Leno's Last Guest: Conan

Is there any joke that can save the big-chinned one?

(NEWSER) - The public has largely branded Jay Leno the villain in the Conan debacle, but if there’s anything that can repair the damage it’s a good joke right? So New York magazine asked a bunch of local comedians how The Chin should open tonight’s show. Their suggestions:

• “Ladies and gentlemen, the only reason you see me standing here is I was NBC's Plan B. Plan A involved the corpse of Johnny Carson and a lightning bolt.” —Jay Black

Tonight Show ad implies Conan O'Brien never belonged there

(NEWSER) - NBC aired the first promo for Jay Leno’s return to the Tonight Show last night, and it seems to include an underhanded dig at Conan O’Brien. The ad, a sequel to last year’s Super Bowl promo for the Jay Leno Show, shows a “10” decal flying off Leno’s sports car to reveal a new one: “11:35.” The mean part? The Beatles sing, “Get back to where you once belonged” in the background. More»

Ousting Conan was only the first step; Jimmy Fallon is next!

(NEWSER) - If you think about it, isn’t Jay Leno a lot like Hitler? After all, he's “a master of making secret demands for foreign territory and then acting like the wronged party,” reasons Joe Queenan, writing for the Wall Street Journal . Leno pretended he wanted only the first part of his old time slot, just as Hitler insisted he merely wanted to annex Sudetenland, not all of Czechoslovakia. More»

O'Brien contract talks delayed; late night trashing continues

(NEWSER) - As the late night hosts’ jabs at each other and NBC go on…and on…and on, the severance deal between Conan O’Brien and NBC continues to be delayed. TMZ reports the hold-up is over how long O’Brien will be barred from slamming the network—which he did last night...in Spanish. He also wants $600,000 added to the severance pot for his staff, which currently stands at $12 million. Still, sources say a deal should be finalized today. More»

'Tonight Show' deal appears close for O'Brien

(NEWSER) - Conan O’Brien came out swinging on last night’s Tonight Show , saying that while it's rumored he's “legally prohibited” from saying anything negative about NBC, "luckily they're not saying I can't sing anything." He then, naturally, took to song, crooning about the network’s “incompetent morons” during his monologue...and he didn't stop there (watch clips, including a bit on the Craigslist offers that have been pouring in for the show, and David Letterman's take, in the gallery). More»