Greater than 14 years after his turbulent departure as host, Conan O’Brien lastly returned to The Tonight Present on Tuesday for a chat with Jimmy Fallon.
O’Brien sat down on the opposite aspect of the desk to advertise his upcoming journey sequence, Conan O’Brien Should Go, for MAX, and he made his historic return to the long-lasting present he briefly served as host of throughout an acrimonious public feud and authorized battle with each NBC and Jay Leno.
Nevertheless, there was nothing however love, nostalgia and help as O’Brien returned to his outdated stomping grounds to sit down throughout from Fallon, and reminisce about his time in New York, and dealing at 30 Rock.
“It is bizarre to come back again. It is bizarre. I have not been on this constructing for such a very long time, and I have not been on this ground in endlessly,” stated O’Brien, who hosted Late Night time with Conan O’Brien for 16 years within the constructing earlier than transferring to LA for his temporary Tonight Present tenure.
“All these recollections got here flooding again to me,” O’Brien defined. “The very first thing that may hit you, and it’ll hit you, too, as a result of at some point — you may have this present so long as you need it, however whenever you’re 98, you may transfer on, and another person will probably be on this studio. When another person is in your studio, it feels bizarre.”
“So I walked in and I stated, ‘Who’s in my outdated studio?’ And so they stated, ‘Kelly Clarkson,'” he recalled. “And I like Kelly Clarkson. Who would not love Kelly Clarkson? However nonetheless I felt like, ‘It is not proper!!”
“It is blasphemy!” O’Brien joked. “They need to have burned it to the bottom!”
O’Brien — who now lives and data his podcast in Los Angeles — additionally appeared again on the recollections that hit him at any time when he comes again to the Massive Apple.
“After I, in my life now, trip round Manhattan, all I bear in mind is, ‘I bear in mind being, you already know, wearing a loin fabric on that nook, and dunking myself hen broth!’ Like, simply silly, idiotic issues, you get flash recollections of,” O’Brien stated. “And any physician would say, ‘Oh, you are mentally unwell, you are going insane.’ No, no! These are issues I actually did.”
Towards the top of his sit-down, O’Brien received critical for a second as he shared his reward for Fallon, and his help for what he is accomplished with The Tonight Present.
“I’ve to say, I am simply very joyful for you. I’ve had the consideration of assembly each Tonight Present host going again to Steve Allen, and I feel what you have accomplished with this present is gorgeous,” O’Brien stated. “You made it your personal. You’ve got accomplished a lot nice high quality work. And I could not be happier for you, you already know? I actually am thrilled for you.”
“Thanks buddy,” a moved Fallon replied. “You raised the bar. You raised the bar, and made me work exhausting.”
For these unfamiliar with the drama again within the day, O’Brien took over the helm of The Tonight Present from Leno in 2009. Nevertheless, NBC tried to maintain Leno on the community with The Jay Leno Present, which aired in a primetime slot.
As neither present appeared to excel within the scores, the community balked, and tried to push the Tonight Present again to 12:05. Livid and annoyed — and largely backed by public outcry and fan help — O’Brien refused, and negotiated a $45 million settlement to stroll away from the present in early 2010.
In late 2010, O’Brien signed on with TBS to host the late night time speak present Conan, which aired for 11 seasons earlier than he retired. Whereas he hosts the favored podcast Conan O’Brien Wants a Good friend, his new journey sequence marks his first return to TV since his speak present got here to an finish in 2021.
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