Predicting the future: When Tiny Tim got married on Johnny Carson’s ‘Tonight Show’
In the 1960s, several television broadcasts made history or shattered records. And if that wasn’t the case, they were home to some of the most iconic moments of all time, like The Beatles‘ stint on The Ed Sullivan Show. What most audiences probably didn’t anticipate, however, was a wedding that would prove to be the most-watched episode of Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show in the show’s history.
In many ways, Carson’s Tonight Show established the format that would become well-liked by modern audiences. Starting with a monologue, the show included skits and guest interviews while making light of political commentary. Apparently, this was Carson’s preference, as he didn’t wish to venture too deep into anything heavy for fear of alienating his audience.
However, in many ways, Carson’s Tonight Show also differed greatly from the easy-watching calibre of today’s version. For starters, the host himself seemed like a considerably restrained character who only acted authentically. This meant he only truly laughed or showed amusement when he genuinely felt it, and entertaining certain conversations when he felt the segment would benefit from it.
On top of this, he reportedly never socialised with his guests before or after the show. Once, he ventured to Orson Welles’ dressing room to say hello before a show, which apparently stunned the show’s employees, who knew that it wasn’t Carson’s usual game. He also knew when to step in when a section or guest became too vapid, even when his intervention came across as somewhat abrupt.
So, which musician got married on the ‘Tonight Show’?
Though rigid in a lot of places, however, Carson’s Tonight Show did have its moments. For instance, the most-watched episode was the one that saw ‘Tiptoe Through The Tulips‘ singer Tiny Tim get married on live television to Miss Vicki Budinger, who was just 17 years old at the time. On the day, the team had imported 10,000 tulips from Holland as decor for a ceremony that attracted 45million American viewers (almost double the viewership drawn in by Prince William Kate Middleton in 2011).
Although the age gap was no doubt controversial, Budinger later said she didn’t regret the decision despite the fact they got divorced eight years after the televised ceremony. “I was just a kid, thinking, ‘This will be fun,'” she told the Chicago Tribune in 1995. “And it was.” They even kept with the theme afterwards by naming their daughter Tulip. However, their romance clearly wasn’t meant to be.
However, as audiences witnessed television history, Carlson seemingly recognised the unique situation from the outset, almost as if he knew this blend of entertainment and reality was where television was heading even then. While today’s audiences would likely embrace this far less readily, it stirred conversations about talk-show spectacle, sparking a broader move toward daring broadcasting.
