Letterman Baffled by NBC’s Replacing of Leno

By BRIAN STELTER
New York Times
Published: September 2, 2008
                                                                                                
David Letterman, the CBS host who has competed with Jay Leno every weeknight for 15 years, now feels empathy for his late-night challenger.

In an interview with Rolling Stone on newsstands this week, Mr. Letterman, the longtime “Late Show” host, expresses bewilderment about NBC’s decision, first announced four years ago, to replace Mr. Leno next year with Conan O’Brien, the current host of “Late Night.”

“Unless I’m misunderstanding something, I don’t know why, after the job Jay has done for them, why they would relinquish that,” Mr. Letterman said in the interview. “I guess they thought it was a less messy way to handle what happened to me at NBC. I don’t know.”

Mr. Letterman famously moved from NBC to CBS in 1993 after Mr. Leno replaced Johnny Carson on NBC’s “Tonight” show, establishing one of the foremost rivalries on television. Asked by the interviewer Jason Gay whether he empathizes with Mr. Leno’s situation, Mr. Letterman said: “I guess empathy is the right word. It’s hard to know what he felt about it. I have to believe he was not happy about it.”

In what the magazine called Mr. Letterman’s first in-depth print interview since 1996, he even offers Mr. Leno a spot on his couch, saying: “I think he’d be a great guest on the show. The first night that he is out of a job, I think that would be a great situation.”

Mr. Letterman, 61, who has been a late-night host for 26 years, said he would love to continue at CBS when his contract expires in two years.

“The way I feel now, I would like to go beyond 2010, not much beyond, but you know, enough to go beyond,” Mr. Letterman said, pointedly noting that “you always like to be able to excuse yourself on your own terms.” He added that if CBS wanted to “make a change in 2010, you know, I’m fine with that, too.”

In the interview Mr. Letterman spends more time talking about the succession plan at NBC than he does his own future. Mr. Leno’s last edition of “Tonight” is scheduled for May 29, 2009. Mr. O’Brien is expected to take over on June 1. Mr. Letterman apparently harbored doubts about whether his former network would go forward with the plan. “I’m not quite sure why they would do that, so much so that one wonders if that’s actually what’s going to happen,” he said, later adding that it “just seemed so preposterous to me.”

But NBC reaffirmed the plans in May with the hiring of Jimmy Fallon as the future host of Mr. O’Brien’s “Late Night.”

“It’s only until recently that I felt this thing had traction,” Mr. Letterman said.

Mr. Letterman has ranked No. 2 behind Mr. Leno, who is 58, for more than a decade. Mr. Letterman acknowledges in the article, “I wish that we — and when I say ‘we’ I mean ‘me’ — I wish I could have prevailed.” But he concludes by saying that the reason for the ratings lies not in the local-news lead-ins of the two networks or the promotions of their shows, but in the difference between the two men. “I think he has greater appeal for more people than I do,” he said simply.

So far this season Mr. Leno’s “Tonight” show has averaged an audience of 4.8 million, while Mr. Letterman’s “Late Show” has averaged 3.5 million.

“It seems unlikely that now, after years and years of trying under a wide variety of circumstances and advantages and disadvantages, that suddenly I’m going to prevail,” Mr. Letterman said. “You can’t go through life fooling yourself. You have to be honest with the situation. That’s fine.”

That said, next year’s transition on NBC may present a new opportunity for Mr. Letterman. He told Rolling Stone that he had not given much thought to the forthcoming competition with Mr. O’Brien because “I still find it hard to believe that Jay won’t be there.”

Hinting at the late-night turmoil at NBC, Mr. Letterman said he would be surprised if a similar situation played out at CBS. When asked who might replace him at CBS, Mr. Letterman said, “I don’t know this for a fact, but I have a feeling that all of that has been taken care of or discussed.”

he even offers Mr. Leno a spot on his couch, saying: “I think he’d be a great guest on the show. The first night that he is out of a job, I think that would be a great situation.”  I think Dave is a class act, considering everything that went down with NBC. It will be interesting to see what happens to the "Tonight Show" with Conan running the show. I hope they keep Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, but I guess the Masterbaiting Bear is out!

Frankly I'm not really a fan of Conan - he's too "Vaudeville" and less "stand up" ... Leno always had the more "intelligent" humor and more of the "talk show" demeanor - not going after a cheap crass potty  laugh.  NBC is making a mistake.

If there really must be a new host, get a "new host" - not "old hand-me-downs".  At least get someone like Martin Short.  Put "more of the same" out to pasture.

Leno was the one who had "intelligent" humour?  I'm guessing you're over 40.  Wait, I'll go with 50.

As one who is well over 50 .. well over 60 .. and is a certified Letterman fan, to the extent that you need to pay me to watch Leno .. I don't understand the ageism bias of the last poster.

Why does getting old turn one into a Jay watcher.  That's not my story.

Quoted from thanksfrthat

Leno was the one who had "intelligent" humour?  I'm guessing you're over 40.  Wait, I'll go with 50.

That's because the 30 and under crowd these days needs to keep their elementary school "potty" humor - they're too young to for the genious of George Carlin types.  After all I did say "intelligent humor" and you said "over 40 - wait, I'll go with 50" - ergo, you must be 20 - 34?

I notice all these shows, with "comedians" at the helm garner only applause and few laughs from the studio audience.

Carson made me laugh. RIP, Johnny  


They need someone of the Chris Farley mold...that would be funny  

Age has nothing to do with it, But I do believe that Jay is too vanilla for me. Letterman always takes a risk, did anyone see the Paris Hilton interview? He ripped into her, it was great exposing her as the no-talent hack that she is. Leno is way too nice.... he's like that guy that girls keep as just a friend. I think its time for Jay to make way for Conan.

I wouldn't be surprised if ABC hires Jay Leno and puts him on in the 11:35pm slot. They could move Nightline to the 12:35am slot or cancel it all together. I think it would be a no-brainer for ABC to hire Jay.

How many under 30's watch either Leno OR Letterman?

15? 20?

Face it, they are for old fogeys. Conan just isn't funny at all.
Why the big hulaballoo about getting rid of Leno so they don't lose Conan?
Stay, go, who cares.

I watch Leno on occasion.  Letterman never.  Stewart and Colbert religiously.

They are good, and get laughs too...imagine that  

Quoted from paddyboyy

They need someone of the Chris Farley mold...that would be funny  

Give me a break.  Farley had one bit, and that would get old really fast.

in this year of the black presidential candidate, is it time for another Black talk show host?  Who would be this decade's version of Arsenio?  

Conan comes across as too much of a smart-ass.  When Craig Ferguson eventually goes head to head with him, CBS will regain the coveted Late Night title.  

Leno beats Letterman in the monologue dep't, wheras Letterman has the better bits IMHO.  Altho' I do look forward to Leno's Headlines and his 99 cent store bits.  

I agree with Letterman's analysis of why he loses to Leno.  There are a few other things in the equation, like Leno is on in a few more markets among other things.   But at the end of the day Leno beating Letterman is the same thing as when a lite AC beats an edgy rock station in a radio market.  The safe choice isn't necessarily the better show.