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

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Holy shit, did anyone else watch Ferguson tonight? It's on right now on the west coast.

He did the show without an audience. He talked about how it wasn't a new idea, and mentioned other talk show hosts that have done this....

But hearing him do his opening without random bursts of audience-machine laughter was ....amazing? Different? It was quite the experience. I wish he would have kept it going with emails and such.

I watch the show a lot, so my mind at first was even adding in the laughter....crazy.

Carson daly is probably angry, he dropped his audience last year


Also, I will be starting a new late night thread so we can talk about all the shows, any objections?
 
jamesinclair said:
Holy shit, did anyone else watch Ferguson tonight? It's on right now on the west coast.

He did the show without an audience. He talked about how it wasn't a new idea, and mentioned other talk show hosts that have done this....

But hearing him do his opening without random bursts of audience-machine laughter was ....amazing? Different? It was quite the experience. I wish he would have kept it going with emails and such.

I watch the show a lot, so my mind at first was even adding in the laughter....crazy.

Carson daly is probably angry, he dropped his audience last year


Also, I will be starting a new late night thread so we can talk about all the shows, any objections?
Click to expand...
got a clip?

edit:
i haven't posted in this thread for weeks and i got more posts than you (26 compared to 19). i'd let the people with like 150-500 decide. someone may be putting effort into a large OP.
 
DeathNote said:
got a clip?

edit:
i haven't posted in this thread for weeks and i got more posts than you (26 compared to 19). i'd let the people with like 150-500 decide. someone may be putting effort into a large OP.
Click to expand...

Itll be up on youtube tomorrow probably.


The problem with this thread is that it's titled, and has been mostly about conan/leno.

I want a thread where we can discuss everyone....Ferguson, Fallon, Kimmel, Sykes, Daly, Lopez, Cobert etc etc and have a good OP to foster that discussion.

I'm thinking of putting effort into a large OP, because for as long as I have been on GAF, nobody has.
 
jamesinclair said:
Itll be up on youtube tomorrow probably.


The problem with this thread is that it's titled, and has been mostly about conan/leno.

I want a thread where we can discuss everyone....Ferguson, Fallon, Kimmel, Sykes, Daly, Lopez, Cobert etc etc and have a good OP to foster that discussion.

I'm thinking of putting effort into a large OP, because for as long as I have been on GAF, nobody has.
Click to expand...
Is there single threads? IIRC I see a Jimmy Fallon one.

All I have to say is I'd discuss it with:
DeathbyVolcano 526
SpeedingUptoStop 211
numble 207
Tobor 192
Blader5489 186
Sanjuro Tsubaki 163
Brinbe 160
snesfreak 160
gdt5016 157
Trurl 155
BenjaminBirdie 130
Number 2 125
Raxus 119
Zeliard 114
Costanza 107
Raistlin 103
goldenticket 101
AlternativeUlster 101
Click to expand...

The reason being is because after talking so much in this thread they'd have the best input on late night thread format. Mega vs single + how often there's a new one.

I don't have any other input because I don't frequent talk show threads.
 
jamesinclair said:
Holy shit, did anyone else watch Ferguson tonight? It's on right now on the west coast.

He did the show without an audience. He talked about how it wasn't a new idea, and mentioned other talk show hosts that have done this....

But hearing him do his opening without random bursts of audience-machine laughter was ....amazing? Different? It was quite the experience. I wish he would have kept it going with emails and such.

I watch the show a lot, so my mind at first was even adding in the laughter....crazy.

Carson daly is probably angry, he dropped his audience last year


Also, I will be starting a new late night thread so we can talk about all the shows, any objections?
Click to expand...

Wow. I have Ferguson set to record on my pvr, but don't watch him very often. Because of your post I'm watching this right now and it's pretty funky. This is a bit of a special moment in late night for sure.
 
DeathNote said:
Is there single threads? IIRC I see a Jimmy Fallon one.

All I have to say is I'd discuss it with:


The reason being is because after talking so much in this thread they'd have the best input on late night thread format. Mega vs single + how often there's a new one.

