Earlier on Thursday, Rolling Stone published allegations from two current and 14 former employees, including production crew and writers, who requested anonymity out of fear of retaliation. Rolling Stone claimed they had approached an additional 80 current and former employees, but “not a single one agreed to speak on the record or had positive things to say about working on the Tonight Show”.
According to Rolling Stone’s report, multiple sources alleged Fallon had a history of “outbursts” and lashing out at staff when under pressure; that previous senior staff on the show had bullied and belittled them; and that guests’ dressing rooms were commonly known as “cry rooms”, where employees could go let out their stress.
Nine showrunners have worked on the Tonight Show since Fallon took over from Jay Leno in 2014; a much faster turnover than comparable late night shows like Late Night with Seth Meyers and The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.
They should have given it to Conan when they had the chance but they keep insisting on giving it to soulless narcissists like Leno and Fallon.
This, Conan has always been infinitely funnier, and he still has employees that followed him from the Late Night show that seem to love working with him
so much love for Conan. I’ve only seen a few clips, I’ll have to seek him out a bit.
ok I just watched this and he’s actually great: https://youtu.be/FIHxrzOQtm0
They did give it to Conan, then they gave it back to Jay. Like everything else wrong in my life, I blame the boomers.
Oooh yes, they did Conan sooo dirty during that clusterfuck.
Fuckin boomers
I love the single downvote… “god damn kids…” grumble, grumble
Unpopular opinion: Conan SUCKS and is not funny. His personal antics are downright cringey middle school level drek.
Yeah, not everyone like all types of humor. By actually having a personality and a distinct sense of humor he opens himself up to not being liked.
Unlike the charismatic black holes of Falcon and Leno that are just there and fills time until the inevitable heat death of the universe.
At least Leno was an ok interviewer and (at least based on his post tonight shown life) seems not to be a dick.
Fallon is SUCH a bad interviewer, it is incredibly grating.
Leno on the Tonight Show was just a rotating parade of shills. It was devoid of any soul, community, or any emotion really.
Conan is a jackass too, except he treats people like crap on camera and people think it’s funny.
You…think what you see on TV is…real? It’s a comedy bit.
Conan acts like that to get a laugh because he isn’t like that at all as a person and everyone knows he is joking. You won’t ever see Fallon or Corden be that way on camera because it’s really how they are in everyday life off camera.
Exactly. It’d be painfully obvious how horrible these guys are if you got to see how their staff reacted, should Fallon or cordon ever decide to do Conan’s “remotes.”
Speaking of, even with the guy that conan was always the “hardest” on in those remotes, Jordan Schlansky, you would see him break on occasion because even he knew that they were taking part in a bit. Man, I miss conan.
The Italy and Japan trips were hilarious.
I go back and do a full-remotes rewatch at least once a year. They’re all fuckin gold. But my favorite is the one where he catches onto a secret email chain of employees so they can get to any free food before anyone else. That one is just so goddamn perfect
I’ll wait to hear about all the people crying from working on Conan.
Because last I checked, Conan does seem to care about his staff. He has a history of paying people out of pocket while his shows were on hiatus.
Those are comedy skits where people play exaggerated versions of themselves for your amusement.
It’s acting.
Almost like it’s a bit for entertainment! Being a “jackass” on camera is not at all the same thing as this story.
I’ve never heard of anything saying Conan was inappropriate to them while working for him. He seems like one of those bosses that let’s people do there works and get a way with shit here and there.
I’ve loved Conan for decades, but a certain point the bits with him and Jordan Schlansky started to make me uncomfortable. Like yeah, he’s a weird, possibly neurodivergent guy who does odd things that are funny and Conan wanted to make a bit out of it and obviously Jordan was on board. But as it progressed Conan did seem to get a little mean at times, and when you have a national platform like that, you aren’t just being silly-mean to your quirky buddy, you’re opening the door to making it acceptable to ridicule people with autism spectrum disorder.
