So for about 75% of the country, the show wouldn't air at night.
O'Brien out, Leno back in?
- Thread starter Professor Zoom
- Start date
So tonight was the first Tonight Show rerun after Conan's final Tonight Show; what did NBC pick to air? They chose the seemingly random June 9, 2009 episode (the 8th episode of Conan's Tonight Show). But was it random?
Shortly into the monologue, Conan went into the night's bit; this one featured Conan going undercover to get the real opinions older viewers held toward Conan O'Brien. The bit goes on and on with viewer opinions on how it was an enormous mistake to give Conan the Tonight Show; that Conan wasn't funny; that Conan only appealed to young men who watched porno.
Don't get me wrong; it was a funny, self-deprecating bit. But did NBC really just choose this at random to be the first rerun to air?
Shortly into the monologue, Conan went into the night's bit; this one featured Conan going undercover to get the real opinions older viewers held toward Conan O'Brien. The bit goes on and on with viewer opinions on how it was an enormous mistake to give Conan the Tonight Show; that Conan wasn't funny; that Conan only appealed to young men who watched porno.
Don't get me wrong; it was a funny, self-deprecating bit. But did NBC really just choose this at random to be the first rerun to air?
I wondered that too, but the fact Conan did the bit and then aired it shows his caliber as a comic performer. He's not afraid to poke fun at himself. He's done it non-stop for years.
If NBC was trying to discredit him, once again they shot themselves in the foot.
If NBC was trying to discredit him, once again they shot themselves in the foot.
Well, it didn't take long. Fox begins official talks with Conan...
http://www.businessinsider.com/fox-...0-1?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
http://www.businessinsider.com/fox-...0-1?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
Those focus sessions TemporalFlux is referencing... those were fantastic.
I just watched Conan's first show as Late Night host... which aired on Sept. 13, 1993. I have to admit, I was expecting it to be rather stiff but I was amazed at how loose Conan was finding his footing on his first night.
His first guests were John Goodman, Drew Barrymore and Tony Randall. They were all great. John Goodman received a medal for being the "first guest". The theme music was the same... Max looked like he was about 21 years old... and Andy's voice wasn't so squeaky. It was fascinating.
I just watched Conan's first show as Late Night host... which aired on Sept. 13, 1993. I have to admit, I was expecting it to be rather stiff but I was amazed at how loose Conan was finding his footing on his first night.
His first guests were John Goodman, Drew Barrymore and Tony Randall. They were all great. John Goodman received a medal for being the "first guest". The theme music was the same... Max looked like he was about 21 years old... and Andy's voice wasn't so squeaky. It was fascinating.
See, this is the conventional wisdom. But I just don't buy it. I think people are still crediting to The Tonight Show a status that it had because of the Johnny Carson run, but which it no longer has. The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson was an American institution; it was the late night talk show; it was the Camelot of late night. No other version of The Tonight Show -- be it Steve Allen, Jack Paar, Jay Leno, or Conan O'Brien -- has been that, nor do I think any other version will be that.
That's no different than "Saturday Night Live" and its position. SNL has been crap for years, but it still has the aura of its erstwhile self.
J
Jetfire
Guest
If Conan shows up on FOX...how high do you think his ratings will be for the first show???
I suspect that Conan will get extremely high ratings for his first several shows, easily trouncing both Leno and Letterman. Over time, despite all the uproar that has gone around the Internet recently, I would expect that to level off and for all three late night hosts to pull respectable ratings. Each has their own fans and each appeals to a different segment of the audience. I don't expect that to change much.
NBC doesn't have much of a foot left to shoot they've done it so many times over the years. I'd say it was intentionally aired. You don't just "randomly" find an airing of Conan where he discredits himself with the audience as your first rerrun after such a bitter dispute over audience numbers and ratings.
Leno was caught going into a comedy club and was asked a few questions
He still says "It's JUST BUSINESS!"
http://www.insideedition.com/
Conan- I'm currently involved in a sex scandal with 19 women"
He still says "It's JUST BUSINESS!"
http://www.insideedition.com/
If he was on tonight i'd write a joke that went like thisJay Leno opened up about his relationship with Conan O'Brien, speaking out to reporters for the first time since O'Brien's big Tonight Show finale.
"Do you think your image is starting to get tarnished because of this whole war?" a reporter asked.
"You know what's good for tarnish? A mixture of vinegar and ammonia," Leno cracked. He did say he hoped he and O'Brien are still friends.
The funnyman seemed unscathed by the hard-fought late night wars, grinning and cracking jokes as he strode into a comedy club where he was performing stand-up.
He shared words of praise for O'Brien and his big Tonight Show finale, saying he "did a good job."
O'Brien's ratings went through the roof; more than 7 million people tuned in for his final bow. Big name guests like Steve Carell
"Every comedian dreams of hosting The Tonight Show and for seven months I got to do it," said O'Brien, He fought back tears thanking his fans for their support during the shake up: "You made sad situation joyous and inspirational, so to all the people watching, I can never ever thank you enough for the kindness to me...I will think about it for the rest of my life," he said.
O'Brien is now enjoying rest and relaxation. INSIDE EDITION spotted his wife driving to a ranch in Montecito with a camera-shy O'Brien reportedly lying down in the backseat.
Conan- I'm currently involved in a sex scandal with 19 women"
i think you mean "decades" when it comes to SNL. over the last 20 years of SNL i can count on one hand the "good" seasons they've had
Do any of us really give a shit about the name "The Tonight Show" I could give a fuck who is hosting what show. I can't care what show Conan hosts, I'll watch cause I like Conan. I watch Letterman, not The Late Show.
Well if it does turn out to be a 11PM start I suspect his ratings for his first Fox show will be higher than Conan's first show at NBC because you'll have more people available potentially to tune in and see at 11PM as fans of the later starting talk shows would be able to tune in and check it out for 35mins before they start.
But as time goes on I think what you would see is a general erosion from both Letterman and Jay. I think Letterman will beat Leno once Leno returns, but the ratings will get closer since some Leno fans jumped ship to Letterman and might return.
I know the average age of a Letterman viewer went up by a couple years after Conan took over the Tonight Show as segments of older fans went over to Letterman.
So after the first month or so I think it would work out like this
#1 overall: Letterman
#2 overall: Conan
#3 overall: Leno
#1 18-49: Conan
#2 18-49: Letterman
#3 18-49: Leno
S
Stone_Cold_Sisko
Guest
I agree. Talk shows are about the host, not the name. It's not even like they use the same set either, at least then there'd be some sort of continuity for 'legacy' but they dont even do that. As far as I'm concerned, Leno's "Tonight Show" went to 10pm (and everybody saw how lame it was), and conan started a new show at 11:35
RobertScorpio
Pariah
I don't even think JOHNNY CARSON would have been as 'big' as he was had there been as many different choices. Back then there were four networks. Now? With Cable, and all the different channels, people have a choice.
I think another problem is that some of these hosts come off as too political. Carson did a good job, until the end, of keeping his politics out of his show. And, lets not forget, his ratings were sliding years before he left.
More choices..pure and simple.
Rob
NBC's plan for emerging from the Late Night Show War:
“The two weeks the Olympics are on are going to be a cleansing moment for NBC.”
Beat me to this, was gonna comment about. I was happy to see it though because I missed it, and had actually looked forward to it orignally when they showed a preview of it on Jay's pseudo-last Tonight Show.