The Jay Leno Show -- Premieres 9/14/09 -- 5 nights a week/46 weeks a year

[calhoun07]

I am finding what appeals to me on the new Leno show is the same stuff that appealed to me on the Tonight Show: I enjoy watching "Headlines" every Monday. That's about it. If I miss anything else, I don't feel too slighted. If I catch a monologue here and there, I can find a few jokes to laugh at. So for me I may watch Leno's monologue, go walk the dog, come back and catch Headlines or something else or just not watch the rest of it at all.

I still watch my NBC affiliate for news because I've always liked their local news better than the other channels in town. It has nothing to do with what leads into the news.

I actually think Conan does the best job with his show. I think he's great on the Tonight Show, and brings back some of the sensibility to it that Carson had. Letterman can only get great ratings when he's joking about underage girls or doing other girls. He's a sad, pathetic shell of how great he used to be.

[calhoun07]

Did anybody watch Friday night's episode? I recorded it since I wasn't home just to see how the Michelle Obama appearance worked out.

After all the hype leading up to her appearance on the show all we get is "Ten at Ten" with her via video? First, Ten at Ten is certainly one of the weakest segments of the new format (and that's saying a lot..there is a lot of weakness on this show) and if she was on there via video she was NOT on the show! Any time I've seen a program where somebody was only able to talk via video they weren't promoted as being a guest on the actual show. It would always be "so and so wasn't able to be with us so we have them via video."

Also, Friday night featured a new miserable and painful segment....Jay with some round table discussion about current topics? Was that on Friday night? Good God, that was painful to watch. Is he trying to be like Bill Maher now? It's pathetic seeing Leno trying to find his grounding with this show this late in the season already. It really is like he hasn't still figured out how to make the show work.

[coli]

Originally Posted by calhoun07

First, Ten at Ten is certainly one of the weakest segments of the new format .

I agree, it's brutal! The one great thing about Carson is he knew when a segment was bombing and would actually get a laugh in the segment because it was so bad. And you would never see that segment ever again. I see Ten at Ten come on and I hide behind my pillow because it is so awkward!

[DJLinus]

Originally Posted by calhoun07

Also, Friday night featured a new miserable and painful segment....Jay with some round table discussion about current topics? Was that on Friday night? Good God, that was painful to watch. Is he trying to be like Bill Maher now?

He's done that segment at least once before. I gave it a pass then because it introduced me to this wonderful, wonderful PSA (one of the topics):



And I agree that the "10 at 10" is painful. In addition to it not being very funny, I think some of the brutality has to do with there being a slight delay in the video feed (at least the times I've seen it), so it sounds very awkward.

But I admit that I watch a whole lot more Leno now than when he was hosting the Tonight Show. But only if there's a guest/musical artist I like on. I'll record it and skip through pretty much everything but the interview/performance, the car challenge (my roommate's a car nut), headlines, and whenever Leno does a remote bit.

[maingon]

i used to love when Jay Leno hosted the Tonight show, I thought he did a excellent job, and had alots of funny bits, but the Jay Leno show is not nearly as good. Having just the seats sometimes feels akward as Jay Leno sometimes hunches over the seat as he talks, the 10 at 10 is lame, the questions are weak, the delay in the satellite feed makes stuff feel awkward and its not funny. I think the earn your plug thing is dumb too.

I still like the opening monouluge, but everything else is not nearly as good as before or as entertaining. Plus whats with having Kevin Newbanks way across the stage, he seems further away then ever before, so you dont get as much banter between them.

Jay Leno needs his desk, and just go back to what they did during the tonight show, the 10 at 10 is dumb, earn your plug needs to go. When Jay Leno hosted the tonight show I would watch when I had nothing else to do but it was always entertaining, this is usually awkward and lame and sometimes hard to watch.

[Chew]

I agree with you maingon: when I watched the Tonight Show (the next morning), I would usually FF through the stuff I didn't want to watch. I'm finding I FF through a whole lot more of this show.

[mrpayroll]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20091102/tv_nm/us_leno_1

Leno says NBC making money with show's new time
1 hr 1 min ago

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Jay Leno has shrugged off low ratings for his new prime-time nightly TV talk show, saying NBC is making money with his switch from late night to earlier and he enjoys being an underdog in the race to get viewers.