I don't have any other input because I don't frequent talk show threads.
Click to expand...

But these people were here to discuss conan, not late night tv in general.

There's been some scattered fallon and ferguson talk in here, but it gets covered by "leno sucks"
 
jamesinclair said:
Holy shit, did anyone else watch Ferguson tonight? It's on right now on the west coast.

He did the show without an audience. He talked about how it wasn't a new idea, and mentioned other talk show hosts that have done this....

But hearing him do his opening without random bursts of audience-machine laughter was ....amazing? Different? It was quite the experience. I wish he would have kept it going with emails and such.

I watch the show a lot, so my mind at first was even adding in the laughter....crazy.

Carson daly is probably angry, he dropped his audience last year


Also, I will be starting a new late night thread so we can talk about all the shows, any objections?
Click to expand...
That was Stephen Fry, yes? Fry mentioned it on his Twitter how well it went. One of the smartest, most interesting people on the planet being interviewed by the most fascinating interviewer on the planet. Yes plz.
 
The full interview Ferguson did with Stephen Fry is now up. It's not 'funny', but it's a joy to watch. Stephen Fry is a wonderful man, and so is Craig Ferguson, and combined they're very interesting to listen to.

Intro: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D31K0PSD7uE
The interview (4 parts): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOHdhOTzI1o
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRj-jRwCneo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cl6viHZzxM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vY8aYKSYink
Short shot of the not-present audience: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzCnHRSeYwg
Outro: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uF2rEOKFHrY
 
maharg said:
Wow. I have Ferguson set to record on my pvr, but don't watch him very often. Because of your post I'm watching this right now and it's pretty funky. This is a bit of a special moment in late night for sure.
Click to expand...

Do yourself a favor and set Ferguson to record every night (Mon-Fri). He's by the far the funniest in late night.

As for a new thread, yes plz.
 
Well, looks like coco isn't planning on moving back to the center of the universe. Selling his NYC duplex so he appears to be staying out in the sticks.
 
mj1108 said:
Do yourself a favor and set Ferguson to record every night (Mon-Fri). He's by the far the funniest in late night.
Click to expand...

Um. I said I have him set to record. I wouldn't have been able to watch him if I didn't. :P
 
From HuffPo: Who's the King of Late Nite? Craig Ferguson.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-giltz/whos-the-king-of-late-nit_b_474420.html

I know GAF loves bolded quotes for selective reading but do yourself a favor and read the whole damn thing. It's worth it.

Last night (Tuesday/Wednesday from 12:30 am to 1:30 am), Craig Ferguson delivered another brilliant night of TV by simply doing away with the audience and talking for one hour to one guest. Of course, he loaded the deck by making that guest the endlessly witty, clever, insightful, thoughtful talk show-guest-of-your-dreams Stephen Fry. But still, it was an arresting, wonderful hour akin to the glory days of Dick Cavett when he would just spend a day or two or an entire week talking to someone that fascinated him (and therefore us).

Craig Ferguson and Stephen Fry roamed over the landscape: their friendship, the remarkable success of pal Hugh Laurie, drug addiction, Fry's bi-polar disorder (is disorder rude? bi-polar-ishness?), Twitter as it links to poetry and telegrams and the missives of our Founding Fathers, as well as the rather remarkable suggestion that Fry (a genuinely beloved figure in the UK) might consider becoming a US citizen. If you missed it, do watch it online. The show reminded me how much I enjoy Ferguson, how refreshing he is and of an idea I've had but yet to execute.

For months now I've planned to spend a week and watch every minute of every major late night talk show and then declare a winner. Who is the king of late night, I wanted to know. Of course, I've watched everyone in bits and pieces and I'll tape any show with a guest I'm especially keen on, particularly musical guests. So let's face it: I already knew who I believed was the king of late night.

