Does time 鈥 and a new host 鈥 heal all wounds? Fourteen years after Conan O'Brien was messily ousted from NBC's 鈥淭he Tonight Show鈥 to make way for the return of Jay Leno 鈥 the comedian is finally back.
O'Brien will appear on the April 9 show to promote his new travel series 鈥淐onan O'Brien Must Go鈥 for Max in conversation with who
After more than 15 years of hosting 鈥淟ate Night with Conan O'Brien鈥 on NBC, O'Brien was promoted to lead the network's flagship late-night show in 2009, after it was announced Leno would be given a new prime-time show, also on NBC.
After seven months of slipping 鈥淭onight Show鈥 ratings and and pressure from affiliates who said 鈥淭he Jay Leno Show鈥 wasn't a strong enough lead-in to their nightly newscasts, NBC made a plan to shorten Leno's show to a half-hour and give it a 11:35 p.m. timeslot, which would have bumped 鈥淭he Tonight Show鈥 to 12:05 a.m.
鈥淚t was my mistaken belief that, like my predecessor, I would have the benefit of some time and, just as important, some degree of ratings support from the prime-time schedule," O'Brien said at the time in a statement.
He refused to accept the move, and ended with O'Brien and his staff receiving a multimillion-dollar payout to exit NBC in early 2010.
鈥淎nd I just want to say to the kids out there watching: You can do anything you want in life. Unless Jay Leno wants to do it, too,鈥 O'Brien said in a monologue before his departure, calling 鈥淭he Tonight Show鈥 the fulfillment of a lifelong dream.
O'Brien didn't stay off the airwaves for too long, returning to late-night in November 2010 on basic-cable network TBS. . (The first episode beat Leno's 鈥淭onight Show鈥 in the ratings.)
In 2012, O'Brien that while he still had latent resentment, he acknowledged a onetime 鈥渁mazing partnership with NBC.鈥
鈥淭here are moments of, 鈥榃hat the hell happened? Why did that person do that or say that?鈥 But there鈥檚 also lot of, 鈥極K, let鈥檚 file this under There鈥檚 A Lot I Can鈥檛 Control,鈥欌 he told the trade publication, adding that he and Leno no longer spoke to one another.
O'Brien's return to 鈥淭he Tonight Show鈥 鈥 which when Fallon took the helm 鈥 isn't the first time Fallon has used his show to extend an olive branch. On his first night as host, Joan Rivers made a brief appearance in a bit where celebrities paid up after betting money Fallon would never be host. Rivers had been after she got her own late-night show on Fox. (After his acrimonious departure from NBC, O'Brien himself visited 鈥淟ate Night with Jimmy Fallon鈥 in a surprise appearance.)
As for O'Brien, he now hosts the In his new travel show, O'Brien visits countries like Ireland, Thailand, Argentina and Norway.
The overall vibe among late-night talk show hosts has also evolved from the days of intense competition between Leno and to congeniality 鈥 and even friendship. Last summer, Fallon, Stephen Colbert, Seth Meyers, John Oliver and Jimmy Kimmel teamed up for a to support their staff during
