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He looked like a deer caught in headlights during his first Late Night show. But it was a far better start than Conan O’Brien (who broke out in nerves-induced acne). But NBC once again is too lame to figure out how to freshen this stale formula.
UPDATE: Jimmy Fallon delivered some decent ratings, including the best Monday numbers in the timeslot in more than 3 years by averaging a 2.3 rating/8 share in Nielsen’s metered-market overnights. This was a 35% improvement over Monday’s Late Night average this season. Not surprisingly, Fallon’s debut also rated higher than the premieres of other network late night programs since he’s far better known than, say, Craig Ferguson or Jimmy Kimmel.
Editor-in-Chief Nikki Finke - tip her here.
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If anyone found anything remotely entertaining about that premiere, you are the reason for the decline of quality in modern television.
Even with more flopsweat, Chevy Chase did a better job. Conan, although finding his way, had a better premiere. Hell, Alan Thicke, Rick Dees and Magic Johnson had more skill and rapport with their guests.
Fallon, it’s over.
this reminds me of when a rival network sent the Fox Broadcasting Network chairman a dozen DEAD roses when Chevy Chase debuted his night-time talk show. the difference will be… if Fallon shows up for rehearsals, unlike Chevy!
Jordan, I don’t get the hate for Kimmel either. His show is far more entertaining than the tired shows he competes with. I love Letterman, but he seems to be going through the motions these days. Jay Leno has always been nothing but bad jokes and terrible interviews. Ferguson’s manic rambling monologues turn me off every time I try to give him a shot, and now Fallon, although based on only one show, proves he has absolutely no interview skills whatsoever. And whoever decided to have DeNiro as the first guest should be fired. Might as well have interviewed the goldfish from that lame “lick it for 10″ bit.
Kimmel’s characters are overused and boring. His monologue is pedestrian at best and he’s off-putting to look at. That, coupled with the knowledge that literally everyone I know who has had any prolonged contact with him says he’s a huge, angry, no-talent prick who treats his employees like shit, fuels the Kimmel hatred. And go tell NIGHTLINE, a show that routinely pulls Letterman-level numbers that Mr. 1.3 with a 4 share is gonna kick them outta their 11:30 slot. Cue NIGHTLINE laughter. Ain’t happening.
You got it wrong, Anonymous. Lucie Salhany from FOX sent CBS the dead roses thinking that Letterman would fail. I give Jimmy 13 weeks.
Laddy, your pedestrian comments just shows how you wouldn’t know funny if it bit you in the ass. Who the hell cares what a late night host looks like? Kimmel delivers the funny.
Personally, I don’t think we need two talk-shows following one another (NBC, CBS). And Kimmel not funny? To this day, I still view I’m F’ing Ben Affleck on Youtube as that is one of the funniest television bits ever.
this comment about Kimmel is suspiciously inaccurate “no-talent prick who treats his employees like shit” i could clearly be considered biased, but i would guess that a low/safe estimate of people who worked form Jimmy that disagree with that comment is 99%.
it is a safe bet that the posting left b that guy is the funniest thing he has ever written.
At least he works cheap.
You get what you pay for.
This had to be one of the most painful talk show debuts I’ve ever witnessed. This premiere, for which they’ve had tons of time to get ready, booked with pretty great (on paper, at least) guests, this could have been a slam dunk for the right host and the right writers.
Instead, we got a pedestrian monologue delivered by a nervous host who’s completely lacking in charisma and unable to think on his feet. Jimmy’s not a writer, not a towering intellect, not somebody whose perspective, as it turns out, I want to hear interviewing anybody.
And whoever decided on De Niro as his first guest wasn’t thinking; why not Tina Fey first, since they’re friends and would have put him at ease? All I could think was that Lorne Michaels must have pictures of De Niro copulating with an underage donkey, or perhaps it’s an issue of unpaid gambling debts. No other reason why De Niro would agree to be on the show, regardless of whether it was a good idea to have him there. (Which, as it turns out, it wasn’t.)
Justin Timberlake did his best to be entertaining, and Jimmy loosened up a little when he was out there. And Van Morrison was great as always.
But Jimmy as host felt like the popular kid in high school being an anchor for the school’s in-house newscast. He’s okay looking and likeable on a surface level, but he just isn’t smart or clever enough even to grow into the job. Think of the greats — Steve Allen, Jack Paar, Johnny Carson, Dick Cavett, Dave Letterman. And the near-greats, in my opinion: Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel (whose sports guy stuff on KROQ and whose Matt Damon/Ben Affleck music videos alone qualify him), and Craig Ferguson (whose ability to think on his feet is truly impressive, as is his wit).
