I wish I had an image of this to post as it would likely be funnier, but among the 10th anniversary tribute ads that appeared in today's Daily Variety is this amusing one from Denis Leary: "Dear Conan, Ten years ago, a program debuted containing hilarious bits, edgy musical acts, witty interviews with extremely interesting guests and it was all hosted by a charming, smart and endearing young man. The show was called The Late Show and the man was David Letterman. Happy 10th Anniversary Cuz. Love, Denis Leary P.S. What time are you on again?"
It's funny...Conan took his critical lumps early on, after inheriting Letterman's old show, but I actually think it's gotten to the point where his show is better than Letterman's or Leno's, and the most worthy successor to the old Johnny Carson tradition. Maybe it's Conan's personality that does it. IMO, he's not only funnier but more likeable than either Leno or Letterman, and he seems to have a better handle on guest interviews (which are, after all, the heart of the show). I still miss Andy Richter, but "Late Night" survived that departure in a way that a lot of shows wouldn't have. Besides, Conan always gets cool musical guests. All in all, it's been a great run.
I've been a HUGE Letterman fan since the first show on NBC, but I've come to really appreciate what Conan does with his lame timeslot. This guy seems to capture a little of the spirit of Ernie Kovacs in some of the bits he creates. He seems to genuinely love to "play" with the medium the way Kovacs did. Okay, he's no Percy Dovetonsils, but I still like him. ;-) dave
One of these days, I gotta get a TIVO, or at least stop being lazy and fire up the VHS to record Conan. NPR had an interview this morning and he was just cracking me up. He was responding to the early critics of the show: http://www.npr.org/display_pages/features/feature_1429505.html And responded with the Clint Eastwood comment. The transcript misses the Conan sublety, so listen to the audio.
Conan's show is great, and a man whom many feared would not last a year has survived and prospered. "In The Year 2000" still cracks me up. I watch Letterman then switch over to Conan. Evan
I really enjoyed the anniversary show last night. I'm sure most people are aware of this, but they show Conan on Comedy Central at 6:00 pm est. It is supposedly the previous night's show, but that is not always the case.
The show was great last night, absolutely hilarious. Me and the kids were rolling on the floor. Andy Richter's entrance was great. Funniest bit, for me, was Gwyneth Paltrow in Paltrow's Secrets. To paraphrase:"I'm superstitious, before I start making a movie I always kill a hobo with a hammer". Completely straightfaced, great delivery. We were still laughing ten minutes later. Jeff
It was pretty big when NBC got Conan to host the Emmy's over Jay. Perhaps sometime in the next 10 years, we'll see the Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien? Conan looks up to Dave, and Letterman actually gave Conan a push during that first rocky season (he was on Conan's show, invited Conan to his show, and one time, sent a busload of standby audience members over to Conan's show, much to their chagrin), but if Dave retires, I'm sure Conan wouldn't have any reservations jumping into that time slot.
