What a difference 45 years makes.
That’s what many are realizing as they look back on comedian Johnny Carson’s remarks after an assassination attempt on then-President Ronald Reagan, per Fox News.
A clip comparing Carson’s 1981 Oscars monologue to reactions to a recent attempt on President Donald Trump’s life has seen about 895,000 views online.
“I’m sure that all of you here and most of you watching tonight understand why we delayed this program for 24 hours,” Carson said in the video. “Because of the incredible events of yesterday, that old adage, the show must go on, seemed relatively unimportant.”
The Academy Awards was delayed 24 hours after John Hinckley Jr.’s March 30, 1981, attempt on Reagan’s life. The attack happened at the same location as Saturday’s shooting, the Washington Hilton Hotel, 45 years earlier.
Reagan was seriously wounded and returned to the White House after 12 days in the hospital.
“The Academy, ABC television and all of us connected with the show felt because of the uncertain outcome as of this time yesterday, it would have been inappropriate to stage a celebration,” Carson said.
Carson also spoke of the president’s resilience, saying he was in “excellent condition” and still “conducting business.”
“You must remember, this is a man who yesterday, while he was in the hospital, unable to speak, wrote on a sheet of paper, ‘All things considered, I’d rather be in Philadelphia.’ So tonight, the show does go on,” Carson said.
Watch:
The video resurfaced as late-night comedian Jimmy Kimmel faced criticism over a joke made days before the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner.
During Thursday’s show, Kimmel aired a parody of the event and made a joke about first lady Melania Trump.
“Our first lady, Melania, is here. Look at Melania, so beautiful. Mrs. Trump, you have a glow like an expectant widow,” he said.
The first lady and Trump called on ABC to fire Kimmel over what she described as “hateful” language.
Kimmel defended the comment as a “light roast joke about the fact that he’s almost 80, and she’s younger than I am.”
“It was not, by any stretch of the definition, a call to assassination — and they know that,” Kimmel said Monday night.
“I’ve been very vocal for many years speaking out against gun violence in particular, but I understand that the first lady had a stressful experience over the weekend, and probably every weekend is pretty stressful in that house,” he said.
