It’s obviously water under the bridge now, but the Hollywood Reporter’s ESQ column makes a provocative argument that Conan O’Brien may have triumphed in court over NBC’s decision to force him out of the 11:30 p.m. timeslot. Legal blogger Matthew Belloni appears to have seen the actual deal – one that’s been amended several times since O’Brien first came to NBC in 1993. In a 2002 amendment, Belloni writes, the specifics of when and where he’ll appear are apparently spelled out in black and white: if Jay Leno ever left, O’Brien would be installed as host of Tonight, which was described as the “series that airs at 11:35 p.m.” What’s more, his original deal to host Late Night was described as the “second network series after the end of primetime.”
Yet in the 2004 amendment – in which O’Brien was specifically given the Tonight Show after a five-year waiting period – there is no mention of the timeslot. This is surely why a key insider told EW that timeslot restrictions didn’t exist and why NBC/Universal Chairman Jeff Zucker echoed as much to PBS’ Charlie Rose. Argues Belloni, “You’ve got to read an amended contract in the context of all other prenegotiated elements. O’Brien’s 2004 deal incorporated by reference and ratified all the terms of his prior deals — including the Tonight Show definition — and says any conflicts between NBC’s standard terms and the negotiated terms are governed by what’s been negotiated.”
O’Brien’s team eventually negotiated a more than favorable settlement: not only did he receive some $30-plus million, he has the right to find a new job quickly (though he can’t show up elsewhere until Sept. 1).
An insider familiar to the negotiations dismissed the column by saying it was not accurate. NBC declined to comment.
I’ve already forgotten about Conan. I’m sure I’ll be excited when he returns, but I don’t really miss him now.
I miss him a lot! Very much hoping he gets an 11:30 slot on FOX in September.
Holy cow! Derek has forgotten about Conan!? This speaks volumes about Conan’s place in the Late Night landscape. Holy Jesus! Derek!?
What you asshole!
Well someone screwed the pooch on that one.
I miss him too!
Conan Who? Can’t wait to see Jay again at 11:35.
Jay is terribile i’m done with NBC latenight
I absolutely can’t stomach the sight of Jay anymore. Boycotting NBC.
hahaha. You’re hilarious. Maybe you should replace Jay when he tanks this time.
That’s why your name has grammy in the title. You and all the other geriatric boomers wouldn’t know funny if it hit you in the face!
Sarah Bear should change her name to Sarah “Bear-racuda”. Nasty. I’d watch what I say – someday in the not-so-distant future you too will be older and will undoubtedly think of yourself as wiser then too.
I have taken the tonight show off of my DVR… Can’t wait til Conan is back!
does anyone believe anything nbc says about any of this?
they pulled out all stops to bash conan, including a sports producer who blew the deal on the olympics by losing 200 million or so.
Until Conan took over The Tonight Show, I hadn’t watched since Johnny Carson’s last show. I miss Conan alot and am eagerly awaiting definite news of a new show as soon as possible.
I’m a huge Conan fan but The Tonight Show wasn’t a good fit for him. That show is for those who like they’re current events and that slap on the knee, polished humor. I guess Leno was good for that. I’m amazed that Leno is so popular and had the #1 show. He has a 45min endless monologue followed some boring, self-important guests. I miss Conan, NBC screwed up and lost a great frontman of comedy. Hope he returns for a new show.
I love Conan too… and agree, The Tonight Show wasn’t a good fit for him. I think NBC might have given him a little more time to try and make his turn at the wheel a little less awkward… Jay is a better fit for the time slot, he’s much more traditional which is what most people obviously prefer at that hour.
I hope Conan lands another show ASAP and takes Max and Andy with him… and may he go back to being as zany and silly as he was on Late Night for that’s the way we love him best.
He got a settlement of more than $30 million bucks to sit at home for 6 months, then he’ll just walk into whichever network ponies up the right chunk of change, and work whenever he wants, WHEREEVER he wants. I’ve always like Conan’s irreverent style of comedy over Leno’s old style of “network” humor. Jay will always have his fans, but his entire legacy has been damaged by this fiasco.
Nope, I gotta disagree with you…. he’s got a rock-solid fan base who will more than welcome him back.
Conan tempered down his humor trying to fit into The Tonight Show… and it failed. (And evidently I wasn’t the only one who felt that way – his ratings tanked.)
Note: I always TIVO’ed his former (Late Night) show which was almost always hilarious. Watching him on The Tonight Show was awkward, so much so I found it made me almost uncomfortable. He’ll find a new show that will better capture his terrific sense of humor and with all that money in his pocket, he doesn’t have to be in a hurry to do so.
Then why did NBC cancel The Jay Leno Show? Apparently no one was watching Jay at 10..some rock-solid fan base.
NBC is a real peace of work. they screwed howard stern, then they screwed david letterman, and now they have screwed conan!what a scummy company.
Like others have said, it’s hard to feel sorry for Conan with all that money he took from away from NBC. Here’s the best commentary I’ve yet seen on the subject: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBHjQl6Qwl8
This shows just how much NBC will lie to cover their tracks. Look for them to continue to try to re-spin this whole thing so that it sounds like it’s Conan’s fault. They, and Leno, are not believable.
Miss you coco
CONAN is a HARVARD educated man. He is witty and has a great sense of humor. Leno has neither wit nor a sense of humor. HE IS HORRIBLE. Old robots watch hime
CONAN is a HARVARD educated man. He is witty and has a great sense of humor. Leno has neither wit nor a sense of humor. HE IS HORRIBLE. Old robots watch him
Yeh, the closest Jay Leno ever got to Harvard is playing comedy clubs in the area!
Yes, and he’s still a lousy comedian!
I miss Conan a lot. It pains me that many average folks probably think that Conan got fired because of bad ratings and got all this money as severance. (“Why should I feel sorry for Conan? He got all this money!”)
–While the truth is that NBC broke his contact. They were wrong.
Jay Leno is pathetic. He sold his soul to get the Tonight Show back.
He told Oprah that his parents were dead and that he was the last of his family, etc. so, there was no one to explain anything to. Oprah should have asked, “Explain what, Jay?”
Why should you feel any remorse? You’re just doing what the company tells you to do. A company man, Mr. Regular American Guy (rolling in millions of dollars and hundreds of cars.
Conan was given less than half the time Leno was given to find his groove and with the worst lead-in programming NBC
ever aired.
I know you’re reading this, Jay. Oh, and why don’t you stick that flag pin up your butt! You pandering baby!
Gary,
I thought the same thing when I saw Leno on Oprah.
What was he talking about when he was saying he didn’t have any family left to explain this to?? Did he mean that they would have been ashamed of him being an indian giver (sorry, not P.C.) which he is. I love how his fans have no problem with that!
I also liked your flag pin comment. I would also classify him as a pandering nit wit!