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Late Night Wars - Conan's last Tonight Show was TONIGHT a long time ago

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J

Jet Grind Radio!

Banned
I'm probably the only one, but I kinda don't want Coco to move to Fox. Only because Fox has a tendency to cancel shows more often than other networks. I do so hope he can pull it off though.
 
Rentahamster

Rentahamster

Rodent Whores
Pristine_Condition said:
You know what I think would be a really smart idea? If he can get started soon, Conan should take his show on the road while his permanent set is being built. Take the show to cities and college campuses around the country, where Conan is truly loved. It would also be a good way to build support with all the local affiliates in the markets which Conan visits, dropping in on their local news broadcasts and raising hell, filming bits of him touring the cities/campuses with the mayor, a local celebrity, or even just fans, ect. The few road shows Conan has done in the past have been tremendous.

Of course Conan and his crew would have to be extremely motivated to take on such an undertaking, but it would be worth it. It wouldn't be easy. If Conan really wants to stick the dagger in though, and really crush NBC and become the most talked-about guy in late night, that's one way he could do it.
Click to expand...
Interesting idea, I'd watch it.

The only memorable thing I remember about the local news was when Triumph came down to make fun of the American Idol auditions and then went on the local NBC affiliate news broadcast.

Hilarious.
 
P

Personifried

Member
Jet Grind Radio! said:
I'm probably the only one, but I kinda don't want Coco to move to Fox. Only because Fox has a tendency to cancel shows more often than other networks. I do so hope he can pull it off though.
Click to expand...

After getting burned so bad by NBC I can only expect Conan to follow Letterman's example and engineer a contract where he's his own boss. And hopefully the boss of their entire late night lineup.
 
P

Pristine_Condition

Member
Rentahamster said:
Interesting idea, I'd watch it.

The only memorable thing I remember about the local news was when Triumph came down to make fun of the American Idol auditions and then went on the local NBC affiliate news broadcast.

Hilarious.
Click to expand...

Some notable "Conan on Tour" moments for me:

Early on in Conan's career in late night, after he replaced Letterman, the Houston affiliate hated Conan, and buried his show waaaaaay later than it aired everywhere else. It came on at like 2:40 AM in Houston. So Conan went to Houston and filmed some hilarious bits about what was going on in Houston while his show was on the air, which was pretty much nothing, because it was so late at night. He ended up at the downtown Greyhound Bus station, seeing if he could get anyone to watch his show on those crappy coin operated TVs. He met some very scary people at the Greyhound station at 2:40 in the morning.

The Toronto shows were pretty awesome. Pretty much all Canadian guests. SCTV guys, ect.

The Chicago shows were great.

The Finland show was pure genius.

If Conan was motivated enough to take the show on the road, he would do awesome, and it would create a lot of buzz wherever he went.
 
N

numble

Member
Personifried said:
After getting burned so bad by NBC I can only expect Conan to follow Letterman's example and engineer a contract where he's his own boss. And hopefully the boss of their entire late night lineup.
Click to expand...
They'll still have the right to cancel though--Chevy Chase owned his own show, for example. And CBS can cancel Dave when they want to, but he's never done too poorly.
 
C

Costanza

Banned
Pristine_Condition said:
Some notable "Conan on Tour" moments for me:

Early on in Conan's career in late night, after he replaced Letterman, the Houston affiliate hated Conan, and buried his show waaaaaay later than it aired everywhere else. It came on at like 2:40 AM in Houston. So Conan went to Houston and filmed some hilarious bits about what was going on in Houston while his show was on the air, which was pretty much nothing, because it was so late at night. He ended up at the downtown Greyhound Bus station, seeing if he could get anyone to watch his show on those crappy coin operated TVs. He met some very scary people at the Greyhound station at 2:40 in the morning.
Click to expand...
Is this on youtube? Sounds awesome.
 
V

Vyer

Member
SoulPlaya said:
Anyone think the hyperbole in this thread is going a bit too far? I understand that we all have enjoyed having Conan on our TVs, but I don't know if we should be feeling that bad for the guy. The funny thing is that I think Conan would agree with me. He's getting $30 mil, which will hold him down just fine until he gets another deal, which shouldn't take TOO long.

I guess I'm just trying to get people to relax. It's a TV show, nothing more, and he'll be back soon (hopefully).
Click to expand...

I've always got the impression - at least among comedians and those involved in Late Night tv when you listen to various interviews, podcasts, etc. - that the Tonight Show is pretty much the holy grail. It is what a lot of them (at least used to) aspire to.

I would think that Conan spending all those years in late night, not taking other offers, etc., just kind of shows what getting TTS must have meant for him. I don't doubt he meant it when he made comments about 'he used to dream about hosting' it.

So, yeah, most of us are on the outside looking in, but I don't think it's hard for folks to find an analogy that could at least give a hint of what that might feel like to have something you consider your ultimate goal taken away from you. So I think everyone can relate.
 
