Jay Leno has joked here and there about the drama with NBC and Conan O'Brien, but on Monday night, Leno used his show to directly address the situation and his seemingly tense relationship with O'Brien.
"But through all of this - through all of this, Conan O'Brien has been a gentleman. He's a good guy. I have no animosity towards him. This is all business," Leno told his audience. Watch:
Leno opened up his statement by saying he wanted to give his audience "my view of what has been going on here at NBC." He went on to detail that in 2004, NBC essentially pushed him into retirement because Conan was getting offers from other networks. So, Jay retired.
According to Jay, NBC then wanted to keep him on their network and said to him: "'How about primetime?' I said, 'that will never work.'" He said the network executives told him it will be a hit. "People will go crazy," they told him. Leno also said NBC told him: "We guarantee you two years on the air, guaranteed. Now for the first four or five months against original shows like 'CSI' you'll get killed, but in the spring and summer when the reruns come, that's when you'll pick up.'"
Leno says he wasn't overly thrilled with NBC's idea and decision to move him back to 11:30 with a half-hour show, but he obliged.
"I said, 'Okay, I'm not crazy about doing a half hour, but okay. What do you want to do with Conan?' 'We'll put him on at midnight, or 12:05, keeps 'The Tonight Show,' does all that, he gets the whole hour.' I said, okay. You think Conan will go for that? 'Yes, yes.'
The crowd then burst into laughter, as Conan obviously didn't say yes. Instead, he's walking away from NBC and potentially being bought out for upwards of $40 million.
Jay says after he saw Conan was upset and released a statement saying he didn't want to move his show, NBC offered him the full gig. I go, 'Yeah, I'll take the show back. If that's what he wants to do. This way, we keep our people working, fine.' So that's pretty much where we are. It looks like we might be back at 11:30, I'm not sure. I don't know."
Still, Jay wanted to stress how Conan -- who many feel took the brunt of some poor decision making -- was a class act.
"Through all of this, Conan O'Brien has been a gentleman. He's a good guy. I have no animosity towards him. This is all business. If you don't get the ratings, they take you off the air. I think you know this town, you can do almost anything. You get ratings they keep you. I don't get ratings, he wants. That was NBC's solution. It didn't work so we might have an answer for you tomorrow. So, we'll see. That's basically where it is," Jay said.
You know Jay is just trying to do some spin control so he doesn`t lose what audience he has left..Poor Conan got screwed ..UH UH UH YEAHHHHH !! ALRIGHT ..FIRST !! UH UH WHAT ?? WHAT ??
Conan wasn't involved in these discussions with NBC and Leno when these decisions were being made. And... Leno wants us to believe that Conan is responsible for his lousy prime time ratings? Finger pointing sob... I won't watch him again. I'm going back to the Late Show and Letterman.
I agree. Conan should move to TBS and give Lopez a run for his money. Lopez is saying some hateful stuff about ALL of them on NBC. Leno should just retire.
ALl I can say is, Thank God for Dave! Fortunately, Jay's second time of kicking someone out of a gig NBC had promised them is going to fail. No matter. Dave is best...if you want to see what Jay will be doing next month, watch Dave today.
Leno has poor ratings, as expected in that time slot. The network screwed up and, even though it was predicted, now they want to switch everything back the way it was. Leno didn't want to retire in the first place, so is willing to go back to the Tonight Show. Conan is slightly getting screwed, but is going to walk away with millions of dollars and can go to other gigs, whether on TV as a host, or in Vegas, New York, or Branson.
The ones _really_ getting screwed are Conan's crew, who moved from NY to LA, and now have no jobs to support their new homes.
I THINK JAYS SHOW IS MUCH BETTER THAN CONANS THE REASON I DIDNT WATCH IT WHEN IT WENT TO 10, WAS " I FORGOT I FORGOT I FORGOT. I THINK A LOT OF OTHER PEOPLE DID TOO. LEAVE IT ALONE TILL HE RETIRES. THANK YOU I NEVER WATCH CONAN ANYWAY.
I am utterly amazed by some of the responses here, saying boo hoo Conan and that Conan is a crybaby. I have to wonder just how many of you actually paid attention to that clip. Leno flat out admitted that this was all done behind closed doors, and that Conan was never asked about any of this as it was being planned.
Is this right? I don't think so. And just how could Conan be the ratings king in just a few months? Remember now,that Leno said all of this began 4 months after he went to the 10 PM time slot. Conan never heard a peep until 7 months into his reign at the Tonight Show. This backdoor planning was no other than a paid hit agains Conan. I say it's one step away from being a murder plot. NBC has lost a viewer. Not just any particular program. I mean I will never watch a single NBC program again. I will not give my attention to any place that would so openly scew their people over. I urge others to make their own decisions and do the same...
