NBC to Conan O'Brien - The Choice Is Yours

[Rappy Veteran]

The "Tonight Show" host feels like the redheaded stepchild of late-night TV after NBC's abrupt decision to cancel Jay Leno's 10 p.m. experiment after just five months -- and return the car-loving comic to O'Brien's coveted 11:35 p.m. slot.

"This level of sh- - -iness was not expected," one source said.

"He's done a great job for NBC. He moved his entire staff, he moved his family to LA. And five months later, they repay him like this?"

As it stands now, the source said, "Conan would be happier somewhere else."

The pompadoured host has "many options," including a move to Fox, which for years has been looking to create its own late-night show.

In fact, he has already spoken with Fox, The Wall Street Journal's Web site reported last night.

NY Post

[Growled Member]

It's interesting to me that both Conan and Jay are now on against Letterman.

[Rappy Veteran]

Under Influences

LOL Judas :rofl:

[Xero]

Its stupid having Conan the Tonight Show when its a different day :angry: Although I preferred him in the later slot. He could ger away with more and it was more off the wall and less tamed for prime time. However I don't know how much of that will change with the new time slot, hopefully a lot.

[Rob2687]

FOX Affiliates Lukewarm on Conan

Broadcasting & Cable?s Michael Malone has the skinny in an article subtitled Syndication or late local news works fine at 11, thanks:

Amidst the speculation that Tonight Show frontman Conan O?Brien might shift to a similar role on Fox, multiple managers at Fox affiliates say they?re lukewarm on the idea. All pointed out that it?s premature to speculate on an O?Brien-at-Fox arrangement, and none were comfortable commenting on the record for that reason. But their off the record comments indicated a low level of interest in O?Brien airing on their stations.

As noted elsewhere, and in the above B&C article, the timing would be tricky because many affiliates are locked into syndication deals in the 11pm slot, and others have late news programming at 11pm. But the real issue seems to be that the affiliates get more advertising inventory with syndicated or local news programming than they could with a network show.

While I?m pretty sure the FOX affils ultimately don?t have as much clout with FOX as NBC affiliates might have wound up having with NBC (where extra political clout was in play due to the Comcast deal still needing regulatory approval) I?ll let the affiliates have their day in the sun.

http://tvbythenumbers.com/2010/01/11/fox-a...-on-conan/38459

[Rob2687]

Conan O’Brien Says He Won’t Host ‘Tonight Show’ Following Leno

By BILL CARTER

Conan O’Brien says he will not host “The Tonight Show” if it is moved to 12:05 a.m.

In a statement Tuesday afternoon, Mr. O’Brien said he cannot participate “in what I honestly believe is its destruction.” Last week NBC outlined a plan to move “The Jay Leno Show” to 11:35 p.m. in March, elbowing Mr. O’Brien’s “Tonight Show” back half an hour. Mr. Leno seems supportive of the plan; but in his statement, Mr. O’Brien rejects it outright. The statement reads:

People of Earth:

In the last few days, I’ve been getting a lot of sympathy calls, and I want to start by making it clear that no one should waste a second feeling sorry for me. For 17 years, I’ve been getting paid to do what I love most and, in a world with real problems, I’ve been absurdly lucky. That said, I’ve been suddenly put in a very public predicament and my bosses are demanding an immediate decision.

Six years ago, I signed a contract with NBC to take over The Tonight Show in June of 2009. Like a lot of us, I grew up watching Johnny Carson every night and the chance to one day sit in that chair has meant everything to me. I worked long and hard to get that opportunity, passed up far more lucrative offers, and since 2004 I have spent literally hundreds of hours thinking of ways to extend the franchise long into the future. It was my mistaken belief that, like my predecessor, I would have the benefit of some time and, just as important, some degree of ratings support from the prime-time schedule. Building a lasting audience at 11:30 is impossible without both.

But sadly, we were never given that chance. After only seven months, with my Tonight Show in its infancy, NBC has decided to react to their terrible difficulties in prime-time by making a change in their long-established late night schedule.

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

http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2010...following-leno/

I hope he gets back on air soon. :cry:

[Massiveterra]

Plz god Comedy Central