N

NomarTyme

Member
Pristine_Condition said:
You know what I think would be a really smart idea? If he can get started soon, Conan should take his show on the road while his permanent set is being built. Take the show to cities and college campuses around the country, where Conan is truly loved. It would also be a good way to build support with all the local affiliates in the markets which Conan visits, dropping in on their local news broadcasts and raising hell, filming bits of him touring the cities/campuses with the mayor, a local celebrity, or even just fans, ect. The few road shows Conan has done in the past have been tremendous.

Of course Conan and his crew would have to be extremely motivated to take on such an undertaking, but it would be worth it. It wouldn't be easy. If Conan really wants to stick the dagger in though, and really crush NBC and become the most talked-about guy in late night, that's one way he could do it.
Click to expand...
Work for Conan dude.
 
H

Hazmat

Member
numble said:
I think he traveled a couple of times because they still didn't put him in the 12:35 slot for awhile (not sure though).

Google video search shows several different clips:

http://video.google.com/videosearch...on&esrch=FT1&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wv#
Click to expand...

Conan in Houston was awesome. I grew up in Houston and had never seen Conan because he was on crazy late until at least the early 90's. My brother taped this segment and brought it for me when he was off at college. It was the first I ever saw of Conan and I've been a fan ever since.
 
V

Vyer

Member
I remember the Houston visit skit. So awesome. Wait till you meet the bus stop dude.

Also, the old time baseball thing has always been one of my favorite Conan skits.
 
S

snesfreak

Banned
Pristine_Condition said:
Early on in Conan's career in late night, after he replaced Letterman, the Houston affiliate hated Conan, and buried his show waaaaaay later than it aired everywhere else. It came on at like 2:40 AM in Houston. So Conan went to Houston and filmed some hilarious bits about what was going on in Houston while his show was on the air, which was pretty much nothing, because it was so late at night. He ended up at the downtown Greyhound Bus station, seeing if he could get anyone to watch his show on those crappy coin operated TVs. He met some very scary people at the Greyhound station at 2:40 in the morning.
Click to expand...
:lol :lol :lol
I remember watching that when I was in high school. I'd stay up to watch Conan every night, and sleep through most of my classes the next day.
 
A

AlternativeUlster

Absolutely pathetic part deux
Pristine_Condition said:
You know what I think would be a really smart idea? If he can get started soon, Conan should take his show on the road while his permanent set is being built. Take the show to cities and college campuses around the country, where Conan is truly loved. It would also be a good way to build support with all the local affiliates in the markets which Conan visits, dropping in on their local news broadcasts and raising hell, filming bits of him touring the cities/campuses with the mayor, a local celebrity, or even just fans, ect. The few road shows Conan has done in the past have been tremendous.

Of course Conan and his crew would have to be extremely motivated to take on such an undertaking, but it would be worth it. It wouldn't be easy. If Conan really wants to stick the dagger in though, and really crush NBC and become the most talked-about guy in late night, that's one way he could do it.
Click to expand...

Good call man.
 
R

Rocket Punch

Member
Sadly, the NBC-bashing on Conan's part will soon be over!

Sources say NBC will be including a "liquidated damages clause" in his contract that'll forbid the funny man from trashing the Peacock after he parts with NBC!

The agreement allegedly states that Coco will have to pay a "predetermined amount of money" if he pokes fun at the network.

Perez

Boooo!! NBC sore losers total...
 
A

AlternativeUlster

Absolutely pathetic part deux
Rocket Punch said:
Sadly, the NBC-bashing on Conan's part will soon be over!

Sources say NBC will be including a "liquidated damages clause" in his contract that'll forbid the funny man from trashing the Peacock after he parts with NBC!

The agreement allegedly states that Coco will have to pay a "predetermined amount of money" if he pokes fun at the network.

Perez

Boooo!! NBC sore losers total...
Click to expand...

Old.
 
P

Particle Physicist

between a quark and a baryon
Rocket Punch said:
Sadly, the NBC-bashing on Conan's part will soon be over!

Sources say NBC will be including a "liquidated damages clause" in his contract that'll forbid the funny man from trashing the Peacock after he parts with NBC!

The agreement allegedly states that Coco will have to pay a "predetermined amount of money" if he pokes fun at the network.

Perez

Boooo!! NBC sore losers total...
Click to expand...


This sounds word for word like the TMZ article which was posted, i think on friday. That article also stated that talks were finalized, but they weren't finalized till today, possibly tomorrow? it does seem like a likely thing for them to ask.

so who knows.
 
J

Jet Grind Radio!

Banned
Rocket Punch said:
Sadly, the NBC-bashing on Conan's part will soon be over!

Sources say NBC will be including a "liquidated damages clause" in his contract that'll forbid the funny man from trashing the Peacock after he parts with NBC!

The agreement allegedly states that Coco will have to pay a "predetermined amount of money" if he pokes fun at the network.

Perez

Boooo!! NBC sore losers total...
Click to expand...
I just hope that means he can rip them a new one while he still works there. :lol
 
L

Loxley

Member
Rocket Punch said:
Sadly, the NBC-bashing on Conan's part will soon be over!

Sources say NBC will be including a "liquidated damages clause" in his contract that'll forbid the funny man from trashing the Peacock after he parts with NBC!

The agreement allegedly states that Coco will have to pay a "predetermined amount of money" if he pokes fun at the network.

