Over the weekend a rumor started that NBC is looking to replace Jay Leno with Jimmy Fallon when the current Tonight Show host’s contract expires in 2014. Well today the
NY Post is reporting that and that Howard Stern is being groomed to replace Fallon on Late Night.
I think that Stern is a good choice because he has interviewing skills and he knows how to keep an audience entertained, but can he make the transition from radio to broadcast television. I say that because you know NBC will be put a leash on him and he won’t be able to do the stuff he is known for in the morning. So can a clean Stern be as good as a dirty one? He is a great guest on the late night talk shows, but that is only for two segments and him being the interviewee. Can he handle doing the show by himself in a restricted format? I don’t know. Muzzling someone like him doesn’t work, check the last few big awards shows.
Now when it comes to the timeslot, I think NBC would be smarter to give Stern The Tonight Show and keep Fallon where he is. Stern has a bigger following and can bring in a younger audience. But then again the advantage of him taking over late night is that he can be raunchier at 12:37a than he can at 11:35p.
Plus if given the earlier time, I am not sure Stern would want to compete head to head with his two friends Jimmy Kimmel and David Letterman. He might feel more comfortable going up against Craig Ferguson. And if that were to be the case, I think The Late Late Show’s days would be numbered because CBS would be slaughtered by Stern.
I don’t know what to make of it all. It is an interesting choice. It has its positives and its negatives. It will be fun to see how it all plays out and if NBC will finally confirm the rumors that this is all happening which so far they have denied
And this could all be a waste of time because they can make the changes and then a few months later Leno could take back The Tonight Show. It’s not like he hasn’t done it before.
