Is there personal bad blood between Conan and Jay Leno?

[MPB in Salt Lake]

I am not too savvy about the fine points about all the recent news, but in watching Conan's monolouge last night, he was ripping in to NBC executives, but not into Jay Leno himself.

Jimmy Kimmel, on the other hand, performed his monolouge last night dressed as Leno (complete with wig and fake chin) and made a dozen jokes about Leno being an egotistical asshole, bent on singlehandedly hosting every single talk show on the air. (Kimmel made it crystal clear that he feels that Jay Leno is fucking over Conan O'Brian)
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I have never found Jay Leno funny, but I always bought into his being a decent guy, doing charity benefit shows, donating a big chunk of his fortune to various causes, having a successful longterm marriage etc.

I used to find Conan the best late night host in the business, but the last few years (and most certainly after starting the "Tonight Show") his bits have gotten too repetitive, increasingly stale and generally less funny. That said, I have always also had him pegged as a good guy in real life, one who knows how lucky he was, and was grateful for his opportunities. (his emotional farewell episode of "Late Night With Conan O'Brian" from New York was actually really touching)

My question is if Conan is personally angry at Jay Leno for all of this clusterf*ck, or is it something he solely blames the NBC network for?

I had the feeling that Conan and Jay truly liked each other and had a lot of respect for one another.

Is that all now down the drain?

Does Conan O'Brian hate Jay Leno?

[RealityChuck]

In answer, there's this news (http://www.popeater.com/2010/01/13/jay-leno-leaving-nbc/?pimped): Leno is thinking of leaving NBC because of the way they treated Conan and he doesn't like the fact that it makes him look like the bad guy.

I think both Jay and Conan blame it all on NBC.

[MPB in Salt Lake]

That is quite interesting, RealityChuck---Thank you!!!

I think Conan is not personally blaming Leno, judging by his monolouge last night, but of course I dont know what is going on in anyone's head.

NBC is certainly making a shitaree out of this whole business, and as I said, while I dont find either Leno or Conan very entertaining these days, I think both are probably pretty decent people in their personal lives, who deserve (especially Conan, who, as has been pointed out, turned down other, better offers and stayed loyal to NBC) better than the network has behaved.

ETA
I think Leno should walk, or many in the public will blame him (rightly or wrongly) personally for much of this BS.

[Markxxx]

I think it would be similar to anyone, anywhere, at any job, where one person gets passed up for a promtion to another worker. You don't hate the other guy, but you can't help but wonder if he weren't around would you have gotten it?

[RealityChuck]

The whole mess was due to the fact that, in order to keep Conan several years ago, they promised him Tonight. They probably thought that by then Jay would be tired of doing it and willing to step down.

But when the time came, Leno was still doing well in the ratings, and didn't want to step down.

Now NBC had to find a way to get Conan on Tonight. They scrambled and decided that the five-nights-a-week gig would be good for Leno. In a sense, they were right -- they were making money on the show even with poor ratings since production costs were so low. But the low ratings pissed off the affiliates, who wanted something stronger to lead into their newscasts.

Now NBC has the worst possible situation: scrambling to find programming to fill the 10:00 slot, and possibly losing both Leno and Conan and thus having no one to host Tonight.

I suppose you could blame Leno a bit for not wanting to step down, but he loved doing the show (and NBC knew he loved doing the show), so that's no surprise, even when they made their promises to Conan.

But Leno shouldn't be blamed for being put back into the 11:30 slot and displacing Conan -- that was entirely a network decision.

NBC tried to have their cake and eat it. And right now, they have a moldy cake covered with ants.

[joebuck20]

Tonight Conan had a joke where he said "Kids you can do anything you want, so long as Jay Leno doesn't want it."
Take that for what it's worth.

[Little Nemo]

Okay, it took me a second to realize the thread title was talking about Conan O'Brien.

I was picturing Jay Leno in a death match with a giant barbarian.

"Hither came Conan, the Cimmerian, black-haired, sullen-eyed, sword in hand, a thief, a reaver, a slayer, with gigantic melancholies and gigantic mirth, to sit upon the mock leather couch at NBC and ask his guests about their new projects."

