Conan To Leave NBC, No Plans To Join Rivals

by Wayne Friedman , David Goetzl , January 12, 2010

Conan O'Brien/NBC Photo

In an extraordinary statement in which he turned somber, Conan O'Brien indicated Tuesday he would be leaving NBC -- unless the network changes its mind. An NBC spokeswoman said the network declines comment.

He said he would not be accepting NBC's offer to host "The Tonight Show," starting at 12:05 a.m. Separately, he said he has no deal to move to Fox or another network were he to leave.

Apparently believing he is out the door, he took multiple shots at the network.

O'Brien, who is being displaced in the 11:35 p.m. time slot by Jay Leno, blamed NBC's lackluster prime-time ratings for hurting "The Tonight Show's" performance. He assailed NBC for failing to give him time to build an audience that would allow his ratings to top David Letterman's on CBS.

"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," O'Brien said. "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."

After Leno took over "The Tonight Show" and began going head-to-head with Letterman in 1993, he trailed the CBS showman's ratings for about two years before pulling ahead in 1995. He stayed there until he stepped aside for O'Brien in June.

By O'Brien's logic, Leno has had at least some role in hurting his "Tonight Show" results. NBC has been airing "The Jay Leno Show" in the 10 p.m. slot since September. And the ratings have been below the dramas that have traditionally aired in the hour. Those helped lead an audience through the late news to "The Tonight Show."

O'Brien and his representatives released the statement low on humor, save for its beginning and end. It was addressed to "People of Earth" and ended with an apology about "my hair."

Absent that, O'Brien said that since 2004, he has spent hundreds of hours thinking about how to make "Tonight" the enduring hit it has always been. And while biding his time, he says he has turned down multiple lucrative offers to go elsewhere.

He said "no one should waste a second feeling sorry for me ... in a world with real problems, I've been absurdly lucky." But O'Brien added that leaving "The Tonight Show" would be "an enormous personal disappointment.

"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," O'Brien said.

O'Brien also said that despite any interest from Fox about him hosting a late-night show there, he has no offer and has "no idea what happens next."

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8 comments about "Conan To Leave NBC, No Plans To Join Rivals".

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Mike Einstein from the Brothers Einstein, January 13, 2010 at 9:49 a.m.
In a virtually limitless-channel media universe, the importance of a lead-in only makes sense if you conclude that the beleaguered consumer is too lazy to push a button.
This antiquated lead-in strategy held dubious weight even back when real effort was required to change channels, but continuing to plan on - let alone rely upon - audience carryover does modern media theory and practice a tremendous disservice.
Conan O'Brien's numbers aren't hurt by his lead-in or lack thereof. They're bad because folks have decided they don't want to watch, period.
Are we to blame Jay Leno's crappy numbers on his five lead-ins per week? If that's the case, then NBC's problems are much bigger than the leviathan egos involved.
Speaking of lead-ins, that whining you hear is Jeff Zucker blaming things on the guy who had the job before him.
Reply

Anissa Wardell from The Publicists Assistant, January 13, 2010 at 9:50 a.m.

It's sad. I like Conan, although for years after Leno said he was leaving, I knew the day would come when I wouldn't want to watch the Tonight Show. Nothing personal, but Conans style just matches a later time slot, at least thats how I see it. I hope someone snatches Conan up though, he is tremendously funny, and deserves the best.

Jonathan Mirow from BroadbandVideo, Inc., January 13, 2010 at 12:34 p.m.

Conan gone? Non-event. Buh-Bye. In case you hadn't noticed there's video all over the web, hundreds of cable channels, hell - there's even video on my phone. The glory days of the tonight show are so far gone even an old dog like me can't remember them. Let's move forward...

Marla Goldstein from Around The Bend Media, January 13, 2010 at 3:36 p.m.

@Mike Einstein Finally, a voice of reason in this entire kerfuffle. All this talk of lead-ins seems to ignore remote controls. That being said, viewing to dayparts other than prime is highly habitual and trying to change those patterns is like trying to reroute an ocean liner. It's done only very slowly, in barely visible increments.

Depending on who you believe, Conan didn't take the notes that the network offered on how to make his vision for TTS appealing to NBC's core audience. He really only has himself to blame for the loss of viewers/audience.

WRT to Zucker, I have no words. At least, no good ones.

Carol Williams from Media Dynamics Inc, January 13, 2010 at 4:35 p.m.

The fact of life for late night talk-variety shows is that they “inherit” 50-60% of their audience from the late newscasts on the affiliates that air them. This has always been a key factor—in the case of Jack Paar, Johnny Carson and Leno—and is an important boost for CBS’s David Letterman as well. In contrast, a Fox lineup includes fewer stations and generally weaker late news lead-ins, although the local 11pm reports on all stations are no longer the rating draws they once were.

Compounding this, O’Brien’s low key approach indicates that he doesn’t exude the energy required to capture and hold as many half-asleep, nocturnal viewers as his potential rivals, Leno in particular. So if O’Brien ankles NBC and is grabbed by Fox, we see him coming in a lame third in the Nielsen’s while Leno recaptures the rating lead from Letterman, who easily bested O’Brien in their brief faceoff.

Frankly, our advice to O’Brien would be that he quietly take back his old spot, behind The Tonight Show, and stay with NBC—if the network will have him. He looks like “damaged goods” now.

Greg Hall from Yebol, January 13, 2010 at 6:35 p.m.

It's true, as Jonathon noted, late night TV has been sooo diluted by so many other venues of content that it's hard to see its significance, except that its total absence represents a hole in core network programming.
Conan, Anderson Cooper...there's a small handful of talented people in a fastly fractionating new media environment. It's hard for me to feel sorry for them, though.;-)

Marla Goldstein from Around The Bend Media, January 13, 2010 at 8:18 p.m.

And who does Letterman blame for his crappy numbers until Leno left TTS in May? CBS was certainly giving him a hefty 10pm lead-in. Late Night, like all the fringe dayparts, is habitual. Viewers like their comforts. Ain't gonna change and not in the lifetime of anyone who's posting here.

Christina Ricucci from Millenia 3 Communications, January 15, 2010 at 1:04 p.m.

Regarding the issue of lead-ins: this isn't about leading into TTS or any of the other late-night shows FROM the local news. It's about the 11pm local newscast on NBC affiliates suffering big time from the fact that people are tuning away from NBC in the 10pm hour because of a crappy show.

Look over the years at the $$ success of the local 11pm newscasts when they followed ER, Hill Street Blues, Law & Order, NYPD Blue, Crossing Jordan, etc. Lots of people catch the 11pm news on whatever channel they were watching at 10. People aren't married to favorite newscasts at 11 the way they are at 6:30 or 7.

But the fact remains that there's no possible way any of this could be a surprise. What's happening today is exactly what was predicted last year when NBC made this ridiculous move. I'm nobody in television and I knew without a doubt that a Leno show couldn't work at 10. Jeff Zucker is an arrogant idiot who thinks he can single-handedly change the way Americans watch television. Yes, it is now changing and will continue to change or evolve over time, as it has for 60 years, but 10pm isn't late night television and Leno simply isn't a prime time guy.

Zucker reminds me a little of G.W. Bush who suggested that "you don't have to make A's or have a great mind to become President". Only with Zucker it's "you don't have to know anything about developing programming or managing talent to become rich in 4th place". I have a feeling NBC will soon be pining for the days when they were #4.