I'm No Longer Angry Over the "Late Night Wars"

[Adamantium]

I'm still no fan of Leno, though. Sure, every once in a while if someone wants to argue about Leno being better than Conan, I may get anry. I assume that's natural when someone bashes someone you love, though.

However, things are good right now. The Jay fans have their Jay and the Conan fans have their Conan. It's all good.

I know Conan's lead over Leno last night was because it was his debut. I don't expect him to keep it but it was still nice to have happen at least once.

Despite how people feel, myself included, it's almost as if this had to happen. Conan seems more popular now than he was when he hosted "The Tonight Show", which is supposed to be the biggest late night talk show. Conan went through a lot and has come out of it with a new show, a very loyal audience and a beard.

[TV Knowledge Fan]

CONAN has nothing to worry about- he'll have his loyal audience, and will "stick around" TBS for several years.

JAY still has his loyal audience...but for some reason, he's starting to slip. Some nights, there's not a "big deal" for viewers to watch him- and that should worry NBC.

DAVE will probably "pack it in" within two years, and announce his "successor" by then. He's doing quite well...

JIMMY KIMMEL, however, is growing stale. A lack of funding (he once claimed ABC was paying him in "Disney dollars"), and a lackluster effort from his writing and production staff [Why is his current girlfriend Molly McNearney his co-head writer? Isn't it time to finally put "Uncle Frank" out to pasture?] are slowly "choking" his efforts to put a good show together every night. I see more "plugs" from his sponsors and ABC/Disney during the show, turning him into a "paid shill". I hear a lot more "sweetening" from laugh tracks during his pre-taped comedy bits and "news actualities" [and most of them just aren't funny]. And this is disturbing- for the first time since he went on the air seven years ago, Kimmel didn't have a "Halloween-themed" show (where he and the cast appeared in costumes and decorated the set) this year. What does that tell you about his future?

CRAIG, the "Scottish Conan Guy", is doing quite well. All he has to do these days is feature "Sid" (the cussing rabbit puppet) or "Secretariat" (the old "two men in a horse costume" gambit), and the audience goes wild. And a few harmonica solos go a long way....

The other JIMMY (Fallon) has his audience, and is quite comfortable. He still has the "am I really hosting a talk show of my very own??" attitude...

GEORGE now follows Conan, and headlines a decent show.

CARSON- oh, yes, him. I admire the fact he does his show "on location" instead of a stuffy old studio (and rigid format), and if the guest is interesting, I might tune in....

[TJL]

Looking forward to reading Bill Carter's new book about the Leno/Conan debacle.

I hope to pick it up this weekend.

[USATVFAN]

Originally Posted by TV Knowledge Fan

CONAN has nothing to worry about- he'll have his loyal audience, and will "stick around" TBS for several years.

JAY still has his loyal audience...but for some reason, he's starting to slip. Some nights, there's not a "big deal" for viewers to watch him- and that should worry NBC.

DAVE will probably "pack it in" within two years, and announce his "successor" by then. He's doing quite well...

JIMMY KIMMEL, however, is growing stale. A lack of funding (he once claimed ABC was paying him in "Disney dollars"), and a lackluster effort from his writing and production staff [Why is his current girlfriend Molly McNearney his co-head writer? Isn't it time to finally put "Uncle Frank" out to pasture?] are slowly "choking" his efforts to put a good show together every night. I see more "plugs" from his sponsors and ABC/Disney during the show, turning him into a "paid shill". I hear a lot more "sweetening" from laugh tracks during his pre-taped comedy bits and "news actualities" [and most of them just aren't funny]. And this is disturbing- for the first time since he went on the air seven years ago, Kimmel didn't have a "Halloween-themed" show (where he and the cast appeared in costumes and decorated the set) this year. What does that tell you about his future?

CRAIG, the "Scottish Conan Guy", is doing quite well. All he has to do these days is feature "Sid" (the cussing rabbit puppet) or "Secretariat" (the old "two men in a horse costume" gambit), and the audience goes wild. And a few harmonica solos go a long way....

The other JIMMY (Fallon) has his audience, and is quite comfortable. He still has the "am I really hosting a talk show of my very own??" attitude...

GEORGE now follows Conan, and headlines a decent show.

CARSON- oh, yes, him. I admire the fact he does his show "on location" instead of a stuffy old studio (and rigid format), and if the guest is interesting, I might tune in....

David Letterman Contract expires in 2013

[TV Knowledge Fan]

...but, as in the case of Johnny Carson, he might decide to stick around for a few more years- it all depends on how he feels about retiring from late-night TV for good {"What else am I gonna do?"}.