the second late night war

Let's hear it for high profile defections. According to Movieline, rumor has it that longtime Conan O'Brien bandleader Max Weinberg is seeking the coveted position of bandleader for 'The Tonight Show with Jay Leno', a role that is soon to be abandoned by Kevin Eubanks.

While it's somewhat understandable that Weinberg would want the position, it is a bit of a slap to Conan. On the other hand, it's all about what's best for Max Weinberg and while things with Conan are currently up in the air, 'The Tonight Show' is a pretty solid position to be in. Like it or not, there are still a lot of viewers on Team Jay and he continues to pull in ratings despite his brief absence from the 11:30 spot.

At least Weinberg would also now have a lot to talk about with Stuttering John Melendez, who defected to Jay from 'The Howard Stern Show' ages ago.

[via TVWeek]

Joy Behar from CNN's sister station HLN stopped backstage at the "what's old is new again" version of 'The Tonight Show with Jay Leno' and managed to snag an interview with Jay. Jay ended up stating how both he and Conan got screwed by the situation at NBC with 'The Tonight Show.' While there is a great deal of truth to his words, Jay is selectively editing history by leaving out his responsibility regarding Conan's tumultuous departure. Here's the video:

The late night wars have just gotten more interesting. Fox and recent short-term host of 'The Tonight Show' Conan O'Brien are closer to hammering out a deal that will bring a brand-new late night talk show starring Coco to Rupert Murdoch's network.

Haven't we seen this situation before sometime in the early '90s? Hopefully we'll read more about this situation in the upcoming sequel book.

It would certainly change the whole late night landscape, but it depends on several factors that haven't yet been determined. For example, what would be Conan's start time? 11 P.M.? 11:30 P.M.? Also, it appears his Fox show would start with smaller budget from his 'Tonight Show' run, but that would likely increase in the future if the show gets good ratings.

So, assuming this deal goes through, when you watch late night you will have a choice of Letterman, Leno, O'Brien, Kimmel, Fallon, Stewart, Colbert, or Ferguson. If you're a total insomniac, you also can watch Carson Daly. Who will you be watching? Who should bow out at this stage?

[via TVWeek]

The first big Super Bowl shocker came early tonight, in a CBS promo, no less. The Super Bowl is on CBS, so it's no surprise we get a shot of David Letterman on a couch in his Colts jersey, but here's where things get weird: he's at a Super Bowl party with Oprah, and he's complaining about how it's the worst Super Bowl party ever.

We then see Jay freakin' Leno, who says that Letterman is only saying that because he's there. Letterman then mocks Leno, and then we see that this whole thing is a promo for 'The Late Show with David Letterman.'

How in the hell did this happen?