The compliment meant the world to Crystal, who ultimately hosted the awards show nine times
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NEED TO KNOW
- Billy Crystal received one of his career’s greatest compliments from Johnny Carson
- Both men are held in high esteem for their time hosting the Oscars, with Carson hosting 5 times from 1979 to 1983 and Crystal hosting nine times between 1990 and 2012
- Crystal recalled the unexpected phone call he got from Carson following the award show in 1988
Billy Crystal was touched to be recognized by a hosting legend.
In an archival interview from The Friars Club Podcast —aired on the Monday, March 15 broadcast of Nostalgia Tonight with Joe Sibilia — Crystal talked about the 1998 Oscars, which, to date, is the highest-rated telecast in Oscar history.
The morning after hosting the historic night in film, the actor received a call from Johnny Carson, who hosted the award show five consecutive times from 1979 to 1983.
“I got this phone call from him. It's still- it almost still moves me to tears. It was after the ’98 Oscars, which was a particularly good show, and I was really on that night, and it was one of them I'm more proud of," Crystal shared.
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Crystal was still riding the high of an ace-evening, with little sleep, when his assistant informed him of Carson's call. "Early in the morning, my assistant calls… and she said, ‘Johnny Carson's on the phone.’"
The actor immediately assumed it was one of his industry colleagues doing an impression and asked, "Oh, is it Marty Short? Is it Chris Guest?" When he was assured it was really Carson, Crystal was stunned.
“And I broke it into a sweat like Albert Brooks in Broadcast News. And I went, ‘Hello?’ And he went on and on about how much he loved what I had done… just couldn't have been more complimentary," Crystal shared, noting that the praise meant a lot coming from Carson.
“There’s two moments. I got to play catch with Mickey Mantle at Cooperstown, and I got a phone call from Johnny Carson saying, ‘You were really terrific.’ That meant everything to me.”
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Crystal says it was always important for him to differentiate himself from other great hosts, like Carson and Bob Hope.
“I didn't want to be influenced because I knew that I was going to do something different… I needed to make it my own and we needed to find, 'How do we do different things?'… It just became such a joy to do… to find funny ways to poke fun at the films and also honor them at the same time.”
Crystal hosted the Oscars nine times between 1990 and 2012, appearing at the 2026 ceremony as part of the tribute to late actor-director Rob Reiner.
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