Feb 19 2009
Conan and Jimmy and the Late Night Switch
Tomorrow night is Conan O’Brien’s last show in the 12:35/11:35c late night timeslot. Jimmy Fallon takes over his spot on March 2. Later this year, Conan will replace Jay Leno as The Tonight Show host at 11:35/10:35c slot, while Leno will move to his own primetime show in the 10/9c spot. Anyone confused yet? This is almost as tough as deciphering Lost…
Here is a great clip of Jimmy Fallon on Conan O’Brien’s Late Night show on February 11 of this year. The two actually have great rapport–sometimes two comedians on a talk show gets awkward as they step all over each other’s jokes, but these two make for a great partnership. *WARNING* Just so you know, there’s a bit of a graphic clip towards the end of the video, because Jimmy filmed his recent eye surgery. The clip is short, but I just wanted you to be aware it’s there in case you find it squicky.
I’m happy to see Fallon more energetic and slightly more at ease in this format. I can remember seeing him in interviews where he was huddled up in the chair, nervously bouncing his legs like a teenager. I’ve been wondering how he’s going to handle conducting interviews–especially since his first guest on the show will be Robert DeNiro. Maybe DeNiro’s loosened up in his later years, but I can remember him being extremely reticent and not exactly thrilled at being on talk shows. I’m not sure who decided that would be a great first interview, unless they’re hoping it will be completely insane. It is the past midnight spot, so zaniness has always been part of the territory. We’ll have to see how it turns out!
Watch the Late Night with Conan O’Brien show this week at 12:35/11:35c on NBC. Then watch Jimmy Fallon take over on March 2.
