Well, on the day of his death let's start a thread for Tom Snyder. From Wiki:

Eclectic is a perfect word for Tom Snyder. He was what Larry King wishes he was.
Also, Dan Ackroyd did a dead-on imitation.

RIP Tom, I enjoyed your total weirdness, and I mean that in a good way.

I wonder if Craig Ferguson will comment on his death. He is sort of the inheritor of Tom's old post-Letterman show, by way of Craig Kilborn.

Wrong network. Conan O'Brien has Tom's old spot.

No, Snyder was on NBC after Carson, long ago, true, but what The Masses was referring to was his gig as the host of The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder, which aired on CBS after Letterman; Craig Kilborn took over after he retired, and Craig Ferguson is obviously now the host.

I loved Tom Snyder -- all I ever knew of him was from the Late Late Show. I loved how he used to just crack up, and then (with no studio audience) you could also hear the producers/camera people etc. laughing in the background. It was on his show that I came to adore Bonnie Hunt (I also love her on Letterman, but Snyder gave her more time to just talk, and tell crazy stories about her mom and such), as well as Jon Stewart (I think he was a guest several times, but he also used to sub for Snyder, and there's this one interview I remember, with Jennifer Tilly I think?, that just had me rolling -- it was a long time ago, but I still remember it as one of the funniest things I've ever heard).

Yup, that was a seriously kooky show, I loved it. That constant close up on Tom's face was strangely mesmerizing and the eyebrows...it was like they were alive. (I see someone's called up the regular LLS thread, sorry didn't know there was one)

Yeah that CBS show was great and yes, he was weirdly enjoyable. RIP indeed.

I have very fond memories of his post-Oscar shows, especially when Bonnie Hunt was one of the guests.

What an insane laugh. The SNL send-up was pitch perfect. And, I've written this elsewhere, but it's ideal here:

"Fire up a colortini, sit back, relax, and watch the pictures, now, as they fly through the air."

I bet that Letterman will say something about Tom tonight, if he's live.

I loved the Ackroyd impression! I loved Tom's Late, Late Show. Nighttime hasn't been the same since he left. RIP, Tom. There is no one else like him.

Does anyone know where or if any tributes will be paid to him on TV? I forgot to check Larry King.

If anyone's curious about what the Tomorrow show was like, Shout!Factory has put out two DVD compilations that show off Snyder's eclectic taste in musical guests-one focused on the Grateful Dead and their contemporaries in the acid scene, the other on punk and New Wave acts, and both are fascinating. The interviews are absorbing (especially if you're at all interested in any of the artists), largely because Snyder takes a very focused, analytical approach to the artists, even when they're spacey or aggressively unpleasant.

Thanks for that, Mr. Excitement. I might have to check those out, and the price is certainly right. If I get these, I will have to get the Dick Cavett ones too.

He was so... 70's. Lost in another era. The bushy sideburns, the clothes, the constant smoking. I know he did other things after, but I'll always remember him that way. Is anyone else old enough to remember The Midnight Special on Friday nights? Just thinking about that time period...

Aww, damn. Tom Snyder was quirky, but he could be funny as hell, and he could really throw the zingers in an interview. Here's two interesting remembrances; I'm so sorry you kiddies didn't get to experience this man's wit and wisdom:
Memories of Tom and other NBC folk
Goodbye Tom Snyder

I remember Tom interviewing Elton John when he got married, The Plasmatics (blowing up a tv?), the "breatharians" and of course, Charles Manson. I remember being actually afraid for Tom when he was interviewing Manson. A fan was blowing on him, and he was still sweating. Ahh, back in the days when talk shows were all about talking, not promoting their latest project. I miss those days!

I remember how LATE "Tomorrow" used to come on. Granted, this was back in the day when tv stations actually went off the air during the wee hours. This was by far one of the coolest shows EVAH. I remember the great assortment of guests he would get, folks that were just a bit edgier than to be on Carson but too cool if you could manage to stay up that late.
I also remember the Plasmatics show, as well as when U2 was on there.... they were so young!
Today's "hosts" and entities like MTV only WISH they could be as cool and original as Tom Snyder.

My strongest memory of Tom was when he had Andy Kaufman on the show during the phase where he was wrestling women. It was very odd, but Tom was a good sport and played along with it.

I loved his conversational style and the entire laid back attitude where he would joke with production crew and get them to laugh.

The Plasmatics--ah yes--taking a chainsaw to the TV, iirc.

I don't remember the U2 show. I'd love to see some video of that. They had to be young...I saw them in '83 and looking back at the photos now, they were just kids. Well, we all were...

RIP, Tom.

WAnglais1, there's a little bit of the U2 interview in the "Goodbye Tom Snyder" link in my earlier post. There's just a shot of the performance early on, then a bit of the Bono/Edge interview. RIP, Tom! Here's another goody from his show: Tom Turns the World On To Weird Al

I remember an interview he did with a young David Letterman and Billy Crystal, and also Merrill Markoe, that was pure gold. It's at the Museum of Television & Radio, if you can get out to the coast ( either one ).

I was a big Tom Snyder fan, both in the NBC years and the CBS ones. I watched him almost every night in the summers off from college back in the seventies. I dated a guy in college who reminded me of someone, but I could never figure out who, until one day it dawned on me that he looked a lot like Tom (he had the eyebrows). I decided then and there that I was watching too much TV.

The post-Oscar shows with Bonnie Hunt are a favorite memory of mine from the CBS shows. You never knew what was going to be said next. I don't remember any specific lines, but I do remember hurting from trying not to laugh out loud and wake everyone else up.

I was happy to see NBC News Overnight mentioned in both of the links posted above. That was another great show, with great broadcasters.

Yes, for a night owl like me, it was a godsend to have anything to watch, let alone something so entertaining. And the set, with the black blackdrop, a table and a couple of chairs, made the show seem very intimate, as if you were in the room with Tom. I always enjoyed the reactions of the crew, which you could hear from time to time. That was very different from anything else on TV, too.

There were nice tributes on Letterman, the Late, Late Show With Craig Ferguson (Tom's old time spot), and Countdown With Keith Olbermann.