Fallon to replace Conan on Late Night

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when did they start making these decisions two/three years in advance? wtf no-one is going to even remember who jimmy fallon is by then.

no-one is going to even remember who jimmy fallon is by then now.

What's the latest on Stewart vs Conan?

TS: worse successor to Conan, Jimmy Fallon vs. Carson Daly?

Sheesh! Maybe he'll surprise everyone.

I TOTALLY made this joke in 2004.

From what I remember they do usually have a succession plan in place more than a couple years in advance. Conan's already been slated to take over for Jay for a little while now.

I understand Jimmy's schtick; it works for Zach Braff too. But this may be worse than Chevy Chase or Magic Johnson.

It couldn't be worse than Chevy Chase.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OdqMEfV-r9A

when did they start making these decisions two/three years in advance?

Yeah, they usually don't. Like Wookie said, NBC decided a year or two back to promise Conan the Tonight Show when Leno's current contract expires, to keep Conan from going to another network. And I seriously doubt Fallon getting the job is a done deal; from what I read NBC signed him to a development deal that includes making pilots and other stuff, including auditioning for the Late Night gig. This is kind of old news, I mentioned it on this thread a few weeks ago:

Jimmy Fallon: Why Won't He Go Out With Me?

My guess is that when 2009 rolls around there'll be a whole bunch of comics and minor celebs jockeying for the position the way they were for The Price Is Right this year, but the finally decision/announcement will only happen a few months in advance. In the meantime we can only hope that Fallon continues to bomb with everything he does and takes himself out of the running.

but what about Fallon's lucrative film career?

Jimmy Fallon is a major tool.

Bring back the Wilton North Report?

Lorne Michaels produces Late Night and SNL. One hand washes the other. I'd rather was Kevin Nealon before I fall asleep. But I don't go to bed until later so he would be even better taking over Carson. This reminds me, why is Carson Daly still following Conan?

I'm honestly taking this harder than that tsunami a few years back.

If Conan keeps his writers, it should be fine.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/12/arts/television/12fall.html?ex=1368244800&en=e25da0185ebc2f63&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

I am so mad about this and I don't even watch any of these shows.

I love how the story pretty much says that Fallon is getting the job because he sucks at everything else.

uhrrrrrrr10 otm

Did they run out of writers to bring out from behind the curtain? I'd say Lorne Michaels' two biggest successes when it comes to solo personalities would be getting Conan to do Late Night and putting Tina Fey on camera after her stint as a writer.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

OOOOOOOOOOOOO

When Dave Letterman was out having his operation, there were celebrity guest hosts for about a week or two. Fallon was actually surprisingly okay on his night.

Letter grades for Letterman guest hosts:

http://www.freehorsierides.com/krunk.asp?no=25

Fallon gets a 'B' - one of the better grades given.

there was an npr story about this last week that implied that leno was pissed about losing the tonight show and saying he could possibly move to fox or (more likely) abc to do a competing show there. which would probably suck for conan.

good overview from the guy responsible for "it's a proven fact that JAZZ FUCKING BLOWS!"

Tommer in NYC

JF certainly can't be a worse host than a comedian.

Failing upwards.

It's hard to argue with the "Who the fuck is this guy?" caption, though. I was all "lol, Alan Thicke" until I read the reviews.

he is what his generation deserves

otm

this made me physically sick when i found out a couple weeks ago & i dont even bother w/ late night talk shows anymore

at least now he won't have to try and pretend he isn't giggling all the time.

He's in the same league as that humor-free englishman on after Letterman.

he's scottish, man!

he will punch your nose for that

this made me physically sick when i found out a couple weeks ago & i dont even bother w/ late night talk shows anymore

-- deeznuts, Monday, May 12, 2008 6:30 PM (4 minutes ago) Bookmark Link

you actually vomited??

those letter grades linked up-thread are pretty OTM, AFAIR... they ought to try and woo Vaughn. I know he's got his film career and all, but I liked his guest host spot more than any of his movies I can think of offhand.

if id vomited at least the nausea might have actually gone away

At least it's not Carson Daly, right?

i've kind of liked craig ferguson the few times i actually watched his show o_O

i think he seems like a really solid host, but ive also seen very very little

has to be better than kilbourn was

ferguson was real cringy at first but now he seems solid.

i think jimmy fallon will be fine as long as he drops that shruggy goofy look what i just got away with schtick.

