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Jay Leno

I neither like nor dislike Conan, but the idea that he was a disaster from the start kind of bugs me.

It takes a while to find your groove in a new show and Conan was hardly given a fair shot. To prove my point, if you watched Leno's very first "Tonight Show" following Johnny's retirement, it was painful. I don't know if it's on YouTube, but if you can see it, watch it, because it sucked. And it didn't get better for a long time. Even Leno admitted years later he didn't feel comfortable until they built him a newer, more intimate set that allowed him to do his schtick his way. (I say all this as someone who doesn't even watch Leno; I'm more a Letterman / Ferguson guy).

Oh, and once they went head-to-head, Leno also got pounded in the ratings by Letterman until he put Hugh Grant on just after he was caught knockers-up with a lady-of-the-evening.

So... Conan had a couple of months to establish his show, while the aforementioned Leno was actively undermining him every day. Had Leno moved to Mongolia and NBC allowed Conan time to make the Tonight Show his own, I bet he would have. After all, when Conan replaced Letterman on the NBC show, it took about a year for Conan to get it right.

I know, I know... networks have to make money and demand instant success. They can't wait for someone to develop. But that's why the small nets like HBO and AMC have the better shows.
 
benwolf said:
Conan was a disaster, on the Tonight Show. He tried way too hard trying to be funny, like he did hosting the Emmys, and it came off as flop sweat. Much better on TBS, especially now tha Max is gone...no more painful repartee with the bandleader.
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Conan was struggling to tone it down slightly, to cater to those 1-hour earlier, "slightly" less edgy viewers of Leno, and that caused him to step out of Conan-character. He looks more at home now on TBS, where he seems free once again to fringe-out, the way he did at NBC. Both Leno and Conan got hurt by Peacock Network execs who foolishly tried to fix something that wasn't even broken. Conan seems to have recovered nicely, while Leno is still struggling to reclaim his commanding stride. NBC's stupidity had a very disruptive effect on both.
 
I saw Letterman imitating Jay the other night, focusing on all the vehicles he has. He made me laugh, which is rare for me concerning him.
 
Greg Goodfellow said:
I saw Letterman imitating Jay the other night, focusing on all the vehicles he has. He made me laugh, which is rare for me concerning him.
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Would be rare for me too. Almost 50-years on TV seems to give witness to Letterman growing cold and bitter. Teasing and lampooning the way Leno and Fallon do is funny. Letterman on the other hand comes off as angry and cynical now. I remember a time when he looked like he was having fun.
 
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