Kevin Eubanks Leaving Jay Leno?

As if switching from The Tonight Show to primetime and back wasn't enough of hassle for Jay Leno, he may also be losing his trusty band leader, Kevin Eubanks. There have been reports claiming that Eubanks may not be staying with Leno for much longer. Some sources say that he will be returning with Leno to the Tonight Show spot after the Olympics, others say he will return but not for long, and still others claim he will not move back to the Tonight Show at all.

Eubanks has been laughing alongside Leno since 1992 and even followed him to primetime, so why would he leave now? "Kevin has expressed interest in pursuing personal touring and recording opportunities," a source form NBC told Inside TV. Does he really want to start a new career or is he afraid that the Leno-Conan scandal has ruined the image of Leno and the Tonight Show? Or maybe he is not leaving at all.

Conan's Not Joking With NBC

Conan O’Brien will not be accepting NBC’s proposal to move him and “The Tonight Show,” from the 11:35 p.m. to the 12:05 a.m. time slot. O’Brien started hosting “The Tonight Show,” about seven months ago after Jay Leno left it to host his own show called “The Jay Leno Show.”

On Sunday NBC announced that they were going to take “The Jay Leno Show” out of its prime-time position. The show was doing poorly in the ratings at the 10 p.m. time slot and was not meeting the affiliates’ needs. They plan to have Leno host a new half-hour show at the 11:35 p.m. slot. However, this move will have a domino effect.

This pushes O’Brien’s “The Tonight Show,” and Jimmy Fallon’s “Late Night,” into later time slots. A main reason why O’Brien is not accepting NBC’s proposal is due to the survival of the show. “The Tonight Show at 12:05 simply isn’t the Tonight Show,” says O’Brien.

He not only makes this decision for himself but for his fellow competitors, which brings some humanity into the business world. “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,” says O’Brien. “That would hurt the other NBC franchise that I love, and it would be unfair to Jimmy.”

Now these talk shows hosts are doing what they do best—talking. Leno spends some time on his show bashing the way NBC handled the situation. “They don't have a lot of tact,” says Leno. “After they canceled the show, they told me if I gained 10 pounds I could join 'The Biggest Loser.'”

O’Brien is upset because he and his staff have worked very hard to get where they are, and it is very disappointing for him. However, no matter how upset he may be, he never fails to shed some light with his own Conan style. He ended his statement by saying, “Have a great day and, for the record, I am truly sorry about my hair; it’s always been that way.”

Jay Leno Responds to Cancellation Rumors!

Not sure how NBC feels about this, but in a clip from last's nights episode of The Jay Leno Show, Jay reponds to the rumors that have been spreading like wild fire around the net!

Kanye Apologizes For His Stunt at the VMAs

Kanye West apologized for what he did to Taylor Swift on Jay Leno.



Kanye also wrote an apology on his blog, which read: "I feel like Ben Stiller in 'Meet the Parents' when he messed up everything and Robert De Niro asked him to leave."

"That was Taylor's moment and I had no right in anyway to take it from her. I am truly sorry."

He also claimed that 19-year-old Taylor's mother Andrea Swift "tore into him" backstage, demanding he apologies to her daughter.

"Taylor's mother said the same thing my mother would have said," Kanye wrote.

VMA host Russell Brand has defended Kanye, but admits his actions were out of line.

"I know Kanye, and I know he's a nice guy," Russell told Ryan Seacrest on his radio show. "We all make mistakes in life. We're all people, these things are a bit silly, no one died."

"But Taylor Swift's a young kid, isn't she? You can't make a pretty girl cry."

Jay Leno's Reign on the Tonight Show Comes At an End

After 17 years of working on the Tonight Show Jay Leno will take his bow on June 1, 2009 with his last show. Although he is leaving the Tonight Show we will still be seeing him on television in 10:00pm slot with another comedy on NBC. He feels like it'll be good for television and audiences to have something comical on television so it can contrast with all the serious things on at that time. Jay Leno will soon join the memories of the other hosts of the the Tonight Show.

Steve Allen was the original host of the TV show when it started in 1954. Following him was Jack Paar who was known for his fun and jokes but his emotional outbursts as well. It was because of him that the Tonight switced to being taped live to pre-recorded the evening of the show so they would have time to edit time when he became overtly emotional. But it was thanks to Jack that the Tonight Show started having guests on the show. Johnny Carson replaced Jack. He stayed with the show for about 30 years! Jay Leno became the host of the show with Johnny's blessing. Johnny Carson started to let people guest host on Monday and Jay Leno was frequently a guest. After Johnny Carson left Jay became the host for the Tonight Show which we all know today.

Jay Leno has promised "something out of the left field" for his last show. His final show will include superstars like Mel Gibson, Billy Crystal, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Look forward to some great shows coming your way.

