DECEMBER 21, 2010 FRONT PAGE POLITICS BUSINESS MEDIA ENTERTAINMENT COMEDY SPORTS STYLE WORLD GREEN FOOD TRAVEL TECH LIVING HEALTH DIVORCE ARTS BOOKS RELIGION IMPACT EDUCATION COLLEGE NY LA CHICAGO DENVER BLOGS Michael Giltz Freelance writer and raconteur Posted: February 24, 2010 05:16 AM BIO Become a Fan Get Email Alerts Bloggers' Index 179 12,786 views 314Amazing Inspiring Funny Scary Hot Crazy Important WeirdWho's The King Of Late Nite? Craig Ferguson What's Your Reaction: Read More: Conan O'Brien , Craig Ferguson , David Letterman , Jay Leno , Jimmy Fallon , Jimmy Kimmel , Johnny Carson , Late Night Talk Shows , Media News Last night (Tuesday/Wednesday from 12:30 am to 1:30 am), Craig Ferguson delivered another brilliant night of TV by simply doing away with the audience and talking for one hour to one guest.</p><p> Of course, he loaded the deck by making that guest the endlessly witty, clever, insightful, thoughtful talk show-guest- of-your-dreams Stephen Fry.</p><p> But still, it was an arresting, wonderful hour akin to the glory days of DickCavett when he would just spend a day or two or an entire week talking to someone that fascinated him (and therefore us).</p><p> Craig Ferguson and Stephen Fry roamed over the landscape: their friendship, the remarkable success of pal Hugh Laurie, drug addiction, Fry's bi-polar disorder (is disorder rude? bi-polar-ishness?), Twitter as it links to poetry and telegrams and the missives of our Founding Fathers, as well as the rather remarkable suggestion that Fry (a genuinely beloved figure in the UK) might consider becoming a UScitizen.</p><p> If you missed it, do watch it online.</p><p> The show reminded me how much I enjoy Ferguson, how refreshing he is and of an idea I've had but yet to execute.</p><p> For months now I've planned to spend a week and watch every minute of every major late night talk show and then declare a winner.</p><p> Who is the king of late night, I wanted to know.</p><p> Of course, I've watched everyone in bits and pieces and I'll tape any show with a guest I'm especially keen on, particularly MOST POPULAR ON HUFFPOST 1 of 2BIG NEWS: MSNBC | Fox News | Katie Couric | Morning Joe | Smarter Ideas | More...</p><p> VIDEO & PHOTOS: Rare Lunar Eclipse On Winter Solstice Stunning Eclipse Photos Sarah Palin Jabs Michelle Obama's Anti-Obesity Campaign Timothy Karr Obama FCC Caves on Net Neutrality -- Tuesday...</p><p> Al Franken The Most Important Free Speech Issue of Our Time Why Kate May Or May Not Become 'Princess Catherine' PHOTOS: Heidi Montag's Plastic Surgery Scars: Bald Spots, Uneven Boobs, Lumpy Legs LOG IN | SIGN UP Get Media Alerts Email Comments 314 Like 13K Like 46K Like 8K Like 18K Like 17K Like 65 Like 264 musical guests.</p><p> So let's face it: I already knew who I believed was the king of late night.</p><p> I hoped to be -- and was open to being -- surprised or at least discover something new about some of the hosts.</p><p> But would my ranking change much? I doubt it; not after years (sometimes decades) of watching these people work.</p><p> My plan was foiled by all the late night folderol, which threw everything into turmoil.</p><p> But the result of years of watching and a certain keen anticipation for my proposed task -- which led me to pay closer attention even to the likes of Jimmy Kimmel -- is this: DAVID LETTERMAN -- is in a class of his own.</p><p> He's already ascended to the pantheon, alongside Johnny Carson, Steve Allen, Jack Paar, Dick Cavett and just a few others.</p><p> He's not coasting by any means.</p><p> But his legacy is assured, so he doesn't get ranked alongside the others.</p><p> JAY LENO -- gets no respect from critics like me and certainly his monologue doesn't deserve it.</p><p> But he can squeeze out the odd strange fact from a guest a la Larry King just by his own disingenuousness.</p><p> He's a genuinely nice guy so it's interesting that his funniest bits involve (gently) mocking the stupidity of regular folk via Jaywalking.</p><p> JIMMY KIMMEL -- bad standup, bad with guests unless that guest is his ex, the hilarious Sarah Silverman.</p><p> JIMMY FALLON -- makes Jimmy Kimmel look good.</p><p> He's the Merv Griffin of late night, with every guest a dear dear friend and his most penetrating comment being "that's hilarious" or "that's great" followed by a giggle.</p><p> He's so nervous and awkward in interviews it's painful to watch, with Fallon invariably gushing or talking over the guest or coming up with some inane comment.</p><p> Perfectly likable guy in other contexts but a genuine flop as an interviewer of any sort, which is indeed a major job of the talk show host.</p><p> You feel bad for him.