David Letterman, the CBS Late Show host who's being bested in the ratings by Nightline, doesn't "know why, after the job Jay [Leno] has done for them, why they would relinquish that."
"They," of course, being NBC, which wanted to badly to hold on to Conan O'Brien they promised him the premiere Late Show spot, effectively ousting Leno — according to everybody — prematurely.
Letterman is speaking to Rolling Stone, supposedly his first real print interview since 1996, and it'd be easy to assume that he's taking a sarcastic cheap shot at his former friend-cum-nemesis, who beat him out for the Johnny Carson slot in 1993, forcing him to the less stellar CBS. The two don't exactly speak anymore, and they sometimes trade barbs. But such is the nature of the tiny world of comedy. And Letterman's comments about Leno don't come across as carpet bombs, but as a genuine olive branch to the only man who arguably makes him try harder at his own job.
Says Letterman: "I think he’d be a great guest on the show. The first night that he is out of a job, I think that would be a great situation."
As for his own future at CBS, Letterman's contract is up in 2010, and though he "would like to go beyond" that expiration date, he has a feeling the matter has already been settled. "I don’t know this for a fact, but I have a feeling that all of that has been taken care of or discussed." Sort of like the NBC transition from Leno to O'Brien was "taken care of," only to generate endless speculation about an alternative scenario.
Editorial Director
In this case, though, Dave Letterman, as always, is correct: NBC's STUPID decision to push out Jay Leno is one of television's most STUPID moves in ages. It is just simply STUPID. And you know what reality is? Reality is that Conan O'Brien does not have, and never will have, the same connection to mass audiences that Jay Leno has. If you watch all three shows, you can plainly see that each man and each show deals with different audiences–that's a fact. And each man has his own abilities and advantages and disadvantages that appeal to different sensabilities. Conan O'Brien literally does not possess the abilities to appeal to a mass American audience like Jay Leno does. He just does not have it, and he won't have it on "The Tonight Show." "The Tonight Show" will see a drop in ratings, appeal and zeitgeist appeal when O'Brien takes over, the ratings will plunge, and Dave Letterman will finally be No. 1. NBC's own stupid stupidity will finally lead to Dave Letterman besting "The Tonight Show"–and what sweet irony that will be. NBC screwed up with pushing Jay Leno out, the network will pay the price. If everyone was smart, Jay Leno would stay where he is for a good 10 years from now, and Conan O'Brien should just count his blessings, praise his good luck, and remain right where he is for the next 20 years, laughing all the way to the bank. Jay Leno should not leave "The Tonight Show" in 2009–and that's all there is to it. It's pretty simple.