After a nine-month hiatus, Conan O’Brien is finally back on television with a new late-night talk show on TBS, “Conan.”
O’Brien briefly served as host of “The Tonight Show” on NBC from June 2009 until his January departure prompted by the network’s attempt to push “Tonight” to midnight from its traditional 11:30 p.m. slot. After considerable public outcry against the move, O’Brien left his NBC contract with a $45 million settlement that barred him from hosting another TV show until Sept. 1. He was replaced by his predecessor at “Tonight,” Jay Leno; Leno’s ratings had floundered during his brief attempt at hosting “The Jay Leno Show” in primetime.
During his months off the air, O’Brien managed to remain active by creating a Twitter account and touring the United States and Canada in his spring “Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television Tour.”
In April, it was announced that O’Brien’s return to television would be in November on TBS instead of on Fox, as was originally speculated. The move highlighted the increasing prominence of cable over network television in late night, evidenced by the success of “The Daily Show” and “The Colbert Report” on Comedy Central.
“Conan” premiered on Monday, Nov. 8 at 11 p.m. with much fanfare following an intense promotional campaign. On O’Brien’s “second annual first show,” “Conan” had the largest audience in its time slot with a 4.16 million strong audience, beating out “Tonight” by nearly 700,000 viewers according to Bloomberg’s TV ratings.
The episode, which focused heavily on O’Brien’s departure from NBC and featured Seth Rogen as the series’ first celebrity guest, featured O’Brien taking jabs at NBC and readjusting to being back on television for the first time in nine months.
O’Brien was back in classic form by Tuesday night, dumping several gallons of water on Tom Hanks in what is sure to become a classic “Conan” interview and hosting grunge band Soundgarden’s first television appearance in 13 years. “Conan” remained consistent throughout the rest of its first week, featuring strong interviews with Charlyne Yi and Michael Cera on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively.
Weekly viewership for “Conan” dropped significantly after the Monday premiere, likely because the initial viewership was bloated due to the hype surrounding O’Brien’s return. The show, however, fared well among younger viewers, especially against “Tonight” and CBS’ “The Late Show with David Letterman;” “Conan” showed strength in the key 18- to 49-year-old and 18 to 34 segments.
The “Conan” format is largely similar to that of O’Brien’s incarnations of “Tonight” and “Late Night,” which he hosted on NBC from 1993 to 2009. Sidekick and announcer Andy Richter joins O’Brien on TBS. Bandleader and drummer Max Weinberg, who had appeared with O’Brien since the early days of “Late Night,” will not be coming to TBS; he cited prior commitments with Bruce Springsteen and his own Max Weinberg Big Band, a desire to be with his family in New Jersey and medical concerns as reasons to skip the opportunity. In his place, guitarist Jimmy Vivino will be leading the aptly renamed Basic Cable Band.
“Conan” airs every Monday through Thursday on TBS (channel 33 on campus, 38 off campus) at 11 p.m., and again at 1 a.m. Full episodes and highlights are available the next day at teamcoco.com/video.