The Real Reason We Don't Hear About Dana Carvey Anymore

He could've been a player on late night TV, and might still be hosting a show on network TV to this day...except he didn't want to. In the early '90s, Johnny Carson made the decision to retire from The Tonight Show after 30 years, and Jay Leno got the job as new host. Late Night host David Letterman was so miffed that he jumped over to CBS to go head-to-head with The Tonight Show, leaving Late Night open.

NBC tasked SNL creator and executive producer Lorne Michaels with finding a host, and he looked to his SNL cast. Carvey, amiable, versatile, and one of the most popular cast members in years, was offered the job. NBC thought it was such a lock that they gave him $1 million (and a Beatles album signed by all four Beatles worth $400,000) just to consider the offer—and it landed him on the cover of TV Guide as Letterman's heir apparent. It took him a year to decide, but eventually Carvey decided to not do Late Night, because hosting a show every night is "a big slog...It's a big decision to take that on and spend years in this box, basically. It's emotionally intense to be on TV that much."