Quote: They hyped it up to be this whole new variety show. It turned out to be nothing more than his old show, with some added bits like stealing Lettermans Stupid Human/Pet Tricks segment.
Unlike Letterman who ripped off the whole Tonight Show format when he went to CBS.
well NBC did screw Letterman out of the Tonight Show to put Leno there as well...and screwed the pooch there as well.. If Letterman got the Tonight Show.... there would be no late night show competing with NBC in that slot at CBS...
"Don't be burdened by regrets or make your failures an obsession or become embittered or possessed by ruined hopes"
Quote: They hyped it up to be this whole new variety show. It turned out to be nothing more than his old show, with some added bits like stealing Lettermans Stupid Human/Pet Tricks segment.
Unlike Letterman who ripped off the whole Tonight Show format when he went to CBS.
They're totally different.
On Letterman, the band is to camera-left, on Leno it is to camera-right. Not even remotely the same
Browns is the Browns
... there goes Joe Thomas, the best there ever was in this game.
Lover Conan but also love The Colbert Report....Having Conan go to 11PM would be perfect as I could watch first 30 mins of Conan and then switch over to Colbert
I'm coming home, I'm coming home, tell the world I'm coming home
ay Leno, expressing what he called "surprise and disappointment" with NBC executives, said yesterday that he believed his performance as the host of the "Tonight" show should have more than satisfied the network and that he did not deserve to be threatened with losing the leading show in late-night television to David Letterman.
"Am I crazy?" Mr. Leno said in a telephone interview. "The ratings are going up, the advertisers are happy and so are the affiliates." And yet Mr. Leno said he had not received any assurances from NBC executives in New York that he would not be dropped in favor of Mr. Letterman by Jan. 15. That is the deadline NBC is facing to match a CBS offer to give Mr. Letterman about $16 million to star in a nightly talk show at 11:30, the same time as the "Tonight" show.
"I am disappointed," Mr. Leno said. "I feel like a guy who has bought a car from somebody, painted it, fixed it up and made it look nice and then the guy comes back and says he promised to sell the car to his brother-in-law." Go Elsewhere? 'Of Course'
Mr. Leno said he would "obviously leave NBC immediately" if the network decided to give the "Tonight" show to Mr. Letterman. He said he would absolutely refuse to do a show in the 12:30 A.M. spot now occupied by Mr. Letterman's show, "Late Night," and would indeed consider creating the same problem for NBC that Mr. Letterman's proposed deal with CBS caused.
"Would I go to CBS if they asked me?" Mr. Leno said. "Of course. I'm not going to do some little happy hour from Omaha at 12:30."
In the last week, factions inside NBC have been taking sides between Mr. Leno and Mr. Letterman. "NBC's West Coast executives have said everything is O.K.," Mr. Leno said of Warren Littlefield, the president of NBC Entertainment, and John Agoglia, the president of NBC Enterprises.
"But the East Coast people won't say that," he added. Specifically, Mr. Leno said he had heard from Robert C. Wright, the president of NBC, to whom both West Coast executives report. "He said they don't know what they're doing yet," Mr. Leno said. "I appreciate the candor, but it does disappoint me."
The comedian became the host of the "Tonight" show in May after Johnny Carson retired after 30 years on the show. At the time, NBC chose Mr. Leno over Mr. Letterman for the position. 'A Guy With Two Girlfriends'
Now it faces the same choice, but the stakes are much higher. Beyond the $16 million to Mr. Letterman, NBC would have to pay Mr. Leno about $10 million if it breaks its commitment to him to be the host of "Tonight." NBC now pays Mr. Leno $3 million a year as the host of "Tonight."
"NBC is like a guy with two girlfriends who doesn't know which one he's going to marry on Jan. 15," Mr. Leno said. "And the longer you wait, the madder they both get."
He said NBC's indecision was hurting him even if he survived the Letterman threat, because the network executives were letting it be known publicly that they have some doubts about him, doubts, he said, that are unjustified. 'This Isn't About Dave'
To compound the emotional aspect of the conflict, Mr. Leno acknowledged his own debt to Mr. Letterman. "I would not have this job if not for Dave," he said. Mr. Letterman had Mr. Leno on his own show as his most frequent guest in the early 1980's. "This isn't about Dave. Dave is worth whatever somebody wants to pay him. Anything I can do toward keeping him at NBC, I'd do." Short of giving up his own show, that is.
