Late Night Showdown

I’ve wanted to write about the late night television shows for a while. I’d better get to it before the lineup changes.

I’ll refer to the host instead of the show. For many of use, they’re nearly synonymous and the hosts clearly have a lot to do with the tone and flavor of the show.

7 (because there aren’t 10 on the list). Jimmy Kimmel
Kimmel is last on my list because I watch him least. I get poor reception of the nearest ABC affiliate. What I’ve seen suggests that he is good, but he doesn’t stand out from the crowd.

6. Carson Daly

I like the new format of Daly’s show. I think it suits him better than the traditional talk show format. I rarely stay up that late, so I rarely see his show. It’s like a little slice of MTV from the days before it was dominated by horrible reality shows.

5. Craig Ferguson
Ferguson is delightfully daft. He’s not for everyone and not always for me.

4. Jay Leno

Back in Leno’s Tonight Show days, I’d watch Letterman’s monologue and opening material. I might have switched over later if Leno had a more interesting guest.

When Leno started at 9:00 (central time), I was a little excited about seeing something new, a late night style show that came on before my bedtime. I was disappointed that Leno did the same old thing with seemingly less energy. Considering that NBC brings me some version of Law and Order or Dateline almost every night, I shouldn’t be surprised.

3. Jimmy Fallon
Fallon is the Minnie Pearl of late night. He is just so happy to be there. He is enthusiastic about everything and his excitement draws me in. He has loads of fun and is fun to watch.

2. David Letterman

Letterman is the king of late night. In my opinion, he has been the best for a long time.

Letterman is a famous curmudgeon, but he can be a sweet guy. He is often aloof, but often fatherly, warm of flirtatious. He makes a living through mirth, yet shows his anger. He makes a show of the off-putting elements of his character, but has a very loyal staff, which suggests he is very loyal to them.

Letterman is a man. He is not everyman. He is a unique man, full of flaws and contradiction that are his own, who through hard work and luck gained what he still sees as the privilege to make a very good living doing what he loves to do. What could be more appealing than that?

1. Conan O’Brien
Letterman is the king of late night, but O’Brien is its future. That is what I thought until recently he still can be if NBC gets its head on straight and invests in the future of its brand (and the personal brands it helped build) instead of grasping at a expedient solutions.

I think O’Brien will put on a good show wherever he lands, though he might initially suffer from a move to another show. Whatever network nabs O’Brien will be better off for it. In the long term, NBC will deservedly suffer for the loss.