Conan vs Leno

[sahyder1]

According to TMZ NBC is switching its late night lineup again. Leno is going back to 11:30 with Conan likely getting screwed over completely. Hopefully ABC signs Conan the moment they can. NBC is absolutely stupid if they go through with this. Yes, Conan is behind in the ratings right now compared to Letterman but longterm he is the answer. He can be solid in that chair for the next 15-20 years.

[Death Before Dishonor]

I agree, Conan may not be doing so hot right now but I expected it to be the same as the old Late Night show, if given the proper chance I'm sure he can win over more hearts and minds. I grew up watching Late Night and Conan is the only talk show host I can really get behind. I'm sorry but Leno just doesn't do it for me, I don't think he's funny and to me just comes off really lame.

I'm not so sure he'll lose the Tonight Show, but after reading that article it looks like he should have just stayed in New York. He doesn't look at home in L.A. anyway.

[MalaCloudy Black]

Like DBD, Leno doesn't really do anything for me. The best segment on his show is Headlines and even then that was only on Monday nights - so I only watched on Monday nights. It's total bullshit if they move Leno back to 11:30, I really quite don't want to see Conan get the shaft here. Some of the stuff he's done on The Tonight Show has been some of the most funny stuff (imo) he's ever done.

[GhostMachine]

Leno needs to be gone. If people won't watch his 10pm show, I don't see him being much better at 11:30. If it happens, I will be beyond pissed. I'm a huge Conan fan, and Jay has been stale and boring for years; Conan's same old schtick works, but he does shake up things sometimes; Leno doesn't, and his same old same old stinks on ice. Jimmy Fallon should be the one totally screwed in all this, as he's lame more often than he is funny and he still has an annoying habit of interrupting his guests occasionally. I only watch Fallon if there's nothing else on.

News shows will be happy about this if true, though; from what I understand the ratings for most news shows on NBC across the country have gone down since Leno has been their lead-in.

(Used to be a David Letterman fan, but I haven't given a damn about him since about 2 years after he moved to CBS.)

Then again, this IS TMZ we're talking about, so we should be taking this with one frickin' huge grain of salt.

[GoGo Yubari]

Conan should stay because he's awesome and I wish I had the time to watch his show more (and might do so now just to protest this). Fallon should stay because he has some sort of magic touch that allows him to get the best musical guests out of any late night show, and only Conan at his very best and Craig Ferguson's Desmond Tutu and Jim Parsons interviews have been on the same level as the Monty Python episode of Fallon aside from the monologue. Leno should be shot straight into the sun.

[sahyder1]

http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/07/update-nbc-plans-leno-at-1130-conan-at-12/?src=twt&twt=nytimes

So Leno at 11:35, Conan at 12:05? Still a dumb move. Leave Conan where he is. Leno isn't funny. If he was his audience would have followed him to 10 PM.

[Mofoticon]

Anything that would involve Conan leaving NBC would make NBC late night dead to me for how they handled this whole situation...Conan has been looking forward to this job for 5 years and they are gonna fire him after 7 months? I have not missed an episode of the Tonight Show with Conan yet and will follow Conan wherever (ABC) or whenever (12:05) he goes.

[Lint]

Wow..they are going to punish Conan because Leno sucks? NBC needs to grow balls and get rid of Leno

[Szumi]

I just want Leno off of the 10PM slot. That stupid ass decision almost got a good show like Chuck cancelled .

Now, I personally don't watch any of the late night stuff (I usually watch The Daily Show and Colbert Report before heading to bed), but from the small stuff I have seen, Conan is definitely a lot better than Leno, Fallon, and Letterman. Fallon especilly sucks, and Leno's just stale.

[Damian WayLNKe]

Wow, the poll is currently 18-0 Conan. I've grown up watching Conan so I'm a firm supporter of him. I haven't been watching regularly in the last month or two because of lack of interest in late night talk shows in general, but I'll probably start watching again soon.

Edited January 8, 2010 by LNK

[GhostMachine]

The lastest word going is that NBC may give Leno a half hour show, pushing both Conan O'Brien and Jimmy Fallon back half an hour.

Ugh to that idea. Leno needs to either go away or be relegated to doing specials.

[sahyder1]

The lastest word going is that NBC may give Leno a half hour show, pushing both Conan O'Brien and Jimmy Fallon back half an hour.

Ugh to that idea. Leno needs to either go away or be relegated to doing specials.

Posted that 5 posts earlier.

Missed Leno tonight (as usual). Waiting to see what Conan says. Craig Ferguson however has a brilliant line for tonight.

[GoGo Yubari]

Wow, the poll is currently 18-0 Conan. I've grown up watching Conan so I'm a firm supporter of him.

I think it would be safe to say that a good majority of EWBers in America who like late night TV grew up/spent their teen years/what-have-you watching Conan. I know he was the first and only Late Night host I watched on a regular basis from 1999 onwards, unless you count Jon Stewart. There's probably only a very small handful of EWBers who are more in Leno's target demographic.

[Mofoticon]

latest from tmz

NBC has given Conan O'Brien the option to either do his show from midnight to 1 or leave the network, sources tell TMZ.

As TMZ first reported, after the Olympics, Jay Leno will get his 11:30 PM time period back. We're told network execs have told Conan they will let him decide if he wants the midnight to 1:00 AM time slot. If he does, Leno's show will only be a half hour. If Conan walks, Leno will get a full hour, informed sources tell TMZ.

Our sources say Conan has not decided what he wants. We do know he's pissed, because he was given no advanced warning this was coming. Conan's people told NBC they are considering the offer. Translation: Mr. O'Brien -- I have Rupert Murdoch on line one, Stephen McPherson on line two, John Landgraf on line three, Jeff Wachtel on line four ...

We're told if Conan gets another offer, even though NBC could block the move, they will let him go and give Leno the full hour.

http://www.tmz.com/2010/01/08/conan-obrien-jay-leno-nbc-tonight-show/

He should tell NBC to go fuck themselves and find a job on ABC or Fox as their main late night guy.

[Guest JukeboxHero]

Pure bullshit. If I were Conan, I'd be pissed, too. Don't punish Conan because Leno's doing a shitty job.

[Lint]

ok..who voted for Leno..

[Guest JukeboxHero]

So, Jay Leno will be reclaiming his old time slot, apparently. TMZ reports that Conan has 3 options.:

Conan O'Brien -- Such a Hard Decision

Posted Jan 10th 2010 12:25AM by TMZ Staff

Conan O'Brien is sitting on a decision that could be worth as much as $80 million, sources tell TMZ.

We broke the story that Jay Leno will be reclaiming his old time slot. There has been speculation that NBC exercised a loophole, which would allow the network to give Conan a portion of his time slot back (12:05-12:35) without having to pay Conan a penalty-- but sources tell us that is not the case.

We're told NBC is in breach of it's agreement with Conan by moving the start time of his show. As a result, Conan now has three options.

Option 1:Quit the show and spend the next four years at the beach. If Conan does this, our sources say NBC would have to pay him the value of his contract. We're told it's a five-year deal, worth as much as $20million a year. With four years to go, Conan could conceivably get $80million. But given his skin pigmentation and, possibly, his ego, the beach is unlikely.

Option 2: Go to either FOX or ABC.This is where it gets complicated. If Conan were to strike a deal with either network to do a competing show, any salary Conan pulls in would offset the obligation owed by NBC. So, for example, if Conan made $20million a year at NBC and ABC were to pay him $15 million a year, NBC would only owe Conan $5 mil a year for the four years remaining in his contract.

Option 3: Eat crow and take the12:05-1:05 time slot. If Conan takes this option, our sources say it's likely NBC would negotiate a new contract with the same salary Conan was getting before. Even though the salary isn't supported by the time period, it's cheaper than paying him off. NBC, we're told, prefers this option, because Conan would not be splintering Leno's rating by going to another network.

So, Conan, will it be door #1, 2 or 3?

Stay tuned ...

Anything but Option 3, CoCo.

Edited January 10, 2010 by JukeboxHero

[Mofoticon]

he should just take option 1 but for my own selfish reasons i hope he goes 2

[Guest C-MPH]

The theory I've heard goes that Leno is more popular because audiences would rather laugh at stupid people (Jaywalking and really most of what Leno does) than at funny people (Conan). There's probably something to that, but it's also a generational thing to an extent because so many of us prefer Conan.

Personally, I love the Daily Show, and I can handle Conan, Letterman, and Kimmel (more because of his writers than because of him though). Also Strombo out of national loyalty, at least he's better than Mike Bullard.

[GoGo Yubari]

I'm hoping Conan goes to Fox. I mean, as far as personal interest goes I'd much sooner be still able to watch him on TV instead of him being off the air for four years, though certainly I couldn't begrudge him for taking that option.