"It's a tricky situation," Mr. Leno said. "Dave is truly a star and terrific, and this is a terrible position NBC is in. But fragging your own soldier doesn't make any sense to me."
He argued that he ought to have satisfied NBC by now because his ratings have shown growth in recent weeks, after a period of turmoil when Mr. Leno's former manager and the show's former producer, Helen G. Kushnick, enraged NBC executives with her tactics in booking guests. 'We Have Great Morale'
NBC fired her. Since then, Mr. Leno said, the show has been running smoothly. "We have great morale," he said. "Everybody is having fun, except for some long faces when we read all these bad things about the show in the newspapers."
Mr. Leno reached about a 4.9 national rating in recent weeks, which is up from a low of about 4.2 in the summer. (Each rating point represents 931,000 homes.)
"I've always said, 'Just judge me by my performance,' " he said. "I've done stand-up comedy for a lot of years. When I go out and see a full house of 3,000 people, I know I'm making money for somebody. If I see only 1,200 people and the house is half-full, I know I've got to do another show to make it up to the guy. But the affiliates, the advertisers, they're all happy."
Mr. Leno said he would not be reluctant to have to face-off against Mr. Letterman at 11:30 each night. "In the comedy clubs I used to say, put me on after Richard Pryor," Mr. Leno said. "Competition is really the only way you get better."
Despite the indecision in New York, Mr. Leno said he did not believe that NBC would force him out. "I don't think it will happen," he said. But he added, "I'm not sure, and that's the annoying part."
Late NBC local TV newscasts airing after "The Jay Leno Show" have seen ratings declines by 25% among key viewers, which is costing NBC stations $22 million every three months.
Media agency Harmelin Media said local TV newscasts across 210 TV markets lost one-quarter of their respective adult 25-54 viewership, the main viewer group for TV news advertisers. The reason: NBC programming "The Jay Leno Show" in the 10 p.m. time period four months ago.
The analysis said some of NBC's biggest markets were hit hardest: In New York, Los Angeles and Philadelphia, there were ratings declines of 48%, 43% and 47%, respectively.
If NBC keeps "The Jay Leno Show" in prime time, the top 20 stations would continue to collectively lose about $10 million in revenue per quarter. Looking at all 210 TV markets, NBC affiliates would lose a massive $22 million every three months. Harmelin's data comes from TNS Media Intelligence market-specific cost-per-point data from SQAD.
While Jeff Gaspin, chairman of NBC Universal Television Entertainment, told TV critics earlier this week the network was profitable in the period, Harmelin says the situation is different when analyzing NBC's owned stations.
Estimates are that the 10 NBC owned stations are losing about $570,000 per week, or $7.4 million per quarter, according to Harmelin's analysis.
The analysis says the monetary losses do not take into account the additional revenue declines that NBC affiliates suffered directly in prime time and in late night, as a result of the "Leno" move.
Other analysis has pointed out that "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" ratings are also down, partly a result of a lower ratings lead-in from "The Jay Leno Show" and lower late-night news viewership from local NBC stations.
Bernie Shimkus, vice president of research for Harmelin, stated: "Even if 'The Jay Leno Show' was itself profitable from a production standpoint, as NBC executives continued to assert to the end, the overall revenue picture for the company was not moving in a positive direction. The situation has turned into a public relations disaster with affiliates."
"The best prank I ever pulled was I told a guy that—five years from now—I'm gonna give you my show. And then when the five years came, I gave it to him, and then I took it back almost instantly."
He lambasted NBC over this stuff ....... it was damn near his entire monolouge.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
I get what your saying, but you also have to remember why CO was offered the gig.........Letterman was catching up. "The Tonight Show's" older audience is dying off, and Leno doesn't do well with the younger veiwers........aka why Dave was catching up. They wanted someone new who could attract the younger audience, because the old timers are dying off, and set up the infamous Conan in 5 years promise.
This is a dumb move by NBC, and I suspect 5 years from now Leno will be gone, and the Tonight Show (with a new host) will be sitting at # 4 in the ratings behind FOX, ABC, and CBS. The Tonight Show has been a strong brand for 50 years, but because of their short sightedness they are basically going kill it.
Against logic,the most effective armor is willful ignorance.
