insults, in imitation of Rickles’s act. Carson also teased CPO Sharkey’s African-American actor Harrison Page by speaking to him in an exaggerated southern dialect. The entire incident appeared to be spontaneous, but comedy writer Mark Evanier published an opinion: “Carson’s show was taped in Studio 1 at NBC Burbank. The Rickles sitcom was in Studio 3, where Leno now tapes … While Johnny did his best to make it all look spontaneous and unarranged, it had to have been carefully planned. Rickles probably was not in on it and may have been genuinely surprised, but Johnny’s producers and director must have been prepared for what transpired, and the producers of CPO Sharkey almost certainly knew. At the moment Johnny entered, Don just ‘happened’ to be shooting on the set closest to that door. The surprise wouldn’t have worked as well if they’d been on one of the other sets. It wouldn’t have worked at all if they’d been between scenes or taping a portion of the show that Rickles wasn’t