It is now Conan O' Brian's turn to step up to the plate and begin hosting the Tonight Show. We'll soon get to see if he's up for the challenge of carrying the Tonight Show for many more years to come just as the hosts before him have.

Obama's Appearance On Leno

Appearing on "The Tonight Show," President Obama made an "uh-oh" during a coversation with the talk show host. The crowd loved him and Obama set some issues straight to the American public like the AIG bonus scandal. However, the president told host Jay Leno he'd been practicing at the White House's bowling alley but wasn't happy with his score of 129. The he rolled a gutter ball by quipping: "It was like the Special Olympics or something." Oh, boy. I'm an Obama supporter but I cringed at that one. Check out the entire interview below in case you missed it!

President Obama Scheduled To Appear On Leno

Holy presidents! In a rare move, President Obama will appear on the "Tonight Show with Jay Leno" this Thursday as part of his larger tour through Southern California. Bet Jay Leno is screaming with joy, his ratings will probably be through the roof. There has never been a president in office that has appeared on a late night show before this scheduled appearance. Interesting. Obama is hitting the late-night comedy circuit to pitch his economic recovery plan.

According to the New York Times, the Leno appearance is unusual but not totally unprecedented: "Presidential candidates often appear on television shows when they're trying to get elected, but once successful, it is rare to find a commander in chief appearing on TV shows except as joke fodder." The president, who remains personally popular despite growing questions about his policies, is banking on the chance to broaden his audience beyond cable news junkies and political elites. Will you tune in? Tell us how you're being affected by this economy of ours. Leave a comment.

The Scoop On Late Night Show Switches!

We know it's confusing! Last week NY host Conan O’Brien signed off and is moving his show to L.A. He’ll take over the Tonight Show from Jay Leno later this year. In his place – enter Jimmy Fallon, the new host of Late Night. Jimmy’s first show is Monday and People has confirmed that Justin Timberlake will help his old friend kick it off his first show. The two starred in the classic SNL skit, "The Barry Gibbs Talk Show" together.

Robert De Niro will also be a guest on the show. Pretty strong for ratings, we think! "I thought it would be kind of good to have my first guy be probably one of the toughest people you could interview," Fallon said recently.

Fallon has also booked Clap Your Hands Say Yeah for his March 4 show, and "Gossip Girl" hunk Chace Crawford for March 6.

Howard Stern Shows His Weakness to Jay Leno

File this under, "Didum's get his feelings hurrrt! Awwww..." Because Howard Stern unleashed his best attack from the world of Satellite radio's isolated bully-pulpit with an attack on Jay Leno today.

Here is my take. I've had my run in with adversaries in my day and one thing I've always known is that the fox coming up the hill is hungrier than the one atop it. While that may be true, I don't think Howard Stern and Jay Leno are foxes fighting over the same hill. Yet Stern is playing his same game he played for years. Making foolish noise.

Take for instance the fool on the football field that is on the losingest team in the league and he gets a sack on the other team's quarterback. What does he do? We've all seen it. He jumps up and starts pounding his chest as if he were the best player in the league and his team just won the Superbowl. Everyone knows he is a jack-ass but himself.

Well, that is what Howard Stern is doing. Again. For years he has called out other media hosts, trying to destroy their programs using the old Microsoft business strategy to assimilate all listeners. Take away other shows and you have no competition. Now he is of all things, focusing his hate on Jay Leno. And why? Not because Jay's and Howard are fighting for the same audience. No, it's all because Jay made an innocuous statement about the diminished reality Stern lives in now; which is that Stern moved to Satellite radio for autonomy and does not have the power and influence he once had.

In Jay's own words, "I kind of watched Howard Stern," Leno reflected in detail. "On radio, Howard to me was a populist. The truck driver, the average guy would listen in the cafe, the truck, the old car that’s 50 years old and still has an AM radio. Then he went to Sirius and obviously it was a lot of money. But I don’t hear him quoted anymore. People don’t say: 'Hey, did you hear what Howard said today?' And I’m sure he's still doing what he always does. But to me that seemed a mistake." Howard can no longer manufacture controversy either. In taking the big money in his move to satellite, he lost his ability to be controversial. No one is listening to Howard Stern now other than to be entertained, and Howard does not entertain. He rides controversy.

Although Stern thinks he has influence, actually he is very isolated and unable to influence any listeners other than the ones he previously influenced to come with him to satellite. Even with the XM-Sirius merger Stern did not benefit as anyone on XM that wanted to listen to Stern would have to pay an additional $4.00 to listen to him.

To combat Stern's hurt feelings by Leno, Howard put forth the argument is that Jay has fewer viewers while he has more. Do you buy this? With the satellite radio crowd Stern has the audacity to assume every subscriber on the network is tuned into his show, while Leno's numbers are actual viewers. Busted pal.