In an interview with Broadcasting and Cable magazine released on Monday, the beleaguered host of "The Jay Leno Show" said he was finding his new 10 p.m. time slot "difficult but interesting" and said that NBC was standing behind him.

"The Jay Leno Show" -- a move by struggling NBC to cut costs by airing Leno's less-costly comedy hour at a time usually reserved for expensive scripted dramas -- is getting about 5 million viewers an episode, or less than half the audience for dramas on rivals CBS and ABC at the same time.

"I enjoy being the underdog," Leno said. "I'm told that if we can keep a 1.5 (rating), they (NBC) make $300 million a year; this is what they say. So we're a little above the 1.5, we're doing OK." Rating points help measure viewership.

General Electric Co's NBC did not return calls for comment.

Asked if he regretted leaving the 11:30 p.m. time he held for 17 years, Leno said: "Yeah sure. I would have preferred that. I think it's too soon to say whether I regret anything or not...Do I enjoy the battle? Yes, I get a certain amount of satisfaction from pounding my head against the wall."

Leno said he took 95 percent of the blame for negative media coverage of his new venture, saying he was constantly "tweaking" the show.

He expected audiences to pick up when other networks start running repeats of their dramas in the summer and over the holiday period.

"Something makes me think we might be OK here for a while," he said. "I'm not having a bad time at 10 o'clock now. I look at this job, and now I'm faced with a challenge I find difficult but interesting."

NBC is currently bottom in overall audience terms of the four major U.S. TV networks but is not losing viewers so far in the 2009-10 season compared to the same time a year ago.

ABC is owned by Walt Disney Co and CBS is owned by CBS Corp.

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)

If what Leno says is true and his ratings stay consistant, you can be sure he will be on for many years to come. I'm pretty sure $300M a year is probably more than if NBC had stayed with scripted shows.

Chris

[Hokeyboy]

Originally Posted by mrpayroll

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20091102/tv_nm/us_leno_1



If what Leno says is true and his ratings stay consistant, you can be sure he will be on for many years to come. I'm pretty sure $300M a year is probably more than if NBC had stayed with scripted shows.

Chris

It's not about how much how money NBC is making; it's about how much money the NBC affiliates are losing... which is tons; because of the tune-out during the 10pm hour, their 11pm news (where local stations make their BIG money) have plummeted in ratings.

Many years to come? Don't think so. Not at this rate. It won't last the season.

[james2025a]

I have still not seen this show, but never really cared for Leno. He always seemed rather smarmy. But from what i have read he still has a couple of years on his contract and in order for them to pull the plug they would have a huge payout to give him. I get the feeling they will keep on trying with this and i guess they will continue to fail or might be lucky and find its stride. I wonder what Conan thinks about all this? I used to watch his show all the time (when i had a TV) and he is really the best out there for chat shows, but i think it will probably be hurting his ratings.

[Draven]

Originally Posted by calhoun07

So did VCR watchers. If networks haven't figured out how to handle this conundrum in all this time, the viewer is not to blame.

I know this is a late response, but c'mon...you don't honestly believe that as many people time-shifted on their VCRs as do on their DVRs, do you? And no one beyond the uber-geeky could figure out how to watch one show and record another. DVRs make that extremely easy.

[calhoun07]

Originally Posted by Draven

I know this is a late response, but c'mon...you don't honestly believe that as many people time-shifted on their VCRs as do on their DVRs, do you? And no one beyond the uber-geeky could figure out how to watch one show and record another. DVRs make that extremely easy.

Perhaps not as many people. But I don't think that many people recorded LPs to cassette as they download music off the Internet and rip it to CDRs and iPods and flash drives and such. The point is technology changes. And if the insiders that drive the media failed to see it coming, that's not our fault.

[riley_dude]

Every article I read, it says Leno is tanking but how long will NBC keep this train wreck going?

[Snowmaker]

I have not sat through one episode yet, but happened to have it on last night and caught him interviewing the two from Paranormal Activity. I just wanted to claw my own eyes out it was so bad.

[Quatermass]

Originally Posted by Snowmaker

I have not sat through one episode yet, but happened to have it on last night and caught him interviewing the two from Paranormal Activity. I just wanted to claw my own eyes out it was so bad.