Jimmy Fallon just can’t compare. He’s down there somewhere with the Craig Kilborn, Arsenio Hall, Magic Johnson…his lack of comfort onstage creates a similar feeling in anyone who watches, and his willingness to deem the show’s current level of writing as acceptably impressive for the debut of a show such as this proves that he simply isn’t up for the job.
This isn’t cruelty, or an unwillingness to “give the guy a chance” — it’s an objective observation from someone who watched the premiere hoping to see the seeds of something special, and was rewarded with people licking clean, smooth, unthreatening surfaces of brand-new everyday objects for money. (Still trying to figure out the point of that one…what’s next? “Eat This Cookie for $10? It’s Slightly Stale!”)
No talk show could be as bad as Chevy Chase’s short lived talk show….
I woke up from my sleeping stupor. Oh well, I turned the channel. The blue curtain reminded me of Johnny Carson, except bluer. He came out, started okay. The band was tight. Fallon was looking pretty cool. Then the interviews started. Robert D did his usual. The Space Train bit was okay. Then I turned the channel. I think most of us prefer the familiar. I still miss Carson, the original Letterman and I grew to like Conan.
If you can stay up I wish him luck.
Maybe he will start dancing to Mary J. Blige like he did in that movie, oh correct me that was Chris Kattan in Undercover Brother. Good luck to the Brooklyn Boy, and maybe Kataan should be your side kick , but IMDB shows he’s really busy. So if you survive six months just don’t do any more Saturday Night live reunions that gets tiring. Another suggestion take your camera out to Brooklyn, show the old neighborhoods, dig out Tyson and Givens. Give us some laughs it’s a depression.
Hopefully Fallon will fare better than Conan will on The Tonight Show. Conan has never been funny, outside of a stupid Frat Boy manner. He’s ugly, isn’t nuanced or clever and has poor delivery. Cannot even imagine what has kept him on the air for so long. To think he can take over for the great Jay Leno is a riotous joke. Why did no one think to give the slot to Craig Ferguson, who is droll, clever, easy on the eyes and smart? Oh, yeah, it’s TV.
Craig will tank in L.A. Hope he’s just leasing.
if you gotta go stupid, go all the way. Left Field is were Fallon will find his niche.
I woke up again, unwrapped myself from the electric blanket. Turned the channel. Jimmy Fallon was on again. He’s doomed, the brown suit, the brown desk, the red curtain. Two guys being Angelina and Jeniston. Jimmy Fallon dead panning and the Asian guy repeating the words.
God almighty the red curtain.
I turned to Colin on CBS, he was cracking jokes about South Africa and making them work, thirty years after the fact they worked better then Fallon’s. His only guess Desmond Tutu, that takes balls. Tutu, was telling better jokes then Fallon.Then they had a serious discussion on human rights.
Okay, he better fire his writers, or maybe Fallon is writing this. I see his show tanking in two weeks. I wanted to see Cameron, so I turned back to Fallon oops, dance contest. See above they took by suggestion. Oops, Diaz was taller then Fallon, the curtain was now purple, Cameron did her Saturday night live gig without the wig. Fallon took the dance hint but hell it wasn’t working.
Late night TV is not a variety show. So my list on how to make it better.
A. Book me
B. Book octo mom
C. Book your relatives
D. Just sit their and let the visitors talk.
I liked this quote that featured Nikki from Eonline
“Reviews were generally kind, if not downright understanding. Gawker said Fallon was “awkward,” but showed promise. Time’s TV blog gave a shout-out to the new house band, the Roots (“excellent choice”). Nikki Finke’s Deadline Hollywood Daily called Fallon “a deer caught in the headlights,” but decided he got off to a “far better start than Conan O’Brien.”
Me , I thinks I hate it and wont watch again until it’s cancelled, despite first night numbers how long can this go on.
jimmy Fallon is the microsoft of talk show hosts.
I accidentally caught his 1st or at least it was in the 1st week of his show.
A deer caught in the head light would be more entertaining.
I guess I felt sorry for the poor little fella.
I have never seen this happen before.
Bombing does not begin to describe what I saw.
“Cricket!” well actually not even crickets.
The audience was silent! Nothing Nada zip zilch.
I can’t imagine why he is still on the air.
nothing to replace him with?