Post-Steve Allen, pre-Johnny Carson and way before Jay, Jack Paar gave the eternally running "Tonight Show" (NBC) an overtly political bent. During the Cold War era, the feisty Paar interviewed such politicos as Robert Kennedy, John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon. He also ignited controversies by offering to trade tractors for prisoners after the failed Bay of Pigs invasion, and by broadcasting from the Berlin Wall with actress Peggy Cass in tow. This latter stunt brought on an inquiry by the U.S. Department of Defense.