O'Brien, not The Barbarian. Several years ago, when he called to ask my advice on taking over the Tonight Show I unequivocally said YES. For years I've thought the Conan was the funniest man on late night tv and I was thrilled that he was being handed the preverbal torch, as it were. So I said to him, "Conan, you run with this. Don't change who you are though. The dry wit really works and you shouldn't change yourself to be just another Jay Leno. I like Jay and all, but his voice bugs me a little. And when he's not in a suit, he wears a denim button up shirt with jeans. Nobody does that, Conan. And that's all he wears when not in his suit. How many denim shirts can one man have?" Conan replied, "Maybe he spent all of his money on all of those cars." I said, "Even so...there are other colors of shirts. Are you saying he's wearing the SAME shirt over and over again? Because if you are, I'm going to hide in a corner and hit myself repeatedly in the head."The conversation launched into a discussion about Jay Leno's fashion sense, or lack thereof, and the whereabouts of his wife or publicist or anyone that could suggest he wear something other than a denim shirt with jeans (which just SHOULDN'T be done). It all concluded with the obvious. Conan took the job and I was overjoyed at the prospect of those of us who appreciate a dry, sarcastic sense of humor finally being entertained and The Tonight Show changing gears.And right about now you're wondering why I care so much or why you're still reading instead of hiding in a corner abusing yourself because I lost my funny about a year ago. Not that it's worth anything at this point, but Jay really should've stepped down and let Conan have his day. Really. He should have.I doubt Conan is crying over his 35 million dollar kiss off, but it's the principle of the thing.
