Sounds like Jimmy Falon will be replacing Conan O'Brien on Late Night. What do you think?

Sounds like Jimmy Falon will be replacing Conan O'Brien on Late Night. What do you think? Asked by *Poppet* 44 months ago Similar questions: Sounds Jimmy Falon replacing Conan O'Brien Late Night Entertainment > Television.

Similar questions: Sounds Jimmy Falon replacing Conan O'Brien Late Night.

I think it's an excellent choice... I know this makes me sound old, but I remember back when that timeslot belonged to Tom Snyder, before Late Night even existed. That show was essentially created for and by David Letterman, who made it his own for many years before moving to the earlier timeslot he'd coveted for the entire time he'd been on the air. To be honest, I kind of felt that Dave was more in his element in Late Night.

What he created by taking the helm of that show was a different kind of TV, one that really wasn't meant for the broadest base. It was, and still is, a show that is somewhat cutting edge and experimental, yet which puts you at ease as a viewer and allows you to become familiar with the flow. The great thing about the show in the early days was that you never knew exactly what was going to happen, but you knew it was going to be different and entertaining.

Anyone remember when Dave used to drop stuff off a 6 story building? Or when he dressed in a suit of velcro and jumped on a trampoline, hurtling himself to a wall of the other side of the velcro? Or when he dressed in a suit made of Alka Seltzer and had himself dipped in a tank of water?

What about Chris Elliot who got his start on Late Night as the Guy Under the Stairs, and later when he did his Marlon Brando impression where he'd come out and do the banana dance to the tune of Baby Elephant Walk? Of course Dave pioneered Top Ten Lists, Viewer Mail and Stupid Pet Tricks, but he also stood out for having really interesting and engaging guests and musical performances. Dave had a lot of people on his show years before they became extremely popular, like REM in the early 80s...and he has always let the new performers have some time on his stage.

Part of the fun in tuning in when the show was fresh was to see what off the wall guests he might have. I remember when Crispin Glover tried to kick him, or when a recurring guest, a curmudgeonly old character actor named Brother Theodore got visibly angry with him and told him that one must not try to pedal roses in a fish market when his story was not well received. Remember cartoonist Harvey Pekar (subject of the film American Splendor) who was a recurring guest on the show until he really went after GE?

It was moments like that which defined the show. Fast forward about a dozen or so years to the early 90s...Dave gets screwed over by NBC which claims that they didn't realize he wanted Carson's job, even though he pretty much joked about Johnny getting hit by a bus so he could get that timeslot every night for about a decade. But CBS stepped up to the plate, but the problem is and was that it left a big gap in that timeslot.

When Dave moved to the earlier slot, he retained a fair amount of his offbeat sense of humor, but he really had to step up to the plate and deliver a more nuanced performance, in other words, he had to lose some of his edge. But, he did so without completely wrecking the show, and he proved himself to be just an amazing interviewer and an incredibly intelligent person. To be honest, NBC maybe made the right decision from a ratings standpoint....Leno, though I detest his show, is far more adept at reaching the lowest common denominator.

There's nothing all that cutting edge about the Tonight Show these days, which is why I was excited when I heard Conan would be taking it over. Because Conan came out of relative obscurity to take over Late Night, but he had quite a pedigree behind him, having been a writer for both Saturday Night Live and the Simpsons. But he took the show over, and made it his own, injecting his own offbeat sense of absurdist humor.

Without copying Dave, he followed expertly in Dave's footsteps, showing that he could tap into that otherly quality which made the show a hit with the younger crowd and those with a little bit warped sensibilities. I remember the earliest years of Conan when Andy Richter was his sidekick and they would share this strange banter that gave the show a feel like you were hanging out with a regular guy. Which is where Dave's appeal originally came from, he was just a guy, not some stuffed shirt, or corporate shill or what not.

