I'm not sure why I'm going to do this, or how, but seeing as I still can't believe I did not walk down to Borders to pick up the book the moment I hit the office this morning, I am going to go in the realm of redemption and do a basic chapter-by-chapter breakdown as much as possible without really giving away the book (not that you don't know how it ends). If anyone else is reading and wants to chime in, please feel free to do so.
One of the great things about being around her for so long plus being on Google is that I can quickly jump back and see a certain point in time. "Comedy Tonight" focuses entirely on the events of May 19, 2009. (If I remember Late Shift correctly, Carter's first chapter there was solely about the 1991 NBC upfront that Carson announced his retirement from) The conversation around here was primarily on the ABC upfront that afternoon. I could not find a reference at all what NBC did that night: basically make this pseudo-upfront show based primarily on the comedy chops of the network. It featured Leno, O'Brien, Fallon, Jerry Seinfeld (your unannounced guest star), and Brian Williams (who hosted the event). This, it becomes clear, was the first instant when NBC could've had their GOB "I've made a huge mistake" moment. Every single person listed above except one killed. Leno (who was the closing act) didn't just bomb, but spectacularly died, in a manner that, even if you're in the "Leno can DIAF*" camp, will make you wince. Carter mentions Lorne Michaels thought that Leno was effectively "singing for his supper," but even if you discount that (and I completely do), it's just...it's wow. The story of the NBC execs who are trapped in the front row watching this and getting messages is excellent. But most of all, it's watching a moment where everyone could've That something this utterly traumatic happened without anyone mentioning a word about it in at the time this environment is unbelievable. -- TV or Not TV .... The Smartest (TV) People! You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TV or Not TV" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/tvornottv?hl=en
