12. Johnny Carson – ISTJ
Probably no talk show host ever appeared more comfortable before an audience than Johnny Carson, the acclaimed “King of Late Night” for decades. But Carson away from the stage was far less comfortable, at least when dealing with people. Famously, almost painfully shy, Carson guarded his privacy jealously. He didn’t enjoy giving interviews and did so rarely, avoiding discussing his personal life. The ease with which he conducted conversations during his show eluded him in private circles. Over time he attended fewer and fewer Hollywood get togethers, limiting them to smaller gatherings with close friends. Even at home, he had difficulty in relationships, and he often remained aloof to his children. He discussed his divorces in public only as of the basis for jokes, and his children he seldom mentioned at all.
Carson has several different MBTI types attributed to him by various sites and articles. Probably the most common are ISTJ (Introvert, Sensing, Thinking, Judging), followed by ISFP (Feeling, Perceiving). Others call him an Extravert, basing the assumption on his public persona, as he appeared on The Tonight Show as well as his appearances as the emcee at awards shows and roasts. Dick Cavett once encountered Johnny engaged with some fans backstage following a show. “He was just having an awful time making small talk with them”, Cavett told Closer Weekly in 2015. Even his head writer on The Tonight Show from 1988-1992 called Carson “…a classic introvert”. Whichever type fit him best depends on the relationship he had with the individual making the assessment. Evidently, no two such relationships were the same.