I hope he doesn't find work for Horatio Sanz.

sanz might make a pretty good mcmahon actually

because he's fat

they ought to try and woo Vaughn. I know he's got his film career and all, but I liked his guest host spot more than any of his movies I can think of offhand.

totally otm.

watch the bandleader be the bass player from sum 41

fallon must have an amazing ass-kissing technique

ferguson is really good. I don't like the whole idea of obrien competing directly with letterman, that seems unfair and wrong, though to be honest, it's been so long since I've had the energy to stay awake and watch any of them, who am I kidding?

fallon must have an amazing ass-kissing technique

-- Tracer Hand, Monday, May 12, 2008 5:23 PM (59 minutes ago) Bookmark Link

im guessing he doesnt interrupt the bosses at nbc w/hammy giggling and cutesy faces

fallon's return to snl for one skit when justin timberlake was on a year and a half ago was super embarassing.

but i could see him being better than OK at the talk show host thing once he got comfortable

Besides Letterman, Stewart, and O'Brien, who's better than Fallon?

Fucking Kimmel? Leno?

Huh.

I'm imagining the meeting between Lorne, Jimmy, and whatever other suits make these types of decisions, in which they are debating how they can make the show more hip to the kids. Someone suggests having a rapper as the house band. After throwing around names of various rappers, they realize that the higher-ups would never go for it. That's when someone meekly says "The Roots?" A moment of silence passes. Everyone is like "YES!" High fives all around, champagne, someone explains to Lorne who they are, etc. etc. etc.

"Someone suggests having a rapper as the house band"

A moment of silence passes. Everyone is like "YES!" High fives all around, champagne, someone explains to Lorne who they are

i quite like this image actually

"whatever other suits make these types of decisions"

So are those guys somehow supposed to make Jimmy Fallon funny? I bet this goes down worse than the Magic Johnson Show

I'm expecting something more like the Jack Johnson show, generally

P.S. I'm really not sure what the network sees in Fallon that makes them think he's a great bet -- every time I've seen him do this before, he'd had a sort of awkward, child-like energy that's not hugely promising -- but honestly, the years of testing and grooming that go into a gig like this make it somewhat unlikely that he could be any kind of embarrassment or disaster.

Is it wrong that that paragraph makes me want to watch Sara Schaefer rad it out loud to Sista Souljah?

nabisco, every time Lorne Michaels produces one worthwhile SNL alum project like "30 Rock," he does 2 or 3 other things more along the lines of Superstar or The Ladies Man. I think he's just happy to produce anything by anyone he hasn't fired who still wants to work with him outside of the show.

and as for the network, I mean this Ben Silverman guy they've got running things right now seems pretty clueless.

Jimmy Kimmel's show is successful so really anything can happen.

i remember loving the ladies man in 8th grade

Kimmel is a much more respectable hack than Fallon.

+ i think kimmel does genuinely funny stand up and i think it's kind of hard to get mad at a guy for seriously cashing in. haven't watched his show in like 3 years so idk if it's funny or not

fallon on the other hand... i don't know i wish he would just do romantic comedies and get out of my life but the show might be funny if they have good writers. i didn't not enjoy him on snl

by genuinely funny stand up i guess i mean i like him on comedy central roasts

i remember loving the ladies man in 8th grade

― lupe fiasco from the hilarious lupe fiasco albums (J0rdan S.), Monday, November 17, 2008 11:43 PM (2 minutes ago) Bookmark

ohhhhhh its a lupe

I'm not trying to underestimate the potential for cluelessness or failure. It's just that I'd assume they don't slot people in for huge roles like this without spending a crapload of time testing and trying and focus-grouping them -- I mean, hell, they were grooming Fallon with the occasional guest-host night years ago -- which seriously diminishes the capacity for crash-and-burn awfulness.

