NBC Entertainment Chairman Jeff Gaspin told EW.com that he expects Jay Leno “will be competitive” when he returns to The Tonight Show on March 1 and — despite the wave of pro-Conan O’Brien sentiment — that he will not have trouble luring stars to his old stomping grounds. (NBC just announced today that O’Brien will leave the franchise tomorrow and Leno will take back the hosting gig he previously held from May 1992 to May of last year.) “Jay has been booking guests for 18 years, and while there might be a guest or two who favors Conan who doesn’t want to come on, there are also guests who Leno has that don’t like to go on Conan,” said Gaspin. “I think we will be fine.”
Gaspin is equally as optimistic about the challenge of convincing viewers to return to the franchise now that Leno is back. Up until O’Brien took over the show, The Tonight Show under Leno consistently dominated the 11:30 p.m. time slot and was a cash cow for NBC. “I think we will take a slightly different tack than when we were announcing The Jay Leno Show at 10,” explains Gaspin of the new marketing plans. “I suspect we’ll do it with some humor and a wink, not a sledgehammer. We will certainly be more subtle. Fortunately, the positive side of this public battle is that everybody knows what is going on, so you don’t have to create awareness. All we have to do is gently remind people when it starts. We’ll have the Olympics as a platform to let people know that Jay will be back on The Tonight Show starting March 1.”
As for NBC’s agreement to let O’Brien seek employment as early as September, Gaspin wouldn’t comment, but an insider close to the negotiations said the network ultimately compromised because it was eager to wrap up the contentious negotiations. The source says it was the language in the deal that slowed the process, not the actual deal terms, which included O’Brien walking away with a cash settlement of more than $30 million, and his staff receiving severance as well. His last day on NBC is Jan. 22.
For at least next week, reruns of The Tonight Show with O’Brien will air at 11:30 p.m.
NBC is a bunch of idiots. There is no way in hell I’m watching big chin and millions of people feel the same way.
Screw Jay Leno and his horrible comedy. BOYCOTT LENO!!!
Yep, it’s only Letterman for me until Conan finds a home. I used to watch Leno and Conan, but he’s a dirty rat & I will not support him.
Stephen Colbert and David Letterman are fine choices at 11:30. . . And neither of them screwed a friend like Leno did.
32 million dollars in cash.
And his staff got taken care of as well.
And you want to boycott Leno?
Jay Leno-type characters as seen in various movies: Bill Paxton in “True Lies”, Tilda Swinton in “Micheal Clayton”, Paul Reiser in “Aliens”, Sigourney Weaver in “Working Girl”, Patrick Dempsey in “Can’t Buy Me Love” (just near the end, when he’s exposed as a fraud at the party). Leno is a coward in a way. I just don’t see how a person can admire someone like him.
I can’t wait to see which charities Conan will be giving all of his “windfall profits” to! Giving $40 million that he did absolutely NOTHING to deserve (other than fail) will make such a difference for American families who are being put out into the streets, thousands of Haitian children who are dying at this moment, and toward stopping global warming! Conan is going to give all the millions of dollars in undeserved windfall profits to people and causes who need it, because he’s a saint now and all, right?
Conan was an idiot. Finally off the air. Thank God. NOBODY except losers liked his show. His rankings were horrible, and he was a distaster. Not funny. Hope he takes his masterbating bear with him. This was such a terribly crass show. Leno’s return to late night can’t come soon enough.
What a bunch of idiots. Leno didn’t screw anyone. Blame NBC but stop putting the blame on Leno, you idiots. Yeah I bet you all watch Leno, if not there are millions of others who will. Too bad you all didn’t watch Conan when he needed you, so I say you didn’t watch him then, don’t complain now.
internJack–reading your comments, I have to respond. Conan did not get 32 million for hosting a late night failure; he got 32 million for being screwed by NBC and Jay Leno. Remember, he was offered a 12:05 Tonight Show, with Leno as a lead in, which he refused. If he hadn’t, he could have had a job and been making millions per year. But he was rightfully upset that NBC reneged on a promise, didn’t give him a chance, and treated him like a doormat. That’s why the 32 million.
What’s a distaster?
Leno showed how mean-spirited and petty he is by including Lettermen’s wife in his attack on David.
That’s the thing, Matt. We didn’t know Conan needed us until it was too late….too damn late. Most of us not in the showiz know, had no idea that Conan’s show was at risk until we couldn’t do anything about it.
