Conan O'Brien to TBS

[Galaxy]

Originally Posted by Ronnie Dobbs2

The Self-Pleasuring Panda was at his live show.

Nice.

[NewIdentity]

Any ideas if Conan will be bringing Max Weinberg or Andy Richter?

[chrisj]

Originally Posted by NewIdentity

Any ideas if Conan will be bringing Max Weinberg or Andy Richter?

Andy - yes.
Max - no.
Rest of the band - yes.
Deon Cole - yes.

[molson]

Originally Posted by chrisj

Andy - yes.
Max - no.
Rest of the band - yes.
Deon Cole - yes.

There was some rumors Max would end up on the Tonight Show, but I see that Leno has his new bandleader in place now. I don't know if that changes anything.

[CrimsonFox]

Maybe Max is going to tour with Bruce again or something

[Neon_Chaos]

The Self Pleasuring Panda is a stroke of genius.

[RainMaker]

The more I thought about this move, the more it makes sense. Conan has a niche audience, similar to Jon Stewart, Chelsea Handler, and so on. He tried to broaden that audience on the Tonight Show and failed.

TBS gives him much more room to be himself. Less restrictions on his sketches and even guests. Plus, he doesn't have the pressure of needing to pull in huge numbers every night. Stewart pulls in around 1.5 million and a little more during elections and stuff. He is seen as a huge success on cable and makes a ton of money. There is no reason Conan can't draw those numbers considering George Lopez is already pulling in around 1.2 during that time.

It also works for TBS. Their demos are right in Conan's wheelhouse (younger and male) and they actually have some decent marketing pull considering how many networks they own.

[DeToxRox]

Announced today that the new show will simply be called Conan.

[Galaxy]

Originally Posted by DeToxRox

Announced today that the new show will simply be called Conan.

I see the promos have started airing. Where is the show's set located?

[PackerFanatic]

From Wiki: "On May 16, 2010, it was announced that O'Brien will launch his new show at Stage 15 on the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank, California, where Lopez Tonight also tapes, and not far from where his Tonight Show predecessor and successor Jay Leno tapes.[22]"

[molson]

Early strike against it, I think. TBS probably doesn't have a choice, they need to be economical, but NYC > LA in late night talk show venues (among other things).

[SackAttack]

I would've guessed LA just from Conan's tweet the other day about LA fall weather.

[Kodos]

[DanGarion]

Originally Posted by molson

Early strike against it, I think. TBS probably doesn't have a choice, they need to be economical, but NYC > LA in late night talk show venues (among other things).

Does it really matter? It really hasn't impacted the Tonight Show...

[larrymcg421]

The advantage of LA over NYC is better access to high profile guests. Leno has always had that advantage over Letterman. Letterman has been able to offset that somewhat by having highly loyal guests who make it a point to be on his show and hardly ever do Leno.

[molson]

Originally Posted by DanGarion

Does it really matter? It really hasn't impacted the Tonight Show...

It definitely hurts with the guests as larrymcg421 said, but I think Conan's been much less guest-reliant than the other late night talk shows. And I know these shows HAVE to have guests, but I think I must be somewhat reprentative of Conan's fan base when the guests are the part of the show I fast-forward past. Who the hell wants to listen to Maura Tierney about her latest role?

Otherwise, I think it makes a difference. When you're Manhattan, I think there's a different energy to to show than when you're on a Hollywood studio lot. Both Letterman and Conan heavily utilized their old-timey buildings, and the streets below, as sets for the show. I think Conan was filming outside the building almost every other show. You can't really do that to the same effect in LA. I remember in Conan's brief Tonight Show Run where he tried - he went to someone's swimming pool in Orange County and did a bit where he was a pool cleaner. Not quite the same.

[DeToxRox]

Conan should just make Norm a permanent guest.

[molson]

Originally Posted by DeToxRox

Conan should just make Norm a permanent guest.

Yes. He should just always be on the sofa. They wouldn't get any more guest except for Norm's comedy buddies because everyone else would be afraid of him (poor Courtney Thorne-Smith), but it would be tremendous TV.

[Young Drachma]

I keep wondering when this would be on finally. That ad told me, so that's good I guess. Should be interesting when it finally airs, provided he hasn't been totally forgotten.

[DeToxRox]

Originally Posted by molson

Yes. He should just always be on the sofa. They wouldn't get any more guest except for Norm's comedy buddies because everyone else would be afraid of him (poor Courtney Thorne-Smith), but it would be tremendous TV.

He got Thomas Hayden Church really good on the Tonight Show too.

I fucking love Norm.

