Celeb Gists & Gossip

Howard Stern Warned Conan O’Brien About His Deal With Jay Leno Falling Through Even Before Leno Refused To Leave

Highlights

  • Howard Stern warned Conan O’Brien in 2006 that Jay Leno wouldn’t let him host “The Tonight Show.”
  • Stern has openly criticized Leno, calling him a robot and accusing him of sabotaging O’Brien.
  • O’Brien believed that NBC no longer wanted him on the network and decided to walk away, receiving a settlement and a new show on TBS.

Conan O’Brien has enjoyed a fruitful career which saw him writing for Saturday Night Live and The Simpsons. He eventually moved into late night television, hosting Late Night with Conan O’Brien on NBC. O’Brien briefly hosted The Tonight Show, but left NBC for TBS after a conflict over the time slot of Jay Leno’s new show. O’Brien’s TBS show Conan would also be extremely successful.

Howard Stern has made his distaste for Leno no secret over the years. A long supporter of David Letterman, Stern has seemed to take Letterman’s side in the two hosts’ rumored feud.

However, it was a comment Stern made to O’Brien during a 2006 episode of Late Night with Conan O’Brien that has many shocked in hindsight. Stern appeared to predict exactly how O’Brien’s brief time on The Tonight Show would pan out.

Howard Told Conan In 2006 That Jay Leno Wouldn’t Let Him Host ‘The Tonight Show’

Talk of Conan O’Brien possibly hosting The Tonight Show had been buzzing long before the comedian took the job. This is something Howard Stern was aware of when he appeared on Late Night with Conan O’Brien in 2006.

During his interview, Stern brought up the possibility and warned O’Brien that it might not be such a good idea.

“I don’t see this guy leaving and letting you walk in. I’m concerned about you,” Stern told O’Brien about Leno.

Stern then joked that he saw Leno as someone who “stares at the wall … and waits to go to work. He doesn’t do anything but work.”

Stern has never hid the fact that he dislikes Leno. When he appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman in 2009, he criticized Leno’s (at the time) final Tonight Show episode.

“I never liked Jay. I can’t stand Jay,” Stern told Letterman. “I’ve never seen anybody who behaves like a robot like this guy. I watched his final show, saying goodbye to The Tonight Show, reading it off a teleprompter for crying out loud. Where’s the emotion? Where’s the humanity?”

Stern then brought up O’Brien being brought in as Leno’s replacement. He joked with Letterman about having to compete with O’Brien, referencing Letterman’s rumored feud with Leno.

“This Conan O’Brien took over the Leno show. You heard about this?” Stern asked. “We got to beat this Conan. For God’s sake, how are you feeling? Jay left late night television and now you’ve got this new guy to compete with?”

Related

Craig Ferguson Told Howard Stern The Truth About His Awkward Relationship With David Letterman

Craig Ferguson said that while Letterman can be awkward, he understands where the former late night host is coming from.

In 2010, Stern continued to speak about Leno during an interview on The Early Show. In the aftermath of Leno’s return to The Tonight Show, Stern called Leno “a thief.”

“He lifts bits directly from my show,” Stern said. “‘Jay-Walking’ was lifted from my radio show!”

Stern also called Leno a “lapdog” for NBC and claimed he “sabotaged” O’Brien. Stern said Leno “makes me want to vomit.”

David Letterman Told Oprah Winfrey That Jay Leno Is Very Insecure

While speaking with Oprah Winfrey on Oprah’s Next Chapter in 2013, Letterman addressed his feud with Leno.

“Jay and I were friends — we were always friends, before all of this happened,” Letterman said, referring to the moment Leno took over Johnny Carson’s spot.

Letterman also revealed that those involved with The Tonight Show approached him to take over. Letterman asked them if Carson approved of the idea, but was told Carson didn’t know about their asking him. Letterman told them that he wouldn’t take the job unless Carson approved.

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According to Letterman, Leno was announced as Carson’s replacement shortly after that.

Letterman also told Winfrey about the time he spent with Leno in the early years. He said that whenever a fellow comic bombed, Leno would gather a group of comics to watch their performance and make fun of them. Letterman said that this would make him uncomfortable.

Related

David Letterman Once Told Oprah That Jay Leno Is ‘The Most Insecure Person I’ve Ever Known’

David Letterman and Jay Leno have a bumpy history filled with ups and downs.

“I’ve never met anyone quite like Jay. And I will say, and I’m happy to say, I think he’s the funniest guy I’ve ever known,” Letterman said.

“Just flat out. If you go and see him do his nightclub act — just the funniest, the smartest, wonderful observationist and very appealing as a comic. Therefore, the fact that he is maybe the most insecure person I have ever known — I could never reconcile that.”

Conan Said He Believed NBC No Longer Wanted Him On The Network

After O’Brien was hired as the new host for The Tonight Show, NBC decided they wanted to move his time slot. Instead, they would give the original time slot back to its previous host, Jay Leno. O’Brien decided to walk away and received a $32 million settlement and a new show on TBS.

In 2010, O’Brien reflected on the ordeal with CBS News. NBC’s decision brought them a lot of bad publicity and a large amount of public support for O’Brien followed.

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“That first day that I woke up and was no longer the host of The Tonight Show, I remember the first thought I had is ‘I am not shaving.’ And that was my small victory, you know. ‘Ok, so I lost The Tonight Show but I’ll show them, I’ll stop shaving,” O’Brien said when the reporter asked about his beard.

“This year has been, is still incomprehensible to me. The amount of stuff that’s happened in my life in the last year is…it’s gonna take me a long time to process it,” he added.

Related

Conan O’Brien Broke The News Of Robin Williams’ Death During His Show And Handled It In The Best Possible Way

The heartbreaking and unexpected news came as O’Brien was filming an episode of his talk show.

“It just felt like the tone went very quickly from, ‘Take your time, we understand this is a tough decision,’ to you know, ‘Let’s go,’” O’Brien said. “And that probably helped me a little bit feel like, ‘You know what? This environment doesn’t feel right and I’ve been with these people a long time. And I don’t like, I really don’t like the way this is going.’ And when it started to get toxic and I started to feel that I’m not sure these people even really want me here. Let’s just…I can’t do it.”

Source: NewsFinale

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