He’s not abusing an autist. Jordan plays in to it as much as Conan plays in to being mean. Listen to Jordan on Inside Conan. It’s entertainment. Jeremy Clarkson doesn’t try to fix everything with a hammer; Steve Martin and Martin Short aren’t in jealous competition with each other; Gordon Ramsey doesn’t SHUT IT DOWN!
You can’t convince me Clarkson doesn’t at least try to fix everything with a hammer at first
Yeah… that’s exactly what I said. He’s ribbing his buddy. BUT every single thing he’s making fun of in Jordan could be seen as an autistic trait. When sweet old, aw shucks Conan O’Brien has a running gag where he makes fun of autistic traits, it harms people on the spectrum.
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NO! He’s being abused. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmRouEds_2A
Then you should be upset with Jordan for pretending to be “on the spectrum”. *EDIT TO ADD: Conan is mocking Jordan’s stilted, self-protective camera persona.
Whether this is a “hit piece” or not, I have never found Fallon funny in the slightest bit and absolutely hate the entire late night talk show format. It’s just sucking up to celebrities for 2 goddamn hours. Utterly fake conversations with fake people trying to plug their latest projects. Every thing about it annoys the fuck out of me.
I’m the same, except when Conan does it. But also Conan could read out my tax returns and it’d be hilarious.
Conan has his moments, but I much rather see him write/act in skits about current events than sucking up to celebrities. Peak Conan was when he was still fresh from being a writer for The Simpsons, and I seem to find him less and less funny as the years go on.
I’d recommend giving his travel show “Conan Obrien Must Go” a shot. More just Conan being Conan and it’s great.
Wasn’t that years ago what he did when one of the networks fired him, but he couldn’t go on another network because of contractual reasons? I think might have seen some of it. Or maybe it was the build-up to it. I might give it a shot, but if there are celebrities on it, I’ll tune out. Celebrity worship makes me want to puke and no pre-written banter between a host and a celeb can hold my attention for long.
No, that was something earlier when he quit NBC when Jay Leno wanted a show again and Conan didn’t want them to change the time of the show from what Carson had. He did a live show. I can’t remember what it was called, but it was something like “banned from TV”. He was mostly looking for a way to keep taking care of his employees: as he always did, including out of his own pocket during the last, previous writer’s strike.
I’ve been really liking his podcast. He still has celebrities on, but the idea is that it’s more people he wants to talk to rather than people promoting stuff, or people he had on his show who he never got to have a proper conversation with and he’ll sit with them to a proper in-depth talk for like an hour or so. And sometimes they’ll do an episode where just a random member of the public calls in and he interviews them instead. Also one of his co-hosts is his assistant who does not respect his position as her boss at all, so that’s a good dynamic.
Weird, I’ve actually found him to be funnier and more witty/insightful as the years have gone on. I couldn’t stand him back in the '90s.
Conan has admitted that he can’t turn it off.
If you see him at a restaurant, he will accidentally ignore his family to to entertain you. He mentions his wife hates it.
I sat next to him and his wife at a restaurant about 6 years ago. Now I’m personally offended he didn’t ignore her to try to entertain me.
I feel like you could ask Conan to be funny after you read 2 lines from anything and he’d knock it out. Recipe. Taxes. Obituary. Jimmy Fallon’s set. Anything normally not funny at all
Idk i laughed pretty hard when mamoa smacked the everloving shit out of him.
I’m thinking this could be a successful new format
The Graham Norton show is actually pretty entertaining as late-night talk shows go. Graham seems like a good dude, the guests can actually talk to each other after pitching their bullshit, and they drink onstage so they don’t have to pound booze and drugs in the green room beforehand.
Congratulations, you have a brain.
I’ve always gotten strong Ellen vibes from Fallon.
I never understood how this unfunny douchebag got famous. Are people really fans of him or was having him TWO shows purely a studio decision? He was never funny on SNL.
I thought maybe it was just me, maybe I wasn’t seeing something in ‘slow jam the news’ that was hilariously funny. But then he sucked up to Trump during the campaign in 2016 and I didn’t give a fuck any more. Fuck him.
