The Tonight Show

[butthead]

It was nice to see Conan's brand of humor show up last night. The stop in the doll museum during the opening was pretty funny. The Universal tour was good. Hopefully he brought his Late Night writers with him and he doesn't try to play it too safe. I doubt we get to see masturbating bear though.

[Tank]

It was nice to see Conan's brand of humor show up last night. The stop in the doll museum during the opening was pretty funny. The Universal tour was good. Hopefully he brought his Late Night writers with him and he doesn't try to play it too safe. I doubt we get to see masturbating bear though.

Let's pray that's not the case...

http://www.suntimes.com/entertainment/1598086,conan-obrien-jay-leno-tonight-show-053109.article

Amid all the novelty, however, fans also can expect tried-and-true standbys. One of them, Dorff reveals, may well be onanistically obsessed.

"The costume has made the trip," he says. "Oh, did I say costume? The Masturbating Bear is real, of course. The Masturbating Bear is so iconic to the last show that there's a danger to bringing it and there's a plus. You don't want to rest on anything that you've done. And by the way, we're not talking about the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. We're talking about a bear that plays with himself. But while you don't want to rest on what you've done, you also don't want to throw away things that are valuable and that people do like. [And] if you think that fans like the Masturbating Bear, writers like him, too. We love the Masturbating Bear.

"I can't speak on the topic of whether he'll be back or not, because that's ultimately up to Mike [Sweeney, the head writer] and Conan," Dorff adds. "But I'd be pretty surprised if we never saw him again. That would definitely take me by surprise."

[Andre Dawson's Creek]

It's been good so far.  I've always liked Conan, he was just on too late to watch.  I liked Leno.  But he was kinda boring.  Letterman's shows were hit or miss for me (although I do like Letterman more than Leno).  Letterman after Johnny was much better than Letterman vs Leno.  I'll be watching more Tonight Show than I had been, but will inevitably miss out on some funny stuff while flipping over to Colbert.

Jimmy Fallon must be removed from TV.  Shit, I think I'd rather watch a Seth Myers late night show....

[CT III]

They showed a nice tribute to Ed McMahon tonight, and it reminded me just how damn good he and Carson were.  It also reminded me why I was never very impressed with Leno; his shows always seemed scripted, right down to the second.  Some of the funniest moments on Carson's Tonight Show came when Johnny and Ed would ad lib, or realize a bit was breaking down and just starting goofing around.

[Saul Goodman]

This is great.

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.

Six years ago, I signed a contract with NBC to take over The Tonight Show in June of 2009. Like a lot of us, I grew up watching Johnny Carson every night and the chance to one day sit in that chair has meant everything to me. I worked long and hard to get that opportunity, passed up far more lucrative offers, and since 2004 I have spent literally hundreds of hours thinking of ways to extend the franchise long into the future. It was my mistaken belief that, like my predecessor, I would have the benefit of some time and, just as important, some degree of ratings support from the prime-time schedule. Building a lasting audience at 11:30 is impossible without both.

But sadly, we were never given that chance. After only seven months, with my Tonight Show in its infancy, NBC has decided to react to their terrible difficulties in prime-time by making a change in their long-established late night schedule.

Last Thursday, NBC executives told me they intended to move the Tonight Show to 12:05 to accommodate the Jay Leno Show at 11:35. For 60 years the Tonight Show has aired immediately following the late local news. I sincerely believe that delaying the Tonight 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. The Tonight Show at 12:05 simply isn't the Tonight Show. Also, if I accept this move I will be knocking the Late Night show, which I inherited from David Letterman and passed on to Jimmy Fallon, out of its long-held time slot. That would hurt the other NBC franchise that I love, and it would be unfair to Jimmy.

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

[BH]

Does anyone watch conan anymore?

[Eli]

Does anyone watch conan anymore?

I do.  Thanks for asking.

I did turn it off early one night when this shit band, Kings of Leon, showed up and offended my auditory sensibilities with their watered-down sissy rock.

[Yeti]

Does anyone watch conan anymore?

I do.  Thanks for asking.

I did turn it off early one night when this shit band, Kings of Leon, showed up and offended my auditory sensibilities with their watered-down sissy rock.

Sex on Fire. Notion. Somebody. Crawl. What's there not to like?

[Slaky]

Does anyone watch conan anymore?

Nope, that's why no one is covering this non-story.

[BH]

Does anyone watch conan anymore?

Nope, that's why no one is covering this non-story.

I haven't watched Conan for years, is the show the same as before or is it toned down? All I've heard was that his ratings were dropping every week.

[Weebs]

Does anyone watch conan anymore?

Nope, that's why no one is covering this non-story.

I haven't watched Conan for years, is the show the same as before or is it toned down? All I've heard was that his ratings were dropping every week.

I've always liked Conan, and I'm hoping he burns NBC to the ground and joins Stewart & Colbert for 2 hours of awesomeness on Comedy Central.

[Chuck to Chuck]

I've always liked Conan, and I'm hoping he burns NBC to the ground and joins Stewart & Colbert for 2 hours of awesomeness on Comedy Central.

Good idea, but hasn't Conan already said "No" to a 12 AM ET / 11 PM CT time slot?

[PenFoe]

I've always liked Conan, and I'm hoping he burns NBC to the ground and joins Stewart & Colbert for 2 hours of awesomeness on Comedy Central.

Good idea, but hasn't Conan already said "No" to a 12 AM ET / 11 PM CT time slot?

He said no to hosting "The Tonight Show" in that slot because of his respect for "The Tonight Show" and "Late Night" brands.

[ChuckD]

This is great.

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.

Six years ago, I signed a contract with NBC to take over The Tonight Show in June of 2009. Like a lot of us, I grew up watching Johnny Carson every night and the chance to one day sit in that chair has meant everything to me. I worked long and hard to get that opportunity, passed up far more lucrative offers, and since 2004 I have spent literally hundreds of hours thinking of ways to extend the franchise long into the future. It was my mistaken belief that, like my predecessor, I would have the benefit of some time and, just as important, some degree of ratings support from the prime-time schedule. Building a lasting audience at 11:30 is impossible without both.

But sadly, we were never given that chance. After only seven months, with my Tonight Show in its infancy, NBC has decided to react to their terrible difficulties in prime-time by making a change in their long-established late night schedule.

Last Thursday, NBC executives told me they intended to move the Tonight Show to 12:05 to accommodate the Jay Leno Show at 11:35. For 60 years the Tonight Show has aired immediately following the late local news. I sincerely believe that delaying the Tonight 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. The Tonight Show at 12:05 simply isn't the Tonight Show. Also, if I accept this move I will be knocking the Late Night show, which I inherited from David Letterman and passed on to Jimmy Fallon, out of its long-held time slot. That would hurt the other NBC franchise that I love, and it would be unfair to Jimmy.

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

That's one classy way of saying: "Go fuck yourself/selves."

[CT III]

I've always liked Conan, and I'm hoping he burns NBC to the ground and joins Stewart & Colbert for 2 hours of awesomeness on Comedy Central.

Good idea, but hasn't Conan already said "No" to a 12 AM ET / 11 PM CT time slot?

He said no to hosting "The Tonight Show" in that slot because of his respect for "The Tonight Show" and "Late Night" brands.

There's nothing better than a zany, mavrick comedian with a healthy respect for traditional brands.

CANYONERO!