You got to be kidding me! Conan tanked at 7 months of viewership! if he was killing numbers it wouldnt even be a question! Conan is no more a victim then Jay Leno ,just a bigger fricken cry baby!!!!!!!!man up dude i always liked you now im not so sure?
I agree. He is trying to do spin control. First of all, they set Conan up to fail from the begining by putting Jay Leno in primetime. Aside from the fact that Jay's show had terrible ratings as a lead in to the Tonight Show (it's bad when they say you're "killing the local news" because of the failure of your show), by the time Conan is on Jay has already told the jokes. The Tonight show is supposed to be the flagship show that the others follow. Conan was left to once again follow Jay. They also did not give Conan the time to establish himself as the new host the way they did with Leno. Leno's rating were not great when he took over the tonight show. He was second to Letterman for some time before being on top. I just think this suck. Conan is funny and has proven to be a man of character through all of this (he is the same guy that paid his staff out of his own pocket during the writer's strike). He did his part and NBC (Leno included) did not hold up to their end of the bargain. I have literally watch Conan since he started on Late Night while I was in high school. I watch him evrynight and DVR it when I can't. I truly disappointed that he will no longer be on (at least for now). I do one thing for sure and that is I will never watch the Jay Leno and the Tonight Show again.
I prefer Jay Leno they prefer him and you know that you prefer him as well . First and foremost Jay holds your attention more than this other host what's his name oh yeah! the Conan fellow. I really would like to say that I beleive Jay Leno is better hosting his Tonight Show at 11:30pm I am condition to that time slot for Jay Leno. Conan seems not to have what it takes for me and lots of other veiwers, also he seem to be personally insulting to certain guest and it's not right if you know what i mean.
Conan wanted the Tonight Show or he was going to move on to another network. Conan was the greedy one. But, the problem is that not that many people like him or his humor. So, he failed. Now he wants to blame everyone else. Well, I don't feel to sorry for him. He will get a lot of money out of this deal. I feel sorry for the people who followed him. Big mistake. Conan was looking out for no one but himself. He thought he was the greatest, but he is not.
@ Mike - if you're going to say someone's an idiot then at least know the difference between your and you're. I'll let you guess which one you should've used.
Conan got screwed by NBC. I can't say I feel terribly sorry for him as he walking away with many millions of dollars, but if he was actually given a chance to succeed it probably would've been a solid show. As it is either Jay or NBC decided that Leno should pull a Brett Farve and "retire" to another time slot.
I think leno is still the king of tonight show, only reason keep missing his new time slot because I kept forgetting....he should have stayed at his old time slot, whatever the show is called.
Leroy, Dude, GET A LIFE!!! Everywhere I look, I see YOUR STUPID POST FIRST, UH, UH, UH... you're such a freakin' JERK!! Do something constructive with your life besides being so damn annoying, Dude!!!
Jay Leno has joked here and there about the drama with NBC and Conan O'Brien, but on Monday night, Leno used his show to directly address the situation and his seemingly tense relationship with O'Brien. 
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You know Jay is just trying to do some spin control so he doesn`t lose what audience he has left..Poor Conan got screwed ..UH UH UH YEAHHHHH !! ALRIGHT ..FIRST !! UH UH WHAT ?? WHAT ??
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Conan wasn't involved in these discussions with NBC and Leno when these decisions were being made. And... Leno wants us to believe that Conan is responsible for his lousy prime time ratings? Finger pointing sob... I won't watch him again. I'm going back to the Late Show and Letterman.
I agree. Conan should move to TBS and give Lopez a run for his money. Lopez is saying some hateful stuff about ALL of them on NBC. Leno should just retire.
ALl I can say is, Thank God for Dave! Fortunately, Jay's second time of kicking someone out of a gig NBC had promised them is going to fail. No matter. Dave is best...if you want to see what Jay will be doing next month, watch Dave today.
I think Conan is acting like a spoiled brat.Work together guys you have families to feed (people that work for you)
Leno has poor ratings, as expected in that time slot. The network screwed up and, even though it was predicted, now they want to switch everything back the way it was. Leno didn't want to retire in the first place, so is willing to go back to the Tonight Show. Conan is slightly getting screwed, but is going to walk away with millions of dollars and can go to other gigs, whether on TV as a host, or in Vegas, New York, or Branson.
