Radiohead - "Fake Plastic Trees"

Pretty awesome clip of Radiohead performing on Conan O'Brien way back in 1995. Interesting to note Conan's comment at the start that Radiohead was the first band to perform on Conan O'Brien ever. Nice way to start things off. Not to mention that means they were performing prior to The Bends, when, to be honest, they were a one-hit wonder and no one had any foresight to see they would be as important as they became.

Anyway, this is a great performance with lots of heart, clearly a band that is still hungry and has yet to become cynical from years of success and interviews and touring and playing "Creep" 50 times a month. I also love Thom Yorke's inability to hit the note for "be" in "and if I could be, who you wanted" both times at the end. He's human, after all.

Scala and Kolacny Brothers - "Creep"

Conan

In case you missed it, Conan's new late night show on TBS premiered last night, and boy did he kill it. This video is the cold open that started things off. It was followed by a spot-on monologue that addressed much of his NBC fall-out. Conan looked like he had a skip in his step, and really really happy to be back. Not as happy as all of us were, though. Welcome back, Coco!

The Conan O'Brien Tour

Yay! I just scored tickets to see Conan on the San Francisco leg of his tour. This almost, almost makes up for not being able to have seen his Late Night with Conan O'Brien when I lived in New York or when he came to SF for his little taking-the-show-on-the-road thing. Click here if you're interested in trying to get tickets. They might already be sold out, though. Oh, and they ain't cheap!

Stuff White People Like - #131 Conan O’Brien

The recent news that Conan O’Brien will be replaced by Jay Leno has caused white people to erupt with rage and hostility. You might even expect them to lash out and do something about it like take to the streets or write a letter to NBC to voice their dissatisfaction with the network. But no, white people will solve this problem the way that they solved the election crisis in Iran – through Facebook and Twitter status updates. In 2009, millions of white people took 35 seconds to turn their twitter profiles green, and consequently sent a very powerful message to the leaders of Iran. Their message was that they wanted their friends to know that they would stop at nothing to ensure freedom and democracy for the Iranian people. Thanks in large part to that effort Iran is now completely democratic. With that issue settled, white people are launching a similar campaign for Conan that is sure to have similar results.

It is not hard to understand why white people love Conan O’Brien, he embodies so many of the things they already like before he even opens his mouth: Ivy League Schools, Red Hair, the Boston Red Sox, Self Deprecating Humor, The Simpsons, and Bad Memories of High School (likely, but not confirmed). Seeing him on television five nights a week is a comforting reminder of community to the white people who still have televisions.

But if your plan is to try to use Conan O’Brien as a way to get white people to become more interested you, then it is imperative that you understand a few key rules. Firstly, all white people love “the masturbating bear,” if you don’t know what this is, do not worry. Just state your love for the character, and the white person you are talking to will simply fill in the rest. Secondly, all white people believe that Andy Richter never should have left the show. And finally, you should do your best to develop a “Triumph the Insult Comic Dog” impression. All white people already have one, so you might as well try to fit in. Complete these steps and watch your friendship with white people become considerably smoother.

Now, the biggest and most important thing to remember is to never, under any circumstances bring up a Conan O’Brien sketch or joke that has taken place in the last three years. You will be met with only blank stares. For you see, while white people will fiercely support Conan O’Brien in any public forum, they always fail to support him in the only way that actually helps – by watching his show.

Note: Under no circumstances should you ever mention that you prefer Jay Leno. This might cause white people to think you have the same taste in humor as the wrong kind of white people, or worse, their parents.

Team Conan

NBC is messing with the wrong Irishman. The Peacock network is tripping over themselves to accommodate the impossibly unfunny Jay Leno, and screwing over the genius that is Conan O'Brien to do so. After telling Conan they would be moving his Tonight Show to 12:05am to make way for The Jay Leno Show at 11:35pm, Conan offered the below retort, declining to accept the move. It remains to be seen how this will all play out, but I hope Conan comes out on top, however that might happen.

People of Earth:

In the last few days, I've been getting a lot of sympathy calls, and I want to start by making it clear that no one should waste a second feeling sorry for me. For 17 years, Ive been getting paid to do what I love most and, in a world with real problems, I've been absurdly lucky. That said, I've been suddenly put in a very public predicament and my bosses are demanding an immediate decision.

Six years ago, I signed a contract with NBC to take over The Tonight Show in June of 2009. Like a lot of us, I grew up watching Johnny Carson every night and the chance to one day sit in that chair has meant everything to me. I worked long and hard to get that opportunity, passed up far more lucrative offers, and since 2004 I have spent literally hundreds of hours thinking of ways to extend the franchise long into the future. It was my mistaken belief that, like my predecessor, I would have the benefit of some time and, just as important, some degree of ratings support from the prime-time schedule. Building a lasting audience at 11:30 is impossible without both.

But sadly, we were never given that chance. After only seven months, with my Tonight Show in its infancy, NBC has decided to react to their terrible difficulties in prime-time by making a change in their long-established late night schedule.

Last Thursday, NBC executives told me they intended to move the Tonight Show to 12:05 to accommodate the Jay Leno Show at 11:35. For 60 years the Tonight Show has aired immediately following the late local news. I sincerely believe that delaying the Tonight Show into the next day to accommodate another comedy program will seriously damage what I consider to be the greatest franchise in the history of broadcasting. The Tonight Show at 12:05 simply isn't the Tonight Show. Also, if I accept this move I will be knocking the Late Night show, which I inherited from David Letterman and passed on to Jimmy Fallon, out of its long-held time slot. That would hurt the other NBC franchise that I love, and it would be unfair to Jimmy.

So it has come to this: I cannot express in words how much I enjoy hosting this program and what an enormous personal disappointment it is for me to consider losing it. My staff and I have worked unbelievably hard and we are very proud of our contribution to the legacy of The Tonight Show. But I cannot participate in what I honestly believe is its destruction. Some people will make the argument that with DVRs and the Internet a time slot doesn't matter. But with the Tonight Show, I believe nothing could matter more.

There has been speculation about my going to another network but, to set the record straight, I currently have no other offer and honestly have no idea what happens next. My hope is that NBC and I can resolve this quickly so that my staff, crew, and I can do a show we can be proud of, for a company that values our work.

Have a great day and, for the record, I am truly sorry about my hair: it's always been that way.

Yours,Conan