[dropzone]

Conan seems to be one who worships at the altar of the Tonight Show. It has been his goal forever, and I can understand it. There was a time that being on "The Tonight Show," and especially getting invited to sit on the couch after your bit, was as high as a comedian could aspire. Guys like Conan, with astronomical aspirations, are heroes to the rest of us who know we can never get on the show. And today? Conan's email at his new show will be empty. All the better to call attention to oneself!

To save NBC's bacon Jay is being force-fit, though not entirely against his will as he shared Conan's goal, back into the 11:35 slot, of making lots of money. Were I Conan I'd be hard pressed between his contracted money from NBC vs having to work for the next few years. I'd take the former. He's a big name because he'll take the latter.

A half hour is what Jay delivers before his first guest, but eliminates the second half hour and negates any claim that he's anything beyond a funnyman. It was probably unsatisfactory for him, but he'll take the dough. OTOH, the world is sick of comedians who wish they could direct. Or conduct interviews. Jay may be the King of Softballs, but he knows he can throw them and, apparently, NBC is happy with them.

Conan, OTOH, doesn't aim for the jugular when a guest falters, but seems lose focus. He may be Too Nice.

[HelloKitty]

I don't watch Jimmy Kimmel but according to the description in the OP it sounds to me like KIMMEL is the one that hates Jay Leno!

[MPB in Salt Lake]

I don't watch Jimmy Kimmel but according to the description in the OP it sounds to me like KIMMEL is the one that hates Jay Leno!


Apparently from his monolouge last night, Jimmy Kimmel (after basically telling the world that he thinks Jay Leno is an arrogant asshole) claims that he has been invited on Leno's show tomorrow.

I dont think he was joking, (about being invited on Leno's show) but I may have been wooshed..........
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After a little more reading, it seems that there is indeed some bad feelings between Conan and Jay, probably more pronounced on Conan's part, which is pretty understandable from my POV.

[zamboniracer]

I haven't seen Kimmel's show recently (I did see a photo of him dressed up as Leno, which I thought was very funny) but I doubt if he's really mad at Leno. During the writer's strike a couple years ago, didn't they appear as guests on each other's show? I saw Leno on Kimmel's show and thought it was very interesting. Leno let down his hair and told a couple of hilariously funny stories - which I can't recall now - poking fun at himself and about behind the scenes stuff at the Tonight Show.

[Cat Fight]

No cite, but I know people who have worked for both Conan and Jay and by all accounts they are two of the nicest people in the business (at least to other industry people. Not sure what kind of toll those schedules take on their families).

[Markxxx]

OK now Leno and Conan are getting great ratings. Hmmmm

Anyone want to say "publicity stunt" ?

LOL :D

[JKilez]

OK now Leno and Conan are getting great ratings. Hmmmm

Anyone want to say "publicity stunt" ?

LOL :D
Wait--you think they are going to bring back "Tonight Show Classic"!?!?

[cochrane]

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, yes, there is bad blood between Leno and Conan. (http://www.suntimes.com/entertainment/zwecker/1991307,jay-leno-conan-obrien-feud-011410.article) Leno has been dismissive of O'Brien, feeling that Conan has not worked hard enough to deserve the Tonight Show, basically coasting by on his writing stints on SNL and the Simpsons. Conan, for his part, has never been a fan of Leno's humor, and O'Brien really feels that Leno is stabbing him in the back with his willingness to move back to 10:35, with or without taking back the Tonight Shao.

[Marley23]

Conan did say some nice things about Leno on his last episode of Late Night, but he had more to say about David Letterman, for one - that gave me the impression he and Leno weren't particularly close. And if there weren't any hard feelings between them before this started, there almost have to be some by now.

[PunditLisa]

Oh, I'm sure that they see each other as a big threat.

The biggest problem, IMO, is that "The Tonight Show" has had a very long history and a certain vanilla flavor to it that NBC doesn't want to jack around with. Neither O'Brien nor Letterman are well-suited to be host because they don't have the right personality for it.

But neither realizes it.

I mean Wimbledon is a long revered tennis institution. It's la creme de la creme in tennis. Unfortunately, some really talented tennis players will never win there because their game isn't suited for grass. That doesn't make them bad players or uninteresting players or untalented players. Nonetheless some will still live their whole life being disappointed that they didn't win there.

