Spring Break
With Leno off 'Tonight,' is there a new king of the night?
Aaron Barnhart, McClatchy NewspapersIssue date: 10/29/09 Section: News
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Just one year ago, Jay Leno was cruising along as the undisputed king of late night. Five million faithful watched the "Tonight" show host, as reliable as his restored Model T, night after night delivering A-list guests, John McCain jokes and wacky headlines.
A million viewers behind him was the urbane David Letterman, still considered the best in show by many, and everyone else followed in the wake of these two old pros. Conan O'Brien, Craig Ferguson, Jon Stewart and Jimmy Kimmel all had their multitudes, but the pecking order in late night was clear and it was unalterable.
Then it all came undone. Leno left NBC's "Tonight" to prepare for his new 10 p.m. show. Conan moved to LA to take his place and promptly lost half of Leno's audience. Back in New York, Jimmy Fallon took over Conan's spot and lost a third of his audience.
That cleared the path for Letterman to reclaim the top spot in the ratings after surrendering his crown to Leno 14 years ago.
But how long will Dave be around to enjoy it? He has gotten himself into an unflattering, highly publicized romantic drama that might cost him support among the 58 percent of his audience that is female. And now we learn, courtesy of Newsday, that the "Late Show" host has yet to sign an extension to his CBS contract, which runs through 2010.
It no longer seems implausible that Dave might actually hang it up, settle down with his wife and raise their child out of the limelight. That would make Ferguson the most likely candidate to take over "Late Show" just about a year from now, not bad for a guy who until recently wasn't even a US citizen. (His memoir, "American on Purpose," debuted last week at No. 4 on the New York Times best-seller list.)
The most stable part of late night has been the lowlands, where Kimmel, Stewart, Stephen Colbert, Charlie Rose and Chelsea Handler (look, a woman!) continue to draw smaller but still lucrative audiences. Hoping to join their ranks are Wanda Sykes, whose weekly show airs at 11 p.m. Saturdays on Fox starting November 7, and George Lopez, whose "Lopez Tonight" launches at 11 p.m. November 9 and will air weeknights on TBS.
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