I hoped to be -- and was open to being -- surprised or at least discover something new about some of the hosts. But would my ranking change much? I doubt it; not after years (sometimes decades) of watching these people work. My plan was foiled by all the late night folderol, which threw everything into turmoil. But the result of years of watching and a certain keen anticipation for my proposed task -- which led me to pay closer attention even to the likes of Jimmy Kimmel -- is this:

DAVID LETTERMAN -- is in a class of his own. He's already ascended to the pantheon, alongside Johnny Carson, Steve Allen, Jack Paar, Dick Cavett and just a few others. He's not coasting by any means. But his legacy is assured, so he doesn't get ranked alongside the others.

JAY LENO -- gets no respect from critics like me and certainly his monologue doesn't deserve it. But he can squeeze out the odd strange fact from a guest a la Larry King just by his own disingenuousness.

JIMMY KIMMEL -- bad standup, bad with guests unless that guest is his ex, the hilarious Sarah Silverman.

JIMMY FALLON -- makes Jimmy Kimmel look good. He's the Merv Griffin of late night, with every guest a dear dear friend and his most penetrating comment being "that's hilarious" or "that's great" followed by a giggle. He's so nervous and awkward in interviews it's painful to watch, with Fallon invariably gushing or talking over the guest or coming up with some inane comment. Perfectly likable guy in other contexts but a genuine flop as an interviewer of any sort, which is indeed a major job of the talk show host. You feel bad for him.

CONAN O'BRIEN -- he was just starting to get his rhythm in the earlier time slot. I pooh-poohed the idea that a guy who'd been doing a talk show for more than a decade could need time to adjust but 11:30 is indeed a whole new ballgame. Happily, Andy Richter had finally moved to the couch where he belonged. But even after all these years, Conan remains a very, very bad interviewer unless the guest is someone he deeply cares about or is a woman he's deeply attracted to. He can be funny on his feet of course. But Conan is glued desperately to his note cards and regularly makes the most awkward transitions imaginable, ruining any possibility of believing for a moment that he and his guest are actually just talking rather than hitting on pre-arranged talking points. The comedy bits save him, as does Richter's invaluable presence.

Which brings me to...

CRAIG FERGUSON -- the new king of late night. (With Letterman as the philosopher-king some miles above him and already sainted/knighted/whatever one does with great late night talk show hosts). He's been charming the pants off us for some 1000 shows now and doing it effortlessly. I wondered if his signature tossing away of his note cards when a guest sits down is a pointed slam at Conan but he doesn't seem a nasty person. It's just his way of ensuring that they talk and he stays focused on the conversation rather than some scribbled idea for a question. He has the gift of gab of course. Craig proved last night he doesn't need an audience. But he proves every night that he barely needs guests. Ferguson can chat away and be thoroughly engaging for more than half an hour before he brings out a guest. Then if he gets into a good rhythm with someone, he regularly just keeps talking with them and bumps the other guest and the musical act (if any). I do feel sorry for the second guest or the musical act (as well as the booker) because they are shunted aside so very often. But they're probably enjoying themselves too much in the green room to care. He can be silly, serious, insightful, frivolous and just about any other appealing adjective you can imagine. His most important gift is perhaps the ability to make us believe he's just having fun, just trying to please himself and do what amuses him. And that we're just clever enough to be in on the fun and enjoy it too. The puppets, the musical lip-syncing numbers that sometimes open the show, the end of show moment where he rambles about what we've learned on the show that night, all of it is loose and silly enough to create an air of potential anarchy when of course he works like the devil to prepare so he can relax during the taping and let things happen. Like Letterman, he enjoys himself and is very funny. Like Cavett, he can speak intelligently about almost anything. Like Paar, he can dive into a serious monologue and do genuine soul-searching. Like Johnny, he allows his guests to shine; nothing gives him more pleasure than an entertaining guest. He is, indeed, the new king of late night.
Click to expand...
 
I agree 100% with that entire article. Ferguson is fucking incredible... just look at the shows he's done with his sister as the guest, his mum and the eulogy of his father. All amazing pieces of television.
 
Thomper said:
The full interview Ferguson did with Stephen Fry is now up. It's not 'funny', but it's a joy to watch. Stephen Fry is a wonderful man, and so is Craig Ferguson, and combined they're very interesting to listen to.

