Late Night TV Discussion Thread

[Spun Lepton]

Jay Leno argued NBC that his contract stated a 1 hour show, so he contested the half-hour timeslot and NBC gave him 11:35-12:35 back.

One can only hope this backfires in a spectacular way.

It probably won't.

[number8]

Just to note, both TMZ and Deadline are very reliable when it comes to showbiz deal news.

[number8]

NBC is denying it.

[number8]

Heh. Check out this NYT article from 1992.

http://www.nytimes.com/1992/12/23/ar...iffhanger.html

[Adam]

Ok, so now I'm reading NBC is confirming Leno takes back the Tonight Show

Drat

Hilariously, Bill Simmons twitter is reporting next week will be ConeZone's last week on the show and Conan's staff is trying to wrangle up some big guests to go out with a bang. Guests like Dave Letterman (!!!) and Howard Stern. There's also talk, though, that this is just a thing where they're lying and trying to get bigger guests to further boost ratings. Fun, fun stuff. Late night televison has maybe never been this interesting

Either way, Jeff Zucker is apparently a huge cock

[Spun Lepton]

"Just remember kids, you can do anything you want in life ... as long as Jay Leno doesn't want to do it, too." -Conan O'Brien.

:lol::lol::lol:

[Adam]

Kimmel reeeeeaaaaallllllly nailed Leno on his own show tonight. It was lovely

[Dead & Messed Up]

Kimmel reeeeeaaaaallllllly nailed Leno on his own show tonight. It was lovely

Here's the ownage, which is just incredible.

Reminds me of when Carlson and Begala thought it'd be a good idea to let Jon Stewart on Crossfire.

[DavidSeven]

Chicago Sun-Times Article about the long-standing personal animosity between Leno and Conan

Gossipy, I know, but this story is just too fascinating especially given the parallels between it and the Leno/Letterman debacle over 15 years ago.

One aspect of NBC’s Jay Leno-Conan O’Brien crisis that hasn’t really come out is that the open rift between Leno and O’Brien actually stems from a long-simmering mini-feud.

Conversations with veteran staff members and friends of both comics reveal there never has been any chemistry between the two men, something an NBC executive tells me ‘‘should really come as no surprise.’’

Leno reportedly has always been very lukewarm to O’Brien — and his brand of humor. In addition, the two entertainers’ path to fame and success has been very different.

Coming from his workingclass Boston background, Leno has always been proud of ‘‘paying his dues’’ and working his way to the top of the comedy heap, via years of stand-up comedy gigs across the country.

A longtime Leno associate says, ‘‘Jay has always been skeptical of Conan, the Harvard-educated kid from an upper-middle-class background who basically parlayed his writing stints on ‘The Simpsons’ and ‘Saturday Night Live’ into one of the most coveted TV hosting jobs in the world.’’

Other sources say that Leno perceives O’Brien as a bit of a snob and looks down on Leno and his team.

On the other side of the conflict, people in the O’Brien camp are fairly united as no fans of Leno’s joke-writing or his whole approach to comedy at this point in time.

‘‘He’s really pretty dated, as far as most of us are concerned,’’ an O’Brien team member zinged.

Yet, beyond all the years of no real bonding between the men, O’Brien’s outrage stems from a deep-seated belief that Leno has stabbed him in the back with his willingness to move back to the 10:35 time slot, now that his own prime-time show has failed.

[Spun Lepton]

Aren't Kimmel and Leno pals?

[MadMan]

Chicago Sun-Times Article about the long-standing personal animosity between Leno and Conan

Gossipy, I know, but this story is just too fascinating especially given the parallels between it and the Leno/Letterman debacle over 15 years ago.

Funny how history repeats itself, in an also sad sort of way.

[number8]

Conan's NBC/Leno jokes have gotten more scathing and personal the past two nights.

First it was when Jack McBrayer casually mentioned Conan's crew having to uproot their families from New York to LA all for nothing ("Max Weinberg had to move his family... and his secret family.")

Then last night, Andy Richter opening a jokey monologue with his history of moving to LA to try to make it on his own and not really succeeding, and how he was so happy when Conan got The Tonight Show and asked him to be a sidekick again because it meant guaranteed work.

They treat them so lightly in the context of the jokes, but man, hard truth there.

[number8]

The late-night nightmare is almost over. Conan O’Brien is leaving NBC and receiving a payout—and he’ll be free to appear on another network before his contract expires, Kim Masters reports.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-a...xit-confirmed/

[[ETM]]

Kurt Sutter offers Conan a role on "Sons of Anarchy"

[number8]

That's just too cool.

[[ETM]]

Hanks is back with CoCo on Tuesday... if there is a show by then.

[number8]

Hah, Adult Swim offered Conan to move his show there.

[[ETM]]

Leno: "Even Dave Letterman is taking shots at me. Usually he's just taking shots at interns."

Class = 0

[[ETM]]

Is it over? The Wrap says Conan gets $30 million.

[Spun Lepton]

I read somewhere -- probably a rumor -- that Zucker is considering suing Conan for slander. Would he really have a leg to stand on? I doubt the truthiness of the rumor.

[number8]

I believe he'll try. They have a long history together.

They were heads of rival papers back in Harvard. Once, Conan stole Zucker's morning edition as a prank. Zucker called the cops and had Conan arrested. That was the first time they met, when Zucker showed up at Harvard Lampoon HQ with cops.

[Ezee E]

Leave it to Craig Ferguson to put things into reality.

Basically he goes on to say that he doesn't like being asked about what's going on at NBC. He thinks it's silly, because he just happens to be a late night show host. What he wants to know about is what's going on in Haiti.

[MadMan]

Hah, Adult Swim offered Conan to move his show there.

Conan would be right at home.

And of course Leno has no class. Primo on Icine actually enlightened me about how Leno helped drive even Johnny Carson off the air. WTF? I must confess I only knew the sketchy details of how Letterman got screwed out of hosting The Tonight Show back in the early 90s.

I believe he'll try. They have a long history together.

They were heads of rival papers back in Harvard. Once, Conan stole Zucker's morning edition as a prank. Zucker called the cops and had Conan arrested. That was the first time they met, when Zucker showed up at Harvard Lampoon HQ with cops.

Wow, talk about overreacting. Yeesh.

Ferguson's show is actually one I'm starting to become a fan of. I liked his opening monologue tonight.

[Ezee E]

Mary Lynn Raskupf (sp?) is one role away from being a star if it's ever given to her. She's pretty hilarious.

[Watashi]

I just bought an I'm With CoCo t-shirt. You can too and one dollar of your purchase goes towards a donation to Haiti.