</p><p> CONAN O'BRIEN -- he was just starting to get his rhythm in the earlier time slot.</p><p> I pooh-poohed the idea that a guy who'd been doing a talk show for more than a decade could need time to adjust but 11:30 is indeed a whole new ballgame.</p><p> Happily, Andy Richter had finally moved to the couch where he belonged.</p><p> But even after all these years, Conan remains a very, very bad interviewer unless the guest is someone he deeply cares about or is a woman he's deeply attracted to.</p><p> He can be funny on his feet ofcourse.</p><p> But Conan is glued desperately to his note cards and regularly makes the most awkward transitions imaginable, ruining any possibility of believing for a moment that he and his guest are actually just talking rather than hitting on pre-arranged talking points.</p><p> The comedy bits save him, as doesRichter's invaluable presence.</p><p> Which brings me to...CRAIG FERGUSON -- the new king of late night. (With Letterman as the philosopher-king some miles above him and already sainted/knighted/whatever one does with great late night talk show hosts).</p><p> He's been charming the pants off us for some 1,000 shows now and doing it effortlessly.</p><p> I wondered if his signature tossing away of his note cards when a guest sits down is a pointed slam at Conan but he doesn't seem a nasty person.</p><p> It's just his way of ensuring that they talk and he stays focused on the conversationrather than some scribbled idea for a question.</p><p> He has the gift of gab of course.</p><p> Craig proved last night he doesn't need an audience.</p><p> But he proves every night that he barely needs guests.</p><p> Ferguson can chat away and be thoroughly engaging for more than half an hour before he brings out a guest.</p><p> Then if he gets into a good rhythm with someone, he regularly just keeps talking with them and bumps the other guest and the musical act (if any).</p><p> I do feel sorry for the second guest or the musicalact (as well as the booker) because they are shunted aside so very often.</p><p> But they're probably enjoyingthemselves too much in the green room to care.</p><p> He can be silly, serious, insightful, frivolous and just about any other appealing adjective you can imagine.</p><p> His most important gift is perhaps the ability to make us believe he's just having fun, just trying to please himself and do what amuses him.</p><p> And thatwe're just clever enough to be in on the fun and enjoy it too.</p><p> The puppets, the musical lip-syncing numbers that sometimes open the show, the end of show moment where he rambles about what we've learned on the show that night, all of it is loose and silly enough to create an air of potential anarchy when of course he works like the devil to prepare so he can relax during the taping and let things happen.</p><p> Like Letterman, he enjoys himself and is very funny.</p><p> Like Cavett, he canspeak intelligently about almost anything.</p><p> Like Paar, he can dive into a serious monologue and dogenuine soul-searching (about the death of his father, out of control pop stars, Rush Limnaugh and Haiti) that is absolutely riveting.</p><p> Like Johnny, he allows his guests to shine; nothing gives him more pleasure than an entertaining guest.</p><p> He is, indeed, the new king of late night. 1 of 5 Sinéad O'Connor Some Burning Questions for the Pope Billie Jean King Repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Is a Big DealDON'T MISS HUFFPOST BLOGGERS HOT TRENDS MOST DISCUSSED RIGHT NOW HOT ON FACEBOOK HOT ON TWITTER megyn kelly oprah's favorite things 2010 paula deen rachael ray susan mikula FOLLOW HUFFINGTON POSTJohn Boehner Strikes Back Against Sarah Palin PHOTOS: Rare Lunar Eclipse Seen From Around The World Sarah Palin's Alaska: Season 2 Coming? 41 Comments MSNBC Boss: Ed Schultz 'Over The Top,' 'Crossed The Line' At Times 2,020 Comments Study: Fox News Viewers Are The Most Misinformed 21,137 Comments Shep Smith Unloads On Blockers Of 9/11 Responders Bill: 'How Do They Sleep At Night?' 3,598 Comments Olbermann Mocks Dan Abrams' Hair 24 Comments Why I Am Donating $50,000 to WikiLeaks' Defense Fund 558 Comments Like 301 Like 12K Comments 314 Pending Comments 0View FAQ 2 Fans Phil Griffin On Ed Schultz: 'Over The...</p><p> Joe Scarborough Compares Frank Rich To Rush...</p><p> Rihanna, Christina Aguilera Performances Prompt 'X Factor'...</p><p> Nina Totenberg Apologizes For Saying 'Christmas' (VIDEO) Follow Michael Giltz on Twitter: www.twitter.com/michaelgiltz Related News On Huffington Post: Jay Leno Returns To Tonight Show: Watch Monologue From First Episode Back On NBC Late Night (VIDEO) NEW YORK (Associated Press) - Jay Leno had been absent from the nation's TV screens for less than a month, but he returned Mondaynight...