The way it is: Leno-Conan transition parallels Cronkite-Rather
A TV personality is at the top of his game in the ratings, but his underling wants a shot too and may jump to a rival network, so a plan is hatched to ease the aging incumbent out and put in the younger up-and-comer.
Jay Leno and Conan O'Brien?
No, Walter Cronkite and Dan Rather. In all the celebrations of Cronkite's life and career it's easy to forget the awkward behind-the-scenes machinations that led to CBS News' messy transition from the Most Trusted Man in America to Dan-What's-the-Frequency-Kenneth-Rather and how eerily it mirrors NBC's late-night situation.
Like Leno, Cronkite vacated his chair in first place and earlier than anticipated. Like O'Brien, Rather inherited the chair because the network was afraid of losing him to a rival. While Cronkite was 65 at a time when that retirement age was actually taken seriously, the fear of Rather jumping to ABC is what drove CBS to make the shift when it did.
And like Rather did in his first few months in the chair, O'Brien is struggling in the ratings. Since premiering with more than 7 million viewers, O'Brien's audience has fallen off dramatically and he now trails CBS' David Letterman in viewers and his lead in key demographics is shrinking fast.
Rather eventually recovered and even enjoyed a few years at the top in the mid-1980s until being overtaken pretty much for good by ABC and NBC.
It'll be a lot harder for Conan to recover. For starters, unlike Cronkite, Jay Leno isn't leaving the airwaves. He'll be back in September with his own 10 p.m. NBC show that, at best, won't hurt O'Brien's 11:35 broadcast.
With all the challenges and scrutiny he is facing, it seems appropriate to offer up one of Rather's short-lived sign-offs to O'Brien: Courage.
-- Joe Flint
Photos: Top: Walter Cronkite, left, and Dan Rather: Credit AP/Jorgensen. Bottom: Conan O'Brien, left, and Jay Leno. Credit: Margaret Norton/NBC.
I had not watched Conan before he moved to the Tonight Show, only because his show was on too late. I watched once and decided Dave Letterman was pretty funny after all. First, it drives me nuts that Conan is always doing that cha cha step while delivering the monologue....looks like a nervous 8th grader giving a "what I did last summer" speech. Conan seems to appeal to a much younger audience, the 'jokes' are shallow and rather childish, and he displays a buffoon quality that I find very unappealing. On the other hand, I cannot wait for Jay to return. He is a class act, truly funny and clever, his integrity and emotional depth are out there to embrace and, well, there just is no comparison. I don't even watch Dave that much unless he has a guest I'm interested in but he surely is the better choice until Jay's return.
Posted by: Judy | July 21, 2009 at 01:09 PM
I am in my twenties and everybody my age including me seems to think Conan is funny and Jay and Dave are lame (sorry Jay and Dave). Late Night with Conan O'Brien was funny. His sketches are the best.
Posted by: Andy | July 21, 2009 at 06:57 PM