I mean, that's the difference between mega-duds like Chase or Johnson and something like this -- this isn't some new show taking a shot, it's an established and valuable property owned by a publicly owned business, and that's something you can't just let fail and then cancel.

I remember watching Fallon guest-host at some point, and he wasn't bad, just a little awkward. It's hard to imagine the early interest and writing staff and caliber of guests couldn't keep things working long enough for him to settle into a groove of ... well, basic competence. But he'll need to do better than competence, considering he'll surely still be up against Ferguson.

Yeah...I mean Conan and Letterman were basically unknown quantities when they got the job, and you'd think the process would be more strenuous now, but maybe it just isn't. I feel like they just gave Fallon a development deal ages ago, and when he couldn't come up with a sitcom pilot they threw him this opportunity instead.

Letterman was well-tested via his afternoon talk show, and Conan's awkwardness was not of the cringe-worthy type that Fallon is likely to fall back on (the smarmy, "aren't I cute" schtick). Maybe the writers will be able to overcome it, but I doubt it. And I think Fallon is considered one of the more popular SNL alums, and that's why he's getting the slot.

And nabisco, look at all the other crap that gets put on the "valuable property" of network prime time. The network heads either don't know it's bad or genuinely have nothing better.

Nick it's not "network prime time" that's the valuable property -- those shows come and go as they're created. The valuable property is a program franchise called "Late Night." That's a single show with a single reputation. It's been on for years and years. And if it gets screwed up, you can't just cancel it or decline to order more episodes -- you've screwed up a piece of property you actually own.

The same goes for news and morning shows -- they're not like series you can throw on and take off as you please!

Hence my point, which was that Chevy Chase and Magic Johnson were properties that tanked from outside -- nobody was handing either of those guys long-running network properties like The Tonight Show or Late Night.

jimmy fallon is the man i credit for my love of humanity and generally sunny disposition to life: all my hate-energies get diverted towards him, where they disappear conveniently as if into a black hole, leaving me pure and wholesome.

people here who think he'll be "okay" are delusional. this is like putting bush in the white house.

what will be his equivalent of iraq?

the Doctrine of Preemptive Giggling

The first year of Conan he had a weekly contract ... if he sucked, he'd get fired. Fallon's probably sleeping with some executive woman ... or executive dude. :[]

Conan did suck in his first year, according to execs and critics. He just kinda outlasted the criticism and drew a following (for me, in part to Andy Richter).

Well, I don't think a bad host would kill the show permanently. He'd eventually get the boot, and the network would hype a new host enough to get the curious to come back. I'm sure people wouldn't stay away for Kimmel or Ferguson.

Sarah Silverman should host Late Night.

I thought Conan's first year on Late Night was great, but then, I was 11, so take that with a grain of salt.

Conan's first year was often odd and awkward, but since no one was watching they got away with being completely batshit crazy on network tv.

Conan had a lot of good bands on, that first year, that was my only motivation for watching the show. He got funnier as he went on, though.

ferguson has gotten so good it would take a miracle to make fallon as good as his show imo

this shark bit ferguson's doing :D

ferguson really is a tiny scottish bit of miracle isn't he

nah, he blows

Just got back from a test taping. I don't think Fallon will surprise anyone with the new show. If you find him funny/not funny/cute/annoying, you will continue to find him funny/not funny/cute/annoying. The Roots were awesome though.

did he duck his head less than 50 times?

I wasn't counting, but he seems to have mellowed on the head ducking.

The show is getting better guyz.

what a success for nbc

this rash is getting better guyz.

This show is pretty awesome, due mostly to the fact that the house band is the goddamn ROOTS.

See:

This

I love how Josh Meyers is like Seth Meyers meets Matthew McConaughey. I love how that actually makes him less attractive than Seth Meyers.