Like Dave, Conan has not been afraid to take the camera outside the studio setting and find unscripted comedy gold in the everday world. Another thing both have done expertly is to create a sense of spontenaety with the prepared bits. Conan has even perfected this skill a bit more than Dave did, at times making it seem like a guest was legitimate when it was all a sketch.

Not that long ago for example, he had an insect expert come on and start showing him some specimens, and when Conan asked where one of the insects had gone, the guy completely freaked out and ran off the stage screaming about certain death. It was that same quality that Dave had when the Guy Under the Stairs would pop up. Or one of the earliest Conan sketches, he had this little boy come on, and everything Conan asked him, the boy would give an even more pathetic answer than he did for the last question, about how bad his life was.

I remember this kid telling Conan that all he had for lunch was an onion. Conan also has an eye to interesting guests, especially of the musical variety. So, what both did was create this little world that really can only exist at that later timeslot, when your unwashed masses have gone to bed, and the people who are up are really looking for something different as an antidote to the contrived yet easily accessible world of prime time.

Both succeeded in this time slot because they did their own thing, and were never overtly concerned about how things are supposed to be done, or about appealing to a more mainstream audience. Dave succeeded in moving to this new world, and I suspect Conan will as well, in fact Conan has now hosted Late Night longer than Dave had when he moved to the Late Show. I think Conan will have to tone it down a bit to appeal to a broader audience, but I think he'll find his stride and find a way to appeal to both his longterm fans and the millions of new viewers he'll gain with this timeslot.

Like Dave, the show will have some of its teeth taken out, but he'll manage like Dave to keep his regular guy appeal. Which is where Fallon will also do well when he takes over. He is the typical everyman, the goofball who just kind of does his thing.

One thing that always bothered me about Fallon in SNL was that he's an awful actor, he can't keep from breaking character. Whenever he and Horatio Sanz did a sketch together, they would both almost lose it...not sure what they were both smoking that made them laugh so much, but as much as that revealed his inability to do scripted humor, it also revealed this sense of fun and playfullness, which I think is key to being successful in this time slot, as evidenced by Dave and Conan. Indeed, where Fallon seemed in his element was when he was doing the Weekend Update with Tina Fey...the two actually did seem to be able to create a chemistry that translated to something bigger than their individual talents.

Fallon's enthusiasm and sheepish grin also make him somewhat endearing, so that you never quite know what to expect...he could go from deadpan to absurdist in the blink of an eye. And beyond Saturday Night Live, he has shown himself to be rather funny. He created an album of stand up and sketch comedy called "The Bathroom Wall", which was extremely funny, and which I believe even won him a Grammy for spoken word recording.

One of the key elements of this album was his musical impressions...he too has an ear for music, but not only does he listen, he can also perform, and he can do impressions, so one of his key elements is to do sort of on the fly themed parodies of popular alternative rock songs, which not only sound impressively authentic, but which are also quite funny in the same kind of absurdist way that has always worked on Late Night. Having come up in the world of improv, Fallon I think will be well suited to create the sort of circuslike, unscripted atmosphere that Late Night has become known for at the hands of the masters who preceeded him. No, right now he is no Dave, and he is no Conan, but both Dave and Conan are different than they were when they started too.

Give him time and I think he'll surprise a lot of people. Because he is a regular guy, and the beauty of this show is that it is at its best when it's run by someone a little more green. Both Dave and Conan have stagnated to a degree, it's to be expected when you do the same thing for a long, long time.

I mean, I've lost count of how many jobs I've had since Dave and Conan took their respective spots, these guys have been going to the same place and doing the same thing day after day for a decade and a half. Their shows can't help but become like comfortable old shoes, but it's a rare surprise when one of them does something like when Dave took over the drive through window at McDonald's, or when Conan showed up unannounced with a camera crew at the apartment of one of his employees who'd called in sick to see if he really was sick or not. I expect Fallon's unique perspective on the world will allow him to create his own little Late Night...one that will follow proudly in the footsteps of those who came before him, but one which is completely his own...Jimmy's playhouse.