Leno actually did have the right personality. He's nice enough to be accessible to most people and edgy enough to make fun without being offensive. But by the time he got into his groove, NBC had already promised the job to O'Brien, probably with Leno's full knowledge and consent.

Personally, I think they should all three pack up and move to Fox. It would serve NBC right for doing such bone-headed things.

[twickster]

Personally, I think they should all three pack up and move to Fox. It would serve NBC right for doing such bone-headed things.
You do realize that Letterman works for CBS, not NBC?

[HorseloverFat]

>Leno has been dismissive of O'Brien, feeling that Conan has not worked hard enough to deserve the Tonight Show, basically coasting by on his writing stints on SNL and the Simpsons.

Wow, thats crazy. Before the tonight show Leno was little more than a hack standup. Conan has had a talk show for 15 years prior to moving. If anyone hasnt paid his dues, its Leno.

It seems lately the press and celebrities have been mentioning Leno as the problem, when before they have been avoiding it. Im guessing he's not so innocent and will be more than willing to take Conan's slot. I doubt NBC would go public with its decision if he already hasnt agreed to do so.

[Bijou Drains]

Leno was the permanent guest host for Carson for 5 years before taking over full time in 92.

Conan is the oldest guy ever named Tonight show host, and he's the only one who had his own talk show before Tonight.

[ShibbOleth]

feeling that Conan has not worked hard enough to deserve the Tonight Show, basically coasting by on his writing stints on SNL and the Simpsons.

Is there an option where Conan goes back to writing for The Simpsons?

[HorseloverFat]

Big deal, he filled in for Johnny. He essentially had to babysit a well-oiled machine setup by his betters. Even Joan Rivers was able to do that. Conan had to run his own show from scratch, make executive decisions, set the tone of the show, write comedy, perform, etc. Leno was far, far less experienced in television when he took over. He was more known for being the "Cool Ranch Doritos" guy than anything else.

[tumbleddown]

But by the time he got into his groove, NBC had already promised the job to O'Brien, probably with Leno's full knowledge and consent.
Conan was promised the job in 2004. Leno took over The Tonight Show in 1992. Are you saying that it took Leno more than 12 years to get "into his groove"? And this is the guy that the network is (or should be) pinning its late night plan on?

[Bijou Drains]

I don't agree at all, but the article says Leno didn't think Conan was qualified to get the Late night slot in 93, not that he wasn't qualified to get Tonight in 09.

I remember back in 93 there was a lot of surprise when he was picked since Conan was an unknown, he was only a writer before that. I think it was Lorne Michaels that really picked him.

[PunditLisa]

You do realize that Letterman works for CBS, not NBC?

Yes. I suppose it's too much to ask that Letterman screw over CBS in retaliation for NBC screwing him around years earlier.

[bup]

Conan is the oldest guy ever named Tonight show host, and he's the only one who had his own talk show before Tonight.Next month Leno will be the oldest guy ever named Tonight Show host, and he'll have had two talk shows before. (Also, more seriously, Johnny Carson had hosted a variety show before, which I'm pretty sure included a monologue).

[Bijou Drains]

Carson also hosted a game show before he took over Tonight.

[cochrane]

I don't agree at all, but the article says Leno didn't think Conan was qualified to get the Late night slot in 93, not that he wasn't qualified to get Tonight in 09.
Um, the article says

A longtime Leno associate says, ‘‘Jay has always been skeptical of Conan, the Harvard-educated kid from an upper-middle-class background who basically parlayed his writing stints on ‘The Simpsons’ and ‘Saturday Night Live’ into one of the most coveted TV hosting jobs in the world.’’

I read "one of the most coveted TV hosting jobs in the world" to mean the Tonight Show, and not Late Night. And who knows, Leno could have felt that way in 2004 when the original announcement was made that O'Brien would take over "Tonight."

[Dignan]

Throughout this whole debacle I've wondered in the back of my mind how much of a "New Coke" situation was happening. I'm not sure how they could resolve something like that, and the solution is definitely not as easy as just bringing back the original recipe (i.e. Jay, who I've never been a fan of).

I don't think Kimmel likes Leno. He's a Letterman fan, and his Leno impression for his whole show annihilated Jay. I know I don't think Jay is funny, but sometimes it takes something like Kimmel's performance to really illustrate what it is I don't like about Leno (the constant banter with the band, the band punctuating every "joke").