Quote: I get what your saying, but you also have to remember why CO was offered the gig.........Letterman was catching up. "The Tonight Show's" older audience is dying off, and Leno doesn't do well with the younger veiwers........aka why Dave was catching up. They wanted someone new who could attract the younger audience, because the old timers are dying off, and set up the infamous Conan in 5 years promise.
This is a dumb move by NBC, and I suspect 5 years from now Leno will be gone, and the Tonight Show (with a new host) will be sitting at # 4 in the ratings behind FOX, ABC, and CBS. The Tonight Show has been a strong brand for 50 years, but because of their short sightedness they are basically going kill it.
It just goes to show how hard it is to replace a icon....you can't really.
All you can do is to hope to maintain or not lose much share.
But that is the short sightedness you mention....NBC couldn't understand that Carson was the reason people watched.....not the brand.
If everybody had like minds, we would never learn.
Anyone else think the last couple weeks of the Tonight Show have been tremendous? I can't imagine how steamed the NBC brass must be watching the shows, but hey, they did this. Has it ever been established when Conan's final show will be?
Norm McDonald on Tuesday was one of the funniest bits I've ever seen.
"If it weren't for my horse, I wouldn't have spent that year in college" GO ROCKETS
Quote: Anyone else think the last couple weeks of the Tonight Show have been tremendous? I can't imagine how steamed the NBC brass must be watching the shows, but hey, they did this. Has it ever been established when Conan's final show will be?
Norm McDonald on Tuesday was one of the funniest bits I've ever seen.
Yes. Conan spending $1.5 million in one minute was gutbustingly funny.
The past two weeks have been.
NBC should have bluffed because they awoke a sleeping giant. Conan's best material is coming out right now and PEOPLE ARE WATCHING. When his next show comes, that momentum will carry.
Quote: Has it ever been established when Conan's final show will be?
Conan's last show is scheduled to be this Friday with Will Ferrell and Tom Hanks as guests.
I've also watched Conan the past few nights and agree that he's been very funny. Has anyone else heard NBC has a clause in O'Brien's contract that states he can't have a another talkshow for several years?
Prior to NBC making a complete mess of things, I thought O'Brien was about as funny as a root canal (I actually stopped watching it was so bad). However, I had to check in to see what he was saying as this disaster was unfolding and he's actually been really funny of late.
How cool would it be to be in a position to publically ridicule your employer who, through their own stupidity, not only had to let you go, but PAY you millions of dollars as you walked out the door! Fantastic stuff!!
[color:"white"]"Never argue with a fool, onlookers may not be able to tell the difference."
It's Over: Conan Officially Out, Jay Back In at Tonight
Today 6:59 AM PST by Gina Serpe
Conan O'Brien's Tonight Show is officially yesterday's news.
After weeks of behind-the-scenes maneuvering, public insult swapping and some of the sharpest hours of late-night in the medium's history, NBC has officially parted ways with Team CoCo, reinserting Jay Leno as host of The Tonight Show.
O'Brien will bid the gig adieu on Friday, and Leno will return to captain the late-night talker on March 1.
O'Brien's departure, however, is not without its recompense. His severance deal is said to be worth roughly $45 million, and will include a $33 million payout both for NBC's breach of his contract and 12 million thanks-for-playing bucks for his most senior staff members.
"In the end, Conan was appreciative of the steps NBC made to take care of his staff and crew, and decided to supplement the severance they were getting out of his own pocket," O'Brien's manager, Gavin Polone, told the Wall Street Journal. "Now he just wants to get back on the air as quickly as possible."
According to the paper, the deal may include a provision that would bar or limit Conan from hosting a show on another network for a set period of time.
Luckily, that period won't be too long as O'Brien will be allowed back on air as early as September.
(Originally published Jan. 21. 2009, at 5:23 a.m. PT)
Well, guess Friday's the night. Two more shows to watch then it's Letterman until whenever for me. Tom Hanks and Will Ferrell - now that's a way to go out!
And I realize the man just made 30 sum million dollars, but kudos to him for holding out for his staff. They got screwed just like Conan but few people think of them.
The Tonight Show ends for me on Friday. GO CONAN.
"If it weren't for my horse, I wouldn't have spent that year in college" GO ROCKETS
Tonight is also the last night that I will ever watch the Tonight Show again. I used to always flip back and forth between Letterman and Leno but always preferred Letterman.
