Talk:The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien

An article on the timeslot controversy?
Has this event has garnered enough press releases to merit its own article on Wikipedia? Simple question, opinions welcomed. Tktru (talk) 07:00, 16 January 2010 (UTC)

Aspect ratio
"It will broadcast in 1080i HDTV and shot in 16:9 aspect ratio, with a 4:3 center-cut for standard definition television sets."

I'm not sure what this means... how will the broadcast know what aspect ratio I'm using on my television set ? Or does it mean that non-HD broadcasts will use the 4:3 aspect ratio ? Bigmouth strikes (talk) 13:12, 27 February 2009 (UTC)
 * It's the same exact aspect ratio for The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.. Jason (talk) 08:44, 3 March 2009 (UTC)
 * I see, that very same sentence is used for the Jay Leno article as well. Maybe I'll ask the same question there instead, since it's probably more watched at the moment. I supposed that it's intended to mean that SDTV-broadcasts will use a 4:3 center cutout, but I know for certain that this isn't the case today. When I watch the Jay Leno or Conan shows today on my old TV, it's a 16:9 letterbox format. Bigmouth strikes (talk) 14:12, 4 March 2009 (UTC)

Old announcer
Anyone know where Joel went? He was decently funny. M00npirate (talk) 19:44, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

I was told he was heard doing Taco Bell (or Del Taco..not sure which one) commercials (on the radio I think). Crazydog115 (talk) 12:49, 20 April 2009 (UTC)
 * He decided to stay in New York, as he is the announcer for many of the parade events in the city for NBC, like Macy's Thanksgiving Parade. Gage (talk) 20:11, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Sketch Page
Shouldn't someone start a page titled "List of sketches from the Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" and just add to it? Thoughts please. Shark96z (talk) 22:45, 4 June 2009 (UTC)
 * I was thinking the same thing. Conan seems to be continuing a lot of the sketches he did on Late Night, so it shouldn't be too hard to get an article going. Gage (talk) 04:07, 6 June 2009 (UTC)

Episodes list
Earlier today, the article was deleted. I, for one, am extremely upset about this. I seriously believe that we are making a huge mistake by removing these. Smashville stated: The result was delete. As far as I can tell, not a single keep vote was based in policy...and the ones that quote WP:EPISODE failed to give evidence for how these lists met it.

As far as I can tell, what came down to the article being deleted was ultimately one person's judgement - "As far as I can tell" - and said person did not give any other explaination behind his reasoning, other than the fact the people who quoted WP:EPISODE failed to give information behind how the list met it. Let's give the evidence here and take another look at the disscussion: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/List_of_the_Tonight_Show_with_Conan_O%27Brien_episodes

With every episode that airs, we lose material to make additions until the point comes that these articles can't be added because no one remembers who the guests were, etc. As I said in the disscussion, this becomes just politics in a way, and for that to have been a factor in the deletions is unfair in my eyes. I believe that every person who voted against the deletions had good reasoning behind their decisions. Again, let's take another look at the disscussion and rethink this. I seriously believe that the articles have a place on the site. - Cartoon Boy (talk) 6:38, 8 June 2009 (UTC)


 * I agree, if the list of episodes continues to be revised and updated to include new guests and musical acts, etc., I don't see why the list of episodes cannot be kept. Is it against policy? I know the lists can become cumbersome simply because there are so many episodes (I know that The Tonight Show with Jay Leno had over 3,000), but if the lists of episodes are split up by year, and each list is organized into months, etc., then I don't see why the list should not be kept. I would like to know why this list was deleted as well, as many people on the article deletion log seemed to want to keep the article. 69.161.78.31 (talk) 01:52, 9 June 2009 (UTC)


 * My fear right now is that because the pages have been deleted, it's going to be very hard for someone to add them again (particularly for Late Night with Jimmy Fallon) because we might not remember the guest, musical guest/entertainment guest/original airdate information anymore since these lists were started from the first episode onwards. This is one of the main reasons why I did not want these articles deleted. Unless there is any way to find the old pages in the archives or elsewhere on the site, I don't know what to do about this. First, we actually have to agree that they should be put back in.