NBC will regret this decision. They are alienating all of Conan’s young and profitable fan base while choosing to cater to Leno’s older demographics. What’s going to happen when all of Leno’s audience dies?
what’s wrong with you people. NBC caused this mess. Jat Leno was forced to leave so NBC would not lose Conan. Jay did not want to leave. It’s not Jay’s fault that Conan is not funny and no one wanted to watch him. I am so happy that Conan is gone. I can hardly wait until Jay comes back to where he belongs. NBC should have left the #1 show alone.
I don’t get why people are saying Leno back stabbed Conan, it was JEff Zucker’s idea to move him to 11:30. Leno didn’t want to do it, but Conan was quiting so he’s going to do it so that his staff can keep their jobs. I liked Conan and Leno, but since nothing is going to change this ordeal I welcome Leno back at 11:30.
I used to love to watch Letterman, then switch over to O’Brien. Leno pitches to the lowest common denominator and is boring. Never liked Leno and now, well, I really don’t like him. He had his turn on the Tonight Show and if he had any class at all he’d have retired and left the show to Conan.
YUK. No way I’m ever watching Leno. Ugh.
Leno=Nothing But Crap
And still somehow more successful than Conan? Weird. Guess that makes him some sort of parasite that lives on crap.
Pretty much, Go Coco!. I used to like Leno on the tnite show, but his new show was HORRIBLE, and I loved/love Conan. Leno should’ve just retired, and don’t forget people, it took leno years (3+) to get his audience. Comedy Central and Craig Ferguson it is then!
Do any of you understand that NBC and Conan had a CONTRACT which NBC breached? He got a lot less (and, Lord knows his relocated staff got less) than he had been guaranteed under the contract. Even if you think Conan’s low ratings were his fault (and not the fault of NBC a) giving him the crappy Leno show as a lead-in before the news and b) not giving him the YEARS Leno had to get up in the ratings), NBC breached their contract with him. He got a lot less than the contract had in its stipulated damages clause, and he lobbied hard to protect the lower-level folks who moved out to California and were now stuck jobless.
so NBC pays out 40 million to Conan..when they had a deal to pay him that amount to keep Conan after the Tonight Show …why didn’t they do that 5 years ago? And I am a little disappointed in Conan..he should have waited the situation out a little here…because there have been changes to the Tonight Show in its history…for example, the Tonight Show use to be 1.5 hours long to which Johnny Carson reduced to 1 hour ..so while there is a tradition and decorum bout the show..it isn’t sacred to the point of doing this…Fox has failed in late night & while I really don’t want to see Conan go – this wasn’t the best move
that was a stupid comment
I really like the idea of Conan going to FX. His humor would be more suitable on cable. Late Night was a critically acclaimed show. The sooner Conan goes back to that format, the better. Long live Conan
FX would be okay, but comedy central would, in my book, be better. with a daily show/colbert report lead-in, he could easily host an entertainment late night program. it would be similar to network tv in scheduling (news, then talk show) and his audience is most likely already watching…
noam: That would still put Conan at the 12am spot. I think FOX is for the best. The same network as: The Simpsons, Family Guy, Glee, and American Idol. No I think FOX would be great. They’ve needed late-night since Arsenio.
The world of late night is right again. Yeah! But why put Conan reruns on for the next week? He is so nonsignifcant, what a bore, oh well I can wait until 3/1/10.
Millions of people don’t. Can’t wait to have Jay back. Now if Letterman will retire so Conan can go there my late night viewing will be complete.
Comments like this indicate that you will never own your own home.
Bet you love “According to Jim,” too.
You said it, Kristyn. No way on God’s Earth am I EVER tuning into Leno.
It wouldn’t be the first time NBC execs were wrong.
Exactly. Can’t wait to see how things pan out. They’re obviously going to put on a brave/optimistic/done no wrong face, but they’re probably secretly worried they’ve really broken something. Maybe they have.
At least they have still have Olbermann, the reminas of Carson Daly and the Don’t be Tardy for the Party lady in the family. NBC ain’t all bad.
Go Coco….somehow it appears as though you don’t have any real friends. Somehow I think this is Andy Richter. How very sad.