Jimmy Fallon is all that awkwardness of Nathan Fielder minus the intent or semblence of humor. He is the most boring, lame host I have ever seen on a show like this and I find him painful to watch.
Hence his prime spot. That’s why he’s famous. He’s milquetoast, he’s lowest common denominator, he’s white bread, he’s Big Bang Theory, hes Two and a Half Men, he’s a laugh track, he’s Jay Leno.
That seems to be true of a lot of SNL Alum. I don’t find the (infinitely more likeable) Will Farrell funny either, though from what I’ve heard his success is largely in his ability to get people motivated, so you see a lot of good films with unfunny Farrells, where Farrell is the reason why it’s funny, but it’s not obvious because Farrell himself isn’t.
For Fallon: I suspect the fact that he couldn’t get through a single SNL sketch without breaking character and bursting out laughing “humanized” him to a sizable amount of the audience, and despite Lorne Michaels’ dislike of that kind of thing, meant Micheals ended up going to bat for him.
I… don’t think that should be the basis of putting someone in the slot that should have been gone to Conan, but I’m surprised how unpopular Conan is among people I know who aren’t part of my circle of friends, and how popular Fallon is.
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I don’t disagree with anything you said, at all, but do feel the need to point out during all 3 you mentioned (Farley, Hartman and Hader) all had absolutely crazy good writers on SNL at the time as well, who were exceptional at using the talent offered. I think back to Hader doing Stefon and it was Mulany writing those, and always changing the script to make Hader break. Things like that.
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Will Farrell funny either, though from what I’ve heard his success is largely in his ability to get people motivated, so you see a lot of good films with unfunny Farrells, where Farrell is the reason why it’s funny, but it’s not obvious because Farrell himself isn’t.
I came to this conclusion too! always considered Will Farrell to be unfunny.
But I think he has like a “funny aura boost”. Because when he’s in a movie, it feels like the whole staff is having a lot more fun and are looser. And that makes the whole film more enjoyable.
Not sure, I’ve never watched him. I don’t really watch late shows that much lately, but I’ve enjoyed content from Last Week Tonight, Seth, Colbert, Jon Stewart when he was host of Daiky Show, and yes, Trevor Noah’s show roo (I’ve heard people lambasting him as being Neoliberal, which probably is true, but I liked how they had some angles based on black people. Same with Seth’s jokes Seth can’t tell for black and lesbian stuff). Of those I probably liked Last Week Tonight the most.
The others can be charming sometimes even in ways that’s not inherently funny, but more like hamming it up (Colbert and Seth).
I’ve never found a clip of Fallon that made me want to watch.
Totally. I said the same thing when someone posted a thread about his behavior yesterday. I got a real asshole sense from him.
Even off camera he just gives off a vibe of having an insatiable need for attention
Give Craig Ferguson his time slot.
I’d start watching non-streaming TV again if Ferguson came back.
I miss Craig
Conan was awesome and I thought it couldn’t get any better. But then came Craig and he was in a league of his own. He reinvented the genre and nobody was able to copy him since.
It was a privilege to have lived through and watch both of them in their prime.
I haven’t even seen him since he left his show. What is he even doing now? Just enjoying retirement? I mean he deserves it, but I miss him too.
I have no idea. He did like one Netflix comedy special after leaving the show but that was so long ago.
I think he’s said he never wanted the earlier time slot because the network would be too involved with the show.
“Tonight Show with Craig Ferguson” would just be like what Tonight Show has been for many decades with just the few flourishes here and there that the network would allow Ferguson to do.
With the 12:30 slot he could do whatever he wanted, the network didn’t care. Which is what made his show the best talk show of all time.
“I’m sorry (this got out).”
Guy is fake af, never understood the appeal of him or his show.
I feel vindicated for strongly disliking him since SNL. Deuche bag ruined every single skit he was in. Absolute amateur laughing in every skit. Every time.
That was the best thing about SNL at the time, to me, lol
If it’s any consolation, snl was always shit for dumbasses.
Ohhhh hot take… SATAN!
There was a time when it was funny. That was before he was there.
