Posted: Wednesday, 23rd April 2008 at 10:19pm by Paul
Thoughts are rolling in again as to who’s going to take over from Conan O’Brien on Late Night when Conan moves to The Tonight Show next year, and time is ticking away. Leno is, of course, retiring next year - unless NBC executives change their mind and keep him on for another year. Variety.com reports if that were to happen NBC “would have to pay O’Brien a penalty estimated at more than $40 million”. The most logical choice for Late Night - as has been said before - would be Jimmy Fallon who’s proved popular on Saturday Night Live. Not forgetting Carson Daly (currently host of Last Call which airs after Late Night With Conan O’Brien on NBC) - he could also be an obvious choice.
Variety.com says “some of the names floated for O’Brien’s replacement have included Jon Stewart, Dane Cook and Australian television star Rove McManus”. My personal favourite would be Jon Stewart. He’s become hugely well received on The Daily Show (Comedy Central) and also proves he’s liked on a mainstream level - the Academy Awards hosting duties for example. The last piece of the jigsaw for the talk shows in 2009 is whether or not The Tonight Show will stay in Burbank or if it will move to New York City - currently home to Late Night With Conan O’Brien (and the Late Show on CBS, of course). The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson was based in New York. I feel The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien should be based in New York and perhaps moving Late Night With ???? to Burbank.
Variety - “Landing the next Conan”
Posted: Tuesday, 22nd April 2008 at 8:59pm by James
To avoid leaving a carbon footprint ahead of their US tour, UK band Radiohead are set to pre-record their Wednesday performance on Late Night with Conan O’Brien in their London studio.
Frontman Thom Yorke told reporters that the band would be avoiding leaving the equivalent of driving a car for a solid year.
More: Radiohead go green for live show (BBC Newsbeat)
Posted: Friday, 11th April 2008 at 7:43pm by Paul
The New York Times reports that - last week - the Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson overtook Late Night With Conan O’Brien in the ratings. More people were watching Craig than Conan. The Late Late Show follows David Letterman on CBS at 12.35am - the same time Late Night comes on NBC. The New York Times says “In ratings measured last week, Mr. Ferguson had more viewers than Mr. O’Brien on four of five nights and for the week overall, averaging 1.88 million viewers to 1.77 million for Mr. O’Brien”. Conan remains ahead in the 18 to 49 age bracket though.
The New York Times - “Ferguson Outdraws O’Brien”
Posted: Saturday, 22nd March 2008 at 6:52pm by Paul
Demi Moore, Kate Bosworth and Brian Williams will be appearing on the Late Show on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday respectively. Brit pop star (of X Factor fame) Leona Lewis will be on The Tonight Show this Monday (24th March). The Leona Lewis episode will be going out on CNBC on the 27th March at 10pm and on the 29th March at 8pm. Conan O’Brien will be on The Tonight Show this Thursday (27th March). Late Night With Conan O’Brien, The Daily Show With Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report are on reruns next week. Donald Sutherland, Trevor Eve, Natasha Kaplinsky and The Kooks will be on Friday Night With Jonathan Ross this Friday. Don’t forget to check out the Upcoming Shows box in the sidebar for the next shows to air on UK TV.
Posted: Tuesday, 11th March 2008 at 1:08pm by Paul
Due to Daylight Saving Time starting for the US last weekend, all Monday-Friday episodes of The Tonight Show With Jay Leno now air at 10pm instead of 11pm. The 10pm airings will stay until the end of Daylight Saving Time. The change has been brought it to allow the NBC Nightly News to be streamed live on CNBC from the US - which now airs at 10.30pm UK time. Weekend episodes of The Tonight Show and Late Night stay at 8pm and 8.45pm respectively. Keep checking the Upcoming Shows box in the sidebar for guest details, or check out the Guest Listings section for US (NBC) airdates.
Late Show UK - Where To Watch
Posted: Sunday, 9th March 2008 at 1:55pm by Paul
Letterman guest highlights: Jim Carrey and Paula Abdul will be dropping by to the Late Show on Monday, Snoop Dogg on Tuesday, Charlize Theron on Wednesday and Kate Beckinsale will be in the Ed Sullivan Theatre on Thursday. The always-funny Brian Regan will be on the Late Show on Friday - no doubt performing top-notch standup. Someone else who’s always pretty funny - Al Franken - will be on the show on the 18th March, along with British band The Cribs. If you’re watching the Late Show on Diva TV - Will Ferrell is on Monday at 9pm, Courteney Cox on Tuesday at 9pm, Natalie Portman (and the hilarious Kid Scientists segment) on Wednesday at 9pm, British chef & TV personality Jamie Oliver on Thursday at 9pm and Woody Harrelson will be on Friday’s show at 9pm.
