Johnny Carson, Where Are You?

By Stephen M. Silverman

05/28/1998 at 12:00 AM EDT

The game show that launched Johnny Carson's star in the late 1950s, "Who Do You Trust?" (whose grammatically correct title would have been "Whom Do You Trust?"), is due back on the air, and its producer is searching for a larger-than-life, Rosie O'Donnell-type personality to handle the hosting chores, reports Variety. The original "Trust" ran from 1956-57 on CBS, then moved to ABC, where it ran from 1957-62. Ventriloquist Edgar Bergen, father of "Murphy Brown" star Candice Bergen, was the original prime-time version's host (when it was chauvinistically called "Do You Trust Your Wife?"), while Carson took over when the program moved to ABC's daytime schedule. (Carson's announcer was Ed McMahon, who then moved with the star to the "Tonight" show in 1962). The format featured two couples who chatted with the host before deciding which of them would answer questions for prizes. David Stanley, one of the producers of the new version, said that on the original show, "The male was entrusted to answer the questions 90% of the time. That's one of the first things we're going to change." No debut date has been reported. Stanley added that he's looking to hire "a major personality" as host. "We want it to be more of a talk show than a game show." Meanwhile, reports the Associated Press, Johnny Carson, 75, is giving $500,000 to the library foundation in his hometown of Norfolk, Neb. Not that the gift is free and clear. In his letter that went with the check, Carson asked if the library had any books on humor or magic. They are now on their way to him, said a library spokesperson.