Intro: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D31K0PSD7uE
The interview (4 parts): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOHdhOTzI1o
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRj-jRwCneo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cl6viHZzxM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vY8aYKSYink
Short shot of the not-present audience: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzCnHRSeYwg
Outro: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uF2rEOKFHrY
Click to expand...

Thanks for posting this, it is truly fascinating.
 
Thomper said:
The full interview Ferguson did with Stephen Fry is now up. It's not 'funny', but it's a joy to watch. Stephen Fry is a wonderful man, and so is Craig Ferguson, and combined they're very interesting to listen to.

Intro: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D31K0PSD7uE
The interview (4 parts): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOHdhOTzI1o
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRj-jRwCneo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cl6viHZzxM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vY8aYKSYink
Short shot of the not-present audience: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzCnHRSeYwg
Outro: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uF2rEOKFHrY
Click to expand...


That was great. Loved every moment

Thanks a lot for the links :D
 
he was just starting to get his rhythm in the earlier time slot. I pooh-poohed the idea that a guy who'd been doing a talk show for more than a decade could need time to adjust but 11:30 is indeed a whole new ballgame. Happily, Andy Richter had finally moved to the couch where he belonged. But even after all these years, Conan remains a very, very bad interviewer unless the guest is someone he deeply cares about or is a woman he's deeply attracted to. He can be funny on his feet of course. But Conan is glued desperately to his note cards and regularly makes the most awkward transitions imaginable, ruining any possibility of believing for a moment that he and his guest are actually just talking rather than hitting on pre-arranged talking points. The comedy bits save him, as does Richter's invaluable presence.
Click to expand...

I thought you said it was a good article?

opinions lol
 
Conan might not be a good interviewer in the traditional sense, but his interviews are frequently wildly entertaining. You probably won't actually learn anything about the guest, but you'll laugh your ass off.
 
Thomper said:
The full interview Ferguson did with Stephen Fry is now up. It's not 'funny', but it's a joy to watch. Stephen Fry is a wonderful man, and so is Craig Ferguson, and combined they're very interesting to listen to.

Intro: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D31K0PSD7uE
The interview (4 parts): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOHdhOTzI1o
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRj-jRwCneo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cl6viHZzxM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vY8aYKSYink
Short shot of the not-present audience: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzCnHRSeYwg
Outro: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uF2rEOKFHrY
Click to expand...
Wait, so he didn't do a monologue? Or is it just not up?
 
maharg said:
If those are broken down how I think they are, the intro is the monologue.
Click to expand...
Wow, that's strange. He cut it down so much. I always thought that his monologues (including the emails) were the best part of his show. I'm not sure I like the whole "sit down with someone (in this case someone who doesn't particularly interest me) for 45 minutes and talk" formula. I hope he changes it back or at least does the monologue in the future because that's where he really excels.
 
I'm watching through the interview with Stephen Fry now. He's such a smart, witty, genuine, all round delightful man, a great choice for Craig's experiment.

I like this no-audience idea as a special treat. I'd love to see, for example, Jon Stewart try the same thing for an interview.
 
EzLink said:
I thought you said it was a good article?

opinions lol
Click to expand...

The article is right. Conan has always been bad at doing interviews. He just uses the interviewee as a prop and spends most of the time doing his own schtick. Personally, I would prefer it if his next show didn't have any interview segments and just focused on the sketches.
 
tokkun said:
The article is right. Conan has always been bad at doing interviews. He just uses the interviewee as a prop and spends most of the time doing his own schtick. Personally, I would prefer it if his next show didn't have any interview segments and just focused on the sketches.
Click to expand...

Half the humor of his show comes from his interviews. They're not anywhere near introspective, but they're fucking funny.

You want deep interviews, watch Letterman.
 
backflip10019 said:
Wow, that's strange. He cut it down so much. I always thought that his monologues (including the emails) were the best part of his show. I'm not sure I like the whole "sit down with someone (in this case someone who doesn't particularly interest me) for 45 minutes and talk" formula. I hope he changes it back or at least does the monologue in the future because that's where he really excels.
Click to expand...