- Deep thoughts by Jack Handy
- Andy Kaufman
- Weekend Update (Norm Macdonald (fuck Chevy))
- Phil Hartman
- The cheerleader bit
- Wayne’s World
- Bill Murray
Mad TV was where the real funny was at
When I was in college, there would be these marathons of MAD TV, and we’d play a drinking game to it. Every time there was a joke that was supposed to be funny, and wasn’t, you’d take a drink
We’d get shit faced man. Mad TV was so terrible lol
Later we did it to Key and Peele too, which was great because K&P skits are funny for the first 90 seconds or so and then they just bludgeon the joke into the fucking ground
Good times.
I’m to the point where I just assume if you’re a celebrity you’re probably a piece of shit.
I think that’s a very safe assumption based on all the examples we’ve seen.
It’s almost like living a life where you are mostly isolated from reality, have to be isolated from the public for logistics reasons, and only have contact with people whose entire existence is to make you happy turns you into an asshole. And most celebrities are people who actively sought out that lifestyle, which means they started out with an inclination towards being an asshole.
You made Keanu sad.
And Tom Hanks.
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Yeah, pretty much.
It’s so nice being fans of people nobody knows about. They never get caught doing shitty things because they’re not shitty people.
We put shitbags on a pedestal, for some reason. I blame greed.
Fallon is one of the least funny people on the planet. I am not joking. His shit keeps getting brought up on my YouTube feed and it is just utter crap.
The only time I had to laugh at something he was involved in, was when he made a crossover with John Oliver. Fallon obviously tried to advertise for Amazons Alexa, when Oliver suddenly asked Alexa about the working conditions in Amazon Warehouses. Fallon immediately shit himself.
Jimmy Fallon is a robot designed to laugh at people’s jokes no matter how unfunny they are.
Jimmy Fallon was a “safe” bet by NBC execs during the Leno/Conan arguments.
It’s a stupid bet.
This is hilarious if you’ve ever worked in Hollywood: An NBC spokesperson told the magazine: “As in any workplace, we have had employees raise issues; those have been investigated and action has been taken where appropriate. As is always the case, we encourage employees who feel they have experienced or observed behaviour inconsistent with our policies to report their concerns so that we may address them accordingly.”
report their concerns so that we may address them accordingly
Which means they will fire that person and make sure they never work in the industry again. That sounds like a cliche you hear in movies, but if you know people who work in Hollywood you know that it’s a real thing.
And we always tell them, you can be honest. Don’t worry, we won’t “retaliate”
But why the quotes?
Oh, just for emphasis that we absolutely will “not retaliate or fire you immediately and spread rumors about you”
Not trying to defend Jimmy Fallon, but is there a way to do a nightly television show for years on end that’s healthy?
The constant demand to be fresh, funny, topical, appeal to advertisers, network execs and audience members. It’s fucking insane how anyone can do it at all.
I’d imagine it takes it’s toll on even the most level headed good people.
Most of the story might be construed as nothing but the show runner turn over raised red flags for me. Conan had the same show runner, Jeff Ross, for decades. Fallon can’t keep a show runner for a year! On the Tonight Show! One of the most coveted show runner positions still left in Television. The fact that the most powerful people aside from fallon keep quietly leaving the show means to me that there is something rotten that they are all fleeing and keeping quite to protect their careers.
Conan seems to be well-regarded.
Not surprised, never could stand that guy.
I don’t hate him. Don’t like him. I never found him as funny as Jimmy Fallon did either
I always knew something was off about his fakeass laugh…
It’s suspicious that this has gone on for years, but the story is only being published now. Seems to have been common knowledge in Hollywood. Is it contract negotiation time? Did Fallon finally piss of the wrong person? Does NBC have someone already in mind to replace him?
Maybe the alcohol rumors are true and getting to be more of an issue?
He cancelled a Norm MacDonald appearance on his show for saying that he put Rosanne Barr and Louie C.K. in touch because of their shared experience. Like, a therapy thing. Jimmy claimed that a female his staff cried and locked herself in an office b/c of that. At least we know what room it was and what they were really crying about.