I don’t think the transition will be too rough. I hope that they do stick with the old tonight show formula that Jay had before going to 10 pm. Like everyone has been saying, Jay’s audience is too old to go online via Twitter and FB to support him. Not that I hate Conan either. GL to him!
conans late night suffered from a weak opener, leno at 10. putting leno back on tonight is a mistake that will cost nbc viewers and hurt both their and lenos reputation.
Conan also suffered because his show wasn’t that great.
I respectfully disagree.
Conan’s show is great. Very DIFFERENT than Jay. But world’s better.
I think you mean that since Jay’s 10AM show was bad that hurt Conan, right? Poor lead-in and only 7 months behind the desk did COCO in.
I’ve never been a Conan fan. I just don’t get his humor and thought he would be a bad fit for the Tonight Show. That being sad I think he got a raw deal from the start, first with NBC giving Leno the 10pm slot which diluted his show, then being dumped to give Leno back his throne. I’m now Team CoCo and won’t be watching the new/old Tonight Show. If NBC was so in love with Leno they should have released Conan before the Tonight Show gig. It couldn’t have been worse than what they ended up with.
Conan’s lead in is the same as Jay Leno.
The local news.
That’s it. The local news. The same news that may be replaced.
So here’s a question.
If television is changing and his numbers at 11:30 weren’t great?
He got out of his contract without penalty, got ALOT of money (rumor is 32 million in CASH), his non compete clause is only 7 months long, and he has all ya’ll singing his praises even if his ratings are worse than the competition?
Don’t you think that Conan was smart to get out before the format tanks?
LOL
Do you think that he’s unhappy at the moment?
32 million dollars is alot of money.
Jay Leno is older and closer to retirement than Conan. He’s got less to lose and his ratings have been the best in his time slot for a while.
LOL I’m just wondering if this is true?
I’d just love to know what ya’ll think.
The best shows on TV have small viewing audiences. Conan may not appeal to older folks but he’s very popular with younger people. His comedy is so unique. Conan has a lot of energy. I don’t understand how Leno could regain fans after this. He’s such a has been.
Yes, and the local news’ lead-in was Leno. Leno caused the local news to have a significant ratings drop. It was so low the affiliates complained, Jay got “cancelled” and Conan got screwed by a low rated lead-in (the local news!) and the fact that he was once again the second talk show on for the night on NBC. Leno’s audience just went to bed earlier because they still watched him, they never crossed over to watch Conan.
Jay had $5million viewers at 10pm. He only “failed” because he was against dramas that pulled in 15 plus million. His 5 was still higher than Conan and Letterman’s. People want to distort to justify their bullying.
Letterman’s had HUGe lead ins (better than Jays) for the last decade but still lost to Jay.
The point isn’t that Jay failed. Having a show that drew in 5 million going against cop dramas of 15 million hurt NBC. Not jay himself.
Leno is the sorta creep that many people are familiar with but might not know it: the sneak that undermines your integrity and stabs you in the back and when confronted about it, raises his hands and says “I’m innocent! Who you are really after is…” In this case, NBC is willing to be the bad guy because hey, they already look stupid to begin with. I’ve rooted for NBC for years, especially when they received flack for their Thursday night meltdown. I always thought, “Well, they have the kind of comedy I like (The Office, 30 Rock, Scrubs) but now I just think NBC is a joke, with Jay Leno as their mascot.
Though I’m certainly not a fan, I used to see Leno as a neutral element, just caught in the middle of a network’s poor decision – that is, UNTIL Leno came out a couple days ago, defending himself. The part that did me in was the transparent ‘shucks, I just do what the boss tells me to do’ line of BS. Leno IS a snake.
Yes! That is what he has reminded me of throughout this whole thing. He is like the office-politic-playing jerk personified.
Well he did get 32 million and out of his contract for a show that wasn’t working out. His non compete clause was only 7 months.
Kind of a 7 month paid holiday and plenty of time to come up with another project in whatever he chooses. (That’s important if the late night format is changing.)
Matter of fact the 2010 Fall season starts after September 1st.
Leno on the other hand just got his old job back. I don’t think he got a raise.
But he did keep a roof over his staff’s head.
But ya’ll keep talking about this as I’m guessing Conan would be happy for the good press.
Whereas Conan is more like the Menendez brothers…you know….get the old people out of your way and get that money any way you can.
I now can’t watch Conan until Sept at the earliest. That upsets me; He always makes my day. That’s why I will botcott NBC!!
