When Johnny Carson’s musical guest was unable to appear on the Tonight Show, he was in a bit of a bind and turned to the audience for help. “Horatio Gutierrez (a classical pianist) couldn’t come tonight because he accidentally shut his hand in a car door … Can anybody here play the piano?”
That’s when David Tolley raised his hand and volunteered to come onto the stage and play. His performance of “Memory” (from the Cats musical) while dressed in flip flops ended up charming the audience!
Johnny admitted that the whole thing could have turned out to be a “turkey shoot”, but was happily surprised and ended up inviting Tolley back on his show.
Tolley went on to a successful musical career, playing at the White House, composing music for Disneyland Paris and becoming a music professor at Delaware State University. Tolley said of the experience, “I would have been terrified if I knew 28 million people were watching every note I played, lol. Yes, it did change my life, but I’m not exactly sure how. It made my life a lot more exciting from time to time.”
It’s amazing the unexpected turns life can take sometimes!
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