[Neon_Chaos]

I always thought Conan had a solid trio of reliable guest stars who often dropped by and even did comedy bits here and there:

Tom Hanks
Will Ferrell
Norm McDonald

[molson]

Originally Posted by DeToxRox

He got Thomas Hayden Church really good on the Tonight Show too.

I fucking love Norm.

"Wait a minute - you left Melrose Place to be in a movie with Carrot Top?"

[molson]

Originally Posted by Neon_Chaos

I always thought Conan had a solid trio of reliable guest stars who often dropped by and even did comedy bits here and there:

Tom Hanks
Will Ferrell
Norm McDonald

And the latter 2 were NYC people at the time. Not sure what the deal with Hanks was, he just worked well on the show and seemed to like hanging out there.

[Neon_Chaos]

Originally Posted by molson

And the latter 2 were NYC people at the time. Not sure what the deal with Hanks was, he just worked well on the show and seemed to like hanging out there.

I love it when Hanks shows up in the wierdest segments, without being advertised.

[molson]

Originally Posted by Neon_Chaos

I love it when Hanks shows up in the wierdest segments, without being advertised.

I went to one Conan taping and it had the worst guests (I think Michelle Williams was the first one out), but it had a taped "Secrets" bit from Tom Hanks, which of course was funnier than anything that happened in the studio.

I still remember this line: "The 1998 Oscars, I found myself in the bathroom in a stall, next to Tom Selleck. So I leaned over and I said 'looks like we're a couple of peeing Toms.' His angry silence is something I'll never forget."

[Passacaglia]

I actually DVRed "Chairman of the Board" when I saw it was on TV because of the Conan episode, but couldn't get through five minutes of it.

[Logan]

Originally Posted by Passacaglia

I actually DVRed "Chairman of the Board" when I saw it was on TV because of the Conan episode, but couldn't get through five minutes of it.

Before I had knowledge of the Norm comments, and probably about 10 minutes after it opened in the theater, I remember watching Chairman of the Board when I was home "sick" from school one day.

I never played hooky again.

[sovereignstar v2]

He shall return.

[Matthean]

Originally Posted by molson

Yes. He should just always be on the sofa. They wouldn't get any more guest except for Norm's comedy buddies because everyone else would be afraid of him (poor Courtney Thorne-Smith), but it would be tremendous TV.

I finally went and tracked this down. Absolutely hilarious.

[DeToxRox]

So far so good.

[sovereignstar v2]

QUICK CHANGE THE CHANNEL GEORGE LOPEZ IS NEXT

[sovereignstar v2]

HURRY HE'S COMING!

[Butter]

Originally Posted by Matthean

I finally went and tracked this down. Absolutely hilarious.

Holy shit, that was the best.

[molson]

While we're posting Norm/Conan clips, this might be the strangest:

[RomaGoth]

The first show seemed to go ok, although it looked to me like Conan was a tad nervous. I have to yet to really see what Andy Richter brings to the show, however, and I actually like him.

[spleen1015]

Andy Ritcher ruins the whole thing for me. He is not funny and completely useless.

[lighthousekeeper]

Originally Posted by spleen1015

Andy Ritcher ruins the whole thing for me. He is not funny and completely useless.

a person they cut to for about 2 minutes of total air time ruins it for you?

[RomaGoth]

Originally Posted by spleen1015

Andy Ritcher ruins the whole thing for me. He is not funny and completely useless.

Richter is just awkward on this show, and he didn't seem to be that way in his first stint with Conan in the 90's.

[lighthousekeeper]

Originally Posted by RomaGoth

The first show seemed to go ok, although it looked to me like Conan was a tad nervous.

coked-up is how i'd describe it

[spleen1015]

Originally Posted by lighthousekeeper

a person they cut to for about 2 minutes of total air time ruins it for you?

Yeah it does. That and you always hear him laughing in the background.

If he annoys the shit out of me in the first 15 minutes like he did last night, then I'm not going to keep watching.

Maybe it is because it was on TBS and not the Tonight Show and they couldn't get any better, but Seth Rogen was shit for a first guest. The dude is a buffoon and not funny.

[sovereignstar v2]

Not having any of the ring and the titties are ya?

[RedKingGold]

I'm just glad you survived the George Lopez show.

[DeToxRox]

Early reports are a 2.8 rating with no demographic breakdown yet.

The guess from the TVByTheNumbers.com guy is a 1.5 18-34 which would almost quadruple what Lopez Tonight did last week.

Jon is obviously the guy to ask but I assume the show will be a success as long as Conan is at the levels of what Jon Stewart/Colbert combine to do?

