PORTLAND, OR--(Marketwire - August 18, 2010) - In the latest development of a relationship that spans more than a decade, Respond2 Entertainment (R2E) and Carson Entertainment Group have introduced one of the most sophisticated websites ever built in the entertainment industry, making the 30-year Johnny Carson Tonight Show library accessible to everyone.
With the recent re-launch of www.johnnycarson.com, entertainment industry professionals can instantly search the entire 3,300 hours of Johnny Carson Tonight Show programming spanning 1962-1992, which is thought to be the world's largest television entertainment archive. Professionals can license and purchase clips automatically through a sophisticated website that brings the entire collection online.
Meanwhile, work continues on making the Johnny Carson Tonight Show collection available to consumers who already have gobbled up millions of DVDs selected from the Carson library, one of the top-selling television entertainment properties of all time. Soon, the general public will be able to instantly search the entire collection.
The new website coincides with release of a new 15 DVD collector set of previously unreleased episodes featuring some of the best shows in the history of the Tonight Show. R2E is planning a major direct response television campaign to introduce the collection, to be released October 26, 2010, just in time for the holiday gift-giving season.
"Ever since 1994 when Johnny Carson first released VHS tapes the demand has been overwhelming," said Tim O'Leary, President and CEO of the Respond2 Entertainment parent company R2C Group. "It is one of the few entertainment properties in the world that commands national attention when its website is re-launched 18 years after the program left the air and five years after the entertainer died."
O'Leary said the new website attracted an astonishing 150,000 viewers within the first two days of its release.
"Practically every day we receive calls and emails from people wanting to get a copy of that one special episode of the Tonight Show. Perhaps it spurred a lifelong memory, featured an admired guest, or was filmed when they were in the studio audience that day. Thanks to digital technology, soon they will be able to relive that moment."
One fan who recently pre-ordered a collector series captured the essence of Carson's indelible mark on late night television saying, "Finally, 11:30 will feel like 11:30 again."
Carson's timeless collection has strong appeal because Tonight Show appearances boosted the careers of many familiar entertainers such as Bill Cosby, Jerry Seinfeld and Ellen Degeneres.
"Respond2 Entertainment has been a fabulous partner in helping us maintain and promote the incredible legacy that Johnny Carson established in television entertainment," said Jeff Sotzing, President of Carson Entertainment Group. "It took the combination of digitization, as well as the search, e-commerce and licensing expertise of Respond2 Entertainment, to make this possible."
About R2E
Respond2 Entertainment (R2E) is the Entertainment Marketing arm of R2C Group, one of the nation's premier advertising and marketing agencies, with a client list including Adobe, BareMinerals, Estee Lauder, Rosetta Stone, Shark, TiVo and a host of other prestigious clients. R2E specializes in creating and marketing original filmed productions, existing premier television collections and other select programming via direct-to-consumer marketing outlets, as well as through traditional retail sales channels. Clients include the Carson Entertainment Group, Bob Hope Enterprises, Paul Brownstein Productions, and many others.
Contact Information:
CONTACT:
Ron Arp
360-601-2991
