Johnny Carson left The Tonight Show in 1992 as the undisputed King of Late Night. As TIME’s Richard Stengel wrote back then: “On Monday, May 25, the occupant of that chair will change from Johnny Carson to James Douglas Muir Leno, the man whose jutting jaw has launched a thousand bad metaphors. Leno will become the fourth person to sit in that spot since 1954, marking the end of the 30-year Carson era…” While arguably not as beloved as Carson (see: the debacle over handing the show over to Conan O’Brien), Leno has hosted almost as many shows and kept The Tonight Show at the top of the late-night ratings for almost his entire tenure. Leno is set to retire in 2014.
Big Shoes to Fill: 14 Who Followed in the Footsteps of Legendary Leaders
This week’s news that legendary Manchester United football manager Alex Ferguson would be retiring later this month -- and passing his job to David Moyes -- got us here at TIME thinking about how certain roles can be very tough to fill indeed. Whether you’re an athlete, politician, business leader, or entertainer, stepping into a role once filled by a legend can be a daunting task, regardless of your credentials. In that spirit, we present 14 of the most influential figures in recent memory, and the unlucky souls who had to try to fill their shoes.
Jay Leno / Johnny Carson
Full List
Replacing Legends
- How Do You Take Over for a Legend?
- Tim Cook / Steve Jobs
- Joe Girardi / Joe Torre
- Coco Chanel / Karl Lagerfeld
- Bob Paisley / Bill Shankly
- Sammy Hagar / David Lee Roth
- Gene Bartow / John Wooden
- Jay Leno / Johnny Carson
- Tim Floyd / Phil Jackson
- Lyndon B. Johnson / John F. Kennedy, Jr.
- Drew Carey / Bob Barker
- Ben Bernanke / Alan Greenspan
- George Seifert / Bill Walsh
- Jennifer Lopez / Simon Cowell
- Pope Benedict XVI / Pope John Paul II