# Jay Leno Moves To NBC Prime Time **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 9, 2008, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341 "2008-12-09T02:24:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/21 "2008-12-09T13:39:37Z")
This made me think of one version of The Dick Cavett Show that ran in primetime some number of nights a week. (2? 3?). I’ve looked at Wikipedia and IMDB but no joy. Anyone remember this? Interesting aspect of this. One reason Leno beats Letterman is that NBC’s primetime lead-in is stronger than CBS’s. NBC knows it’s taking a ratings hit in doing this. (Trading ratings for cheaper production.) With Conan a weaker player to Letterman, this might mean a huge hit in latenight, where networks make some of their biggest profits. Might go down as a really terrible idea once the smoke clears. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/22 "2008-12-09T13:58:02Z")
My first thought was to wonder how Conan feels about this. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/23 "2008-12-09T14:36:05Z")
It looks to me like NBC was so worried about not having a successor to Leno that they alienated him and have now screwed up their transition. I still like Conan, although he’s on too late for me, but I’m not sure how this will play out. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/24 "2008-12-09T14:36:29Z")
For 1 thing Conan should be hoping this works out because the more money and ratings NBC has it’s better for him. If this idea tanks I don’t think it helps Conan. The big issue is with both shows in LA who gets the first crack at guests? I assume Leno but there may be cases where they both want a guest the same night. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/25 "2008-12-09T15:35:35Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Interesting aspect of this. One reason Leno beats Letterman is that NBC’s primetime lead-in is stronger than CBS’s. NBC knows it’s taking a ratings hit in doing this. (Trading ratings for cheaper production.) With Conan a weaker player to Letterman, this might mean a huge hit in latenight, where networks make some of their biggest profits. Might go down as a really terrible idea once the smoke clears. I don’t think that’s been true for a number of years. Leno beats Letterman solely because people prefer Leno to Letterman (which is depressing). ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/26 "2008-12-09T15:36:32Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > This made me think of one version of The Dick Cavett Show that ran in primetime some number of nights a week. (2? 3?). I’ve looked at Wikipedia and IMDB but no joy. Anyone remember this? Cavett actually had a _daytime_ talk/variety show in 1969 (that was back in the days when networks did that sort of thing), which didn’t work out (like David Letterman’s.) He then moved the show to prime time (three nighs a week) during the summer and finally to late night that winter. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/27 "2008-12-09T16:04:53Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > With DVRs you don’t need to stay up late. I don’t know how many people have DVRs but the number is going up every year. I record Leno and watch it whenever I want, without the ads. I watch many shows on the DVR since I can watch them in 45 minutes instead of an hour and I can set the schedule I like. But if the idea that Leno’s audience is getting older, by that I mean people in their sixties, chances are that they will even have a DVR, let alone know how to work one. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/28 "2008-12-09T16:05:34Z")
I say Leno’s move is just great. It gives me one more show I don’t have to watch. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/29 "2008-12-09T16:25:11Z")
A DVR is very easy to use, much easier than a VCR. You just go to the program guide and click 1 button to record a show. Or double click to record the show every time it comes on. Playback is also simple - just pick the show on the list to view it. It might be true older people don’t have many DVRs, but ease of use is not a factor at all. ---
**Author:** ![randwill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@randwill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randwill)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/30 "2008-12-09T16:57:22Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > A DVR is very easy to use, much easier than a VCR. You just go to the program guide and click 1 button to record a show. Or double click to record the show every time it comes on. Playback is also simple - just pick the show on the list to view it. It might be true older people don’t have many DVRs, but ease of use is not a factor at all. Sorry for the hijack, but do DVRs allow for taping the entire show? I see a lot of people complaining on here about their Tivo cutting off the last few minutes of shows that run overtime. With my VCR I just set it to tape for two hours for a one hour show so I’m sure to get the entire show, even if it starts late and/or runs over. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/31 "2008-12-09T17:03:35Z")
If you think a show is going to run over you can do 2 things: record the next show as insurance or tell the DVR to add extra time to the end - 15 or 30 minutes. I don’t record sporting events but if I did I would be sure to record the next show to make sure I don’t miss the end of the game. ---
**Author:** ![LurkMeister](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3da27b/32.png) [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/32 "2008-12-09T17:06:00Z")
> [@randwill](#): > > Sorry for the hijack, but do DVRs allow for taping the entire show? I see a lot of people complaining on here about their Tivo cutting off the last few minutes of shows that run overtime. > > With my VCR I just set it to tape for two hours for a one hour show so I’m sure to get the entire show, even if it starts late and/or runs over. My DVR can be programmed to start and stop recording any show both before and after its scheduled show times. This can be done for a single recording or for every time a show is recorded. I use it quite a bit when I record Cold Case during football season, and started doing it for House after I lost the end of the show a few times. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/33 "2008-12-09T17:22:23Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > It looks to me like NBC was so worried about not having a successor to Leno that they alienated him and have now screwed up their transition. I still like Conan, although he’s on too late for me, but I’m not sure how this will play out. I think NBC promised the show to Conan, not expecting that Leno would continue to be as popular as he has been (regularly beating Letterman in the ratings) and came up with this approach because otherwise Leno would have gone to ABC or Fox at 11:30pm. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/34 "2008-12-09T17:26:22Z")
After Leno had been on Tonight for 1 year NBC was going to fire him and give the show to Letterman because Leno’s ratings were not as good as they are now. The talks broke down because Letterman wanted the offer in writing but NBC refused to put it on paper for fear it would leak out. A few years later Leno passed Letterman in the ratings and has stayed there since. During 95 Leno did a lot of stuff on the OJ trial such as the Dancing Itos and that was when he got better ratings than Letterman. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/35 "2008-12-09T17:35:23Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I think NBC promised the show to Conan, not expecting that Leno would continue to be as popular as he has been (regularly beating Letterman in the ratings) and came up with this approach because otherwise Leno would have gone to ABC or Fox at 11:30pm. That may be true, although I can’t understand the assumption. And since they’ve kept both him and Conan, they may have been successful in that regard. But it wasn’t handled very smoothly. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/36 "2008-12-09T17:38:09Z")
I didn’t read the book on which it was based, but the HBO movie “The Late Shift” (about the battle between Letterman and Leno for the Tonight Show) said that Leno pulled ahead after Hugh Grant appeared on his show to apologize for the prostitute incident. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/37 "2008-12-09T17:39:28Z")
I’m kinda curious what effect this’ll have on NBC’s drama shows. At ten p.m., _Law & Order_ and its fifteen children could afford to get a bit edgy, which is the only thing barely keeping them on par with unrestrained HBO shows. If they all get pushed to nine, will they have to soften up? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/38 "2008-12-09T17:45:10Z")
Law & Order is really past its prime and very expensive. My guess is that they think they will earn more from Leno than from it. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/39 "2008-12-09T17:48:15Z")
They’d been planning to start cutting back on the various L&Os – one was being moved to cable, another was going to get canceled, IIRC. After the writers’ strike, NBC needed new material, stat, and had some L&O stuff stashed that they’d been planning to burn off. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341/40 "2008-12-09T17:52:56Z")
A drama costs way more to produce than Leno’s show. If the ratings are similar then Leno brings in a lot more profit since the ad revenue would be about the same. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-moves-to-nbc-prime-time/476341.md?page=3)