The biggest tragedy is losing Conan for 7 or more months. I know it will probably take awhile to find a home but Conan shouldn’t have to be leaving at all. The great LOUIS CK said it best when he said that The Tonight Show is just some silly dumb thing. It’s nothing to cry about losing. I’m just crying about losing Conan on my TV. I just love him to death.
How do you explain the poor ratings in June, July, August?
Then there was the Conan “fan” at another site that stated he didn’t watch Conan YET because he was waiting for Conan to get “edgy” It’s fans like that that may have cost Conan his spot.
By the way, I don’t watch either one.
You just named three summer months. That’s the reason the ratings were low. That, and it was a new show up against an established one, and it needed time to find itself. Leno had the same issue when he first started.
Leno got his friend Sarah Palin to fake outrage against Letterman sabatoging Conan.
One of the reasons Letterman is angry is because he wonders if Jay used him to get the Tonight show back.
Also, I think any audience that watched Jay Leno at 10 was pretty much talk-showed out by 11:30.
I thought that Jay Leno was suppose to RETIRE which was announced 5 years ago when they said Conan was going to take over. So why is he still there???? His multimillions is not enough???? RETIRE already, he looks sooo old and tired. He’s no longer funny and has no idea on how to interview people. Does he have an education???
According to some insiders (and in The Late Shift) Leno and his late manager also had Johnny Carson ousted early too.
The guy is rat.
This is true; he let his ball-busting manager do the dirty work in getting rid of Johnny Carson, then dumped her when she was fired by NBC. Leno has been NBC’s b*tch for years; good on Conan for not being b*tch number two.
Dangit! The Late Shift is not an Instant viewable on Netflix. I have been meaning to finally see that, now that this has all kind of gone down again. I wonder what will happen the next time, when Leno is finally ready to retire in another decade, give or take? Jimmy Fallon promised his turn on The Tonight Show, and Leno ousts him too, doing the interviews from a hospital bed, removing his oxygen mask to breathlessly delivery his monologue and interview questions?
Last I checked, The Late Shift was NOT a documentary. Seriously, people – stop buying anything people sell that smells like something you remember liking once upon a time. If Jay forced Carson out, then Conan did the same to Jay. Ooooh, but we’re not allowed to say that, right? lol
This is where I fault Jay. Yay NBC screwed you over by forcing you to retire. But guess what they did the same thing to Johnny so you could get the job. That’s how the business goes. The network is always looking for the next big thing. Leno should have rode off in the sunset. Carson came off as classy even though it was obvious he was dumped. Leno gets to keep the prize, but his reputation is in shreds.
Conan was very valuable to NBC. The execs don’t want to admit it now but it’s true. Letterman isn’t being pressured to retire because Ferguson isn’t seasoned enough to replace him. Conan, on the other hand, has been raring to go for several years. He’s a beloved entertainer even if he wasn’t getting high ratings. So it’s hard to worry for Conan. His popularity level was already quite high and is now higher than ever.
He’s younger then Letterman. Letterman should retire. He’s vicious, bitter and getting uglier by the day.
Letterman should not retire. He’s not even on the same network anyway. Leno betrayed him once after Letterman helped him get a start. What more do you people want?
He is damaged reputation for looking like a corporate stooge, not standing up to the Network when he went along with their horrible ideas. Not to mention the number of celebrities that are going to pass on his show.
Do you really think self absorbed actors and actresses are going to forego a major platform like the tonight show in shilling their latest movie, product, event. Please, even if they like Coco, they like themselves a 1000x more.
Seriously. The idea that the guests would be any more selfless than hypocritical Conan is beyond laughable.
No REAL actors or musician’s would set foot on Conan’s show beause of Conan’s shabby treatment to them. He is not a nice person and deserves to get his ass canned. He will never come back on TV again. Go Coco somehow is delusional and doesn’t get it.
I guess Tom Hanks isn’t a REAL actor…
Total agreement.
I wish him the worst. His 1st week he’ll do well, but after that I hope he retreats into oblivion once and for all.
Leno’s audience will be glad he’s back and embrace him with open arms …
They don’t care that he or NBC are despicable d-bags.
I’m soooo worried you’re right. The types of people who liked him in the first place could probably care less that he’s a d-bag and effed up Conan. They just want to see headlines on Monday night and Jaywalking.