Leno guest highlights: Dominic Monaghan and Sheryl Crow will be appearing on The Tonight Show on Monday, America Ferrera (from Ugly Betty) will be there on Tuesday, Bill Cosby & music from Gavin DeGraw will appear on Wednesday’s show and Deal Or No Deal’s Howie Mandel will be on Thursday’s show. Minnie Driver and Paula Abdul will be on with Jay on Thursday and Friday respectively. The following week sees Kate Beckinsale and New York band The Bravery stopping by. If you’re watching The Tonight Show on CNBC - Heidi Klum will be on the show on Monday at 10pm.
Conan guest highlights: Paul Giamatti and Snoop Dogg will be on Late Night on Monday and Wednesday respectively, and Meredith Vieira will make an appearance on Thursday’s show. The following week, Conan will be joined by Martha Stewart (17th March) and Ice-T (18th March) amongst other guests. 24th-28th March will be a week of reruns. If you’re watching Late Night on CNBC - Shows only air Saturdays and Sundays and the guests for these are to be confirmed.
Other shows: Craig Ferguson is on reruns next week, but when he returns on the 17th March he will be joined by Ray Romano and Kate Beckinsale on the 18th March. Friday Night With Jonathan Ross won’t be on BBC One next Friday (14th) because of BBC Sport Relief 2008 - Jonathan Ross will return the following week (guests TBC).
See guest listings in full at www.lateshowuk.com/guest-listings.
Posted: Monday, 3rd March 2008 at 10:59am by Paul
Once again, the rumour mill is in full swing with regards to Leno giving up The Tonight Show next year and what’s going to happen when he leaves and other subsequent changes at NBC. It’s been about 4 years since NBC announced Jay would be giving up The Tonight Show chair in 2009 but it seems Leno might be staying at NBC, with a brand new show, as NBC tries to sign him up to a new contract. Conan O’Brien would still get The Tonight Show gig and BND.com (New York Times) says “NBC has begun construction on a new studio for “Tonight,” as well as offices for O’Brien’s staff”.
According to reports, TV networks aren’t allowed to negotiate with Leno until November 2009. BND.com (New York Times) also suggest “executives who know the details of his contract said Leno would remain attached to NBC through the end of 2009, even though he probably would not be on the air for the last six months of the contract”. Jimmy Fallon - of Saturday Night Live fame - is thought to be the favourite to take over Late Night when Conan leaves, and it’s thought - if Jimmy were to get the job - Conan would leave Late Night several months before starting on The Tonight Show to give Fallon a good chance of settling in, with a lead-in from Jay Leno’s Tonight Show.
It’s also believed that - when Conan starts The Tonight Show next year - Leno wouldn’t be back on-screen hosting a new show until 2010, to give O’Brien time to get the show up and running without any competition from Leno. It’s not known whether Leno would get offered a primetime show on NBC, another late night programme on NBC or whether he would defect to another network to host a show - ABC, Fox and Sony Pictures Television are all interested in signing him up. If Sony Pictures Television got the deal, BND.com say they’re likely to offer him a “syndicated late-night show”. David Letterman is signed up to stay with the Late Show on CBS until 2010, and it’s not known whether he will retire after this, or renew with CBS - or another network - again.
BND.com - “Courting Leno, unofficially, for a new gig” (New York Times)
5th March 2008 update… More speculation;
The Columbus Dispatch - “Where will Jay Leno land next? Hard to tell”
Posted: Monday, 18th February 2008 at 12:49pm by Paul
The new programming block on CNBC Europe called ‘CNBC Life’ will start this weekend (23rd and 24th February). There have been rumours about what this new programming block might include, but it is now confirmed which shows will be part of it, and when the themed block will be on air. Guardian.co.uk say CNBC will air “sports, entertainment, travel and current affairs programmes under the CNBC Life banner between 1pm and 10pm every Saturday and Sunday from February 23″.
In essence, The Tonight Show With Jay Leno and Late Night With Conan O’Brien will remain unchanged, as they will still be shown on weekends in their normal 8pm and 8.45pm (UK) timeslots respectively. These will be unedited - whereas the airings of Leno in the week are shortened to fill a 30 minute timeslot. Conan will continue not to air Monday-Friday, and will only be shown in the ‘best of the week’ slot on Saturdays and Sundays (8.45pm UK time). CNBC Life is being marketed as ‘luxury’ programming, including CNBC Sports, travel shows and spending programmes. Listings for this weekend can be found in full on the Radio Times website (free registration required).
