Jay Leno Show

There are rumors circulating that THE JAY LENO SHOW may be on the chopping block. NBC made a statement today confirming that there are issues with the show, but that they are confident in Jay Leno and are currently looking for ways to improve the show. Well, that didn’t stop Jay from joking about the rumors in last night’s show monologue. He said that he heard about the rumors on the radio, on his way into work. Joking with Kevin, he said, “If we are canceled, then we could take a vacation, and I hear the weather at FOX is really nice this time of year.” He also said, “NBC really stands for Never Believe your Contract,” touche.

Here’s the real talk: THE JAY LENO SHOW will go dark at 10pm during the Winter Olympics, and will be returning to the lineup at 11:30pm when the Olympics have ended. THE JAY LENO SHOW will be shortening its program to a half-hour, pushing the TONIGHT SHOW WITH CONAN O’BRIEN to 12pm and THE LATE SHOW WITH JIMMY FALLON to 1:05am.

Well, I have to tell you, I saw this coming. I was truly shocked to hear that Jay Leno was going to have a show at 10pm. I mean, the 10pm time-slot is probably the worst time-slot for the talk show format. I knew it was going to have a hard time creating confidence with the affiliates. Plus, the new show format is not really that appealing. I mean, to have your guests “Earn Their Plug,” it sounds cute, but not well-executed. The current show is simply “hit or miss.” I love the DAN BAND segments; JAY WALKING is fun; and the monologue is also entertaining. That’s about it.

I think the best play is for Jay Leno to retire from the talk show world and continue performing stand-up comedy across the country, as well as producing his new show, “Jay’s Garage,” which I fully enjoy. Sometimes, it’s best to just move on when you are on top of your game.