Then they should listen to the Howard Stern Show & catch old eps of Late Night with David Letterman. That is where the douche stole those skits from.
Conan wasn’t getting ratings. Bottom line. Its a business, get over it.
For Real, would you care to cite any examples of anything completely original on Letterman’s show? I’ve never seen anything on there that wasn’t lifted from everyone from Steve Allen to Carson himself. Letterman’s a true hack.
Conan was not cancelled over rarings. Conan is voluntarily leaving to protect himself from NBC’s stupid decision. Conan was supposed to be Leno’s replacement. Carson Daly is a nobody and he’s still around. Ratings don’t matter that much in late night. Nobody had an issue with Leno until this NBC controversy. Conan was disrespected by his own network and Jay by association. It sucks but Conan is doing the right thing. NBC has not very much going for it besides 30 Rock. Jay Leno could never save such a failing network. He’s too old and boring. It’s just more of the same with him. Many people are already tired of him and he hasn’t even started yet.
That’s right Kwise-we oldsters like to see Headlines and Jaywalking at the time we’re used to seeing them! Can’t wait.
I feel like the guy screaming at the end of Invasion of the Body People. WHAT HAVE THEY DONE TO YOU ALL?!? LOOK AT YOURSELVES? You all shout out ratings numbers and dollar amounts like it’s a damn baseball game. Don’t make the concerns of these number-blinded execs your concerns. “It’s business” sure, but they’re losing money, not us. We’ve lost quality entertainment, and yet we’re running around complaining about “ratings” and “lost profits in advertising.” Conan fans, keep up the support. Not just for Conan but for quality television everywhere.
*Invasion of the Body Snatchers*…..lol
I was a Leno fan before this. I couldn’t get into Conan’s tonight show. That being said after this debacle I won’t be watching the new/old TS with Leno. He’s demaged goods IMHO.
It’s just business get over it. You don’t think the companies of the products you use and buy don’t go through corporate shit like this all the time. This just happened to play out on TV. The drama has been great and I am looking forward to Leno’s return. It’s just business folks grow up.
I will never watch Jay Leno ever again! Conan O’Brien is way more funny and he deserves to be the host of The Tonight Show! I hate you Jay, you are old, not funny and you need to get your chin out of Conan’s dreams!!
He doesn’t just deserve it, he’s ENTITLED.
Go Coco….nobody watched Conan except you. He was seriously awful. Seriously. If you like skits with a masterbating bear, I am sure you can find them online. More people are interested in real comedy.
OMG – seriously – out of Conan’s dreams? Take a deep breath, rebecca, and turn around and find your own life.
What is wrong with NBC? The only one that will be happy about Jay’s return is Letterman.
Leno kicked Letterman’s butt in the ratings for 15 years. Letterman isn’t happy about this at all, evidenced by his nightly rants against Jay.
Only because Hugh Grant couldn’t keep it in his pants and told Jay about it first. Letterman was beating Leno until that day. And by comparison, Dave having consentual sex with his staffers seems a bit reserved.
Hugh Grant was on for one night, not 15 years.
It doesn’t matter chief. Any intelligent person is away of the ratings switch that happened after the Hugh Grant interview. Ignoring that fact is idiotic.
See Al, Leno’s success for 16 years was based solely on viewers waiting to see Hugh Grant return. He’s incredibly popular, you know.
I don’t understand how Leno beat Letterman in the ratings. Letterman and Conan have sharp comedy brains. Not to mention comedy balls. Jay Leno is vanilla. There’s nothing there. The average viewer has no taste. That’s why phenomenal shows like Arrested Development and Pushing Daisies were cancelled. It’s why dumb shows like Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice are STILL on. I’m happily in the minority. I love QUALITY television. I love Conan, 30 Rock, and Curb your enthusiasm. Those are the only truly great comedy shows on TV. NBC: you are fools to let O’Brien go.
People like Jay because he is a good interviewer and a nice guy….and he is funny. Conan was self indulgent and made guests and viewers uncomfortbale. Go Coco (or Andy Richter) doesnt know how to be nice to people in his real life so he likes to watch a show where the host trashes people. Jay has been the gentleman here. Conan is a spoiled douchebag.