The ones _really_ getting screwed are Conan's crew, who moved from NY to LA, and now have no jobs to support their new homes.
I THINK JAYS SHOW IS MUCH BETTER THAN CONANS THE REASON I DIDNT WATCH IT WHEN IT WENT TO 10, WAS " I FORGOT I FORGOT I FORGOT. I THINK A LOT OF OTHER PEOPLE DID TOO. LEAVE IT ALONE TILL HE RETIRES. THANK YOU I NEVER WATCH CONAN ANYWAY.
I am utterly amazed by some of the responses here, saying boo hoo Conan and that Conan is a crybaby. I have to wonder just how many of you actually paid attention to that clip. Leno flat out admitted that this was all done behind closed doors, and that Conan was never asked about any of this as it was being planned.
Is this right? I don't think so. And just how could Conan be the ratings king in just a few months? Remember now,that Leno said all of this began 4 months after he went to the 10 PM time slot. Conan never heard a peep until 7 months into his reign at the Tonight Show. This backdoor planning was no other than a paid hit agains Conan. I say it's one step away from being a murder plot. NBC has lost a viewer. Not just any particular program. I mean I will never watch a single NBC program again. I will not give my attention to any place that would so openly scew their people over. I urge others to make their own decisions and do the same...
You got to be kidding me! Conan tanked at 7 months of viewership! if he was killing numbers it wouldnt even be a question! Conan is no more a victim then Jay Leno ,just a bigger fricken cry baby!!!!!!!!man up dude i always liked you now im not so sure?
Leroy whats up... what up.... yo What Up... mo fo WHAT UP??
I agree. He is trying to do spin control. First of all, they set Conan up to fail from the begining by putting Jay Leno in primetime. Aside from the fact that Jay's show had terrible ratings as a lead in to the Tonight Show (it's bad when they say you're "killing the local news" because of the failure of your show), by the time Conan is on Jay has already told the jokes. The Tonight show is supposed to be the flagship show that the others follow. Conan was left to once again follow Jay. They also did not give Conan the time to establish himself as the new host the way they did with Leno. Leno's rating were not great when he took over the tonight show. He was second to Letterman for some time before being on top. I just think this suck. Conan is funny and has proven to be a man of character through all of this (he is the same guy that paid his staff out of his own pocket during the writer's strike). He did his part and NBC (Leno included) did not hold up to their end of the bargain. I have literally watch Conan since he started on Late Night while I was in high school. I watch him evrynight and DVR it when I can't. I truly disappointed that he will no longer be on (at least for now). I do one thing for sure and that is I will never watch the Jay Leno and the Tonight Show again.
Your an idiot
To all that should be concern:
I prefer Jay Leno they prefer him and you know that you prefer him as well . First and foremost Jay holds your attention more than this other host what's his name oh yeah! the Conan fellow. I really would like to say that I beleive Jay Leno is better hosting his Tonight Show at 11:30pm I am condition to that time slot for Jay Leno. Conan seems not to have what it takes for me and lots of other veiwers, also he seem to be personally insulting to certain guest and it's not right if you know what i mean.
Thank you kindly
Georgeann Brown
Brooklyn N.Y.
Conan wanted the Tonight Show or he was going to move on to another network. Conan was the greedy one. But, the problem is that not that many people like him or his humor. So, he failed. Now he wants to blame everyone else. Well, I don't feel to sorry for him. He will get a lot of money out of this deal. I feel sorry for the people who followed him. Big mistake. Conan was looking out for no one but himself. He thought he was the greatest, but he is not.
Leno has a foot hold on the low IQ viewer ratings.
@ Mike - if you're going to say someone's an idiot then at least know the difference between your and you're. I'll let you guess which one you should've used.
Conan got screwed by NBC. I can't say I feel terribly sorry for him as he walking away with many millions of dollars, but if he was actually given a chance to succeed it probably would've been a solid show. As it is either Jay or NBC decided that Leno should pull a Brett Farve and "retire" to another time slot.
I think leno is still the king of tonight show, only reason keep missing his new time slot because I kept forgetting....he should have stayed at his old time slot, whatever the show is called.
Leroy, Dude, GET A LIFE!!! Everywhere I look, I see YOUR STUPID POST FIRST, UH, UH, UH... you're such a freakin' JERK!! Do something constructive with your life besides being so damn annoying, Dude!!!
Jay knows how to bend over on the casting couch. Kudos to Conan for not accepting to play second fiddle.
conan got screwed ? screw me like that any day. He was handed a couple million and then another show on another net work !