text: Carson performed a parody of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. Rogers noted, "I've told Johnny that I like humor as much as anybody. But what concerns me is the takeoffs that make me seem so wimpy! I hope it doesn't communicate that Mr. Rogers is just somebody to be made fun of. Only people who take the time to see our work can begin to understand the depth of it." Carson later apologized to Rogers for making fun of him.
  Business ventures
  In 1979, Carson invested $500,000 () in the DeLorean Motor Company. Additionally, Carson was head of a group of investors who purchased and operated two television stations. The first was KVVU-TV in Henderson, Nevada, an independent station serving Las Vegas, acquired by the Carson group in 1979. Shortly after buying the station, KVVU was rumored to be acquiring an NBC affiliation because long-time affiliate KORK-TV was in the process of being replaced by KVBC (and KSNV), but it never happened. Carson's second station, independent KNAT-TV in Albuquerque, New Mexico, was purchased in 1982. Unlike the Las Vegas operation, KNAT faced stiffer competition for top-quality, syndicated programming. Carson sold both of his stations in 1985 and 1986, with KVVU-TV (FOX 5) going to the Meredith Corporation and KNAT being sold to Trinity Broadcasting Network.
  Carson's other business ventures included the successful Johnny Carson Apparel, Inc.—his turtlenecks became a fashion trend—and a failed restaurant franchise.