The Tonight Show with Jay Leno 1992-2009: A Look Back

It will be bittersweet when Jay Leno bids adieu to the Tonight Show later this year. On one hand, we will miss turning on the TV at 11:35pm for some laughs. On the other hand, we'll get to see him on an hour and a half earlier, with The Jay Leno Show starting at 10pm.

It's been a rocky road for Mr. Leno, especially early on. For one, there was tremendous controversy when he got the job for two reasons: (a) He beat out David Letterman for the position. That ticked off Letterman and Dave's fans who insisted that Johnny Carson preferred Letterman, and that Letterman was better qualified for the job. So that was one problem. (b) He was replacing a legend in Johnny Carson. As much as Carson tried to make it seem that it was his decision, insiders recall that NBC execs were less than enthralled by Carson's high salary along with his many, many days off, and they felt that Leno would bring in a younger demographic.

It took a while for Leno to find his sea legs. A year later Letterman debuted on CBS during the same time as Leno and for a while, trounced Jay in the ratings. Stories emerged in the media of how NBC botched big time, how they chose the wrong guy, and how they should have listened to Carson.

Fast forward to 2009. Leno has beat Letterman in the ratings every year since 1995, and the Tonight Show continues to get great numbers despite horrible ratings for NBC. So what happened? When did the tide turn?

There are several factors. After a couple of years, they redesigned the set of the Tonight Show. They put Jay a few feet in front of the audience, so close that he shakes hands and gives high fives before the monologue. This fed into his strength, which is stand-up comedy. This strengthened his connection with the audience. The set also looked more modern.

Also the monologue increased in length. And the jokes became more visual, forcing viewers to take notice.

Then Branford Marsalis left as head of the Tonight Show band and Kevin Eubanks took over. This was big because Eubanks has a lot more personality, participates more in the jokes, and engages Jay in tit-for-tat put-downs. Marsalis was not into the jokes, giving Leno a polite smile at most. Eubanks was also in more comedy bits.

Many point to the 1995 interview with Hugh Grant as the turning point. True, shortly after Grant's arrest for soliciting a prostitute, he was scheduled to go on and people tuned in to see what would happen. Sure enough, Jay's first question was "What the hell were you thinking?" Yes, that was the first week Leno beat Letterman, but even before that, Leno had been closing the gap (no pun intended), and the viewers stayed with him after that, so it was no flash in the pan.

Another point is that 1995 was the year David Letterman hosted the Oscars. He was such a flop that he was never invited back, but also viewers may have asked themselves if perhaps they were overrating him. Thus, they checked out Leno and said, hey, this guy's pretty good.

The show got better when announcer Edd Hall left and was replaced by John Melendez. Hall did not have a lot of personality, and added little to the show. Melendez, on the other hand, is quick-witted, and has a lot more to offer.

One thing Leno has gotten criticized for is his interviewing skills. His critics will point out that he does not ask tough questions (Hugh Grant notwithstanding), thus making for a boring gabfest. I disagree. I think Leno has improved over the years in having a fun interview, but you have to understand that the purpose of the interviews is to promote a TV show, a movie, an album, or an upcoming performance. Often that is the only reason the celebrity is there. Also, there are time constraints, so there is no opportunity to get into a long conversation about something other than the project. Another thing is that Leno is very good at letting the interviewee be the star. Other hosts do not like when a guest steals the show, so they get into an I-can-do-better-than-you competition. Not Leno.

The comedy sketches have evolved as well. It seems as if they took the most popular bits, such as Jaywalking or sending somebody to cover an awards show, and made them into regular staples. Headlines is still the Monday night shtick while the others rotate.

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno is one of the rare shows that not only has not jumped the shark, but has gotten better with age. It will be very interesting to see what happens when Leno moves to 10pm. He could pick up more fans, or he could flop. Same goes for the incoming Tonight Show host Conan O'Brien.

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D0CE7DD1538F934A35755C0A967958260

http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2004-03-28-stuttering-john_x.htm

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117978850.html?categoryid=14&cs=1