I really was hoping that the result would be to keep these, since that was the main vibe from most of the users on the deletion log. - User:Cartoon Boy (talk) 4:43, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

I also think that the person closing the deletion did not give an adequate reason. We should take this to deletion review. Barrylb (talk) 09:31, 10 June 2009 (UTC)


 * If the information in the episodes is based on memory rather than on sources, then it's original research and it doesn't belong. You can keep such a list on your own PC, obviously. But if you can't find sources, it will either die now or die later. Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots 12:12, 10 June 2009 (UTC)


 * The editors voting "Keep" relied on arguments not to be used in deletion discussions. i.e., "it's interesting", "it's useful", ""I like the topic", etc.


 * As Baseball Bugs pointed out, we don't create articles based on memory. WP:EPISODE emphasizes the need for reliable and independent sources to support such episode list articles.  Outside of the official website, there is little to no daily coverage of the show's interviews, sketches, or musical performances.  On the other hand, if you review any of the episodes lists that qualified for a featured article, they are well sourced by multiple, third-party sources.


 * An episode list for such a television show would be more appropriate for a fan page, blog, or wiki. The likes of Wookiepedia or Heroes Wiki were created because the scope of their coverage exceeded that of Wikipedia's content policies. --Madchester (talk) 15:33, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

If you look at Saturday Night Live (season 32) you will see they are doing pretty much what we want to do with Conan. That article has no references for the episode descriptions. Many other SNL season articles have no references also. What would be the outcome if I sent those articles to AFD? Barrylb (talk) 16:34, 10 June 2009 (UTC)
 * Then that article needs to be tagged for .  There's actually weekly recaps of SNL episodes from EW and Huffington Post.  Outside of the Conan premiere, similar recaps for the Tonight Show have all but evaporated.
 * Again, a featured episode list like Smallville (season 1) contains many, many multiple independent sources outside of the official site and programme. --Madchester (talk) 17:11, 10 June 2009 (UTC)
 * The episode lists do not come from memory; they came from the original broadcasts and the official websites. Recreating them would be difficult now as the information from earlier shows my not be available anymore. Again, that is one of the reasons why I did not want these articles to be removed. -- Cartoon Boy (talk) - 1:41, 10 June 2009 (UTC)
 * Again, the official website alone is not sufficient for reference. Per WP:EPISODE (and WP:NOTABILITY), reliable, independent sources are also necessary.  Throughout the AFD, I asked editors where there were non NBC/Tonight Show references for the specific episode sketches, interviews, and musical performances - yet no one could provide a proper response for that concern. --Madchester (talk) 21:11, 10 June 2009 (UTC)
 * And even apart from the primary-source issue, if the info disappears quickly from the website then it's not citable, and any information captured from it at the time is no more valid than if it were from memory. Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots 21:43, 10 June 2009 (UTC)
 * I question this. Surely this standard is not applied to all TV programs. What about Big Brother 10 (U.S.)? All the references are primary sources - the official CBS website episode recaps or the original TV broadcast. And information disappears from websites all the time - that alone does not prevent it being used as a primary source. Barrylb (talk) 02:49, 11 June 2009 (UTC)
 * If it is no longer to be found, how can it possibly be verified? I could make up anything I want to and say, "Well, the website used to say this." No. That doesn't work. Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots 18:11, 11 June 2009 (UTC)


 * Actually, looking at the BB 10 References section, there's a good mix of CBS and non-CBS reporting that season's results. So that refutes your argument that secondary sources aren't required for television (episode) articles.  Again, the bulk of WP:EPISODE stresses the need for independent sources... i.e., those outside of CBS.


 * In the last year or so, CBS.com has removed the seasonal pages for The Amazing Race and Survivor. I don't think there are any seasonal BB pages left on CBS.com.... so it's of even greater importance that there are secondary sources as references to such articles.  I work on articles for each season of The Amazing Race, and you can see that the references are dominated by non-CBS secondary sources.  --Madchester (talk) 18:39, 12 June 2009 (UTC)


 * Actually, the episode recaps (the only section relevant to this discussion) are almost all CBS sources. And if there are no seasonal BB CBS pages left, it just goes to demonstrate that it is acceptable to create articles where information can no longer be found.