Perez

Boooo!! NBC sore losers total...
Click to expand...

Well, that's pretty much where NBC has to start if they're going to try and rebuild their completely tarnished reputation caused by a time-slot change that ballooned into one of the biggest PR disasters in American TV history.

Besides, I don't know if I'd want Conan to bash NBC day-one of his new gig. I'd prefer that he show he's the bigger man in this debacle by not even mentioning them, to show that he's moved on from the network that decided it didn't give two shits about him. Leave the bashing to the other late-night hosts.

Good lord, NBC has become the Voldemort of TV, bravo.
 
J

JzeroT1437

Member
I don't think people are going to forget this too quickly. Conan won't have to poke fun at NBC.

Nobody forgot what happened with Leno/Letterman and there's a whole generation of people who grew up watching Conan who won't forget what happened with Leno/Conan.
 
B

Blueblur1

Member
Pristine_Condition said:
Some notable "Conan on Tour" moments for me:

Early on in Conan's career in late night, after he replaced Letterman, the Houston affiliate hated Conan, and buried his show waaaaaay later than it aired everywhere else. It came on at like 2:40 AM in Houston. So Conan went to Houston and filmed some hilarious bits about what was going on in Houston while his show was on the air, which was pretty much nothing, because it was so late at night. He ended up at the downtown Greyhound Bus station, seeing if he could get anyone to watch his show on those crappy coin operated TVs. He met some very scary people at the Greyhound station at 2:40 in the morning.
Click to expand...
OH SHIT. I remember that episode! I was like 12. It was great. :lol

Edit: I should have refreshed the page.
 
N

numble

Member
Fun article from the 90s when NBC was on the verge of dropping Jay in favor of Letterman:
http://www.nytimes.com/1992/12/23/arts/jay-leno-criticizes-nbc-on-tonight-cliffhanger.html

"Am I crazy?" Mr. Leno said in a telephone interview. "The ratings are going up, the advertisers are happy and so are the affiliates." And yet Mr. Leno said he had not received any assurances from NBC executives in New York that he would not be dropped in favor of Mr. Letterman by Jan. 15. That is the deadline NBC is facing to match a CBS offer to give Mr. Letterman about $16 million to star in a nightly talk show at 11:30, the same time as the "Tonight" show.

"I am disappointed," Mr. Leno said. "I feel like a guy who has bought a car from somebody, painted it, fixed it up and made it look nice and then the guy comes back and says he promised to sell the car to his brother-in-law." Go Elsewhere? 'Of Course'

Mr. Leno said he would "obviously leave NBC immediately" if the network decided to give the "Tonight" show to Mr. Letterman. He said he would absolutely refuse to do a show in the 12:30 A.M. spot now occupied by Mr. Letterman's show, "Late Night," and would indeed consider creating the same problem for NBC that Mr. Letterman's proposed deal with CBS caused.
Click to expand...
 
M

mattx5

Member
mattx5 said:
http://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2010/01/late-night-.html

The Late Night Distemper of Our Times

HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF: A brilliantly researched and captivating article detailing the progress of The Tonight Show under Steve Allen, how affiliates wanted to drop a retooled Tonight Show much like Jay's retooled primetime program, Jack Paar's televised quitting of The Tonight Show, how Johnny Carson getting the job was almost sabotaged in a Leno-like fashion, and how Jerry Lewis' own 2-hour late night show bombed.

THIS IS A MUST READ

Audio of Jack Paar condemning NBC execs and quitting The Tonight Show: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45TLOCFbPsQ
Click to expand...

mattiewheels said:
That's incredible. Pure and sincere, I wonder if well get a final show from conan that actually gets serious.
Click to expand...

TV moments like that are few and far between these days. I'd really love to see Conan go out with a seminal moment like that.
 
N

Ninja Scooter

Member
i don't think you would have seen much NBC bashing once this whole thing was over and he was back on another network anyway. Its not really his style.
 
C

Codeblue

Member
So has there been one Tonight Show host that has gone out without NBC executives completely screwing something up. Jeez, you'd think after all those hosts, they'd have learned to handle these transitions with a semblance of grace instead of making it a massive PR disaster.

I totally respect Paar for standing his ground, Carson for leaving with grace and leaving for good, and O'Brien for allowing The Tonight Show to keep what little dignity NBC has left it with. And also all three of those guys were actually funny.
 
T

Tobor

Member
In case anyone hasn't gotten enough of late night shenanigans, the first three seasons of The Larry Sanders Show is up on Hulu.
 
S

Schlep

Member
Loxley said:
Besides, I don't know if I'd want Conan to bash NBC day-one of his new gig. I'd prefer that he show he's the bigger man in this debacle by not even mentioning them, to show that he's moved on from the network that decided it didn't give two shits about him. Leave the bashing to the other late-night hosts.
Click to expand...
His first joke should be along the lines of, "It's so nice to be here on FOX, a network that people actually watch." And then he should never mention it again.
 
A

AstroLad

Hail to the KING baby
I love the really old Conans, you never see those. I always wondered why when Conan, Leno, Letterman were on break why they always showed something from last week instead of the old episodes. Way more interesting.
 
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