My old routine used to be to watch Letterman and then flip over to Conan so I was really torn when they were on at the same time but I haven't even watched Dave in a month now. After tonight however, the only time my TV will ever go to NBC is on Monday nights for Heroes.
It makes it easier for me too. I had to cancel cable a few months ago and picked up a set is HD Bunny Ears. I have to move the damn things to get NBC in and it's a pain in the ass. Once I move them, I can't get any other station. Hence why I haven't been able to flip back and forth lately. But thank you NBC for no longer making the bunny ear shift a nightly occurance
NBC really, really screwed the pooch with this one. What the hell are they thinking?? I'm a big time Leno fan, but you have to realize that Jay is slowly on his way out and Conan is going to be the future, even if his ratings are hurting now. Bumping Conan for Jay is going to kill your ratings.
You have to figure a LARGE number of people who watched Jay in the past were Conan fans as well, and are going to be incensed at the way Conan has been treated. You also have a large number of borderline fans that might just switch to Letterman now. And you also have a small group of Leno fans who think Leno is behind all this bumping people around rather than the no-brain trust at NBC HQ, and just tune him out. So now you are bumping a guy that has low ratings now, but the potential for a big future ... for a guy that's going to take a huge ratings hit, and will likely keep losing steam.
Honest to God, Conan won a new fan with that segment last night. I hope he absolutely screws over NBC on Friday, despite lawsuits or whatever else. Unfortunately it won't happen, but it would be awesome to see how he could do it.
Quote: Honest to God, Conan won a new fan with that segment last night. I hope he absolutely screws over NBC on Friday, despite lawsuits or whatever else. Unfortunately it won't happen, but it would be awesome to see how he could do it.
maybe he could get Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake to do a bit.
Quote: NBC really, really screwed the pooch with this one. What the hell are they thinking?? I'm a big time Leno fan, but you have to realize that Jay is slowly on his way out and Conan is going to be the future, even if his ratings are hurting now. Bumping Conan for Jay is going to kill your ratings.
You have to figure a LARGE number of people who watched Jay in the past were Conan fans as well, and are going to be incensed at the way Conan has been treated. You also have a large number of borderline fans that might just switch to Letterman now. And you also have a small group of Leno fans who think Leno is behind all this bumping people around rather than the no-brain trust at NBC HQ, and just tune him out. So now you are bumping a guy that has low ratings now, but the potential for a big future ... for a guy that's going to take a huge ratings hit, and will likely keep losing steam.
Brilliant NBC, Brilliant!
Exactly.
Even if it isn't "truly" Jay's fault...his reputation has been damaged beyond repair and will never recover.
Ever since I was a kid, I watched Leno and Conan. I remember being up late---playing with Lego blocks and watching The Tonight Show, and Late Night. After spending many a night watching these shows, I really became a big fan of Conan---especially the years when he had Andy on as his side-kick.
I remember being sad seeing Andy Richter move on.
I thought Jay was funny----but beyond Headlines and Jay-walking nothing was really that great. Conan on the other hand was hilarious. Loved the self-deprecating humor. He used to have a character named Oldy-olsen that would come on and the skits were always hilarious. The other stuff was always good too.
As I got older, I found myself more interested in Conans work, and often skipped Jay, and only tuned in once Late Night started.
I was really excited to see Conan get the Tonight Show---he really deserved it. The awkward guy with the big red hair had paid his dues. He worked all those years in the late show time slot. He was a writer on SNL during those great years with Farley, Sandler, Spade, Hartman, Meyers, Carvey, Scheider, Chris Rock, Tim Meadows, Norm McDonald, Will Ferrell, and Kevin Nealon. A lot of those guys went on to some great careers; and Conan is no different. He worked his way into the top spot.
And now, 7 months later they can him cuz their 10pm Leno experiment didn't work!?!?!? That is garbage.
NBC will never be the same in my eyes---and I will have little to watch after 11 until Conan finds another gig. I suppose we can expect it to be on Fox.
It really makes me angry cuz Conan totally deserves to remain as The Tonight Show host. I didn't always catch it these past few months---because I kind of felt like; its Conans show now---and its going to be that way for awhile. He will be on there for years and I will get to see him a lot over the next 10-15 years.
Unfortunately, this didn't happen. NBC is run by a bunch of idiots. IDIOTS!!!!! I really find myself not wanting to watch ANYTHING on their network after this. And to tell you the truth---I can't think of anything other than Conan that I did watch. Except maybe Fallon if there wasn't anything else on....
