The Time That Comes

The day that we knew would inevitably come is now almost here. David Letterman has declared that he will soon be retiring. He hasn't said exactly when, which lessens the impact of the moment, but he seems sure enough that it will by next year. I will admit that I haven't watched "The Late Show" in years and years. I used to watch religiously, but I don't anymore. You might as well know that since I'm making like I've been heavily invested all along.

I always loved Letterman, and never was very fond of Leno. Leno's style was safe and his comedy was  more like research than writing. Letterman's style was caustic and outsidery. His comedy was smart and often absurd. I related to him as a person. I have always thought that if everything goes my way and I do as well as I possibly could, my ceiling would be like his. It has always upset me that he was so long second in the ratings on account of Leno's big hooker interview with an actor no one cares about anymore.

Live At The Tonight Show

As previously indicated, I had tickets to see the Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien. It was a very good time. My report: We got to the studio about 3:00, having illicitly parked in the subway lot nearby. There was myself, an alumni friend, and his neighbor. We walked towards the studio gate, and were intercepted by a show staffer. That was kind of odd. I suppose it was necessary though, as we may not have quickly found our way to the proper place otherwise. There was a separated open-air corridor where I checked us in, and where we waited for a while before going inside.

Late Night With Conan O'Brien

Before Conan O'Brien took over for David Letterman on Late Night at NBC, I was not really aware of late night talk shows. That year, after the transfer, I saw some for the first time. It was not a habit forming experience exactly. I watched a good number of episodes of Letterman when I was able to be up for them (I similarly developed a fondness for Mash, as the Phoenix CBS station used to air reruns of it in between Letterman and Tom Snyder).

So that first year I saw an episode of Conan's show which failed to make an impression on me. I started watching it on a semi-regular basis a few short years later, and it was akin to a religious experience. Andy Richter, Carl "Oldy" Olsen, Abe Vigoda, Pimpbot 5000, and on and on. The years up until the exit of Richter were unparalleled. Even after, Conan has been fantastic. It felt at least a little special to watch the last episode of Late Night with him at the helm. On the 2nd of next month, Jimmy Fallon takes over. I'll give him a shot, but if he hasn't got it, my loyalty at that hour will be with Craig Ferguson, who is a thing distinct from the likes of Letterman, Leno or Conan. Ferguson is not worse than the others, but what his quality is I'm not able to articulate exactly as yet.

I never cottoned to Craig Kilborn. I didn't get into the Daily Show until he left that. I was too young for Tom Snyder, but I think I might have liked him had I been more mature. Leno has some fine "found humor" bits (i.e. Headlines, his 99 Cent Store bit), but there's much about him I don't care for. Letterman's really my guy as far as that goes.

I haven't really watched much of Jimmy Kimmel. I appreciate that he has, as the others do, his own distinct quality. He really uses Hollywood and LA. I really don't know about Leno as far as that goes. Ferguson kind of does, as least in his penchant for W. Hollywood gay jokes.

Johnny Carson? Really before my time. He went out just before I became aware.

So we'll just see how things go.