Jackskeleton

I typically fast forward through most other interviews on late night shows because it seems so scripted and by the PR's book on what to ask and what not to ask along with keeping it on point to whatever they're on the show to plug.

With Craig, the interview always put the plug in the back seat and went full scale ahead in just getting to know the person. It was so great and I'll miss it.


On that side note, going to the final episode taping today.

stopgap

Randomly scream something so we know it's you! Lol

pinata242

Make sure you're a better audience than the show-before-the-last's audience. They will be duds.

stopgap

According to Craig, they always are. Lol

philo

Can't overlook Geoff (Josh Robert Thompson) That guy is phenomenal and the way he and Craig riff off each other in the tweets & emails segment is probably what I'll miss most.

There was word back in August that Craig would be doing a half hour talk show in syndication maybe to fill out the hour along with his game show and Geoff would be part of it too.

Match

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mnementh

I want the entire show on Blu-ray with bonus commentary tracks.

pinata242

The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson will feature cameos from some big names and notable friends of the show for the final episode of Craig's reign as host, Friday, December 19. Come back tomorrow morning for a sneak peak at CBS.com.

Notable names to appear in the finale include: and more.

pinata242

Sounds like they basically just had recent guest record little messages to play. No way will they have all those people in person!

TerryW

Shatner was on so much I thought he was living in the theatre like the Phantom.

Craig is a genius comedian. Leno is neither a genius nor a comedian.

Carson was a complete toolbag. Horrible conceited jerk.

Letterman stopped being funny when he left NBC.

Craig makes fun of everyone and everybody but he's so damn brilliant at it that no one is offended.

Craig and Josh have no equal when it comes to improv.

Jackskeleton

Pretty much they've been recording it for a while. Got to see it at the taping today and it was pretty amazing with some segments and large chorus in studio.

Tonight's opening was the last time you see the one of him around the city. Tomorrow's is the theme with the montage of his show over the years evolving from his first walk out to the changing set dressing.


Essentially it sounded like he was laying it down that he's done with Late Late show, but he's not done with "it" yet. And he'll keep giving "it" to us.. just at a different time and maybe somewhere else.

The interview with Leno was also pretty solid, even if I dislike the fella.

mwbmis

LOVED the opening musical number, though since they showed some of the scenes from Scotland I thought it would have nice to have a shot of the late MCD...maybe doing finger pistols.

Leno was a good final guest. Liked that he doesn't care anymore so he's willing to tell stories.

The Drew Carey ending was more weird than funny.

This show will be missed, but I'm glad he didn't run it into the ground. He's probably leaving at the right time.

Travis McClain

I had a horrible night last night and was in bed, medicated by 8:30 so I missed the airing of the final episode of The Colbert Report. I streamed that earlier today, and it was a solid wrap-up (that all-star performance of "We'll Meet Again" was genuinely sublime). Tonight, the final Christmas episode of Letterman (pitch perfect from start to finish) and then the final episode of The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. Comedy isn't supposed to be this bittersweet, is it?

I was disappointed when I first read that the final guest would be Jay Leno, and sure enough he was the only down spot of those three episodes I just mentioned. I was entertained by his anecdote about meeting with the reality star in the parking lot and being oblivious to the fact he'd interviewed her, but that aside, everything I've ever not cared for about the guy was there in this interview and it detracted from what was otherwise perhaps the perfect finale. The monologue was appropriately sincere (something Craig has done better than most late night hosts), and the "What did you learn on the show the last ten years, Craig?" coda was truly brilliant.

Of the three Late Late Show eras, there's no question whatsoever that Craig Ferguson's tenure was the greatest. I loved Tom Snyder's original run on the show, and I wish there was something like that on today. Craig's Snyder-inspired sit-down with Stephen Fry was one of the finest hours of late night TV I've ever seen, or even heard about, but it worked not because of the impetus but because of how deft a conversationalist the guy is. His comedic indulgences and experiments were what made his run different from Snyder's, but at their core they were both about the same thing: one-on-one relations with guests.

The less said about Craig Kilborn, the better.