CNBC Europe - CNBC Life (Official Page)
Guardian.co.uk - “CNBC Europe to screen ‘luxury’ shows”
Late Show UK - Where To Watch
Posted: Thursday, 14th February 2008 at 1:04pm by Paul
The Associated Press is reporting the ratings for all the late night chat shows stayed very much the same throughout the writers strike. The AP says people “made little difference in their viewing habits” despite all the shows (except Letterman and Craig Ferguson) not having their writing teams onboard. The Associated Press report The Daily Show With Jon Stewart kept steady ratings as “the 1.6 million viewers he averaged during January was the same as he had last year”, and The Colbert Report’s “1.2 million last month was actually up 6 percent from the 2007 average”. Jay Leno “averaged 5.17 million viewers since his return” and Letterman “increased from 3.8 million pre-strike to 4.05 million after he went back on the air after the new year”. Conan O’Brien’s ratings remained largely unchanged averaging “just over 2 million people nightly” last month. The ratings data came from Nielsen Media Research. The strike ended yesterday, and all writers are now back at work, and “A Daily Show With Jon Stewart” changed it’s name back to “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart” to signify the return of the writing staff.
The Associated Press - “Strike Barely Hits Late-Night Ratings”
Posted: Wednesday, 13th February 2008 at 2:43pm by Paul
After 14 weeks, the Writers Guild of America strike is now over. WGA members voted for a deal with the AMPTP and it’s reported the deal was approved by 92.5% of those members. Writers have been on strike in the US since early November 2007, following a dispute over the amount of money they get for online and DVD sales of their work. The new deal addresses those issues, and all writers return to work this week. The US TV industry has been cripplied by the strike, meaning such networks as Fox needing to bring in American Idol and other reality shows & unscripted programming to fill the gaps left behind by scripted comedy and drama that couldn’t be produced. The movie industry hasn’t been affected as much as TV, as films are made over a much longer timespan than TV series.
The BBC News website reports “the strike is said to have cost Los Angeles’ film and TV industry around $733m (£374m), with the wider economy losing around $1.3bn (£663m)” and that we can expect new programmes in “about two months”. The Tonight Show With Jay Leno, Late Night With Conan O’Brien, The Daily Show With Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report all have their writing teams back and new shows are already being made. The Late Show With David Letterman and the Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson have had their writing team since January, when David Letterman’s production company Worldwide Pants Inc agreed an interim deal.
The Oscars (which are being hosted by The Daily Show’s Jon Stewart this year) can now go ahead as planned, with writers for the ceremony needing to produce immense numbers of scripts in a short timespan before the show airs on the 24th February. Speaking to the BBC, the boss of CBS Les Moonves said “At the end of the day, everybody won”. Media website Digital Spy report “The result - with nearly 3,500 for and 283 against the agreement - was announced yesterday evening Pacific Time, during the early hours of today GMT”.
BBC News - “Hollywood writers to end strike”
Digital Spy - “US writers’ strike officially ends”
BBC News - “Writers prepare to return to work”
Posted: Saturday, 9th February 2008 at 4:48pm by Paul
The US writers strike appears to be coming to an end. The Writers Guild of America says they have reached a “tentative deal” and Reuters report “members will meet in New York and Los Angeles later on Saturday to discuss specific terms, the ratification process and ending the strike, the union added”. Media news website Digital Spy add “America’s television production industry could be back in business as early as Monday” and that “WGA East members will gather at 2pm Eastern time today in New York to discuss the agreement; the WGA West meeting is scheduled for 7pm Pacific in Los Angeles”.
This deal will end the strike, meaning all shows will get their writing team back. The Tonight Show With Jay Leno, Late Night With Conan O’Brien, The Daily Show With Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report have all been making shows without their original writers when they returned to the air in January. David Letterman’s production company Worldwide Pants Inc reached an interim deal previously, meaning the Late Show With David Letterman and the Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson have both had its writing team back since the show returned in January. The deal that’s been reached will now mean the Oscars awards ceremony can now go ahead as planned. Update: You can read the WGA statement here - which also gives full details of the terms & conditions of this new deal.
Reuters - “Striking writers reach tentative deal with studios”
Digital Spy - “WGA: “We have a tentative deal”"
Telegraph - “Oscars saved as Hollywood writers’ strike ends”
The Movie Blog - “The WGA Strike is Over”
Posted: Monday, 4th February 2008 at 5:44pm by Paul
Media website The Celebrity Cafe is reporting it “has learned that Conan O’Brien has shaved his strike-beard” and say “O’Brien’s constant support for the strike, by not shaving for such an elongated period of time was a great gesture. One in which he must be commended”.
The Celebrity Cafe - “Conan Shaves Beard”
In other Conan-related news, he appeared on a front cover of Entertainment Weekly in the US last month (still sporting his strike beard). The official website for Entertainment Weekly has three exclusive interview clips with Conan, which are well worth a watch. His feature in the magazine includes Conan’s strike tips. The three video clips are linked below for your enjoyment.
