Behind the Desk: The Story of Late Night

Late night TV sensibilities crash through the status quo and frame society to expose all that is fun, funny and non-sensical about it. As a diverse new group of hosts ascend, the late night landscape looks less and less like the old white boys club of the past. With the help of Amber Ruffin, Desus & Mero, Ziwe, Trevor Noah and more, Bill Carter analyzes late night’s bright, inclusive future as it shakes off a historical resistance to woman and the BIPOC community. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For as long as “late night” has been an institution, stand-ups, sitcom stars, and even future hosts have begun their careers as late night comics. With insights from Trevor Noah, Jimmy Kimmel, Ray Romano, Byron Allen, Carol Leifer, Jimmy Brogan, Brian Regan and Elayne Boosler, host Bill Carter explores how the genre has been a golden door for talent and how social media has created a new jumping off point that veers from tradition. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The monologue, the desk, the guests, the band. The ingredients of the late night TV formula are familiar, yet fickle. Get them just right and a show can last for decades. Make one mistake and your career is over – fast. In this episode, we explore the alchemy that turns a late night TV show into ratings and social media gold. Jimmy Kimmel, Desus & Mero, David Letterman producer and co-creator of The Daily Show co-creator Madeleine Smithberg, Tonight Show regular Byron Allen and more give us insights into the hardships of mastering the formula perfected by Johnny Carson. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

More than 60 years ago, the creation of late night TV changed the face of television forever. From Johnny Carson, to David Letterman, to Arsenio Hall, the late night show format continues to endure, evolving to keep pace each new generation. In Behind the Desk: The Story of Late Night host Bill Carter takes us on a journey through late night television’s most memorable moments with first-hand, behind-the-scenes accounts from some of the most notable names in late night history. Behind the Desk: The Story of Late Night is a companion podcast to CNN’s Original docuseries, The Story of Late Night. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices