Guest fountainhall Posted June 27, 2009 Posted June 27, 2009 It's now been some weeks since O' Brien took over from Jay Leno. I've only seen a few episodes, but I find the whole Late Night format has completely lost any zest and interest it had before - and I was no great fan of Leno. The new show dies for me even before O'Brien comes on stage with the massively over-hyped audience reaction. I suggest NBC put whoever does the 30-minute audience warm-up on in O'Brien's place to liven things up. Quote
Guest lvdkeyes Posted June 27, 2009 Posted June 27, 2009 I couldn't agree more. The Tonight Show has not been the same or worth watching since Johnny left. Each succeeding host has been worse than the last. Quote
Guest fountainhall Posted January 8, 2010 Posted January 8, 2010 Well, well, well! Seems like lvdkeyes and I knew a lot more than NBC B) The New York Times announced today that NBC is now is a real bind with the increasingly desperate O'Brien regularly pulling more than 2 million viewers less than David Letterman. Not only that, ratings for Jay Leno's new show have plunged since it's very strong opening. According to The NYT - Faced with the failure of the biggest recent gamble in television, NBC is shuffling its late-night deck one more time. The network has a plan in the works to restore Jay Leno to his old spot at 11:35 each weeknight for a half-hour, while pushing the man who replaced him, Conan O’Brien, to a starting time of 12:05 a.m. Mr. O’Brien would then have a full hour. The moves are being driven by pressure from NBC’s affiliated stations, which have seen ratings for their late-night local newscasts plummet since September. That was when NBC began “The Jay Leno Show,” a prime-time version of Mr. Leno’s old late-night show My money is on O'Brien being axed and moving elsewhere. Mongolian TV may be suitable for him, although I would pity Mongolian viewers! Quote
Guest lvdkeyes Posted January 8, 2010 Posted January 8, 2010 Maybe it's time to axe the Tonight Show altogether. Quote
Guest fountainhall Posted January 8, 2010 Posted January 8, 2010 I can't see the networks axing the late night show formats, if only because they are relatively inexpensive and can generate major profits - with the right host. But why millions tune in nightly for some of the most banal (anal?) shenanigans on television that the networks call entertainment totally baffles me. Quote
Guest fountainhall Posted January 13, 2010 Posted January 13, 2010 So it now looks as though O'Brien will quit, probably for Fox. What amazes me are the comments of some people about his brand of humour. These from Los Angeles Times readers - "NBC has no respect for a soon to be legend. Conan is the funniest man on late night TV. I'm also going to follow Conan onto Fox, or wherever" "Conan is a class act and hilarious" "Conan will come out the winner in all this, and NBC will pay the price for siding with Leno" Soon to be legend? Hilarious? Funniest Man on late night TV? What on earth do these guys put in their drinks? Quote
Gaybutton Posted January 13, 2010 Posted January 13, 2010 Maybe it's time to axe the Tonight Show altogether. As long as the show is profitable, they won't axe it, but Johnny Carson is an awfully difficult act to follow. He is one of those figures about whom it truly can be said "there will never be another one like him." Jay Leno is a funny, clever comedian, but he is no Johnny Carson. I admire him for even trying to follow Johnny Carson. The money just may have had something to do with his decision to try. I never liked David Letterman or Conan O'Brien. Johnny Carson was such an amazing, unique talent. None of the "would be" late night hosts can hold a candle to him. Trying to find another Johnny Carson is like trying to find another Jack Benny, Rodney Dangerfield, or George Carlin. It just isn't going to happen. Quote
Guest lvdkeyes Posted January 13, 2010 Posted January 13, 2010 I, for one, will be glad to see O'Brien vanish from TV. Quote
Guest fountainhall Posted January 13, 2010 Posted January 13, 2010 Unbelievable! The comments of New York Times readers are even worse - "the funniest guy on TV" "a unique person uniquely suited for the job" "Conan: You are awesome!" "a smart, funny man" "Conan is the real deal. Classy, intelligent, charming, honest" Gulp! Quote
Bob Posted January 13, 2010 Posted January 13, 2010 Like others, I simply don't find O'Brien funny at all (in fact, I find him simply weird and he actually is irritating/grating to me). Leno at least had some funny material but he never was as funny or as personally engaging as Johnny Carson. Based on what I've seen on late night TV since Carson left the air, there's nobody out there that's anywhere near as talented as Carson was. Quote
Guest fountainhall Posted January 14, 2010 Posted January 14, 2010 Don't want to drag this topic out when it should be dying along with the awful O'Brien, but there is a nice quip in the Margaret Dowd column in today's New York Times. She quotes a TV executive calling - the Leno experiment the worst mistake made by anyone in television since an ABC Entertainment executive told the Chicago affiliate chief that the network didn’t want to own and broadcast the new daytime talk show hosted by a young black woman. Her name: Oprah Winfrey. Last I heard, Ms Winfrey, who owns, produces and markets her own show around the world, is a billionaire Quote