Entertainment Weekly (EW.com) - “Conan O’Brien’s Strike Tips”
Entertainment Weekly (EW.com) - “Conan vs. a Chimp”
Entertainment Weekly (EW.com) - “Conan: the power of the beard”
And if you love the zip line segment Conan does on Late Night, someone’s gone and created a (quite addictive) Flash-based game. Late Night Underground has the game (below).
Late Night Underground - “The Zip Line Game! Yeah!”
Posted: Sunday, 27th January 2008 at 5:50pm by Paul
A new programming block on CNBC Europe (as currently being advertised on the channel) - to be called CNBC Life - will be starting on the 23rd February. This could prove to be really interesting for The Tonight Show With Jay Leno and Late Night With Conan O’Brien show airings on the channel, as CNBC Life is rumoured to be an entertainment and sport programming block. Judging on speculation alone, this could mean the return of full episodes of Leno and Conan every night of the week (and maybe even NBC’s Today programme), along with an overhaul of the schedules. Watch this space - CNBC haven’t released any details at the moment, other than it’s a programming block starting 23/02/2008.
More speculation is available on the Viewpoint blog - “NBC Universal to begin CNBC life?”
Posted: Monday, 7th January 2008 at 11:53pm by Paul
Updated 14th January 2008.
Late Show With David Letterman - 16th January - Diva TV (from 2nd January, CBS)
The Tonight Show With Jay Leno - 4th January - CNBC Europe (from 2nd January, NBC)
Late Night With Conan O’Brien - Will not air on CNBC* - CNBC Europe (from 2nd January, NBC)
The Daily Show With Jon Stewart - 8th January - More 4 (from 7th January, Comedy Central)
* The first Late Night With Conan O’Brien since the writers strike began (originally shown on NBC on the 2nd January) will not be shown on CNBC Europe, because they only air two shows a week (Saturdays and Sundays) - and this one hasn’t been chosen as a ‘pick of the week’ show. Don’t forget, our petition is still running at www.lateshowuk.com/petition if you want to add your name to the signatures.
Late Show UK - Where To Watch
Posted: Thursday, 3rd January 2008 at 9:45am by Paul
Last updated 16:05
The first new episode in about 2 months last night in the US - the Late Show is back. Reports of the show (I have not seen it yet) reveal Letterman came out onto the stage “through a chorus line of dancers holding signs that read, “Writers Guild of America on Strike”, and sporting a full beard he grew during his eight-week break”. Dave looks very different with a beard - as far as I can tell, Dave (and Conan too) has grown a beard as a sign of unity for the WGA strike.
See a picture of Dave with the beard here (KansasCity.com)
A video of Conan sporting his new beard is available at Late Night Underground
Letterman joked about being glad to get out of rehab and “show or no show I really enjoy drinking in the morning”. Dave told everyone he’s the only show to be back with union-backed writers. Before the show titles, Hillary Clinton popped up to welcome us back to the Late Show. Donald Trump wasn’t on the first show back, as was previously thought - Robin Williams was instead. Watch Dave’s monologue here, check out the Top Ten list and see Bill Scheft’s message to the Late Show audience.
BBC News have a report on the return of the chat shows, including some clips from Letterman, Leno and Craig Ferguson. Head on over to the BBC News article to read more and the news report video is available here.
Jay Leno returned with new episodes of The Tonight Show last night - but without his writers. The Kansas City website (TV Barn) said “Leno’s monologue was remarkably ordinary” and that Leno “was trying to pretend like it was business as usual”. Late Night With Conan O’Brien was back - but without his writers. Conan - sporting a new beard - returned last night. The Kansas City website says “O’Brien is better positioned than Leno to stick out a long strike, thanks to stronger interviewing skills”. Craig Ferguson was also back with new episodes of the Late Late Show. Craig had his writing staff with him - as this was covered in the Letterman deal - and started off the first show back with “As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted”. The Daily Show With Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report remain off air, will be returning with new shows starting from the 7th January.
Late Show UK - “Return of the Late Night shows” (By James)
ABC News - “Bearded Letterman back after two months”
KansasCity.com (TV Barn) - “Who won late night? It’s a close shave”
Late Night Underground - “An Important Message From Conan O’Brien”
Late Show UK - Guest Listings
BBC News - “US TV’s talk show titans return”
- Posted in Conan O'Brien, Craig Ferguson, David Letterman, Jay Leno, Jon Stewart, Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson, Late Night With Conan O'Brien, Late Show With David Letterman, Stephen Colbert, The Colbert Report, The Daily Show With Jon Stewart, The Tonight Show With Jay Leno, Writers Strike 2007/2008 - No Comments »
