# "Happy F\*\*\*ing New Year" on the Tonight Show? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 1, 2005, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531 "2005-01-01T05:16:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2005, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/1 "2005-01-01T05:16:32Z")
I swear I heard the lead singer of Motley Crue yell “Happy fucking New Year!” just a minute or so ago on the Tonight Show. Did I hear right? ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2005, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/2 "2005-01-01T07:22:56Z")
Apparently you did. My son heard it too. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2005, 9:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/3 "2005-01-01T09:40:45Z")
oh god, here comes the FCC. ---
**Author:** ![soulburnz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@soulburnz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/soulburnz)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2005, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/4 "2005-01-01T12:04:46Z")
Thank Og, someone else heard it ! I was only half ass paying attention when I heard it and thought naahhh… So, No you weren’t hallucinating. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2005, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/5 "2005-01-01T15:36:41Z")
It wasn’t intentional, it was a vocabulary malfunction. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2005, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/6 "2005-01-01T15:47:51Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > oh god, here comes the FCC. And the entire panopoly of the moral values hyenas. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2005, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/7 "2005-01-01T15:50:33Z")
I doubt he would use those words. I am sure that he said, “Have a fun New Year!”. ---
**Author:** ![TeaElle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8491ac/32.png) [@TeaElle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TeaElle)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2005, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/8 "2005-01-01T15:50:50Z")
In the rebroadcast of the show (in the 2:30 a.m. timeslot) the entire comment was dropped from the audio, so it was well-noticed. I understand why the first half of the show, leading up to the ball drop, had to be straight live-to-air, but for goodness sake, why on earth wouldn’t NBC put in a delay thereafter? It’s going to be _that_ aspect of things which gets the FCC on their butts more than anything, I bet. I hope Vince Neil has invested well. ---
**Author:** ![bluecanary](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bluecanary/32/3614_2.png) [@bluecanary](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bluecanary)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2005, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/9 "2005-01-01T17:04:04Z")
Ha ha ha. I assume this was broadcast at, er, New Year, which typically takes place at midnight. Why the f\*\*\* anyone would even bother ringing to complain about swearing at that time in the morning is baffling. ---
**Author:** ![h.sapiens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e0b2c6/32.png) [@h.sapiens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/h.sapiens)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2005, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/10 "2005-01-01T17:40:35Z")
> [@bluecanary](#): > > Ha ha ha. > > I assume this was broadcast at, er, New Year, which typically takes place at midnight. > > Why the f\*\*\* anyone would even bother ringing to complain about swearing at that time in the morning is baffling. Well, only a few very squeamish and righteous types, but they do it so often that the FCC could get thousands of complaints from just a handful of people. Also, that midnight event was probably broadcast at 9:00 pm on the west coast. Not that it should really matter, but the self-appointed morality police don’t see it that way. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2005, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/11 "2005-01-01T17:45:46Z")
Jesus Christ, was that actually Vince Neil? He looks like he ate Whitesnake. ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2005, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/12 "2005-01-01T20:11:14Z")
Zing! ---
**Author:** ![Logicalkitten](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f6c823/32.png) [@Logicalkitten](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Logicalkitten)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2005, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/13 "2005-01-02T02:36:34Z")
Did anyone ever doubt the true classiness of Vince Neil? :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Logicalkitten](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f6c823/32.png) [@Logicalkitten](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Logicalkitten)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2005, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/14 "2005-01-02T02:37:49Z")
Of course, if Mick Mars had _smiled_ I think the world would have stopped revolving. Or something. ---
**Author:** ![mike1dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@mike1dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mike1dog)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2005, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/15 "2005-01-02T03:49:55Z")
Of course, most of the people who will complain probably won’t have even watched the show. I somehow doubt that a lot of the kind of people who complain about this would have even been up at midnight, much less have been watching Motley Crue on tv. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Great\_Zamboni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@The\_Great\_Zamboni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Great_Zamboni)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2005, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/16 "2005-01-02T03:55:49Z")
> [@mike1dog](#): > > Of course, most of the people who will complain probably won’t have even watched the show. I somehow doubt that a lot of the kind of people who complain about this would have even been up at midnight, much less have been watching Motley Crue on tv. Don’t underestimate the Offendees. Some people actually troll for these things. I did hear it too. I tell ya’ I thought my ears were burning. My Goodness, I couldn’t sleep. :rolleyes: The trauma! ---
**Author:** ![Duderdude2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/cdc98d/32.png) [@Duderdude2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duderdude2)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2005, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/17 "2005-01-02T04:47:52Z")
> [@TeaElle](#): > > In the rebroadcast of the show (in the 2:30 a.m. timeslot) the entire comment was dropped from the audio, so it was well-noticed. The show aired at 12:30 here and it wasn’t edited. Surely that would have been enough time to change it. ---
**Author:** ![TJdude825](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dec6dc/32.png) [@TJdude825](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TJdude825)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2005, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/18 "2005-01-02T07:19:42Z")
> [@mike1dog](#): > > Of course, most of the people who will complain probably won’t have even watched the show. I somehow doubt that a lot of the kind of people who complain about this would have even been up at midnight, much less have been watching Motley Crue on tv. Yet, if this does become a big deal, or even a medium deal, I won’t be surprised in the least. ---
**Author:** ![Sample\_the\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8797f3/32.png) [@Sample\_the\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sample_the_Dog)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2005, 7:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/19 "2005-01-02T07:30:36Z")
There may be no consequences at all, if Bono’s use of the word is a precedent. I believe it was determined that his pretty much identical usage of the term at a live awards show was not indecent because it didn’t refer to sex. Go figure. ---
**Author:** ![Sample\_the\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8797f3/32.png) [@Sample\_the\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sample_the_Dog)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2005, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531/20 "2005-01-02T07:44:19Z")
Yup, Bono was [cleared](http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/12/23/findlaw.analysis.hilden.indecency/). Even if the word had been used to refer to sex (which, when you think about it, maybe it was – there were no doubt thousands of people doing just that at the time) there may be yet another escape valve. About 15 years ago when I was living in Florida, a local radio station used to play any-and-every-thing between midnight and some wee hour. They aired a disclaimer before the free-wheeling began, stating that these hours were not regulated by the FCC. I have absolutely no cite for that, though, and have no idea if (a) they were right, or (b) if they were, that this is still true, or © if it is, whether it applies to broadcast television. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-f-ing-new-year-on-the-tonight-show/282531.md?page=2)