Even Howard's own company heads have sided with Jay Leno on this topic. Mell Karmazin, Chief Executive of Sirius answered when asked if he thought Stern has lost his place in the culture, saying: “I think the size of the audience is less today."

Even more perplexing is Howard's own words: "I left terrestrial radio and I couldn't be happier. I didn't have any delusions that when I'd go on satellite radio I'd have as many listeners that I had on terrestrial radio." So why the pissing contest with Jay then Howard? The answer seems clear. Howard is struggling. He's not only irrelevant, he knows and feels it.

Hey Howard, I have news for you. You had 12 million listeners on free radio. According to annalists your satellite listenership tops out at 2.5 million while Leno's audience averages 4.5 million (not to mention at 1.3 rating considering his time slot).

Also consider that free radio has over 25 million listeners. Satellite has less than half that number, and they sure as hell don't have their radios turned on at the same time listening to Howard Stern.

To top it all off. Stern is still offering the same old shtick on Satellite he peddled on free radio. He has not evolved or honed his craft. I'm not big fan of Leno, but I've seen all along that Jay has more than just wit, he has wisdom. And the last I heard, NBC is moving him to a coveted 10:00 PM time slot. Jay Leno works with people, where Stern fights with his own staff. This guy is so worn out. With the economy in the tank Stern is doing what it can to retain subscribers on the satellite network. This is just Stern at his usual game, making noise, "Look at me, Look at me! Look at me!"

Hey Howard, you are on the losing team and you got your one sack. Enjoy it. When your contract with Satellite is up in 2010, then you can return to free radio and people will take your fighting words more serious. You can attack Jay Leno and people will listen. Then again, maybe everyone is just plain done with your shtick.

Scarlett's Tissue Sells For 5K!

A winning big of $5,3000 scored a lucky guy or girl the remnants of a tissue used by a cold-stricken Johansson when she appeared on 'The Tonight Show with Jay Leno' a week ago. The 'Spirit' starlet joked that since she caught the cold from her co-star Samuel L. Jackson, the tissue was valuable, and agreed to put it on eBay. All of the proceeds from the sale of the tissue will go to benefit USA Harvest. The initial bid on the tissue was $.99, and 82 bids later, the tally topped $5,000. Would you ever buy a celebrity's used tissue?

Leno's Last Night Set

Starting next June Conan O'Brien will take over "Tonight" hosting duties for Jay Leno; Leno's fate remains unknown.

Leno's last show will be Friday, May 29, and O'Brien will start on Monday, June 1, NBC executives said.

NBC is trying to keep Leno with the network, but the soon to be deposed host has indicated he is ready to jump ship. NBC competitors, including other major networks, may be the ones throwing Leno the life preserver.

Jimmy Fallon will be taking over "Late Night" for O'Brien in March or April of 2009.

O'Brien will wrap up filming of his show sometime in the first quarter of the year - the exact date has yet to be determined. The network will air reruns until Fallon takes over.

Adam Carolla to host 'Top Gear'

He's no Jay Leno...

... but funnyman Adam Carolla has just signed on as the host of NBC's version of the popular BBC show 'Top Gear,' the network announced today.

Carolla agreed to the gig after Jay Leno, a noted car enthusiast, declined the job in April. Leno wrote an op-ed to Britain's Sunday Times that said, "it would be impossible to re-create or live up to the standards of the British show."

The BBC version, hosted by Jeremy Clarkson, has expanded from a cult hit to a worldwide sensation. It covers new cars, car races, assessments of antique and novelty cars, crash footage and auto-centric challenges by its cast members.

"This is fantastic news—but how on earth you lot are going to do it on the wrong side of the road I've no idea," Clarkson said. He will be an executive producer of the U.S. version., and the cast members of the British version will also make appearances on the NBC show.

Carolla will be joined by champion rally and drift racer Tanner Foust and Eric Stromer, a TV personality and carpenter on TLC's 'Clean Sweep.' Carolla currently hosts the syndicated radio show, 'The Adam Carolla Show.'

Production for the pilot will begin this week.

Minnie Driver is Pregnant

Minnie Driver revealed that she is pregnant with her first child while appearing on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” on Thursday night. Leno made a joke about Driver’s weight gain and the thirty-eight year-old actress dropped the bomb.

Driver is enjoying being pregnant so far, but told Leno that one downside is that she experiences morning sickness and all times of the day. “But it’s a fair trade off,” she claims.

She did not reveal the father of the baby, but Driver has been romantically linked in the past to John Cusack, Josh Brolin, Criss Angel and Matt Damon, who is coincidentally expecting a baby of his own.

Miley Cyrus drinks ketchup

Singer-actress Miley Cyrus shared another one of her talents Wednesday night while appearing on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno."



The 15-year-old Disney star gulped ketchup from a bottle, much to the disgust of the audience, Leno and even Cyrus' father, Billy Ray.



"But it's really good. If it tastes good, what does it matter?" Cyrus said.