These days, the late-night television landscape is as jammed up as the 405 at rush hour, with men and women of all ages, suit sizes and dialects competing for your post Top Chef, pre-sleep time. But even the biggest fans of monologue jokes, topical bits and celebrity anecdotes might only catch half of Letterman or Conan, let alone make it to Fallon or Ferguson. With your precious Z's in mind, Movieline presents a new weekly feature: Late-Night Highlights. Every Friday, we will give you a rundown of what you missed or thought you dreamed. Here is the first installment of the best and watchably worst of this week's witching hours.
· Most Overt Mid-Show Commercial
During Monday's Late Night Show, Jimmy Fallon welcomed Engadget.com Editor-in-chief Josh Topolsky to discuss the hottest new electronics Verizon Droid phone. Runner-up: Fallon and Leno's frequent references to the Bing search engine. Last night, Leno devoted an entire segment to typing jokey search terms into a Bing web page.
· Creepiest Interview
In honor of Sesame Street's 40th season, Big Bird plopped down next to Jimmy Kimmel and Joshua Jackson to discuss The Fringe and Oscar the Grouch's self-fulfilling prophecy.
· Shatner.
After the master thespian unknowingly performed tweets from a fake Levi Johnston Twitter feed on The Tonight Show Wednesday, Conan O'Brien apologized last night ("Levi is clearly a great American. We wish him the best of luck as he trains for his upcoming naked photo shoot.") and invited Shatner back to read verified quotes from the future centerfold.
· Best Network Pot Shot
During last night's Jay Leno Show, the host tested Wanda Sykes' tendency to flinch by calling in a professional archer to take aim at the comedian. When Sykes turned the tables on Leno, demanding that he face the archer without flinching, Leno said that he should probably let her shoot him from behind because, "This is NBC, I'm used to getting shot in the back."
· Three Versions of the Same Joke
Leno: "Kirstie Alley is getting a new reality series on A&E. It's called Ice Cream Truckers."
Conan: "Kirstie Alley will be starring in a new show. The show is called Diagnosis: Burger."
Letterman: "Kirstie Alley knew she needed to lose weight when Somalian pirates started to board her."
· Best Host-Guest Chemistry
As we reported yesterday, Mo'Nique's return to the Precious promotional circuit was nothing short of innuendo-laden magic.
· Most Fortified Segment
On Jay Leno Wednesday, the host welcomed Jenna Bush Hager to Burbank, where the freshly hired Today Show correspondent discussed life after the White House, her cooking disasters and her father's fascination with YouTube before sharing home videos and then interviewing her mother.