 * I had a look at articles like The Amazing Race 12 and the episode recaps there have no inline references at all! It would seem not to back up your argument. Barrylb (talk) 02:14, 14 June 2009 (UTC)


 * The fact that someone has gotten away with it doesn't mean it's acceptable. Sooner or later, anyone could put a "cn" tag on those facts, and they'd have to go, because there are no sources. Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots 02:50, 14 June 2009 (UTC)
 * To be fair, all of the episodes for the new Tonight Show (so far), and all 2009 episodes for the Colbert Report are available legally via Hulu and colbertreport.com, respectively. Socby19 (talk) 18:34, 15 June 2009 (UTC)

Looks like the lists have been restored, but I'll add in a couple comments anyway. Neither WP:EPISODE nor WP:NOTABILITY are reasons for deleting these. WP:EPISODE talks about articles for episodes, and I think we'd agree that individual episodes, except maybe the first, aren't notable enough for their own articles. But most shows have lists of episodes, and this is notable for pretty much any show. As for primary sources, they're acceptable "to make descriptive claims, the accuracy of which is verifiable by a reasonable, educated person without specialist knowledge. For example, an article about a novel may cite passages from the novel to describe the plot, but any interpretation of those passages needs a secondary source." Who the guests are or which sketches were on a particular episode is easily verifiable by watching the episode, and there's no interpretation needed. PaulGS (talk) 06:01, 28 July 2009 (UTC)

Coming to an end?
Due to The Jay Leno Show, is The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien coming to an end? --68.37.66.81 (talk) 15:30, 7 September 2009 (UTC)


 * No, because Leno's new show is on weeknights at 10PM, before the local news and Conan. Andrewlp1991 (talk) 22:51, 7 September 2009 (UTC)

lOL How ironic cause now it is :( —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.125.24.192 (talk) 02:33, 23 January 2010 (UTC)

An update?
"Although there are concerns that O'Brien's greatest strength, the "young men" demographic, can be more easily reached "on Web sites and cable channels like Comedy Central and Spike", advertisers and network executives alike point out that the first real test will come in September 2009"

Well, it's October. What happened? 67.212.32.252 (talk) 00:04, 7 October 2009 (UTC)


 * I took a stab at it. There aren't as many news sources discussing the show's ratings now that several months have passed since the first episode, but it seems the ratings were negatively impacted by lower lead-in numbers due to Leno's new 10:00 show replacing big-budget dramas. --Keith111 (talk) 08:15, 2 December 2009 (UTC)

Gotta be C class by now
I feel this article deserves a bump up from start to C class at the least. andyzweb (talk) 18:10, 11 November 2009 (UTC)

Time change in intro
I don't see any reason why the possible time change rumors need to be in both the intro and their own section. I've removed it from the intro. Please add new content to the existing section instead of the intro. Ryan2845 (talk) 05:00, 8 January 2010 (UTC)

Not exactly sure where this belongs but I have been hearing reports that NBC is denying the rumors.--Chaser256 (talk) 05:35, 8 January 2010 (UTC)

NBC produced "Access Hollywood" has confirmed the Leno to 11:35, Conan to 12:05 switch. Reports say Conan is not on board and is being asked to come to Fox. Most say O'Brien is likely to leave the network, meaning "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" will return on 3/1/10. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Mwhayes1995 (talk • contribs) 08:51, 10 January 2010 (UTC)

no compete clause
The no compete clause part regarding NBC possibly holding onto him until Leno retires is wrong. No compete clauses are when companies put it in a contract that even after they STOP paying an employee, that employee can't work for a competitor. That is what is illegal in California and New York, and many other states. However, that is not what NBC is considering doing. It is perfectly legal for a company to continue paying Conan his full salary for the remainder of his 2 year contract and keep him off other networks. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Lakawak (talk • contribs) 09:56, 10 January 2010 (UTC)


 * I removed the reference to non-compete clause. --Keith111 (talk) 21:45, 11 January 2010 (UTC)


 * Well, now All Headline News (never heard of them) is reporting that NBC might keep him off the air without pay, but it seems dubious. Cf. this article. --Keith111 (talk) 21:45, 15 January 2010 (UTC)

What six-piece format?
We say "the show follows the established six-piece format previous host Jay Leno used" but never actually describe the format. Can someone in the know expand on this? --Doradus (talk) 03:25, 17 January 2010 (UTC)
 * Typically, it's a monologue, comedy piece, first interviewee, (first interviewee), second interviewee, music/comedy performance, (sign off). Each has a commercial break in between. As far as the parenthesis go, it's one or the other. Socby19 (talk) 23:26, 17 January 2010 (UTC)
 * I agree that this is a weird way of putting it, instead of just describing that the show had monolog, possible sketch + 2-3 guests and a performance. That's much more clear, but what could you expect from idiots who are consistently misusing the verb "include" in every single article on Wikipedia, that sucks anyway? By the way, I wonder if we can find a source that says Conan isn't the least bit funny but simply irritating. I'll look for one and add this into the article. --213.130.255.33 (talk) 22:25, 26 January 2010 (UTC)

