It Happened: NBC Signs Jay Leno to Hourlong Tonight Show
The writing has been on the wall for Conan O'Brien this week, but that won't make this news any sweeter for him to hear: TMZ is reporting that NBC and Jay Leno just signed a deal to give Leno back The Tonight Show. For a full hour.
The news comes just hours after Hollywood buzz had O'Brien booking guests for a farewell tour next week.
So, to recap: Leno's taken back O'Brien's show and timeslot, and there's still no word on where O'Brien will go next -- or whether NBC will keep him on ice as part of what will presumably be a hefty payout.
Developing...
Leno and NBC Strike 1 Hour Tonight Deal [TMZ]
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Comments
Right... because that is precisely what NBC did for Letterman. Letterman waited for the natural progression to take place while Leno's team pushed Johnny out and NBC did the right thing and gave the show to Letterman. ??? Where have you been? Conan should have left when he had the chance and Leno deserved to fail big after the stunt he pulled in pushing Johnny out.
Shame on Stolidog! He caused all this!
This is the smartest thing I have read about this situation....
Just because you don't have kids doesn't mean you are saying inappropriate things to kids. He says inappropriate things because he's an asshole.
But you're right on the rudeness front. He had Jillian from The Biggest Loser on a few weeks ago and he was flat-out rude and insulting to her.
lol... conan doesn't appeal to THAT young of a crowd does he? i mean, i'm not that young! who are these aarp people pulling for leno. moreover, if conan pulls a younger crowd, doesn't that just mean the audience for the tonight show will build and have a longer life span, literally...
Your box of Activia is in the mail!
I'm sure God has more important things to worry about than home entertainment and video game systems, but nice try! See you at church!
Conan is way more funny than Jay ever was. So what the ratings dropped it was only 6 months Conan was in the saddle. I bet you because of this the ratings will still drop because for one if they do ICE Conan a lot of people will boycott NBC. I don't watch TV but I still like Conan from when I do and I know a hand full of people that will join me with boycotting NBC. They made a big mistake doing what they did mark my words.
well said!
wow. it is so great to get information that knows cause he was there.
so since you were present for all that fun how about explaining to us why NBC gave in to Conan's demands instead of telling him to piss off. it's not like he was their most popular commodity at the time so the harm would have been to him, not NBC.
I don't know about this "Connan" person, but I know when I was in college and really became the big Conan O'Brien (heard of him?) fan that I am today, I never smoked any weed. Hell, now I feel robbed.
It's sweet that the nursing home allows you internet privileges to visit your Jay Lennno Fan AOL chat room in between naps.
I am so pi&&ed that jay gets his show back all because the spoiled brat threw a temper tantrum and got what he wanted. Jay should be made to stand in a corner of nbc. This is crap complete bulls&8t and i will never watch that crybaby or spoiled brat again. I will watch Jimmy fallon but the hell with jay and i hope his show fails bigtime and i hope CONAN go's to Fox
actually not buying won't matter unless they know why. a huge campaign of folks expressing their outrage in letters to the companies along with a noticeable drop in sales is what would be needed.
Wow, there are some weird comments in here - where did some of these people come from? (Or hey, could be the same person reposting under different names?) I refuse to believe that Jay could have so much support here! Actually, I hate to believe Jay would have support anywhere. It's inconceivable to me that people could find him entertaining!
Totally agree. I don't have kids & yet still manage to be appropriate around children. Jay is an ass who has remained undercover until now with his crap normal, bland guy schtick. At least now some people (though not a few of the randoms here) can catch on.
Sounds like the last show is the 22nd, so you'll make it in just in time! I can't wait to see what guests he lines up next week. I'd love to see a Jon Stewart/Stephen Colbert appearance (though they have their own shows to tape).... or perhaps Tina Fey since she's happy to bash NBC anytime. High hopes here.
Actually I'm 30 years old, but I have enough common sense to know Connan isn't funny to anyone other then kids and that is why his ratings suck.
I'm just one voice. But I know that I won't return to Leno. Wherever Conan goes, I'll follow. In the mean time, hello, David L. and goodbye NBC.
Actually no. Conan's younger demo could actually carry them much further into the future than Jay will. Jay's been around what 17 years & pretty much just pulls old people. How much longer is that actually going to serve them? If Conan was actually given the time - like Jay - to build his audience, he could have had much longer staying power than we'll see from Jay. But hey, shortsighted, thoughtless decisions are straight up NBC.
Exactly. How much staying power to these NBC idiots actually think Jay has?
I cannot imagine what anyone finds funny about Conan O'Brien or, for that matter, Letterman.
Welcome back Jay!
And this one gets the special Boniva discount.
So I get a promotion because my boss quits. He goes somewhere else and I move up and do a good job. He sucks at what he does and comes back to take my job . ARE YOU KIDDING ME ???????????????????????
Conan , you have been screwed royally !!!!!
A big part of why Conan's ratings tanked was because Leno tanked. This whole crisis happened because local affiliates looked at their Nielsons for November and discovered that Leno's lousy ratings were causing their 11pm newscasts to bleed viewers. People turned off NBC at 10pm (or maybe more like 10:15/10:20) and didn't come back at 11pm, in time to make the affiliates their ad revenues. The folks who weren't watching NBC local news programs didn't channel surf back to Conan, and that's one big reason why his ratings fell. Not the only reason, not by a long shot (for example, why watch Conan if you've already watched Leno earlier? If you're part of Conan's core demographic, do you watch The Tonight Show or do you watch Colbert?) but a significant reason.
That's really why they ended up canceling Leno's 10pm show -- it was hurting them all the way down the line. The suits who made the decision forgot that part of their business -- they thought they could just afford to eat the lower ratings at 10pm, and save themselves on the low production values of a talk show. They were idiots, and now they pay.
Conan only appeals to college kids who have smoked too much weed?
I'm a 30-year-old, professional with spending habits that are what advertiser's wet dreams are made of. I have watched Conan for years b/c I'm intelligent enough to know smart comedy when I see it. Jay has been doing the same show for his entire career.
But seriously, what exactly about him do you think young people relate to? I'm honestly curious. Is it his obsession with antique cars? Or his dull, bland personality? I get why older people may find him appealing. But as for young people - well, you're kidding yourself if you think that Jay will ever be their guy - esp after this mess.
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