I flipped it on a few times during commercials last night. He had the most recent castoff from "The Biggest Loser". The two people from "Paranormal Activity" and a gameshow skit with "Real Housewives of Atlanta". It was a terrible lineup and Leno knew it. Isn't this November sweeps or has that not started yet? Admittedly, I only saw a few minutes but it was really crappy.

They ought to put this show out of its misery and give him a weekly 30-minute "Jay Leno's Garage" show and let him talk about his cars and related stuff. If they featured a different one of his cars every week, they'd have enough material for 400 weeks.

[mphtrilogy]

What a disaster for NBC, other than the Office and an occasional Law and Order.. I never visit this network.

Look what ABC has done with Buzz already this year, Flash Forward, V, a couple of good comedies.

NBC is run by Morons.

[Bluelitespecial]

They may be morons, but Friday Night Lights is still on the air.

[Draven]

Originally Posted by riley_dude

Every article I read, it says Leno is tanking but how long will NBC keep this train wreck going?

Apparently they make money on it...so...forever?

[Tracer Bullet]

Originally Posted by Draven

Apparently they make money on it...so...forever?

The affiliates are hurting, though. And unhappy affiliates may just start preempting the show for something that's a better lead in to the local news.

[Cardiff Giant]

Originally Posted by mphtrilogy

What a disaster for NBC, other than the Office and an occasional Law and Order.. I never visit this network.

Look what ABC has done with Buzz already this year, Flash Forward, V, a couple of good comedies.

NBC is run by Morons.

This may have already been mentioned but someone pointed out that Southland being cancelled may be directly related to the Leno show. It's really more of a 10pm show but with Leno on 5 nights a week they had to stick it in at 9 where it wasn't a good fit. I caught an episode or two of Southland and enjoyed it so it's a shame it's gone whether Leno's show was part of the reason or not.

[mrpayroll]

Originally Posted by Cardiff Giant

This may have already been mentioned but someone pointed out that Southland being cancelled may be directly related to the Leno show. It's really more of a 10pm show but with Leno on 5 nights a week they had to stick it in at 9 where it wasn't a good fit. I caught an episode or two of Southland and enjoyed it so it's a shame it's gone whether Leno's show was part of the reason or not.

Well, you'll be happy to know that TNT has picked up Southland beginning in January!

NY Times Reports TNT Picks Up Southland---Will Premiere in January

Chris

[mphtrilogy]

Originally Posted by Bluelitespecial

They may be morons, but Friday Night Lights is still on the air.

If I recall thats a show that was championed by Kevin Reilly who has since been canned by NBC and hired by Fox.

As long as Zucker is in charge he will be driving that network off the cliff.

On the other hand, NBC owned Bravo and USA pump out some good stuff.. it makes you wonder if they are just letting the main parent Network flounder creatively but make money, while there "creative" people do there thing over at USA and bravo...

[pinata242]

South Park & Ultimate Fighter > Jay Leno in 18-49 ratings: http://www.aintitcool.com/node/42986

[Burgundy LaRue]

I think Leno's contract goes until 2011. After that, he's finished. NBC will can this show and he probably won't be popular enough to get another broadcast late-night run. Maybe something on cable/satellite will be available.

NBC really screwed up on this. The network was already in bad shape but now it's like roadkill on a hot August afternoon. It'll take a couple of years to develop quality shows for the 10 PM hour. They'll be in a constant state of catch-up with other networks. All they've got is the Olympics and the charming Brian Williams for their nightly news. That's pathetic.

[resinrats]

They need to kick Conan out of the Tonight Show so Jay can take that back over and go back to beating Dave in late night ratings.

[RichC2]

Or just let Conan build his audience and let Leno retire or do another show that isn't on 5 days a week.

This show is pulling pretty solid ratings for a low cost show that is on 5 days a week. It isn't like NBCs other shows are doing particularly well. I can't vouch for the affiliates but I can't imagine they saw that big of an increase or decrease for local news either way.

If anything, this hurts Conan and Fallon the most, but again, cheap to produce so I don't think they're sweating it. Pulling better than CW ratings on a nightly basis at least