
With Conan's last Tonight Show now a memory, I thought I'd do a quick run down of the winners and losers in the latest edition of the late night wars.
Conan O'Brien - Sure, he's a WINNER if you value the almighty buck (to the tune of like $40 million) but he's come out of this smelling like a rose specifically because of the following reasons:
1. He has actual ethics. The Tonight Show has been on at the same time for decades and he wasn't going to allow the LOSERS at NBC to change that tradition just because they (NBC) made a colossal error in judgement in moving Leno to prime time. Plus as NBC made he and his staff move from New York, he made sure that staff was taken care of too (presumably to move back to the east coast or at least see them through until Conan's next gig is put together).
2. Granted, his Late Night show was always a little bit hit or miss and yes I'll admit that I started watching Craig more often than not in the time slot especially since Craig took on The World in his ever increasingly funny, vulgar, truthful and on target monologues, BUT even when I didn't laugh out loud at Conan's bits, I nonetheless could appreciate the brilliance of them and checked back regularly to see what he was up to (more than I can say for nearly anyone else on late night). His Tonight Show was stripped of all his signature bits and I suspect he was told to 'grow up' a little in his material but he maintained a healthy amount of humor in his show. And in last night's montage I could see all the really hilarious bits that I missed by not watching over the past 7 months - I won't make that mistake again.
3. In that same vein, Conan is never funnier than when he feels he's the underdog and also when he's allowed to do whatever he wants evidenced by the past two weeks of free-wheeling comic genius that pervaded the show. Seeing Conan unleashed reminds me why some folks don't do well with restrictions (and the NBC brass were stupid to impose any on him).
4. His final monologue to his fans was beautiful and classy and should be required viewing for anyone who hosts a show on any television show in the future.
David Letterman - a WINNER because he finally exacted his revenge against NBC by generating ratings and material against them and his nemesis Jay Leno with this Late Shift Part 2 debacle. Sure, Dave is cranky, that's kind of Dave's style and has been since his morning show 30 years ago (holy smokes!) but Dave is never funnier than when he has an axe to grind and after the past few weeks, it's sharper than it's ever been. Extra added points a bit on his show where Jay is still hosting the Tonight Show a couple hundred years in the future. Go Dave!
Jimmy Kimmel - he certainly got his licks in at the debacle by demonstrating how the late night audience is divied up like a pumpkin pie (and then eating it whole on national television) and then further by doing a whole show dressed up as Jay Leno including Jay's super creepy 'high fiving' of the audience. Hilarious stuff. Plus, a Ken Burns style documentary on the late night wars. Comic gold. And he even appeared on Jay Leno the night after his dress up to whomp Jay and NBC with some of the best beat downs of the entire affair. I personally think Kimmel is a waste of airtime but even I have to admit that this ordeal has brought out the best in him and I may just try his show in the future.
Craig Ferguson - tried desperately to stay out of the whole mess but geez, just couldn't help himself and gosh I wouldn't want it any other way. As mentioned above Craig's monologues are a thing of comic beauty and being late late at night and having a small audience has it's advantages - he has pretty much free reign. A photo cutout of NBC president Jeff Zucker mounted on a stick so that Craig could have a conversation with him? Genius! But the real heart to Ferguson isn't the plethora of bodily function jokes and gay innuendos, no, Craig's best monologue on the subject came the day after Haiti's earthquake where he sobered up the audience, slapping us in the face with the reality of the world: late night "wars" are stupid, and there are actual problems in the world. Huzzah to Craig for being funny AND having his priorities on straight.
Carson Daly - Surprisingly, Carson being really really late got some traction by none other than Letterman who used Daly (which is appropriate since Daly is generally considered to be a tool) for comic fodder in his monoloques. it's probably the most buzz Daly's show has had in.. well, ever. But it's still a semi win because buzz is buzz especially when you have none.
Jimmy Fallon - Talk about a late night host with absolutely no buzz whatsoever in the late night wars. With Craig killing over on CBS, I'm sure someone was watching him but it wasn't me. Sadly the little Fallon did comment on the situation, came off as lame and pandering, trying not to ruffle any feathers. I guess I can't blame him at all since he's still new to the late night lineup but geez man, take a risk. Probably the best line regarding Jimmy Fallon didn't come from his show but from former Saturday Night Live co-star Seth Meyer who said on a recent Weekend Update that his biggest fear was Fallon being bumped, returning to SNL and Weekend Update and Meyer having to go back to "appearing in sketches every third week". (BTW it was also Meyer who coined the 'how can it be called The Tonight Show if it's on.. tomorrow?" he gets some extra credit for that).
Jay Leno - What can I say? I think his humor is bland and toothless except when he gets his nose (or chin) out of joint and then he goes for the jugular in a way that doesn't come off as comic, just mean (see also Jay's comment about Dave's wife). Admittedly I loved Johnny Carson staying up with my dad late nights to watch the show and then watching occasionally throughout my 20s when I was first on my own. I cried when he left the Tonight Show and he had the good sense to make a good exit and never ever return (except, tellingly, on Letterman's show, briefly, for which he got a ten minute standing ovation).
Leno, to me, is the epitome of a successful hack - someone who fails upwards appealing to the lowest common denominator by telling the blandest safest jokes. If the Tonight Show is supposed to be snooze inducing, then it works better than Ambien. I never really felt that way about Johnny's show and certainly not about either of Letterman's shows or Conan or Craig. But snoooze with Jay.
He broke the deal he agreed to five years ago by appearing in prime time and then, instead of having the ethics to retire at long last (and thus, look like a hero - like Johnny did - who cares if Johnny's last years were being beat by Arsenio.. where is Arsenio now? And by the way, because Johnny left like he did - Johnny's memory is untarnished and preserved as the king of late night) he agreed to take back his old show.
I guess that's business but even if I found him to be funny (which I don't) I would be turned off by him now. I thought the prime time show was the worst thing I've ever seen (and I sat through ALL of Rosie O"Donnell's prime time show. Ack.) and it ate up time that should be devoted to narrative shows.
Jay may now have The Tonight Show but who in Hollywood will ever trust him? (OK that last bit is a trick question).
NBC - like their most popular show, they are the biggest LOSERS in all of this - financially, public relations-wise and with their programming schedule. Not only have they doled out a big bundle of cash to make one of their signature talents 'go away' (and wasn't it smart for Conan not to succumb to the human desire to be bitter and publicly say that he'll never work for them again - instead he asserted how lucky he'd been to work for them for over 20 years). The good news is that the network has nowhere to go but up. But that's a long long way ... good luck with that.