Jay Leno and Conan- National TV

[Biffstunt]

this will probably go down in TV history as this, Conan got screwed.
but you have to admit NICE parting gifts!

That may be the way some will record it, but it wouldn't be true.

Conan could have kept the Tonight Show and his history with NBC.  He would have had a better lead-in, and it would probably have gotten him off the hook with the affiliates, who were never sold on him.  But he chose to move forward.  Playing the martyr can sometimes be worth more than playing the good soldier.  He strengthened his fan base, who were only lukewarm to his stuffier presentation when he moved to 11:30.  He had a looser show at 12:30, as did Letterman.  The biggest mistake Conan can make is to take an 11:30 show at another network.  He should learn from Jon Stewart. 

I think Conan did the right thing.  The Tonight Show shouldn't start at a time later than 11:35.  Also, Conan's monologue is weak - Leno's is strong.  Leno's 11:30 show would have likely started with a 10 minute monologue.  20 minutes later, we would see Conan's weak monologue.  His strong suit has always been his sketches and his interviews.  Exposing one of the best monologues in late night, followed by one of the weakest within 20 minutes would be hard.  He also indicated it would be unfair to Jimmy Fallon to move him to 1:05.  I don't know if that was sincere or not (I tend to believe it was), he's right.  While Ferguson and Conan (and Letterman almost 20 years ago) all have given us reasons to stay up until 12:30 to watch some fun on late night television, would Fallon be able to give us that reason to stay up until 1?

I think Conan's move was a good one and I think his move to Fox would be fine.  He could likely do the same show that he did at 12:30 on NBC an hour and a half earlier on Fox.  If he has the 12:30 comfort zone and the 12:30 freedom, he will do just fine at Fox, especially if he gets the headstart over the competition.

[vchimpanzee]

Before ending the show with a song, O'Brien said the following from his desk:

"Before we end this rodeo, a few things need to be said. There has been a lot of speculation in the press about what I legally can and can't say about NBC. To set the record straight, tonight I am allowed to say anything I want. And what I want to say is this: between my time at Saturday Night Live, The Late Night Show, and my brief run here on The Tonight Show, I have worked with NBC for over 20 years. Yes, we have our differences right now and yes, we're going to go our separate ways. But this company has been my home for most of my adult life. I am enormously proud of the work we have done together, and I want to thank NBC for making it all possible. ...

Walking away from The Tonight Show is the hardest thing I have ever had to do. Making this choice has been enormously difficult. This is the best job in the world. I absolutely love doing it. And I have the best staff and crew in the history of the medium. ... But despite this sense of loss, I really feel this should be a happy moment.

Every comedian dreams of hosting The Tonight Show and, for seven months, I got to do it! I did it my way, with people I love. I do not regret one second. ... I've had more good fortune than anyone I know and if our next gig is doing a show in a 7-11 parking lot, we'll find a way to make it fun.

And finally, I have to say something to our fans. The massive outpouring of support and passion from so many people has been overwhelming. The rallies, the signs. All this goofy, outrageous creativity on the Internet, and the fact that people have traveled long distances and camped out all night in the pouring rain ... to be in our audience - you made a sad situation joyous and inspirational.

To all the people watching, I can never thank you enough for your kindness to me and I'll think about it for the rest of my life. All I ask of you is one thing: Please do not be cynical. I hate cynicism- it's my least favorite quality and it doesn't lead anywhere.

Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you're kind, amazing things will happen. As proof, let's make an amazing thing happen right now. Here to close out our show, are a few good friends [Billy Gibbons, Beck, and Robert Randolph], led by Mr. Will Ferrell singing "Freebird"…

A very good way to end it.

[TheRover]

Jon Stewart's show was never on ABC.  He had a show on MTV, then went syndicated, picking up a lot of Arsenio's affiliates after he finished "The Arsenio Hall Show."  Once the syndnicated Jon Stewart Show failied, he became a guest host for Tom Snyder's "Late Late Show" on CBS, which was eventually taken over by Craig Kilborn, who had hosted "The Daily Show" on Comedy Central...which was given to the current host, Jon Stewart.  It was like a lesser-known late night love triangle.

After The Tnoght Show with Johnny Carson.....

my next favorite Nightime Talk Show was....

The Late Late Show with Jon Stewart

I liked that show better than any Leno, Letterman, and Conan shows.