Conan O’Brien To Take Over 'Tonight Show' In '09

[Dooby]

CONAN O'BRIEN TO TAKE OVER 'TONIGHT SHOW' IN '09
Mon Sep 27 2004 13:25:11 ET

From Jeff Zucker, issued to NBC staff via email:

Today, we are celebrating the 50th Anniversary of our late night franchise "The Tonight Show."

Today also marks another important milestone in our great late night history. In a few moments, we will be issuing a press release announcing our succession plan for this important television institution.

Jay Leno will continue to be at the helm of "The Tonight Show" for another five years, well into 2009, after which time Conan O'Brien will become the host of "The Tonight Show." Jay will officially make the announcement on his show tonight.

After that, it's back to work as usual for Jay, Conan and their teams, who will continue to provide us laughs for many more years.

I canÕt say enough about this late night team and these two men - especially Jay Leno - who worked tirelessly with us to help us find the appropriate time to make this announcement.

Thanks to both men we have a very bright future in late night!

[sike]

Jay is an underrated master in the old school style of late night hosting and Conan is simply the funniest man on tv....as Gordan would say: the news makes me sadhappy

[u2sarajevo]

To be honest, I don't really like Leno save the occasional blockbuster guest and Headlines (which is simply... genius television). But O'Brien is a comedic genius (and yes, I realize I am over-using the word genius but the alien already used "funniest man on TV" so I opted for the secondary use of genius).

I love Letterman, but if he is still on Late Night in 2009.... he might lose a loyal watcher.

[irontoad]

Leno is a great host...


FOR ME TOO POOP ON!!! [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

Seriously, though, Leno's alright, but I think Conan would/does do a better job... The guy's a riot.

[ocelot_ark]

Conan rules.

[Rhylan]

It'll be tough to choose between Dave and Conan if Dave is still around... but I'm just happy that Leno will finally move on. I've never been a fan.

[Dooby]

I wonder if NBC panicked because they were afraid Conan would go over to ABC to replace Jimmy Kimmel. If you have read or seen the Late Shift, that is basically what happened with Leno and Carson.

[EricaLubarsky]

I personally think Letterman is always underestimated because he's a genius, and that Conan and Leno are just working hard (sometimes too hard) to be funnyl. I'd take a shot at Leno for being hammy and unfunny but I agree with The Family Guy

"Stewie Griffin: You know, it is so fashionable to take a shot at Jay Leno. Look, the fact is the man is out there every bloody night with fresh material and he's charming. "

[sike]

"Stewie Griffin: You know, it is so fashionable to take a shot at Jay Leno. Look, the fact is the man is out there every bloody night with fresh material and he's charming. "

genius.... [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

[raefformvp]

EL, I never knew what it was that bothered me so much about Conan until I read your post. I totally agree with you when you say that he tries to hard. To me, he just comes across as a dork. I have been a faithful view of Letterman for over 15 years. Many nights I tape him if I'm too tired to stay up that late. He's greatness!

[OzMavs]

Why do they need to make an announcement now about a television program in 2009? I just think this is totally insane!!

[samoan-maverick]

Originally posted by: OzMavs
Why do they need to make an announcement now about a television program in 2009? I just think this is totally insane!!

Everybody loves countdowns

[Drbio]

Originally posted by: OzMavs
Why do they need to make an announcement now about a television program in 2009? I just think this is totally insane!!

M-O-N-E-Y.....it's all about the Benjamins. I guarantee yo uthis is their attempt at keeping Conan in the fold.



Am I the only one that actually likes Leno?

[mary]

Originally posted by: Drbio

M-O-N-E-Y.....it's all about the Benjamins. I guarantee yo uthis is their attempt at keeping Conan in the fold.



Am I the only one that actually likes Leno?

Doc, I personally prefer both Leno and Conan over Letterman.

Letterman is an a-hole and he hasn't been funny since heart surgery. He doesn't relate to guest well, he's a HORRIBLE interviewer and really lacks the ability to just have normal/funny conversations with people. His bits are old, boring pretentious crap.

Leno may not be a comedic genius himself, but he is at least likeable and IMO comes off as more sincere than Letterman.

Conan's self-deprecating style has had me won over for years.

[Smiles]

I'm not a Conan fan, but I wouldn't be surprised if Leno (who I like best of all) walked away "early". I don't think we'll have to wait until '09.

[Fah Q]

Originally posted by: mary

Doc, I personally prefer both Leno and Conan over Letterman.

Letterman is an a-hole and he hasn't been funny since heart surgery. He doesn't relate to guest well, he's a HORRIBLE interviewer and really lacks the ability to just have normal/funny conversations with people. His bits are old, boring pretentious crap.

Leno may not be a comedic genius himself, but he is at least likeable and IMO comes off as more sincere than Letterman.

Conan's self-deprecating style has had me won over for years.

You just said everything I was thinking. Except I don't think Letterman just became that way, he always has been boring and pretentious. The fact that the guy laughs at his own jokes more than the studio audience bothers me also.