I expect he will be able to get a mix of good A-list guests, along with some unique people who appeal to his somewhat different set of sensibilities. I suspect he'll do well in getting musical guests. And I think he'll probably be a fairly unskilled interviewer at first, but that this quality, along with his ability to ad lib and do impressions on quick notice, will allow him to create something that is unique, unlike what you'd see on the other shows with the more seasoned interviewers.It will be amazing to see that the entire late night talk show circuit will now have eminated from that one little show, which Fallon will now be helming.

And perhaps the best thing about Fallon is his disdain for Carson Daly, who will now come AFTER Fallon on the late night talk show schedule, (remember his impression, "I'm Carson Daly, and I'm a tool. "). I have to expect that he'll be poking a little fun at his "co-worker", which was one of the great things about Dave in fact.

Dave was never shy about poking fun at his bosses, but he did it with good nature and humor, never in an outwardly hostile way...and I can never imagine Fallon getting hostile with anyone. He's good natured, but not clean cut...I love that he won't be just another stuffed suit...they guy couldn't even be bothered to comb his hair most days. S appeal with a younger crowd will also serve him well in this timeslot.

I expect he will do well and that he will be on this show for many years to come. I think a lot of people who were never really all that fond of him will come around as well, because one of the things a lot of people didn't like about him is really not a key element in this show (his poor acting ability). He's more in his element in a more spontaneous enviroment such as this one, where yes, part is scripted, but where the magic really happens is when you go off script, or just decide to do something different and see where it goes.

I can see Fallon creating a real buzz in this area, and I think that it's a smart business decision on NBC's part, and it's a smart decision creatively. He's got the look, he's got the charm, he's got the offbeat sensibility, he's got the experience, and he's got the youth. I can't imagine a better choice to be honest.

1 I would be thankful for anyone to take over for Conan O' Brien. I've tried to watch Conan and I can't stand more than a couple of minutes of his monologue and behavior. He isn't really funny at all and he acts like a complete moron on his show.

Jay Leno and David Letterman are far superior to Conan when it comes to hosting a late night talk show.

I would be thankful for anyone to take over for Conan O' Brien. I've tried to watch Conan and I can't stand more than a couple of minutes of his monologue and behavior. He isn't really funny at all and he acts like a complete moron on his show.

Jay Leno and David Letterman are far superior to Conan when it comes to hosting a late night talk show.

2 I have to agree with Bluefreedom on this one. I've tried to get get thru Conan's show and just find it's almost like he's trying too hard and is out of his league and falls in the category of a "wanna be"...sorry folks that like him. That's just my opinion for all it matters as we all have different tastes when it comes to these types of things.

I have to agree with Bluefreedom on this one. I've tried to get get thru Conan's show and just find it's almost like he's trying too hard and is out of his league and falls in the category of a "wanna be"...sorry folks that like him. That's just my opinion for all it matters as we all have different tastes when it comes to these types of things.

3 I am with the other two posters. I just don't get Conan.

I am with the other two posters. I just don't get Conan.

4 I like Conan and think he's funny. Now Jimmy Falon, THAT'S another story. Not funny at all, EVER.

Where's Conan going? .

I like Conan and think he's funny. Now Jimmy Falon, THAT'S another story. Not funny at all, EVER.

Where's Conan going?

" "What is the average number of viewers of each of the following late night shows on any given night: Leno, Conan, Carson. " "I heard them say on television a few minutes ago that next month is Conan O'Brien's last month on the Late Night Show." "Late Nite w/ Conan O'Brian" "Will Late Night with Conan O'Brien be available on DVD now that the show's over? " "How do I get the ticket to watch Late Night with Conan O'brien?

What is the average number of viewers of each of the following late night shows on any given night: Leno, Conan, Carson.

I heard them say on television a few minutes ago that next month is Conan O'Brien's last month on the Late Night Show.

I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.