Arkady Renko Posted January 16, 2010 Posted January 16, 2010 Good point. Conan moved his entire staff from NYC to LA for this gig. Now they are all out of job. Or at least until Conan gets a show on another network. I thought I heard that Conan was negotiating payoffs to them as well. If not, Conan can always give them a fraction of the settlement given to him.
Mike In Illinois Posted January 17, 2010 Posted January 17, 2010 Leno seems to have changed his tune since 2004: His announcement.
billsfan89 Posted January 17, 2010 Posted January 17, 2010 Leno seems to have changed his tune since 2004: His announcement. I would like to give Leno the benefit of the doubt and think that around 2004 Leno did plan to retire around 2009. BUT With how manipulative and calculating Leno has been throughout the whole debacle I feel like Leno might never have wanted to retire (Or he changed his mind not too long after announcing his future retirement). As I have said through this whole thread its just sad that Conan who is by all accounts a nice guy got the short end of the stick from NBC and Leno.
Steely Dan Posted January 18, 2010 Posted January 18, 2010 Looks like Conan is definitely gone; http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/15/c...c_n_424508.html According to the outlines of a settlement, Conan O'Brien will leave NBC and the network will make an as-yet unspecified payment. The comedian will be free to appear elsewhere on television well before his contract expires, despite earlier threats from NBC that it would prevent him from working anywhere else. Leno seems to have changed his tune since 2004: His announcement. Wow! When Leno was a traveling comic he came to Rochester and some good friends of mine got together with him after the show and they said he was the nicest most down to earth guy. It seems now that some of that is gone. What he's doing to Conan is inexcusable. If you're pissed at NBC then don't take it out on Conan. Letterman weighs in. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A98_-EeXS_I http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msC3uu4KZbg...feature=related If there is any truth to the story presented in the movie "The Late Shift" then Leno's agent really screwed Carson and Letterman. I don't think Jay knew what was going on exactly but Letterman was screwed by NBC and Leno's agent. BTW, the new agent Letterman hired, Michael Ovitz, was brilliant in handling the situation for Dave. It should be remembered that when Conan took over Late Night Letterman had him on his show to publicize his taking over Late Night. A very classy move IMO. Today Show interview with Conan just before taking over The Tonight Show. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inldaPzn1Fs I hope Letterman finds some way to get WWP to sign him to a contract to do various CBS specials and then eventually take over the Late Show when he retires. Letterman invites Conan to be a guest on his show.
Steely Dan Posted January 20, 2010 Posted January 20, 2010 The Chinese explain the NBC shakeup better than anyone I've seen yet; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12hlX3iPS-g
Beerball Posted January 21, 2010 Posted January 21, 2010 $45M as a parting gift. Why couldn't I have been born funny? my hair looks better than his too!
MattyT Posted January 21, 2010 Posted January 21, 2010 $45M as a parting gift. Why couldn't I have been born funny? my hair looks better than his too! Wow. Jay is not an attractive man as it is, but that is a horrible, horrible picture.
meazza Posted January 21, 2010 Posted January 21, 2010 $45M as a parting gift. Why couldn't I have been born funny? my hair looks better than his too! Looks like I'm going back to watching Letterman.
Cugalabanza Posted January 21, 2010 Posted January 21, 2010 A friend of mine has the dvd of Conan's 10th Anniversary Special. I've watched it a couple times. It is comedy gold! If you like Conan at all, it will make you laugh very hard. In my opinion, Conan has a great talent for comedy. I really hope he finds his way back with a format that works for him. I'll always like Letterman too. The early days of Late Night were so great in a gonzo sort of way. I'll never forget how fun it was for me as a teenager to stay up late to watch that crazy show. Leno, you have never made me laugh. How you have weaseled your way to the top of the mountain, I have absolutely no idea. You are a comedy fraud. As far as the Tonight Show goes, I submit that it began a long slow journey to irrelevance about 25 years ago, when Carson got tame and Letterman emerged as the way cooler choice. I think that journey will be complete on Monday when Jay comes back.
Endzone Animal Posted January 21, 2010 Posted January 21, 2010 I'm having a little trouble feeling sorry for the guy when he just pocketed a $45 million severance. At first I loved watching the bashing of NBC for dealing him dirty, and Leno's opportunism, but now it's getting old and he seems whiny. The hand is being overplayed. Letterman? He seems like the sour grapes baby, whose bashing of Leno is all about jealousy and bitterness from being passed over 17 years ago, and then getting pummeled in the ratings for years until Conan showed up. It's easy to give love to the guy you're beating, but not so much for the guy who thumped you every night for roughly 15 years. Oh, and let's face it: Letterman, Kimmel and all the rest who praise Conan while slamming Leno and NBC, would jump ship in a second if NBC came calling for them to take over the Tonight Show.
