In 1985, an Appearance on Johnny Carson’s Show Changed a Man’s Life

The late Johnny Carson with his wife Alex as they watch a tennis match during the Canadian Open August 17, 1995. Carlo Allegri/Getty Images

A man was sitting in the audience during Johnny Carson’s “Tonight Show” in 1985 when his life was forever altered.

Carson said, “Horatio Gutierrez (a classical pianist) couldn’t come tonight because he accidentally shut his hand in a car door and didn’t want to chance playing the ‘Tonight Show.’”