Skip182 – Any intelligent person knows the ratings changed after the Hugh Grant interview? Wow, guess Letterman wasn’t all that great, if his “fans” couldn’t figure out how to change the channel back. The fact is, you Letterman fans like to think you are all better than anyone else, because you are his fans (which is kind of circular, but I guess it works for you all). But the facts are, seems to me, that a good portion of smart Letterman fans sampled Leno and then stayed for the next 15 years.
Leno was “kicking” Dave’s butt because he had ER, Dateline, and Law and Order leading him in…all of those were top 20 shows. Conan had the lowest rated show on television leading him in.
Leasie, Leno beat Letterman in the ratings because more people watched his show.
Everyone seems to be jumping at the idea that Leno will flop once he returns to the Tonight Show. Just 8 monts ago people were complaining on all these comment pages that they couldn’t beleive that Leno was being forced out and would not watch Conan. People seem to forget that Leno has around 5.4 million viewers for his 10pm show, that is at least 1 million more then Letterman currently has. Now 5.4 million is terrible for prime time but great for late night. When Leno goes to 11:30 a lot of those viewers will follow him and more that just stopped watching late night when he left will come back. It won’t be hard to gain back the level of viewership he once had. Conan may take some with him but Leno brings more back with him. It’s just a numbers game.
But how many of his viewers are of the “coveted demographic”? My understanding is that the 18-49ers are what ad rates are based on, and most of that group are more likely to be Conan fans. Given the sense that Conan has been screwed, I’m guessing Jay’s 18-49 numbers will be even smaller than they were before.
Execs want the 18-49 demo in prime time, when most people are watching TV. When it comes to late night, execs will take whatever rating they can get.
Eh, the network is willing to forego that demo in late-night to get Jay Leno out of prime time and avoid paying whatever penalty he had in his contract for canceling his show before 2 years. This is less about getting Conan out as it is about not paying Leno. You can trust whatever the penalty was, it was much bigger than Conan’s payout. And, he had better ratings than Conan so it was a ultimately it was a good financial decision for NBC.
I’m not going to watch Leno. I always found him a bland interviewer and an uncreative host, and preferred Letterman, even if the latter was sometimes brusque he was much more interesting. I’d still watch Leno if the guest were good, but now he’s become unlikeable. Cheers to all those who enjoy him, different strokes for different folks, but NBC can count me out.
Yeah and that’s why people Hate LENO. All those viewers are viewers that CONAN never got a chance to win over.
ALl this stuff about Letterman beating COCO 4 milliono to 2 million, then NBC got scared. Hmm, how about taking LENO off completely and let COCO fail on is own. The Jay Leno show was a terrible lead in. Jay just kept his original viewers. And scared away any new potential COCO viewers.
They should have given COCO more time. I could see if LEtterman was winning 9 million to 2 million, but that’s not the case. Letterman never got any new viewers.
How was CONAN supposed to beat Letterman when, a. Leno Show was a terrible lead in. and B. Leno steals all the good guests???
ONe week Leno had DEnzel Washingtion(one of the biggest movie starts) and Sandra Bullock(the top box office star of 09) and who does COCO have, Rob Lowe.
HOw is he supposed to bring in viewers?????????????????????????????????
I have got to remember to watch Conan on Friday night. I bet that will be a big big ratings bonanza. I might even watch Leno the first night, just to see how the exit and re-entry are dealt with, but I never watch these nighttime talkshows, these days I am trying to catch Will & Grace reruns on Lifetime but they keep rerunning the Project Runway I already watched the first time it aired on Thursday nights. *shrug*
that’s a great point and one I can’t believe is not mentioned more. Many people didn’t want to do two shows and were told to do the show at 10. That had everything to do with what NBC wanted, not Conan.
Junie – You are quite passionate in your opinions and defense of poor, defenseless Conan. But I have one question you didn’t address: Where did all of Conan’s fan go? He really didn’t need time to “build an audience.” He had a ready made one from his old show. Where did they go? Plus, Conan WAS on his own for the first 3 months – so again, where were the viewers? Why didn’t his own fans follow him?
I think the network is at fault here. I like Jay and Conan and believe Leno will be ok. I know itis popular to slam Jay but, he is a good guy and is quite funny. I think all of the late night hosts got caught up in this mess and normally would not beat the shit out of eachother verbally. I hope Conan lands a show somewhere and hope all three major late night players are successful in their own ways!
I think Steve is very correct.
