Conan vs. Jay vs. NBC

If you haven’t been following the events surrounding the late night schedule, you really need to!  Here’s the quick run down on what you’ve missed.

• 5 years ago NBC signed Conan O’Brien signed a long term deal with NBC that would guarantee his future hosting of The Tonight Show within 5 years.  If Conan wasn’t promoted to The Tonight Show then he would be awarded approx 45 million for breech of contract.
• 7 months ago, Conan took over the tonight show per the contract and Jay Leno moved his show to 10 pm
• The ratings of both Conan’s and Jay’s shows struggle at their new time slots which put pressure on many local NBC affiliates because they Leno show wasn’t pulling decent ratings leading into their local broadcasts which air from 11:00 – 11:35.
• Pressure from local NBC affiliates forces NBC to action and after totally fumbling the publicity ball they eventually decide to move Jay’s show back to the 11:35 time slot (while cutting his show back to an 1/2 hour) and moving Conan back to 12:05 and the followed by Jimmy Fallon at 1:05.
• Left in a precarious position, Conan is left to decide if he will take the perceived demotion to 12:15.
• Conan releases the following statement and waits for NBC to answer:

People of Earth:
In the last few days, I’ve been getting a lot of sympathy calls, and I want to start by making it clear that no one should waste a second feeling sorry for me. For 17 years, I’ve been getting paid to do what I love most and, in a world with real problems, I’ve been absurdly lucky. That said, I’ve been suddenly put in a very public predicament and my bosses are demanding an immediate decision.

Six years ago, I signed a contract with NBC to take over The Tonight Show in June of 2009. Like a lot of us, I grew up watching Johnny Carson every night and the chance to one day sit in that chair has meant everything to me. I worked long and hard to get that opportunity, passed up far more lucrative offers, and since 2004 I have spent literally hundreds of hours thinking of ways to extend the franchise long into the future. It was my mistaken belief that, like my predecessor, I would have the benefit of some time and, just as important, some degree of ratings support from the prime-time schedule. Building a lasting audience at 11:30 is impossible without both.

But sadly, we were never given that chance. After only seven months, with my Tonight Show in its infancy, NBC has decided to react to their terrible difficulties in prime-time by making a change in their long-established late night schedule.

Last Thursday, NBC executives told me they intended to move the Tonight Show to 12:05 to accommodate the Jay Leno Show at 11:35. For 60 years the Tonight Show has aired immediately following the late local news. I sincerely believe that delaying the Tonight Show into the next day to accommodate another comedy program will seriously damage what I consider to be the greatest franchise in the history of broadcasting. The Tonight Show at 12:05 simply isn’t the Tonight Show. Also, if I accept this move I will be knocking the Late Night show, which I inherited from David Letterman and passed on to Jimmy Fallon, out of its long-held time slot. That would hurt the other NBC franchise that I love, and it would be unfair to Jimmy.

So it has come to this: I cannot express in words how much I enjoy hosting this program and what an enormous personal disappointment it is for me to consider losing it. My staff and I have worked unbelievably hard and we are very proud of our contribution to the legacy of The Tonight Show. But I cannot participate in what I honestly believe is its destruction. Some people will make the argument that with DVRs and the Internet a time slot doesn’t matter. But with the Tonight Show, I believe nothing could matter more.

There has been speculation about my going to another network but, to set the record straight, I currently have no other offer and honestly have no idea what happens next. My hope is that NBC and I can resolve this quickly so that my staff, crew, and I can do a show we can be proud of, for a company that values our work.

Have a great day and, for the record, I am truly sorry about my hair; it’s always been that way.

Yours,

Conan

• The internet is inundated with support for Conan producing slogans like “I’m with Coco.” (above)

Now we all wait and see what happens.  From what I understand, NBC will be in a breech of contract if they move the time of The Tonight Show, even if the title is retained.  As of right now, Conan now has 3 options: 1. Walk away and sue for breech of contract 2. Move to 12:05 and suck it up 3. Move to another network (allegedly FOX has been courting Conan) where he wouldn’t be pain as much but NBC would probably still be on the hook for the difference in salaries.  So in conclusion, I’m with Coco!  Are you?