Conan O’Brien says he has no interest in following Jay Leno with a Tonight Show that airs at 12:05 a.m.
Here is his statement:
“People of Earth:
In the last few days, I’ve been getting a lot of sympathy calls, and I want to start by making it clear that no one should waste a second feeling sorry for me. For 17 years, I’ve been getting paid to do what I love most and, in a world with real problems, I’ve been absurdly lucky. That said, I’ve been suddenly put in a very public predicament and my bosses are demanding an immediate decision. …”
“and that [delaying the show] into the next day to accommodate another comedy program will seriously damage what I consider to be the greatest franchise in the history of broadcasting.” …“So it has come to this: I cannot express in words how much I enjoy hosting this program and what an enormous personal disappointment it is for me to consider losing it. My staff and I have worked unbelievably hard and we are very proud of our contribution to the legacy of The Tonight Show. But I cannot participate in what I honestly believe is its destruction. Some people will make the argument that with DVRs and the Internet a time slot doesn’t matter. But with the Tonight Show, I believe nothing could matter more.
There has been speculation about my going to another network but, to set the record straight, I currently have no other offer and honestly have no idea what happens next. My hope is that NBC and I can resolve this quickly so that my staff, crew, and I can do a show we can be proud of, for a company that values our work.
Have a great day and, for the record, I am truly sorry about my hair; it’s always been that way.
Yours,
Conan
What I do not get and what is never discussed was the moment some years back when Leno pre-announced his retirement saying that Conan would get his show after that date. Leno now says he was fired from the Tonight Show (last night he said this) and wants his old slot back.
Who are these people, and why should I care?
Postman goes to bed very early.
So Conan is miffed, a bit bored, and will make a ton of money via breach of contract.
Why would any studio lawyer write a contract that could not be terminated for low Nielson Ratings?
Damn!!! I coulda been a contender!
Now we know who was really responsible for Lettermen being booted from NBC all those years ago.
#3 Well, the Jay Leno Show was canceled for that very reason
Meanwhile, back to the REAL news….
It’s not the first talk show host that leno has screwed.
Fuck Leno.
Leno should suck it up — accept that the 10pm show wasn’t working — and retire.
Network television is so over.
This is like New Coke and Coke Classic. Unlike Coke Classic though, Leno sucks.
Leno and Conan are both better than Letterman. Ferguson is better than all of them. Gonna be interesting.
One explanation that I heard on the news was that the local stations complained that they weren’t getting the “promised” viewers for their local news after Leno. Maybe people weren’t watching the local news because the local news programs were B$? I watched Leno when I could and then switched to other shows rather than watching the inane talking heads on the local San Diego station. I have NEVER liked Conan and I’ve tried, but he is a big FAIL, IMHO.
NBC Screwed the pooch on this one. Leno has not been funny for years (if ever). I like Conan but the best one two punch on late night is Letterman and Ferguson.
I just can’t wait to see the POS reality show they put into Leno’s empty spot. NBC has sucked ass for the last few years and the only bright spots they had were yanked for Leno’s failed experiments (LIFE, Southland, and Law and Order) Although Law and Order may have run its course bad law and order is better than any amount of Leno anyday.
Stewart kicks all their butts. It’s 100 times funnier and the interviews are 100 times less canned and more interesting.
What I’ve heard is that Leno wasn’t fired so much as “strongly encouraged” to move to 10, because Conan was planning to walk if he didn’t get the Tonight Show soon.
and Madtown is right on the money…Letterman and Ferguson are the kings of late night, no doubt.
It would be interesting to see the contract. They might only have to cancel The Tonight Show, and replace it with “Jay Leno Tonight”, but I am sure the contract is pay or play – so in other words guaranteed. But, the contract might not define the exact hours of the Tonight Show as 11:35-12:35 and on the NBC main network. He could find no option to NOT do the same show at 12:05, or even worse, on Telemundo of USA Network.
I doubt any of that would happen though.
The only late night show is Ferguson anyway. Kimmel has potential but finds laughing at old relatives or Mexicans the height of humour.
Letterman has sucked for years. Thre’s nothing left of him but a bitter, partisan hack. It’s a good thing he never followed Johnny.
On the bright side, if any of us ever get the chance to run a network, we’re getting a wonderful lesson in how not to do it from the NBC execs.
#11 Ferguson rules!
#14 Stewart gets bothersome after a while.
Caption this photo:
- He farted.
- No, HE farted.
When Carson retired, Letterman was snubbed in favor of Leno, so Letterman said “Screw You!” and walked.
Leno retired, then came back, failed and now is trying to get his old time slot back.
Conan need to hold his ground and tell Leno to hit the road.