Johnny Carson, long time host of NBC's \The Tonight Show,"" passed away Sunday morning at the age of 79. The cause of death is believed to be emphysema.
According to a statement released by his nephew, Jeff Sotzing, family surrounded Carson as he passed. Sotzing also said there would not be a memorial service.
The comedian spent the past 12 years out of the spotlight that followed him throughout his 30-year career. After he retired in May 1992, Carson secluded himself from the entertainment industry and the public eye, only sporadically working in appearances on shows such as ""The Simpsons"" and ""The Late Show with David Letterman."" He was also rumored to have written various jokes for Letterman's monologues in recent years.
After a stint in the Navy during the mid '40s, the native Nebraskan launched into a show business career by hosting the game show ""Who Do You Trust?,"" which represented the first time Carson would work with longtime co-host Ed McMahon. Carson went on to write for ""The Red Skelton Show,"" which allowed him the opportunity to occasionally fill in for Skelton and gave him enough notoriety to take over ""The Tonight Show"" from Jack Paar in 1962.
Carson is credited with launching numerous careers in the field of comedy. Eddie Murphy, Joan Rivers and Denis Leary are among the many comedians who owe much of their success to Carson featuring them on his program.
He is even credited with reviving President Bill Clinton's presidential chances. After Clinton bombed his Democratic convention speech, Carson gave Clinton a venue to talk directly to the public and redeem his image.
His departure from the airwaves created a power struggle within NBC's late night talk show department, with Jay Leno and David Letterman vying for the role of Carson's replacement. NBC went against Carson's choice of Letterman and chose Leno.
Throughout his career, Carson received numerous awards including six Emmy awards, a Peabody award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom and was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 1987.
Carson leaves behind his fourth wife Alexis, and sons Christopher and Cory.
