JANUARY 7, 2010 5:53PM

Open Call: What should Conan O'Brien do next?

Rate: 14 Flag

Well, here's something we didn't see coming: It looks like Jay Leno may be taking back his 11:30 slot on NBC beginning Feb. 1. And it seems that NBC isn't denying TMZ's reports about the switch. As of now, it's not clear what this will mean for current "Tonight Show" host Conan O'Brien. Will a new, half-hour Leno show bump Conan back to midnight? Or will he lose his gig entirely?

While we would hate to see Conan jobless, we do have to wonder: If he does get kicked off late-night TV, what should the comedian do next? Leave your suggestions in the comments (not as a separate blog entry), and we'll post our favorite ideas on Salon.

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jay leno, conan o'brien, television, open call

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Maybe there's a gig for him at Salon. Or FOX.
Kathy Riordan
January 07, 2010 06:00 PM
Hmmm... Assassinate Jay?

Conan is so incredibly funny and Jay is so incredibly not. Do people actually prefer Leno over O'Brien?

[shudders]
Damion Chaplin
January 07, 2010 06:00 PM
Conan needs to go back out on the travelling stand up comedy circuit to re-learn what's funny and not funny, because clearly he's lost the funny
Placebostudman
January 07, 2010 06:01 PM
Conan should go back to writing for "The Simpsons" and help restore it to its glory days of the early '90s when he wrote such classic episodes as "Marge vs. the Monorail" and "Homer Goes to College".
Travis D'arby
January 07, 2010 06:04 PM
I have always loved the chemistry between Conan and Martha Stewart They need to join forces and create a joint show.
Twisted Willows
January 07, 2010 06:04 PM
I think he should go back to his old gig, as "Conan the Barbarian".
trilogy
January 07, 2010 06:16 PM
Conan should immediately begin work on a book called "Why Jay Leno Wears Diapers: The Truth About The Tonight Show"
Alyssa Harelik
January 07, 2010 06:16 PM
He could finally work on promoting sunscreen as a must for all us uber-white, often pasty , redheads. The campaign could be all about laughter while you're laying it on thick! He could be the face of skin cancer prevention...it's a position, I believe that no one currently holds.
A~Muse
January 07, 2010 06:22 PM
O'Brien is still on the air?
ocularnervosa
January 07, 2010 06:22 PM
Who? No, really. He should go back to late, late night, where he flourished without exposure to too much sun.
zumalicious
January 07, 2010 06:30 PM
By Crom, he should slay the evil King Aquilonia and take back--

Oops. Wrong Conan.
Frank Indiana
January 07, 2010 06:32 PM
Run for the Senate in Connecticut! Or North Dakota!
Kerry Lauerman
January 07, 2010 06:34 PM
I think Conan should get his own AM talk radio talk show. I'd love to see if he could pull it off. He'd be out there with Rush and Beck and Air America and Sean Hannity. He'd have his own unique format for sure but he's talented enough [and probably burned out on TV].
Deborah Young
January 07, 2010 06:56 PM
Go to comedy school and learn how to be funny.
AtHomePilgrim
January 07, 2010 06:59 PM
Conan should move to Connecticut and run for Chris Dodd's senate seat... seriously!
Chuck A. Stetson
January 07, 2010 07:12 PM
They say the neon lights are bright on broadway
They say Conan O'Brien plays peter pan.

"Come on...Fly with me Wendy!"
Amanda Gulledge
January 07, 2010 07:13 PM
Conan should become a shark whisperer.
HarleeGirl
January 07, 2010 07:23 PM
He should write and guest host for Letterman. Merge the older and younger demos to really kick Jay's ass. Plus, we'd still have Triumph the Insult Comic Dog. Or... Conan and Kate Plus Late?
Sally Swift
January 07, 2010 07:25 PM
I think he should fuck Matt Damon.
Ablonde
January 07, 2010 07:28 PM
He should take advantage of name and fame to open a chain of Conan O'Brien's Restaurants - a Barbarian/Irish fusion cuisine and unique dining adventure.
Chefs with swords and shields slaughter beasts while the diners watch, and then cook them on a spit over an open fire. Irish troubadours sing the old songs while guests eat with their hands and drink mead.
A potato side with every entree, of course.

