Conan O'Brien Getting Ready to Take Over "Tonight Show" from Jay Leno

Top television personality and comedian Jay Leno will be leaving "The Tonight Show" on May 29 after being the host for seventeen years. Leno replaced the great Johnny Carson in 1992 after being a substitute host for Carson since 1987. Leno became the fourth host in the fifty-four year history of the Tonight Show, the three others being Steve Allen, Jack Paar, and Johnny Carson. Leno's most famous guests include Mel Gibson, Robin Williams, Adam Sandler, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Billy Crystal and President Barack Obama.

Jay Leno has had a decade-long feud with late night rival David Letterman. The feud started when Letterman was expected to take over the Tonight Show after having a successful eleven year run hosting "Late Night with David Letterman" for NBC in the 1980's and after Carson retired in 1992 but Leno got the job, making him permanent host. Letterman felt betrayed and left NBC for CBS to host his own late-night show titled "Late Show with David Letterman" and compete with "The Tonight Show" in the 11:30 P.M. slot. "The Tonight Show" has consistently beaten "Late Show" over the years in the ratings.

Leno will not be retiring or even leaving NBC, but instead will be getting his own primetime 10 p.m. talk show that will begin this fall. The show will air on weeknights, five days a week, and is titled, "The Jay Leno Show". Leno's new show will be scripted and will be a nightly comedy show. NBC has not had a successful 10 o'clock show in over five years. They hope Leno will bring his ratings magic to the 10 p.m. weeknight slot this fall.

It has also been announced that Jay Leno's last guest will be his successor, Conan O'Brien. Leno has said that his last show, airing on May 29, will end with "something out of left field."

Late night talk show host Conan O'Brien, who is thirteen years younger than Leno, will take over "The Tonight Show" starting on June 1st and become the fifth host in Tonight Show history. The move was actually announced five years ago, in 2004, and goes into effect this year. The show will be renamed "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien". O'Brien is best known for hosting "Late Night with Conan O'Brien", a show that preceded "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" for many years on NBC. O'Brien was host of Late Night for sixteen years and the show had its final episode on February 20, 2009. O'Brien and Leno have a similar style in telling jokes, and that played a big part in O'Brien getting his new gig.