Tim Conway Tries To Speak Spanish And Leaves Johnny Carson In Tears

In this classic Tonight Show interview, Tim proves to Johnny, Ed McMahon and millions of viewers he’s still the funniest guy on TV.

Who can forget the hilarious Tim Conway’s sketches from The Carol Burnett Show and a slew of Disney movies including the Apple Dumpling Gang series of films in which he was paired with fellow comedy legend Don Knotts?

If you’re of a certain age, Tim Conway is surely a part of your fondest memories. In this laugh-out-loud funny clip from The Tonight Show, Tim is there to promote is new series, Ace Crawford, Private Eye, a sitcom that parodied hard-boiled film noir detective movies.

Every episode ended in the same hysterical way, with Tim walking along the docks on a dark, wet night and fading out of sight in the dense fog, only to be followed by the sound of a loud splash as though he’d walked off a pier and fallen into the water.

See also It was meant to be a serious scene — calm, quiet, dramatic. But then Tim Conway and Carol Burnett showed up… and nothing stayed serious for long. A stubborn coffee pot, an invisible cigarette, and a silence so funny it nearly broke the cameras — that’s all it took. Within seconds, the background turned into the main event. You could see the crew shaking behind the cameras, trying not to laugh.

This Tonight Show clip is so hysterical because Tim barely pitches the show, instead of regaling Johnny and the enrapt audience with one outrageous story after another, especially about skiing mishaps. You won’t believe some of his hair-raising stories about accidents on the slopes.

You’ll roll in the floor laughing when he talks about his misadventures learning to speak Spanish and his first trip to Mexico to try out his language skills. We won’t ruin Tim’s nonstop punchlines but let’s just say it ends with an octopus.

“Tim Conway is one of the funniest dudes ever,” commented one fan of this clip. “And The Tonight Show (Johnny Carson era) was one of the best night tal shows ever as well.”

See also Betty White’s Baby Elephant Chaos Turns The Tonight Show Into Pure TV Gold — The Adorable “Hijack” That Left Johnny Carson Helpless, the Audience Screaming, and Betty Laughing Harder Than Anyone What began as a sweet animal segment instantly spiraled into legendary late-night mayhem when a mischievous baby elephant decided it was the star of the show — nudging Carson off his mark, exploring the set, and sending Betty White into uncontrollable laughter. For seven unforgettable minutes, cue cards were useless, Johnny surrendered, and viewers witnessed a moment so wild and charming that it’s still replayed decades later. A baby elephant mayhem, Betty’s sparkling wit, and Carson’s priceless reaction — a perfect storm of unscripted comedy magic.

No Tim Conway interview would be complete without mention of his longtime Carol Burnett Show partner Harvey Korman, who’d just had a baby when this interview originally aired.

“He has a baby girl, and they’re just as happy as can be. The baby was born in 1983, which oddly enough is the same age Harvey will be when she graduates from college,” Tim tells Johnny, sending the audience into fits of laughter.

Another fan among the nearly two million viewers (and counting!) to watch this clip was equally effusive in his praise. “I remember watching him on The Carol Burnett Show with my parents as a young boy and the way he could make the other actors laugh during the skits was great TV.”

See also Tim Conway walked into what was supposed to be a simple, harmless sketch—just him washing windows on a shaky scaffold. Nothing special. But the moment he stepped into the scene, everything fell apart in the most hilarious way possible. He slipped, swung around, and turned a tiny bit of comedy into pure, unstoppable chaos. Harvey Korman was begging him—literally begging him—to stop, but Tim was on a roll and there was no putting the brakes on it. For 22 straight minutes, the script might as well have been thrown in the trash. The cast couldn’t think, the crew was gasping for air, and the audience was laughing like they’d lost control of their own bodies. Tim wasn’t following anything. He wasn’t even steering the ship. He just broke the entire show—and nobody could do a thing to stop him.

Now it’s your turn. Heeere’s Johnny! Just click the video below to watch the great Tim Conway crack up Carson on The Tonight Show and pass this smile to a friend.