Friday, February 20, 2009

The END of Late Night With Conan O'Brien

Tonight is the last episode of Late Night With Conan O'Brien.

You know Conan, right? Big, red-headed Irish dude with the funniest late-night show on television. I've always loved Conan but going to college really made me appreciate his brand of strange humor. I used to stay up till 4AM studying/playing video games/whatever in my dorm room...all the while watching Conan.

He was more than a source of amusement--his show was also where I got (some) of my news of the today (not the serious stuff...you know, the Paris Hilton updates). And at the end of every year, just as summer was approaching, I would sit in my dorm room and pack-up my things and watch Conan. This May shows were so great because he'd go and do his show in another city...

And New Year's Eve!

I can't forget about his annual "Midwestern Countdown." He was the only network guy to give us Midwestern/Central Time Zone people our own LIVE New Year's Countdown.

Conan is leaving us for a while, but he will be back. In June he's replacing Jay Leno over at the TONIGHT SHOW. The whole thing is a farce. Leno isn't leaving TV, he's getting a 9:00PM show. I'm fuzzy on the format, but I expect it to be similar to the TONIGHT SHOW. So then NBC will have the news, then Conan's TONIGHT SHOW, then LATE NIGHT WITH JIMMY FALLON will come on.

Seriously. Jimmy Fallon? I thought that guy was dead.

Anyway, I love you Conan--but you're making a BIG mistake. Your brand of humor works at midnight...but at ten-thirty (when the squares are STILL UP) it doesn't. I think Conan is going to be shafted. I think the ratings are going to suck, and people will skip his show, like they do now. People that want Leno will still have him. The only difference will be that the suits will expect more ratings from Conan (being on earlier) and if he doesn't deliver...I shudder to think of a Conan-less TV world.

But whatever. I think Leno is being a bit of an ass. Johnny Carson was classy enough to stay off TV after he retired. Oh well, Leno's just a tool. I honestly have no idea why people think that Skunk-head is funny. His jokes are putrid and the sound of his voice makes my toes curl. Conan FOREVER!!!

3 comments:

Brenda said...

If it weren't for Kevin Eubank, Jay would have sunk that ship long ago. I'm with you on this one. Jay's humor wreaks of being scripted. The band guy (KE) saves Jay's ass when his jokes bomb which is basically every night. Upside: Kevin Eubank can focus on playing great music now because Conan is actually funny. I'm sure he is relieved.

Jason said...

Eubank should just get his own show...I'd watch it.

I'm hoping Conan will stick with The Max Wienberg 7.

What's weird to me is, I don't a single person that likes Leno. So why has he been in the ratings lead for so long? Are we all to ashamed to admit to liking him?

On Conan's last show the first person he thanked was Letterman--I thought that was very telling. Letterman truly is the greatest talk-show host on TV right now. Leno is a joke (and not a funny one).

Brenda said...

I don't know if I'd watch Eubank. I think the reason he comes off funny is because Leno is so NOT. Letterman is the man. I think Leno will bomb.