Cugalabanza Posted January 21, 2010 Posted January 21, 2010 I'm having a little trouble feeling sorry for the guy when he just pocketed a $45 million severance. At first I loved watching the bashing of NBC for dealing him dirty, and Leno's opportunism, but now it's getting old and he seems whiny. The hand is being overplayed. Letterman? He seems like the sour grapes baby, whose bashing of Leno is all about jealousy and bitterness from being passed over 17 years ago, and then getting pummeled in the ratings for years until Conan showed up. It's easy to give love to the guy you're beating, but not so much for the guy who thumped you every night for roughly 15 years. Oh, and let's face it: Letterman, Kimmel and all the rest who praise Conan while slamming Leno and NBC, would jump ship in a second if NBC came calling for them to take over the Tonight Show. Ratings are one thing. Quality is another. Conan is the guy who has the respect of people who appreciate good comedy. Leno gets better ratings (at 11:35). It's hard to make that point without insulting and alienating a huge chunk of the viewership.
stuckincincy Posted January 21, 2010 Posted January 21, 2010 $45M as a parting gift. Why couldn't I have been born funny? my hair looks better than his too! Self-important multi-millionaires arguing over a half-hour...
stuckincincy Posted January 21, 2010 Posted January 21, 2010 A friend of mine has the dvd of Conan's 10th Anniversary Special. I've watched it a couple times. It is comedy gold! If you like Conan at all, it will make you laugh very hard. In my opinion, Conan has a great talent for comedy. I really hope he finds his way back with a format that works for him. I'll always like Letterman too. The early days of Late Night were so great in a gonzo sort of way. I'll never forget how fun it was for me as a teenager to stay up late to watch that crazy show. Leno, you have never made me laugh. How you have weaseled your way to the top of the mountain, I have absolutely no idea. You are a comedy fraud. As far as the Tonight Show goes, I submit that it began a long slow journey to irrelevance about 25 years ago, when Carson got tame and Letterman emerged as the way cooler choice. I think that journey will be complete on Monday when Jay comes back. Would you like such a self-centered narcissist like Letterman living next to you? I think not. I gave up on all these "late-night" personalities a long time ago. The light-hearted comedy- their traditional hallmark - has been replaced with chintzy, nasty, political barbs. Their current crop of gag writers fall far short of the their predecessors, IMO.
Endzone Animal Posted January 21, 2010 Posted January 21, 2010 Ratings are one thing. Quality is another. Conan is the guy who has the respect of people who appreciate good comedy. Leno gets better ratings (at 11:35). It's hard to make that point without insulting and alienating a huge chunk of the viewership. When sponsors buy advertising, they do not ask the network if the viewers properly appreciate good comedy, they ask how many viewers will be seeing their commercials. Anyway, my point was merely that the "feel sorry for Conan" act has started to lose its humor and sounds more like whiny, sour grapes.
shrader Posted January 21, 2010 Posted January 21, 2010 Would you like such a self-centered narcissist like Letterman living next to you? I think not. I gave up on all these "late-night" personalities a long time ago. The light-hearted comedy- their traditional hallmark - has been replaced with chintzy, nasty, political barbs. Their current crop of gag writers fall far short of the their predecessors, IMO. So if you gave up a long time ago, how can you know the current writers aren't up to par? I really think comments like that are more a product of a change in the person watching. Their preferences changed and they moved onto something else.
Cugalabanza Posted January 21, 2010 Posted January 21, 2010 Would you like such a self-centered narcissist like Letterman living next to you? I think not. Sure, I'll take a home in that neighborhood. Plus, I have a feeling Dave doesn't exactly show his face much at the block parties.
stuckincincy Posted January 21, 2010 Posted January 21, 2010 (edited) So if you gave up a long time ago, how can you know the current writers aren't up to par? I really think comments like that are more a product of a change in the person watching. Their preferences changed and they moved onto something else. I stop in now and then. It's no change in me - I have a keen sense of comedy, as well as a keen sense of pandering snottiness. No dispute about today's audience, shrader. That our society is decaying is not news. Edited January 21, 2010 by stuckincincy
stuckincincy Posted January 21, 2010 Posted January 21, 2010 Sure, I'll take a home in that neighborhood. Gringo wins that point.
KD in CA Posted January 21, 2010 Posted January 21, 2010 Sure, I'll take a home in that neighborhood. Plus, I have a feeling Dave doesn't exactly show his face much at the block parties. He used to be spotted regularly in my town when he lived here.
billsfan89 Posted January 21, 2010 Posted January 21, 2010 When sponsors buy advertising, they do not ask the network if the viewers properly appreciate good comedy, they ask how many viewers will be seeing their commercials. Anyway, my point was merely that the "feel sorry for Conan" act has started to lose its humor and sounds more like whiny, sour grapes. My gripe with the Conan thing isn't that they are going to cancel him due to low ratings hey if he can't get the audience you want then you have to move on. However they never really put Conan in a position to have success. They gave him a weak lead in thanks to the Jay Leno show (also it didn't help Conan to retain Leno's audience either) and then they only gave him 7 months to try and build an audience. If they had given him a better lead in and at least 6 more month's then I would have been fine with it but they compromised Conan's show and then they gave him the boot I think a lot of people feel he just didn't get a fair shake.
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