I've been thinking about the implied new show, and I wonder if perhaps Fox is going to take yet another stab at the late night show circuit. It's the one arena where that network has never had any real success, which I'm sure continues to rankle them. The retirement of Letterman creates a leadership vacuum in the late night landscape we haven't seen in 20 years. And, if Craig did turn down succeeding Letterman to take an 11:30 slot at Fox (or another network), that would easily explain the rift we've all perceived between the two of them in recent months.

2058 episodes from 5 January 2005 through 19 December 2014. Hell of a run!

Mike86

Fantastic final episode. The opening number was spectacular, I liked that he did a farewell monologue of sorts but didn't go too sappy (and hinted again at a future show), Leno was good and I like seeing him not caring anymore and just being more himself seemingly, and the end bit was great. It was cool that Bob Newhart showed up for a bit and I thought the reference to The Drew Carey Show was funny and its just the offbeat humor Craig was known for. Also liked the reference to the finale of The Sopranos. Fuck I miss this show already though. I doubt we'll ever get a late night show as good for a long time.

Rypro 525

Loved too that we got one more "hey who's that at the door"

Rypro 525

Craig (or maybe Josh on twitter) confirmed that pretty much all of their riffing back and forward is all unscripted

mwbmis

The end of this is what should have been somewhere in the musical montage.

TerryW

The opening and ending of Craig's last show was brilliant. Jay Leno was horrible as expected. The Jay Leno fly has been consistently funnier than Jay's entire career.

Loved how the opening was like a greatest hits montage with the obvious love from all his regular guests over the years.

Fantastic how the ending combined elements from the finales of St. Elsewhere, Newhart, Drew Carey and The Sopranos. Absolute genius.

I can officially retire from watching Late Night Talk Shows now because there's no point. No one will ever be better than Craig Ferguson.

Thank You, sir. I bid you adieu.

OldBoy

had no idea that when i said to myself that i thought it was interesting that Leno was a guest on his show, so i recorded it, that this was his final show. i remember saying that this was a spectacular opening to the show and then it clicked this was final show. i never really, but always enjoyed him. liked him on Drew Carey show as an actor/comedian. this was a fantastic final show with all those guest stars and him killing that number.

just great!

Flave

His new show seems to be a clone of Late Late Night (Geoff, Secretariat, and Michael are all going with Craig) but will be 1/2 hour in length and syndicated. I believe most stations will air it at 7:30.

Mike86

Where is this information coming from? I've heard similar rumors to this but haven't found a source. I'm happy to have him back either way but a half hour seems sort of short to me because if you figure with commercials that's basically only twenty minutes give or take. That would only give time for a short monologue, a short comedy bit, and one guest.

joltman

I have to wonder, if he is doing the new talk show, then why did he actually stop doing this one? He claimed it's because he's tired of it, but won't this mostly be more of the same? Not to mention I would think he'd be more restrictive, not less, if he's gonna be on during the day.

Mike86

I sort of wonder if he wasn't all too happy at CBS. I think some of the comments he made about how cheaply made the show was were done just as jokes, but I think some of the stuff legitimately upset him. More in the old studio which was small, had issues with leaks, and wasn't very well lit. I think a lot of those issues got ironed out in the new studio but that was only the last couple of years and he's admitted he was basically already sick of doing the show over the past couple of years. I kind of wonder if they offered that to him (and maybe a bit more money) as a last ditch effort to make him stay a while longer but he already sort of made up his mind about not staying too much longer.

I think the one good thing he had going with The Late Late Show was how offbeat he was able to keep the show. It really wasn't your typical talk show at all and he got away with quite a bit. I do have to wonder if he'll get away with that on a different network. Unless he's going to cable possibly where more stuff is able to fly, which in all honesty would be cool.

movieking

So who is running the show until Corden takes over? Not in terms of guest hosts, but producer?

Mr. Salty

He made a quick joke the other night about whatever his next project is being on earlier. I suspect he was hoping for Letterman's 11:35 p.m. time slot (Letterman's company produces his show) and when it went to Colbert he decided to bail.

Ultimately, all these guys seem to want the earlier time slot. Being on at 12:35 just limits their audience.