Letterman unleashes his Leno impersonation, calls Conan "our old friend"
Dave devoted a few minutes Monday talking about the Leno debacle, doing his Leno impersonation and proposing that perhaps Conan and Leno should both air at 11:35, and alternate segments. Dave also called Conan "our old friend," and Jimmy Fallon "poor Jimmy Fallon." He also kept bringing up Carson Daly, who he said "is really screwed, but you know, nobody seems to care." PLUS: Watch Letterman's NBC monologue and the "Top 10 Signs There's Trouble at NBC."
Craig Ferguson slams "the atrocious management at a once great network"
Craig poked fun at the Conan vs. Leno war with a graphic of their heads colliding. Before starting his monologue, Craig said, "You try doing my job and not talking about all the crap that's going on at NBC."
Another Seth MacFarlane show on Fox?
"We’ve got one other show we’re contemplating with Seth and looking to broaden our animation brand out too," says Fox's Kevin Reilly, who admits MacFarlane may be "stretched thin."
The Situation tackles Leno's Ten @ Ten
His name in high school: "Mikey Abs."
"Fringe" will stay on Thursdays, but it has a good chance of renewal
“They’re in a creative groove and we’re thrilled with the show,” says Fox's Kevin Reilly.
The NY Times is reporting that there will unlikely be a prolonged contract dispute if Conan decides to leave for Fox, but they won't want to pay the $45 million penalty and they could try keeping him from starting a Fox show for a year. The Times reports: "The contract, NBC is arguing, guaranteed Mr. O’Brien would be installed as host of “The Tonight Show” — and unlike many other deals for late-night stars, Mr. O’Brien’s contract contains no specific language about the time period the show would occupy, NBC executives said."
"Well, ladies and gentlemen, once again, I did not get 'The Tonight Show,'" Dave said during Monday's monologue, according to a CBS transcript. “That’s not all, listen to this: today, NBC announced that they are bringing back Johnny Carson and they’re putting him on at 10 p.m." Letterman added that "the problem is my mother is now all confused."
This will be Simon's final season on "American Idol," the "Idol" star just announced. As widely reported, Simon will be moving on to his own show, "The X Factor" on Fox, starting in fall 2011. He'll serve as executive producer and judge. "There's been a lot of speculation, partly because we didn't have an agreement," said Simon. "
With "The X Factor," as Richard Rushfield points out, "Cowell’s role will morph from in-house Idol diva to that of competitor trying to kill his old show." Simon, in effect, is walking away from "Idol" and challenging his biggest rival, Simon Fuller. "For years now," says Rushfield, "even as the show has continued to dominate the television landscape, life on the set was constantly tested by the love/hate battle that raged between American Idol’s creator (Simon Fuller) and its iconic star (Cowell)–a symbiotic relationship with stakes so high, few dared to imagine its end."
The Wall Street Journal, a Fox corporate sibling, reports that the network has "
"I don't think anybody's done anything to Conan," the longtime Jay Leno pal said at the TV press tour on Sunday. "What did the network do to him? I don't think anybody's preventing anyone from watching Conan." Seinfeld pointed to Conan's rating woes: "You gotta hit the ball. They can't hit the ball for you. They can only give you the bat." As for his pal Leno's 10 o'clock show, Seinfeld said, "I think this was the right idea at the wrong time. I'm proud of NBC for trying to do something different. That's just showbiz and you've got to try things." PLUS: 
"The Jay Leno Show" will 
"We are being very sensitive to the fact that this is a very personal and very private matter for Charlie," said CBS' Nina Tassler. "Right now it is business as usual." "Two and a Half Men" creator Chuck Lore, meanwhile, called Sheen "a consummate pro. He shows up and he delivers." PLUS: 
There have been "approaches" by other networks over the past two days, according to the Wall Street Journal, but it appears Fox is most serious about pursuing Conan O'Brien. Fox's interest in Conan, however, hasn't turned serious due to his contract with NBC. As the Journal reports, "Among Fox's concerns are the shrinking profits of late night as competition grows, and Mr. O'Brien's soft ratings, the people said. The network could also have trouble persuading local Fox TV stations to give up shows they have already purchased to fill their late-night hours." PLUS: 
Clokey, who also was one of the voices of Gumby, died Friday morning at his home near San Luis Obispo, California. Clokey created Gumby in the early '50s, but the clay character didn't make its debut until 1956 on the "Howdy Doody" show. As the San Luis Obispo Tribune notes, Gumby's appearance was inspired by Clokey's dad, who died in a car crash when he was just 9 years old.
New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd, who gave President Obama the "Mad Men" Season 1 DVD box set during the campaign, says that he ended up liking the show, and watching all three seasons. "It turns out that Obama really liked Peggy Olson. She reminded him of his grandmother, who had to work her way up in the same kind of man's world."
That best sums up this whole debacle, says Heather Havrilesky. "No one enjoys hating Jay Leno," she says. "Don't blame the leash. It's the parents who are the real dummies in this picture. NBC has mismanaged this situation from the very start: Giving Leno the 10 p.m. slot every single night was a terrible idea, widely proclaimed so. Not only did NBC sally forth, but they tolerated how awful the show turned out to be, even for Leno. They allowed his terrible show on the air. Not surprisingly, most people hated it, even many loyal Leno fans."
