20 Talk Shows That Took Big Swings and Missed

A quiet chair, a thoughtful question, and enough patience to let an answer wander were sometimes all Di*k Cavett needed. At a time when late-night television generally favored quick jokes and neatly packaged celebrity stories, his ABC program made room for ideas, disagreements, and personalities who did not fit comfortably into a six-minute promotional appearance. The Di*k Cavett Show (1969) welcomed Bette Davis, Katharine Hepburn, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Muhammad Ali, Groucho Marx, and an extraordinary range of writers, politicians, musicians, and cultural figures.