A lot of people forget this is Hollywood. Most business now only care about ratings. I think it was a very bad business decision made by NBC top executives. Contracts also are very complex. Others have complained why didn’t Jay- step aside and walk. If a company messes up your contract like Conan’s side of it- NBC Messed up & they owe him big time & then on Jay’s side- if they refuse to release him- he could have been sued by NBC big time. NBC created such a mess that there is no good solutions here.
I’m glad Conan’s leaving. He’s better off elsewhere since The Tonight Show was already far too tarnished by the comedy-fail that is Leno.
Stir up a cup of Sanka, seniors. Your laff champion Leno is back on after the news.
The worst part is that Leno’s fans aren’t all seniors.
They’re just people who love the lazy, uninspired humor of the likes of Dane Cook and Jeff Dunham and Larry the Cable Guy. They’re the same people who make ‘Two and a Half Men’ the ratings powerhouse it is and Paul Blart a monster box office success.
Conan was just too absurd for that yokel audience that Leno thrives off of.
Agreed. Masses of people seem to flock to mediocrity.
Sandwich, you hit the “yokel” nail on the “yokel” head!
EXACTLY
Just wanted to also agree here. I couldn’t have said it better myself.
Totally. You just named off every single thing that I’ve never understood why they are so popular (ratings wise) when they are so terrible (quality wise). Conan’s humor was just not mainstream enough for people who were used to watching Leno, who is so middle of the road and harmless. Hopefully Conan can go somewhere where he’s allowed to be free and hilarious and treated with respect!
Couldn’t agree more!
All this “older” vs “younger” talk is just uninspired people repeating what they have read from critics. How about just once, one of you big Letterman fans tell me one “inspired”, young, hip comedy bit Letterman has done lately. Because, seriously, I really don’t see alot of difference except in delivery styles. Letterman has alot of tics, repeats himself alot – just like they all do. I find them all funny sometimes, sometimes not.
I’m a Conan (and Craig Ferguson, Chelsea Handler) fan and I like all the shows you mentioned, except CYE (never seen it). I also like conventional comedies like Friends, Everybody Loves Raymond, and King of Queens. The popularity of Jay Leno and Dane Cook truly eludes me, though. And, it is sometimes frustrating when shows I love get canceled but is it laziness on the parts of others for not liking them? Can’t people just have different tastes?
You’re absolutely right. It’s Two and a Half Men brand of comedy which should be shot, dead and buried. Leno’s so freaking safe. I would watch him once in a while if he had an interesting guest on but the man has never made me laugh.
I don’t like Cook, Dunham or Larry the Cable Guy. Two and a Half Men is mediocre, but I do confess I enjoyed Paul Blart. I like Jay.
That’s a ridiculous statement to make. I think if you took a good look at Leno’s demographics you’d find the “seniors” you are thinking about are watching either Nightline or cable news repeats. If they need a laugh, it’s Letterman or Seinfeld reruns…
No, I think it’s accurate. Though there are exceptions, Leno’s “humor” appeals to older folks.
Nice tie-in with Modern Family. I like your style, man.
Cheers!
Ah, thanks for the idea you wouldn’t happen to have any cream and sugar would you?
I cannot stand Conan or Jay, but the idiots at NBC created this mess five years ago when they “knighted” Conan the next Tonight Show host. He wasn’t funny then, he isn’t funny now. To take this a step further back, Jay bullied his way into the Tonight Show seat that was rightfully earned by someone who is/was/and would have better… David Letterman. I think Letterman would have been more like Johnny with a current twist (top ten, etc.). The shame of it all, is that David let the bitterness get to him and lost a lot of insider respect. Nevertheless, Jay is now officially the snake we all have thought it was for a very long time now. Jeff Zucker will never find a job again…
You are an idiot. Go watch reruns of King of Queens.
Let her have her say, man. And if you disagree, and really think she’s an idiot, write an intelligent response. But just a conclusion without an argument is weak, no?
Be good, Sheldon.
King of Queens is a pretty stupid show. But it did have Patton Oswalt on it.
Patton is one of, if not THE single best standup comedians working today.
I’m sure Conan would agree.
I didn’t mind King of Queens – I think it’s funny that the husband and wife of the show are often portrayed as self-serving jerks, something most shows try to avoid doing to their leads. Add Patton Oswalt and Jerry Stiller and King of Queens is pretty decent and just a bit unconventional.