Was just a one time thing. I don't think he'd switch to doing it all the time. It'd be sweet if it became a regular thing, though, imo. Monthly maybe, or even weekly if he could get enough high caliber guests.
 
That was right on, with how I've felt. Craig has definitely been the best for a while. Despite his weak sketches (which are just bad) he often has a great monologue and he's an engaging interviewer, regardless of who he's talking to. Conan, on the Tonight Show anyway, never seemed like a confident interview (unless it was someone he was comfortable with), especially compared to how he was on Late Night. But in a contrast to Craig, Conan's sketches/out on the town bits, are the strength of his show and more than make of up for the so-so interviews.
 
Oh yeah, you never really learn anything from his interviews. But I don't watch Conan for celebrities. I don't give a shit most of the time unless it is for a movie I'm really excited for, but that only happens a few times a year. Any other time it's just fun to watch him be funny

EDIT: :lol @ Conan's twitter

Today I interviewed a squirrel in my backyard and then threw to commercial. Somebody help me.
Click to expand...
 
DeathbyVolcano said:
Not fake?
Click to expand...
Looks like it could be legit, according to this.

Conan O'Brien Joins Twitter? New Account EXPLODES With Followers

First Posted: 02-24-10 06:16 PM | Updated: 02-24-10 06:30 PM

A Conan O'Brien Twitter account has surfaced this evening under the name @ConanOBrien and it is growing rapidly.

So did Conan O'Brien just join Twitter?

His first tweet, posted at approximately 6 p.m. Feb. 24, 2010, said: "Today I interviewed a squirrel in my backyard and then threw to commercial. Somebody help me."

Within 10 minutes of his first tweet, he had a few thousand followers. And in his first half hour, he was up to 15,000 followers.

How did word of his account spread so quickly?

A Twitter account apparently belonging to former Tonight Show writer Aaron Blaeyert tweeted, "Hey everybody! I'd like to introduce you all to @conanobrien. Yes! Conan is now on Twitter. ;)"

Blaeyert's Twitter account does not have a "verified by Twitter" stamp and neither does the new Conan O'Brien Twitter account at the moment. But Blaeyert had several thousands of followers before his Conan tweet and a Tumblr apparently belonging to him (that has posted behind-the-scenes photos from The Tonight Show) is linked to the Twitter account.

So it could very well be legit. We'll wait to see what Twitter says. If it's not him, the account is likely to be suspended quickly.
Click to expand...
 
DeathbyVolcano said:
Half the humor of his show comes from his interviews. They're not anywhere near introspective, but they're fucking funny.

You want deep interviews, watch Letterman.
Click to expand...

If you want deep interviews dont watch talkshows-period.
That is unless its Craig Ferguson which actually has something to say and is far more intelligent than any of the others. He doesnt need props and gimmicks to distract the audience.
 
Kaeru said:
If you want deep interviews dont watch talkshows-period.
That is unless its Craig Ferguson which actually has something to say and is far more intelligent than any of the others. He doesnt need props and gimmicks to distract the audience.
Click to expand...

You can't compare Ferguson to anyone, really–his show is so unlike the late night formula. It's unfair to stack him next to the others and visa versa.
 
Conan just hit 40k in followers....just 9 minutes after mentioning 36k.

DeathbyVolcano said:
You can't compare Ferguson to anyone, really–his show is so unlike the late night formula. It's unfair to stack him next to the others and visa versa.
Click to expand...

This.
 
I'm guessing that this will be the fastest-growth Twitter account so far. With the tech-savvyness of his fans combined with the support they've shown him, it can't not be.
 
It's "Verified", too. I'm not sure exactly what that means, but I assume they mean that there's no way it can be fake.

I wonder if he had any contractual shenanigans going on with bagging NBC on social network sites like Twitter?

Edit: He's now getting around 1,000 new followers every 20 seconds or so. Wow.
 
Did any of you catch one of Conan's writers doing stand up on Bonnie Hunt show or something like that? He mentioned he believe Conan might do a on the road show. He was darn funny too hah. Bald head, I thought he was trying to parody Dr. Phil at first.
 
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