The TV Zone

OK, so I know what everyone is thinking: Poor Ed McMahon! Can't pay the mortgage on his five million dollar mansion!? "Well Ed, just drop the price and SELL it..." But that's easier said than done, and the guy is clearly in great pain, both physically and (undoubtedly) emotionally.

So I for one think pity and compassion are warranted. I've known McMahon - slightly, and professionally - over the years, and can attest to this fact: He's one of most decent and honorable guys in this business. He's one of the few stars - actually the only one I can think of - who used to answer his phone or return calls, without the intercession of an army of millionaire publicists or managers or agents. He was - and I'm sure, still is - unfailingly polite and pleasant.

And consider this: Ed was trusted by Johnny Carson. The best I can tell, Carson trusted him COMPLETELY. Very few people earned a Carson seal-of-approval, including his former wives. Besides his nephew, Jeff Sotzing, and longtime friend, producer, confidante, Peter Lassally, Ed is the only person who comes immediately to mind who, in fact, did.

Now, what did this mean? After a lifetime in the business, Carson knew - intuitively and through practical experience (Joan Rivers!!) - that most of the people who were nice to him were BS-artists who trafficked in the fluff and ephemera of show-biz. They were NICE but only superficially "nice." Ed was the real deal.

Evidence? He could have sold a Carson memoir for millions - you know, one of those hideous tomes about the "real" Johnny Carson that would have forced you to take a shower after/ or while reading... And don't think that for someone who lost hundreds of millions, as Ed did over the last few years, that that wouldn't have been a temptation.

For almost half a century, Ed was the consummate loyalist: He never said a cross word about JC, and never told tales out of school. He was - in other words - a genuine friend, in a place (Hollywood) where genuine friends are as common as polar bears.

So here's to Ed, lying in bed with a broken neck and wondering when the repo man will come knocking. He's a good man and a loyal friend. Nothing wrong with that.