As many of you know, I worked for 'Late Night' for awhile.
On a personal level, I've found Conan O'Brien to be the smartest person I've ever met ... not the funniest (although I do find him funny) ... but the smartest.
In the end, I think NBC really screwed up here. They just put a torch to their one late night asset - 'The Tonight Show'. The ghost of Carson carried them a long way ... and I don't know how much longer, but there was still gas in the tank.
I can't say for sure that Letterman/Conan will beat Leno ... a lot will chime in with 'they will!' but remember better material does not equal better bottom line and most of America wants conventional safety over good material.
But I hope they do. Jay Leno is a nice guy ... he was once a fantastic stand-up ... he put one over on Dave when he was young and eager .. and he put one over on Conan when he was wiser and established.
I think this perceived martyrdom will only help Conan's career ... he will look back on this as a blessing.
I, america, never disliked Jay. We will dislike Jay after missing Conan, I dont see NBC getting a return on their last ditch effort to go head to head with DL.
After jumping the gun by bumping Jay, they compound their problems by going back to where they started, going back to Leno. although these last days have been hilarious
Classy way for Conan to end Tonight Show. Tom Hanks, the bit with Steve Carrell, and Will Ferrell at the end of the show were all hilarious. Neil Young thanking Conan for all he's done for music was a nice touch.
I have nothing good to say about NBC and I hope Jay Leno continually loses to Letterman in the weekly ratings.
Very classy end for Coco. I've got a new found respect for Neil Young - never liked his voice at all - but it was a great thing for someone to thank Conan for all the "new music" and the song was a good one from Neil. Will Ferrell, what can ya say? He's the best.
Gonna be a long seven months.
GO LETTERMAN.
"If it weren't for my horse, I wouldn't have spent that year in college" GO ROCKETS
You're on a team. You have been the star QB for a number of years .... you think you still have several years left .... but your coaches want to play the younger hotshot. You are under contract .. so you accept the demotion.
The other guy struggles .... loses games .... and the fans aren't showing up for games.
Your bosses say "OK, you're starting again". You are under contract .... you can't just walk away with any money and/or prospects because of the way your contract is written .... so you take back the starting role.
Do you expect people to hate you for doing this? Really?
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
You're on a team. You have been the star QB for a number of years .... you think you still have several years left .... but your coaches want to play the younger hotshot. You are under contract .. so you accept the demotion.
The other guy struggles .... loses games .... and the fans aren't showing up for games.
Your bosses say "OK, you're starting again". You are under contract .... you can't just walk away with any money and/or prospects because of the way your contract is written .... so you take back the starting role.
Do you expect people to hate you for doing this? Really?
Yea because this situation is exactly the same as Leno-Conan....
Quote: NBC really, really screwed the pooch with this one. What the hell are they thinking?? I'm a big time Leno fan, but you have to realize that Jay is slowly on his way out and Conan is going to be the future, even if his ratings are hurting now. Bumping Conan for Jay is going to kill your ratings.
You have to figure a LARGE number of people who watched Jay in the past were Conan fans as well, and are going to be incensed at the way Conan has been treated. You also have a large number of borderline fans that might just switch to Letterman now. And you also have a small group of Leno fans who think Leno is behind all this bumping people around rather than the no-brain trust at NBC HQ, and just tune him out. So now you are bumping a guy that has low ratings now, but the potential for a big future ... for a guy that's going to take a huge ratings hit, and will likely keep losing steam.
Brilliant NBC, Brilliant!
I'm going to throw in the fact the Office has sucked lately and SNL seems to have become nothing without Andy Samberg.
Blue ostriches on crack float on milkshakes between the sidewalk titans of gurglefitz. --YTown
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
The up and coming "backup" guy takes over for the older and established"starter" guy.
Each guy has a contract.
The new guy fails to deliver the numbers the "team" is looking for .... and the "established vet" struggles in his new role as well.
The "team" (network) starts losing.
The "coaching staff" (management) decides to make a change from 1 guy under contact to another guy under contract,
Fans of one guy or the other rush out proclaiming that their guy either didn't get a "real" chance .... or should never have been replaced in the 1st place.
The only difference is that fabs don't have the executive (coach and/or owner) to rail against, so they proclaim that they hate the network, and will never watch it again ........
It's very similar.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
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