[RomaGoth]

Originally Posted by spleen1015

Maybe it is because it was on TBS and not the Tonight Show and they couldn't get any better, but Seth Rogen was shit for a first guest. The dude is a buffoon and not funny.

Could not agree more. I will add that he is a terrible actor as well, if that is what passes as acting nowadays.

[cuervo72]

Originally Posted by spleen1015

Andy Ritcher ruins the whole thing for me. He is not funny and completely useless.

Huh. I thought he had some damned funny cracks last night.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by DeToxRox

Early reports are a 2.8 rating with no demographic breakdown yet.

The guess from the TVByTheNumbers.com guy is a 1.5 18-34 which would almost quadruple what Lopez Tonight did last week.

Jon is obviously the guy to ask but I assume the show will be a success as long as Conan is at the levels of what Jon Stewart/Colbert combine to do?

I'm guessing the tvbtn guy underguessed

‘Conan’ Premiere Averages 4.2 Million Viewers, 2.5 Adults 18-49 Rating
Conan O’Brien’s Long-Awaited Return to Late-Night Television Attracts a Young Audience with Median Age of 30
Conan O’Brien’s new TBS talk show was a hit with young viewers Monday night, delivering an audience with a projected median age of just 30. Conan – which featured guests Seth Rogen, Lea Michele and Jack White – was watched by 2,451,000 adults 18-34; 3,285,000 adults 18-49; and 4,155,000 viewers.

Here's a different blurb from B&C
'Conan' Premiere Draws 2.8 Rating - 2010-11-09 13:32:54 | Broadcasting & Cable
Conan's 2.8 beat its late night talk show competition. In metered markets, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno drew a 2.7 household rating, CBS' Late Show with David Letterman had a 2.5, ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live scored a 1.7, Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson on CBS had a 1.4 and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on NBC earned a 1.4.

Turner Broadcasting expected the first show to draw a big number, but expects the number to be about 1 million viewers when the excitement settles down.

That expectation is interesting to me, they're expecting the show to shed 3/4ths of it's debut audience, which seems kind of high no matter how I feel about CO'B personally.

I'll look for Stewart/Colbert numbers & add them in when I find them.

edit to add: Here's a reference to the late night numbers averaged for October 2010.
Jon Stewart beats rivals to late-night talkshow crown | Media | guardian.co.uk
The reference here is "adult viewers", so I'm not clear on whether this is 18-49 or 18+
1. The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (Comedy Central) - 1.3 million viewers

2. The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (NBC) - 1.2

3. Late Show with David Letterman (NBC) - 1.2

4. The Colbert Report (Comedy Central) - 900,000

5. Late Night with Jimmy Fallon (NBC) - 800,000

6. The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson (CBS) - 700,000

7. Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC) - 700,000

8. Chelsea Lately (E!) - 650,000

9. Lopez Tonight (TBS) - 450,000

That would put the Turner expectations somewhere around Colbert territory

[Subby]

Originally Posted by cuervo72

Huh. I thought he had some damned funny cracks last night.

spleen is appropriately nicknamed.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Here's a tidbit that probably belongs in the conversation somewhere as another reference point.

“Watch What Happens: Live” Fuels Bravo’s Sunday Night Programming Block with Record Ratings
Bravo’s late night talk show “WatchWhat Happens: Live,” hosted by Andy Cohen, scored its highest ratedepisodeof the season and the network’s highest rated Sunday late night telecast ever among all key demos in its new Sunday night timeslot, with 1.83 million total viewers and 1.29 million adults 18-49. The original episodes on Monday, Thursday and its new night on Sunday averaged 1.54 million total viewers and 1.03 million adults 18-49.

If that weekly average held up, it would slot Andy Cohen somewhere in the territory of Conan's expectations & Colbert.

Are you fuckin' kidding me? Not sure how many of you have seen this trainwreck of a show, I'm kind of familiar because my outside-the-demo wife watches it pretty regularly. I think last week represents a likely high water mark for it, but still, damn.

[molson]

Originally Posted by spleen1015

Andy Ritcher ruins the whole thing for me. He is not funny and completely useless.

Did you like the show the first time around? If not, I don't know why you would change your mind now anyway.

Conan does need people around in studio for bits. When Richter left, he used Max Weinberg. When Weinberg wasn't around, he used that Trombone player. He went even further down the ladder a few times. It kind of became a parody, playing off band members, often to blank stares and an utter lack of chemistry. Which was kind of funny in its own way, but it does provide a more professional feel when you actually have a professional comedian sidekick for that sort of thing.

[PackerFanatic]

I liked Andy when he was on the original Conan, but ever since he came back to the Tonight Show last year (and even last night's show), he just seems out of place.