A sure hit in Boston, but will it play in Peoria?
Paul J. O'Rourke
January 07, 2010 07:34 PM
I agree w/ The New Number Two. And if Leno did that, it would be such an abominably rude act, he would lose the rest of his dwindling audience. Some comedians (Don Rickles comes to mind) just go on and on, and they're still funny and people keep discovering them. Others (Leno) have a season, an era in which their style flourishes. Then it's okay to retire and finally test drive those 8,000 cars. Sheesh.
MissMisk
January 07, 2010 07:37 PM
Who is Conan O'Brien?
Lonnie Lazar
January 07, 2010 07:42 PM
Vice President of Discipline at a mime school.
Damon E Walters
January 07, 2010 07:53 PM
Run for Senator of North Dakota.
OEsheepdog
January 07, 2010 07:54 PM
I did not read Kerry Lauerman's comment. Honest. Actually I am Kerry Lauerman.
OEsheepdog
January 07, 2010 07:55 PM
Start TV network about FOOD that will air on Cablevision.
OEsheepdog
January 07, 2010 07:59 PM
Do a season of The Surreal Life with Arsenio Hall, Alan Thicke, Joan Rivers, Magic Johnson, Craig Kilborn, Keenen Ivory Wayans, and Chevy Chase.
Dennis Knight
January 07, 2010 07:59 PM
Star in a show for families, "Woody Woodpecker on Broadway."
Lea Lane
January 07, 2010 08:11 PM
I'm surprised it took NBC this long to boot the no-talent..... wonder if he can say "Want fries with that?"
DM Teeber
January 07, 2010 08:25 PM
Another idea for him: his own TV series in the same genre as "Seinfeld". About himself, as a comic and his life and his friends and his day to day living. We could use an updated, hip Seinfeld. With the right writers, that could become a huge hit.
Deborah Young
January 07, 2010 08:42 PM
I don't know what he should do, but he should at least drop the pantomime/mime things he does with his jokes. He keeps repeating them during the monolog and it slows him down and they get tedious after a while.
Trudge164
January 07, 2010 08:47 PM
I'm rarely up past 9:30 at night, so I really don't care. Sorry.
sweetfeet
January 07, 2010 09:01 PM
as with other comedians, I hear there are a few senate seats open.
(with apologies to Al Franken, whom I admire)
Tim4change
January 07, 2010 09:08 PM
Fox doesn't have a late-night show during the week, does it?
Maria Stuart
January 07, 2010 09:27 PM
Jay jokes about the rumor in tonight's monologue: video
Kathy Riordan
January 07, 2010 10:06 PM
Go back to writing for the Simpson's!
Renaissance Man
January 07, 2010 11:16 PM
I dislike Jay, but Conan is horrible, Dispite what most of you say, not all young educated hip people are not fans of Conan, his late late night show was funny, but he doesn't work on the Tonite Show..........Thank you NBC for giving Mr Letterman a job and an easy way to beat you in thr ratings,
BigDzHouse
January 07, 2010 11:19 PM
I think that Conan should do a "Warren Zevon Tribute Tour."
Roger Fallihee
January 07, 2010 11:37 PM
Honestly, Conan will be just fine. He has a large following by the 20-something group. Putting him in that time slot was a mistake (in Colorado, it comes on at 10:30). So I really don't care what he does or Leno. I have another solution. I'm tired of late night shows being completely owned by males. Forget Conan and O'Brien. Let them take Wanda Syke's time slot on Fox on Saturday nights and give Wanda the primetime slot on NBC. It would be about damn time.
marytkelly
January 08, 2010 12:04 AM
I think he should launch a hostile takeover of brandmavin.com
Lonnie Lazar
January 08, 2010 01:33 AM
I hope to Good Grace that he simply disappears, right after someone can convincingly explain to me how this talentless, tasteless mistake has managed to keep so many people fooled for as long as he has. I've hated him ever since I first encountered him and, until I gave it up as a wasted effort, spent hours watching him without ever laughing, not even once. I think he should get a job as a motivational speaker for funeral home operator seminars. That should fit nicely with his skill level.
sagemerlin
January 08, 2010 01:57 AM
And, while I'm at it, I would like to breathe a sigh of relief for NBC, which was strangling on the Leno experiment. I don't love Jay Leno, but he's perferable to either Letterman or O'Brien, one of whom is smarmy and the other just plain stupid.
sagemerlin
January 08, 2010 01:59 AM
I think Conan would make an excellent host on QVC or HSN. He could peddle sunscreen and Irish jewelry.
Kathryn Baker
January 08, 2010 05:46 AM
I'm seeing some kind a plural marriage with one or more of the Kardashians. Of course, he'll have to change his name to Konan, but consider the optics.
Steve Beste
January 08, 2010 07:32 AM
I doubt Conan will go very far. He's hilarious, but more of a niche audience kind of guy. Leno has wider appeal which garners higher ratings. I just can't imagine NBC dumping O'Brien completely. Leno might be gold, but Conan is still silver (with crazy red hair, like the new editor. And I mean that in a good way).
Michael Rodgers
January 08, 2010 07:40 AM
The following is a JOKE, folks...don't start complaining about bb, please...)

He should start an OS account and call himself:

conan conan

and leave comments like:

http://www.stefsclothes.com

Nike shox(R4,NZ,OZ,TL1,TL2,TL3) $35
Handbags(Coach lv fendi d&g) $35
Tshirts (Polo ,ed hardy,lacoste) $16
Jean(True Religion,ed hardy,coogi) $30
Sunglasses(Oakey,coach,gucci,Armaini) $16
New era cap $15
Bikini (Ed hardy,polo) $25

http://www.stefsclothes.com
Outside Myself
January 08, 2010 02:49 PM