Jay Leno = Class

NBC draws the comparison among hosts with their "only the fourth host of The Tonight Show" ads so I'll stand by the fairness of comparing them.

Agreed that Norm Macdonald is a loose cannon, but then it seems to me that good comedy is knowing how to point that cannon. Norm is not always too good at it.

I don't know enough to know if Leno knew so many years ago when he announced his successor that his contract would not be renewed. It seemed self-defined and it seems odd the suits' would tip their hand like that if it was their idea. But maybe they were thinking of Carson's departure.

I hope both do well, too.

The thing that makes post-prime time interesting is that you get to learn more about the host than you might want to know. They get to that position by being able to nominally hold an audience but they get to stay by being interesting in revealing themselves over the course of years. Jack Paar basically broke down on the air and it was riveting TV. We knew more about Carson's marriages they we needed to, etc. The current king of this dance seems to me to be Craig Ferguson: we know about the broken building he works in, what he thinks of his bosses, that he's a reformed alcoholic/druggie, etc. For now it's amazing to watch but he may be burning out too quickly as he heats the late night up. Leno may not be able to be interesting in this fashion in prime time, but the Smothers Brothers were so we'll see in the fall.

I didn't compare Leno to Carson. Jay Leno surely didn't. It's unfair to make that comparison, imo.

I'll waste some time on Norm MacDonald: He shouldn't air private conversations in public especially when both parties haven't consented. Conan wasn't expecting it and Norm shouldn't have made it public. It reveals a character flaw in Norm.

I felt it was a classy way to go out. Leno certainly handled the transition better than Carson did. Leno devoted much of his last show to introducing his audience to his successor instead of saying "You're on your own, kid".

As for suits, well, NBC, or more appropriately GE as Jay/Conan discussed Jeff Immelt, is trying to protect an important brand Conan is now responsible for. I can't blame Leno for that. I bet it wasn't Leno's idea to leave the Tonight Show in the first place. It was some suit's idea to also give Leno 10 p.m. so he wouldn't end up on Fox or ABC competing with Conan. That helps Conan more than anyone.

I hope both men do well.

i wouldn't call leno an ass, but i will say that the last episode of late night with conan was way better than the last episode of leno's tonight show. completely hilarious and kind of a tearjerker too. i'm excited to see what conan does with the show. he's a class act as well.

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...drop the letters "cl" fix the equation in your title

http://tinyurl.com/klkt2o

Norm Macdonald mentioned on a recent Conan show that O'Brien had confided in private to Macdonald (before the Leno move to 10 p.m. was known) that he would be happy never to have to follow Leno again.

http://tinyurl.com/nhsx6a

Sorry for the double posting; the links were lost in the first one.

Not everyone thinks Leno is the definition of class. Indeed, some think it more accurate to drop the letters "cl" fix the equation in your title.

And really, compared to Johnny Carson, he's quite far from him as an ideal. O'Brien, in appearing on Leno's last show, made the best of a bad situation. He reminded us of how many Suits were overlooking every aspect of this transition and was willing to work with it for its comic aspects. But Norm Macdonald mentioned on a recent Conan show that O'Brien had confided in private to Macdonald (before the Leno move to 10 p.m. was known) that he would be happy never to have to follow Leno again.

It's not hard or gracious to say a simple goodbye when you'll be on vacation for the summer only to return again in the fall. Your classmates did it when you were in school and that didn't = class.

Not everyone thinks Leno is the definition of class. Indeed, some think it more accurate to drop the letters "cl" fix the equation in your title.

And really, compared to Johnny Carson, he's quite far from him as an ideal. O'Brien, in appearing on Leno's last show, made the best of a bad situation. He reminded us of how many Suits were overlooking every aspect of this transition and was willing to work with it for its comic aspects. But Norm Macdonald mentioned on a recent Conan show that O'Brien had confided in private to Macdonald (before the Leno move to 10 p.m. was known) that he would be happy never to have to follow Leno again (see first clip).

It's not hard or gracious to say a simple goodbye when you'll be on vacation for the summer only to return again in the fall. Your classmates did it when you were in school and that didn't = class.