Does anyone else remember when Kimmel's show was getting ready to go on the air? Kimmel said in an interview what his show would be like, and said something along the lines of "It will be like the Tonight Show, but funny."

Bill Simmons (ESPN's Sports Guy) was a writer on Kimmel's show when he started, and has said either in a recent column (which seems unlikely since he hardly writes anymore), or a podcast to one of his friends that no one knows (which is probably where I heard it) that when Kimmel's show started, The Tonight Show people made it clear that if someone pushing a movie/show/project appeared on Kimmel first, then they shouldn't expect to get to be on The Tonight Show.

[kunilou]

Bill Simmons (ESPN's Sports Guy) was a writer on Kimmel's show when he started, and has said either in a recent column (which seems unlikely since he hardly writes anymore), or a podcast to one of his friends that no one knows (which is probably where I heard it) that when Kimmel's show started, The Tonight Show people made it clear that if someone pushing a movie/show/project appeared on Kimmel first, then they shouldn't expect to get to be on The Tonight Show.

I don't know about Kimmel, but that was reportedly one of the dirty tricks Helen Kushnik pulled (http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,311989,00.html)when she was running The Tonight Show.

But Kushnik was fired in 1994 and supposedly Leno and his producer, Debbie Vickers, put an end to it.

[MPB in Salt Lake]

After watching Jay Leno explain his take on the situation at NBC on his show tonight, I think it's pretty apparent that there was never a real friendship between Conan and Jay to begin with, and now I have to imagine that Conan probably feels that Leno is doing what he can to push Conan out the door (which may well actually be the case).

The way Leno talked about Conan ("he's a nice guy, but it's a business driven by ratings") it is clear to me that Leno is not too worried abut losing a deep bond with Conan O"Brian..............

[BMada]

there's a lot of bad blood with Jay Leno, but Conan's hasn't been overt.

Letterman,

Howard Stern

and Rosie O'Donnell.

part 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZ2fZH2XqNw&feature=related
part 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJVH6SzYRlk&feature=related

[Evil Jon]

there's a lot of bad blood with Jay Leno, but Conan's hasn't been overt.

Letterman,

Howard Stern

and Rosie O'Donnell.

part 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZ2fZH2XqNw&feature=related
part 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJVH6SzYRlk&feature=related
Oh those are good.

[joebuck20]

After watching Jay Leno explain his take on the situation at NBC on his show tonight, I think it's pretty apparent that there was never a real friendship between Conan and Jay to begin with, and now I have to imagine that Conan probably feels that Leno is doing what he can to push Conan out the door (which may well actually be the case).

The way Leno talked about Conan ("he's a nice guy, but it's a business driven by ratings") it is clear to me that Leno is not too worried abut losing a deep bond with Conan O"Brian..............

Why would there be? They spent years working from opposite coasts. There's a 13 year age difference. They come from different backgrounds (Conan, TV writing and Jay, stand-up comedy). There's not much reason to believe that they would be very close.

[Alessan]

I'm just waiting for the Law & Order episode.

[Northern Piper]

Wait--you think they are going to bring back "Tonight Show Classic"!?!?

I don't think Johnny and Ed are available. :(

[jayjay]

I don't think Johnny and Ed are available. :(

If they just ran old Carson episodes five nights a week they'd get better ratings than Leno was getting before this whole kerfuffle started. After all, that was when the Tonight Show was actually funny.

[Cat Whisperer]

As long as they let Craig Ferguson keep doing what Craig Ferguson does, I'm happy.

[Eternal]

How couldn't there be bad blood between all these guys? Firstly they're competitors and secondly they're professional funnymen -a group in which arrogance and bitterness is over-represented and is practically a job requirement.

[well he's back]

I've never found Leno or Conan to be very funny. I laugh at Leno's headlines, but they'd be funny if anybody read them. I cringe when he does the schtick where he finds stupid people and asks them simple questions they get wrong to make them look stupider. He's mean. Kimmel's also pretty mean, but sometimes funny.

Love Letterman, but he's past his prime & the adultery scandal just seems to have taken some of the wind out of his sails.

Love, love Craig Ferguson. and Jimmy Fallon is surprisingly good, very creative.