Conan O'Brien to NBC: You Broke My Heart

By PopEater Staff Posted May 3rd 2010 06:47AM

It was his dream job, but after six months at the helm of 'The Tonight Show,' NBC squeezed Conan O'Brien out, and in his first interview the talk host says that the turmoil was much like an unexpected divorce. "I went through some stuff," O'Brien told '60 Minutes' on Sunday. "I got very depressed at times. It was like a marriage breaking up suddenly, violently, quickly. And I was just trying to figure out what happened."

NBC gave him the storied franchise, but then took it back for its old host, Jay Leno. O'Brien still can't believe it, telling CBS' Steve Kroft, "This year is still incomprehensible."

"The amount of stuff that's happened to my life in the last year ... it's gonna take me a long time to process it."

For O'Brien's wife, Liza, it was painful to watch.

"This was really really hard for him," she said. "It was watching someone's heart get broken."

She "absolutely" supported her husband's decision to leave 'Tonight.'

"It felt like they never really gave him the job. They said, 'We're going to give you this job in five years,' and they kept him with the company and he said, 'I'm in it for the long haul,' and I felt like they lost their nerve to really make a change."

O'Brien said he didn't see the point in giving everything to a relationship with NBC that seemed to have no future.

"I'm not sure these people even really want me here," he said.

O'Brien singled Leno out, saying he would have done things differently.

In a transition planned five years earlier, Leno left 'Tonight' last year and O'Brien took over. NBC worried about losing Leno to a competitor, so the network gave him a prime time show five nights a week.

That failed on two fronts: affiliates objected to Leno's low ratings and threatened to pull the show, and O'Brien's poor 'Tonight' show ratings enabled CBS' David Letterman to surge ahead to first place.

NBC tried to please both comics by offering Leno a half-hour show at 11:35 PM and letting O'Brien keep the 'Tonight' show name and begin a half hour later. O'Brien said no and Leno, who never wanted to leave 'Tonight' in the first place, slipped back into his old home.

"He went and took that show back and I think in a similar situation, if roles had been reversed, I know -- I know me, I wouldn't have done that," O'Brien said.

"If I had surrendered 'The Tonight Show' and handed it over to somebody publicly and wished them well -- and then ... six months later," he added. "But that's me, you know. Everyone's got their own, you know, way of doing things."

Asked by Kroft what he would have done, O'Brien said, "Done something else, go someplace else. I mean, that's just me."

O'Brien eventually left NBC. "This relationship is going be toxic and maybe we just need to go our separate ways," he decided. He is set to host a talk show on TBS following his comedy tour.

According to the New York Times, O'Brien held back on criticizing NBC too much because of his buyout and agreement to not disparage Leno or executives. He refused to bite when Kroft suggested he "got screwed." O'Brien responded, "No, I didn't. I'm fine."

When he's asked if Leno lobbied to regain the show, O'Brien said simply, "I don't know."

When asked if Leno acted less than honorably, O'Brien hesitated and then said, "I can't answer that."

During the few weeks between his public decision and actual exit, O'Brien became something of a folk hero. An Internet "Team Coco" tribe rose up to support him, and O'Brien's ratings soared for shows with pointed jabs about his bosses.

NBC and a Leno spokesman had no comment about O'Brien's statements.

His buyout by NBC forbade O'Brien from giving interviews that could be printed or telecast before May 1; the '60 Minutes' telecast aired May 2.

CBS' release of the interview excerpts may be a technical violation of that deal, but NBC wasn't expected to pursue it.

Tags: conan obrien

Comments

(544)

Monday 03 May

By SC

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Conan, try living in the real world where when your performance isn't up to snuff you get the boot without getting millions in return. Ask any average sales person. He didn't bring in the ratings and got canned. Move on, Bro. Is your ego THAT big?

By rdora30

Thank You! I said the same thing! Geesh!

By xjlm9x

Lowest Rank Vote down Vote up Report this

Jay Leno's ratings sucked too when he took over the show...plus Conan is fine.

By cardomegirl

What? Are you kidding me? Do you not keep up with the news? Its not about his performance at all. It was about a promise that was made to him....he hung in there and did all the work involved THEN they said "Just Kidding...Your're out of here". It was not right....doesn't matter how much money was involved. Its not about the money...its about the promise.

By Mdragon2314

Ok. Bro. You are D-bag.

By MernaR

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I agree~

By Jackson

Couldn't agree more. Big cry baby millionaire. Boo Hoo

By Dan

You are an idiot. You should be an NBC exec.

By Chanel

Well said!

By tuffpaw

The average sales person isn't given 15 minutes to prove himself. Conan was only given 6 months (probably less, but the axe was delivered in 6). Time for a reality check, Sparky.

By James

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LENO WAS PATHETIC. HE WAS CRYING BEHIND CONANS BACK AND JUMPED AT THE CHANCE TO GET HIS OLD GLORY BACK. IM SORRY, BUT LENO IS NOT THE SAME ANYMORE.

By babe

I AGREE WITH YOU JIM, TRUTH IS NOTHING EVER STAY'S THE SAME , EVERYTHING CHANGES IN OUR OWN LIFE,EVEN WHEN WE DON'T WANT THEM TOO.

By funguy

leno is great, conan is too goofy. conan should have stayed in his late spot where no one cared. nbc goofed with the change - I'm glad the late nite scene is right with the universe again.

By J M

You all foget it he had no problem with them firing Leno to give him the show.. leno did not want to go...Plus he has no problem pushing out Lopez if he can get it...

By Jeannie

Everyone could have and should have handled the situation differently. I dont feel sorry for either of them. Both are sleeping on piles more money than is humanly decent.

By Dave

Absolutely They are both making more money in a year than the average person makes in a lifetime. They are also both very funny people & make me laugh most of the time

By robben6138

Oh my. I have always liked Conan, but he's making me sick like one of his failed skits.

By Cindy

Really? I think for the load of money you got, I could fake it until I make it. Your "severance" package was through the roof. I refuse to watch the interview b/c I don't want to encourage your pity party.

By Donna

People all over the world are losing their homes, jobs, & lives & we have to watch 60 minutes of this??? At the end of the day Conan & Jay are still millionaires. Pick a place & duke it out guys. We the people have enough of our own troubles.

By Annabelle

Conan should give it up, what a baby. I didn't hear Jay crying when he was moved out of the Tonight Show spot, or casting blame on Conan. That's show business, Conan, act like a pro and move on.

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