Enough Already

I think anyone who knows me knows that there are several things I am absurdly passionate about. Coaching, KISS, loathing mornings and thinking that Jay Leno is the least funny man in America.
It is because of the latter that these last few days have been so bittersweet. There was the initial thrill over the fact that NBC had to admit defeat and cancel Jay's sorry ass "comedy" experiment. But then the news came that, as reward for his miserable failure, Leno would be given yet another new show. The plan being to move Leno back to 11:30 and push The Tonight Show to midnight.
This new configuration all hinged on the interested parties (Leno, Conan, and to a MUCH lesser extent, Jimmy Fallon) agreeing to the changes. This is were Conan O'Brien earned a whole lotta r-e-s-p-e-c-t from m-e. His press release was classy, humble and yet very to the point. In it he declined to accept the move. Not based on ego but based on his desire NOT to diminish the reputation of The Tonight Show, a program he calls "the greatest franchise in the history of broadcasting"(check out Conan's full statement)
The ironic thing about Conan's desire to save the reputation of the show is that it has already become damaged goods. First NBC bungled the transition after Johnny retired (check out HBO's movie "The Late Shift") and then Jay turned it into a festival of hack jokes and comedic schtick.
So kids, please, do yourself and television a favor...tune in to laugh with Letterman instead. If everyone would do this one simple thing we could finally have the answer to the age old question, "If an unfunny comedian tells a joke, and there's no one there to hear it, will he finally just go away?"