• Alexis Maas is best known for her marriage to Johnny Carson, with whom she inherited an estimated $150 million net worth.
• Her early life and career are largely unknown, and her only notable television appearance was in the documentary “Johnny Carson: King of Late Night”.
• Johnny Carson had a successful career in television, winning multiple awards and becoming an icon in the late night industry.
• Maas and Carson were married in 1987 and stayed together until his death in 200•
• She has no social media presence and prefers to keep her life private.
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Who is Alexis Maas?
Alexis Maas was born in 1952, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, and is best known for her marriage to television host Johnny Carson. Her late husband rose to fame as the host of “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson”, which became influential towards future late night programming over three decades in the late 1900s.
The Wealth of Alexis Maas
How rich is Alexis Maas? As of late-2019, sources inform us of a net worth that is over $150 million, gained mainly through an inheritance after the death of her husband.
Johnny Carson was reported to have had over $300 million in net worth prior to his death, half of which was given to Maas while the other half went to his foundation. This greatly helped put her in the financial position she is in today.
Early Life and Career
Aside from Alexis growing up in Pittsburgh, there is no information circulating about her life before meeting Carson. She has not been a public person, preferring to keep away from the spotlight with nothing shared about her family, childhood, and education.
Even her activities after marrying Carson were kept mostly out of the public eye, save for a few appearances they did together.
According to some sources, there were rumors that she worked at a stock brokerage firm prior to meeting the famous late night host. One of her only television appearances was in the documentary entitled “Johnny Carson: King of Late Night” which followed the life of her husband and was created by Emmy award-winning filmmaker Peter Jones.
The show aired on PBC as a part of the “American Masters” series and was hosted by Kevin Spacey. The most she’s done publicly after that is her contributions and donations to the John W. Carson Foundation, which aims to support education, children, and health services.
Husband – Johnny Carson
John William Carson grew up in Iowa before later settling in Norfolk, Nebraska with his family when he was eight years old. At a young age, he showed an inclination towards performing, often doing magic tricks for his family and friends.
After matriculating from high school, he discovered Hollywood, though having a career there was not the immediate thing on his mind. In 1943, he joined the US Navy to serve during World War II, and received training at Columbia University as a part of the V-12 Navy College Training Program.
He was assigned to the USS Pennsylvania, and was set to fight when the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki occurred, ending the war against Japan. Aside from nearly encountering combat, he mainly served as a communications officer.
When asked if he was going to remain in the military, he declined, stating that he wanted to have a career as a magician. After returning home, he continued his education at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, while performing magic and discovering his interest towards comedy, and wanting to become a radio performer. He graduated in three years with a degree in radio and speech, with a minor on physics.
The Tonight Show and the Achievements of Carson
Carson gained a lot of attention from NBC officials after his success on the ABC show entitled “Who Do You Trust?”
However, he was hesitant about accepting a job as a late night talk show host due to his lack of confidence on being able to interview celebrities for 105 minutes a day. Despite that, he was convinced by executives and NBC waited for six months of his contract to finish before he became the official permanent host of “The Tonight Show”, following Jack Paar.
Over his long run with the show, he established it as one of the most successful late night runs and became influential to many future late night talk show hosts.
He won six Emmy Awards during his run, a Peabody Award, and a Television Academy Governor’s Award. In 1987, he was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame and was also given the Presidential Medal of Freedom five years later. In 1993 he was then given a Kennedy Center Honor, remaining an icon until his retirement a year prior. He became known for his casual and conversational approach with guests, often involving extensive interaction. He was later cited by friend David Letterman as an influence towards his own success.
Personal Life and Social Media
For her personal life, Maas wasn’t Carson’s first wife, as he has been open about the lack of success in his previous three marriages, stating that he was as good as the captain of the Titanic when giving advice. The two were married in 1987, two years after Carson’s divorce from his previous wife, model Joanna Holland, who received $20 million in cash and property from their settlement. His and Alexis’ marriage became his most successful, as the two remained together until his death in 2005.
One of the reasons there is very limited information about her is due to the lack of any strong online social media presence. She does not have accounts on any of the major social media websites, as she’s used to living without the online world, having done so for most of her life. It is known that she was active alongside her husband in doing philanthropic work, however, after his death, she decided to move away from the spotlight, living in peace and maintaining her privacy. It is not known if she’s remarried, nor is anything known about her current endeavors.