I'm With Coco
what does im with coco mean? I tried googling it and I tried it on wikipedia which redirects here but doesnt mention it nevermind explain it--209.181.16.93 (talk) 21:56, 21 January 2010 (UTC)


 * Editing to clarify. - Tenebris —Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.254.157.172 (talk) 23:32, 21 January 2010 (UTC)

"Coco" is Conan O'brien's nickname on the show. "I'm with Conan O'brien" being support for him to keep his timeslot. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 122.17.118.253 (talk) 04:19, 23 January 2010 (UTC)

"End of the Show Song"
It should be noted that at the end of the episode airing on January 21, 2010 Conan's performace of the "End of the Show Song" was actually broadcast. The song had originated from his days on Late Nite, and was performed, as the title suggests, at the end of each show. The song had never before been broadcast. Bboy85 (talk) 16:05, 22 January 2010 (UTC)

Now Changing Everything to Past Tense
And I know this is not exactly the place, but I definitely teared up during the final show several times. Good work Coco. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.139.148.171 (talk) 08:39, 23 January 2010 (UTC)

Final Episode
I'm sorry, but there is literally no way in hell that the fossil skit on the last episode cost $65 million. This information needs to be removed as dubious, or a source posted showing where the number came from. 99.169.250.133 (talk) 21:17, 23 January 2010 (UTC)
 * Hello IP. You're absolutely correct that it didn't cost $65 million.  The comedic bits were taken far too seriously by the online community and this was explained in the following (sourced) sentence: "In response to the Internet community's outcry over the expense of these sketches, O'Brien followed the segment with an explanation that the sketches (and expenses) weren't real".  I clarified the sentence a little bit to include the expenses.  Both the $65 million dollar price tag and the explication are covered by the same reference: the episode itself (see references for time stamp information).  In other words, it's all just a joke.  Hope that clears things up for you! -  Ker αun oςc op ia◁ galaxies  04:20, 24 January 2010 (UTC)

Cory Booker section
I highly doubt that a short two week feud should be included in the article. Perhaps it can be shortened and put in the notable episodes section, but an entire section devoted to a highly non-notable feud that was never referenced after its completion, should not belong in the article. Gage (talk) 06:19, 25 January 2010 (UTC)


 * Its removal, however, also deleted the only mention of a joint Conan/NBC donation of $100,000 to Newark Now. - Tenebris —Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.254.156.59 (talk) 21:17, 29 January 2010 (UTC)

Archives removal by NBC
who ever posted this "Since the end of the show, NBC has removed all videos of The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien from its website as well as from the Hulu video service." it's incorrect NBC only removed all this sometime on Feb 5 or 6. please someone fix it or i will do it myself.Loserjay10 (talk) 05:39, 10 February 2010 (UTC)

What is up with reverting "was" to "is?"
The Tonight Show is not hosted by Conan O'Brien, no matter how much you support the guy. It is just reality. It is a fact. Why is someone so hyper about reverting it? To be a bully? Kochamanita (talk) 03:30, 31 August 2010 (UTC)
 * I'm not involved in the editing dispute, but it's the same reason why The Honeymooners, a show that ended over 50 years ago, is written the same way. It's because no matter what happens, the show will never ceast to exist, so it IS a talk show, not WAS a talk show. It has nothing to do with supporting Conan. -- Scorpion 0422  02:56, 6 September 2010 (UTC)
 * But the show does not exist. They both WERE shows.  They are NOT shows now.  WAS is the proper format, and ought to be for all show that no longer currently air new episodes. Kochamanita (talk) 04:23, 6 September 2010 (UTC)
 * Well, take it up with the folks who create the manual of style, see the last sentence of this section: WP:MOSTV -- Scorpion 0422  13:59, 6 September 2010 (UTC)

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Conan's talk-show still is!
Here on wikipedia it says that the last show was on January 22, 2010. But it looks like the show never got cancelled. Late Night with Conan O'Brien (1993 - 2009), The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien (2009 - 2010) and another show must have been produced because I see youtube-clips recently coming up about new things... (2010 - present) But why does it says it got cancelled in 2010? Is it an internet show now? --NRKfan (talk) 15:53, 19 September 2017 (UTC)

Oh, never mind - he has a new show called Conan --NRKfan (talk) 15:55, 19 September 2017 (UTC)