny Carson accomplished.
  • Ellen's Debut

    Ellen's Debut
    Ellen's show began on September 8th, 2003.
  • Johnny Carson's Death

    Johnny Carson's Death
    Johnny died on January 23rd from emphysema.
  • Ellen as a Host

    Ellen as a Host
    She was tapped to host the Grammys in 1996 and 1997; the Primetime Emmys in 2001 and 2005; and the Academy Awards in 2007 and 2014.
  • The View Debut

    The View Debut
    In September 2007, Whoopi became a co-host to the new talk show the host.
  • Maddow Signed an Exclusive Contract

    Maddow Signed an Exclusive Contract
    In January 2008, Maddow signed an exclusive contract with MSNBC as the broadcasting station’s political analyst. That September the launch of her nightly cable television program, also called The Rachel Maddow Show, marked MSNBC’s most successful show debut to date.
  • Wake Up with Whoopi Debut

    Wake Up with Whoopi Debut
    Whoopi began her own show, Wake Up with Whoopi. It was a morning radio and talk entertainment show. The show only lasted a year.
  • Rachel Maddow Debut Date

    Rachel Maddow Debut Date
    Her first show began on September 8th, 2008.
  • Maddow Wins Faith and Freedom Award

    Maddow Wins Faith and Freedom Award
    Washington Post named her "Breakout Star of 2008." In 2010 she won a Walter Cronkite Faith and Freedom Award for her documentary The Assassination of Dr. Tiller. The documentary also earned her a 2011 Gracie Award.
  • Oprah Female Icon

    Oprah Female Icon
    Female Icon of Humanitarian Activism
  • Ellens an Author

    Ellens an Author
    DeGeneres is also the author of several books, including My Point ... and I Do Have One (1995), Seriously ... I'm Kidding (2011), and Home (2015).
  • Oprah's Final Show

    Oprah's Final Show
    Oprah ended her show on May 25th, 2011.
  • Dr.Phil Best-Selling Author

    Dr.Phil Best-Selling Author
    Dr. Phil is the author of several New York Times best-sellers. His most recent book, The 20/20 Diet: Turn Your Weight Loss Vision Into Reality, was released in 2014.
  • Joe Franklin's Death

    Joe Franklin's Death
    Joe died on January 24th due to cancer.
  • DeGeneres receives the Presidential Medal of Freedom

    DeGeneres receives the Presidential Medal of Freedom
    That November DeGeneres received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Obama for her contribution to the arts.