Conan O’Brien To Quit The Tonight Show
By Krystal Clark
We knew this would happen sooner or later. NBC continues to play around with both Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien‘s late night futures and the hosts aren’t going to take it anymore. The network has stated that they want to keep Leno on their roster even though they’re canceling his show at its 10 pm slot on February 12th. Their new preliminary plan is to have it air for half an hour, followed by an hour long “Tonight Show,” and guess what Conan said f*ck that!
Over at the NY Times, O’Brien recently released a statement that said he won’t stay on as the host of “The Tonight Show” if Leno is pushed back to 11:35pm causing his show to air after midnight. In an open letter to fans around the world, the host wrote about the amount of sympathy he’s received from “Tonight Show” watchers who have been following his recent battle with NBC. He stated that 6 years ago he made a contract with the network to take over “The Tonight Show,” once Leno left, but his show hasn’t been given a fair shot. Here’s the rest of what O’Brien had to say…
Last Thursday, NBC executives told me they intended to move the Tonight Show to 12:05 to accommodate the Jay Leno Show at 11:35. For 60 years the Tonight Show has aired immediately following the late local news. I sincerely believe that delaying the Tonight Show into the next day to accommodate another comedy program will seriously damage what I consider to be the greatest franchise in the history of broadcasting. The Tonight Show at 12:05 simply isn’t the Tonight Show. Also, if I accept this move I will be knocking the Late Night show, which I inherited from David Letterman and passed on to Jimmy Fallon, out of its long-held time slot. That would hurt the other NBC franchise that I love, and it would be unfair to Jimmy.
So it has come to this: I cannot express in words how much I enjoy hosting this program and what an enormous personal disappointment it is for me to consider losing it. My staff and I have worked unbelievably hard and we are very proud of our contribution to the legacy of The Tonight Show. But I cannot participate in what I honestly believe is its destruction. Some people will make the argument that with DVRs and the Internet a time slot doesn’t matter. But with the Tonight Show, I believe nothing could matter more.
There has been speculation about my going to another network but, to set the record straight, I currently have no other offer and honestly have no idea what happens next. My hope is that NBC and I can resolve this quickly so that my staff, crew, and I can do a show we can be proud of, for a company that values our work.
Have a great day and, for the record, I am truly sorry about my hair; it’s always been that way.
Yours,
Conan
Are any of us really surprised by Conan’s reaction to this whole thing? NBC can’t have their cake and eat it too! If they were that eager to get rid of Leno in late night, what sense does it make for them to bring him back? They’re showing no respect for the business model that’s been maintained by the show’s predecessors, and their completely ignoring everyone else who isn’t in Jay’s orbit. What about Jimmy Fallon?!
Do you think NBC will take Conan’s threat seriously? Do you think he’s doing the right thing?
Tuesday, January 12, 2010 8:36PM
NBC should keep Conan and set Jay Leno free. His time has come.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010 8:45PM
Connan is right… The Tonight Show at 12:05am is more like The Tomorrow Morning Show.
Good job, NBC. You just managed to mess up the two best talk show hosts of late night.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010 9:10PM
NBC does it again! Since Johnny Carson retired this network has screwed up late night over and over. Primetime is a joke too, but pushing Johnny out the door, giving the Tonight Show to Leno instead of Letterman, and now screwing Conan out of a job he earned, you cannot screw things up much more than that! If Leno were a man, and he is not, he would tell NBC to shove it as Conan has. Like Letterman said last night, "All Jay wants to do is tell jokes at 11:35." Leno could care less as long as he gets that slot back, which NBC was pushing him out of in the first place. What a disgrace.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010 9:13PM
I like Jay, but this is an F'd up thing to do to Conan.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010 3:06PM
[...] down for NBC, Jay Leno, or anybody else. “The Tonight Show” host recently sent in a letter to the New York Times giving an ultimatum to the peacock network. After the February 12th cancellation of “The Jay [...]
Wednesday, January 13, 2010 1:40AM
Doesn't Leno have enough money already! Just go work on your cars already! Share the spotlight with someone else….Greedy!!
Wednesday, January 13, 2010 11:37PM
Every day that passess makes more angry because a nice and talented guy like Conan who was promised something and spent 16 years in late night only to get royally screwed. The main source of my frustration is why won't Jay Leno just leave already. He could have stopped this thing from spinning out of control and just refused to take Conan's time slot. I used to have some respect for Leno even though I didn't think he was all that funny but now he's nothing but a selfish scumbag. I hope that he doesn't last long at 11:30 and gets fired so we never hear from him again.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010 5:42PM
I have never really liked Jay, fact is the only reason I ever watched him was because he came on before Conan. Conan is a much better comedian and host then Jay ever was.
Thursday, January 14, 2010 5:04AM
Conan has both comedy and people skills that always make his show entertaining, while Leno lacks the impromptu personality and respectful demeanor that often leads to a dull show and a tight stomach.
Even if Jay were a match for Conan as host, he has had his time. Let Conan have his.
Thursday, January 14, 2010 8:00AM
[...] behind current “Tonight Show” host Conan O’Brien who recently gave NBC an ultimatum regarding his gig on the show. If they push it back a half an hour to accommodate another series for Jay Leno, [...]
Thursday, January 14, 2010 1:30PM
[...] the 11:35pm time slot that Conan hasn’t even occupied for a full year.O’Brien gave an ultimatum earlier this week stating that he wouldn’t continue to host the show if they pushed it past midnight. In other [...]
Thursday, January 14, 2010 1:49PM
[...] not outright say it but this Leno story might be true. Conan O’ Brien’s not budging on his statement, and Leno has barely said a word about his plans for the future. Who do we [...]
Thursday, January 14, 2010 11:11PM
pushing johnny out the dorr??? that never happened!