</p><p> Craig Ferguson Tapes Show WITHOUT Audience (VIDEO) The studio audience.</p><p> It's a staple of the late night format, providingguaranteed laughs, cheers, and in some self indulgent cases, high fives.</p><p> But Craig...</p><p> Bob Saget Joins Craig Ferguson To Read The "Tweety-Twitter" (VIDEO) Craig Ferguson welcomed Bob Saget as a "surprise" guest last night tohelp him read questions submitted by viewers submitted via Twitter.</p><p> While the point...</p><p> Everything You Need To Know About The Conan/Leno Drama In One Easy Post The drama consuming NBC's late night programming has been hard tokeep up with ever since rumors spread that Leno was losing his prime time...</p><p> More News Posts: « First Prev 1 2 Next Last » More in Media...</p><p> Yep Craig is the King.</p><p> He has the same honest connection to his audience that Carson had.</p><p> He makes you feel like you could both sit down somewhere over coffee and talk about anything.</p><p> Lisa Murkowski Government Shutdown Careers College Basketball Foreclosures Royalty HIV/AIDS Sarah Palin Christmas Enter Keyword(s): Enter a City: Select a State: – All United States – Select a Category: – All Job Categories – HUFFPOST'S BIG NEWS PAGES MORE BIG NEWS PAGES » Recency | Popularity Page: 1 2 3 4 5 Next › Last » (12 total) Pelicanx2 05:39 PM on 3/15/2010 Permalink | Share itComments are closed for this entry View All Favorites 3 Fans 15 Fans 65 Fans 0 Fans 46 Fans 15 FansI have not watched all of the late night talk show hosts, but I couldn't disagree more with the negative comments on Jay Leno.</p><p> I love his monologue and find it consistent ly much better than anyone else other than the great late Johnny Carson.</p><p> But Jay is on a par with Carson and that risesto greatness in the world of comedy.</p><p> Jay is superb with guests, especially ones he has teased suchas Palin, Seacrest, Simpson, various Presidents and so forth.</p><p> His Jay Walking and Battle of theAllstars might seem to tease others, but I get the feeling he actually loves them and the teasing isjust fun.</p><p> I also feel they love him in return.</p><p> Jay rules, has ruled for years and still has lots of fuel in the tank.Read me: http://The HarvView.b logspot.co m Good article.</p><p> I agree with most of the points, except...Sarah Silverman is NOT funny.</p><p> No one has yet explained what makes her funny.</p><p> She over reaches and mostly just shocks.</p><p> Her schick is tired and NOT funny.</p><p> When was the last time she actuallywrote a joke.</p><p> On the other hand, Mr.</p><p> Furgeson is naturally funny and charming and doesn't have to kiss a dogs ass to get cheap laughs.</p><p> Did I say Sarah Silverman is NOT funny? Peace, Tex Shelters Couldn't agree more! About the no promotion thing - I think that's absolutely genius and done very deliberate ly.</p><p> Firstly it fits in perfectly with the no-budget, no-band, holes in the roof schtick.</p><p> Secondly, note how many people on this thread say that they 'discovere d' Craig.</p><p> People get to Craig on their own, make their own decisions about him and become immensely proprietor ial.</p><p> Word of mouth is through the roof and CraigyFerg 's Robot Skeleton Army (of which I count myself a proud member) on Twitter is rabid.</p><p> Love this guy.</p><p> Hate that he's on so late.</p><p> But love this guy.</p><p> WorldWide Pants!TheHarvView 12:28 PM on 3/12/2010 Permalink | Share it texshelters 09:52 AM on 3/02/2010 Permalink | Share it skippy20008 11:21 PM on 3/09/2010 Permalink | Share it lubilu 02:19 AM on 3/02/2010 Permalink | Share it Ripley in CT 12:31 AM on 3/01/2010 Permalink | Share it DemoGoddes 06:16 PM on 2/28/2010 Permalink | Share it3 Fans 82 Fans 7 Fans 9 Fans 7 Fans 36 Fans 1009 Fansno kidding.</p><p> I dislike Fallon enought to the point of feeling sorry for him.</p><p> He had Horatio Sanz as a guest for like 35 mins.</p><p> Wow, either he owed him or the guest well was drying up.</p><p> As for Kimmel: he's on only cuz ABC weaseled out on Maher and fired him for being relevant.</p><p> Good point about Jimmy Kimmel, but the good thing about Bill Maher not being on ABC anymore is that on HBO he is allowed to be himself where as on ABC his teeth would hadbeen taken out.</p><p> And to be completely honest, I haven't watched a lot of Kimmel since his show premiered, in what 2003? I like Craig.</p><p> I don't watch his show oftet but his book was great.</p><p> I had the audio book so it wasreally cool to listen to him tell his stories (as it were).</p><p> I guess Jon Stewart wouldn't be considered late night talk show...but I like still him better.</p><p> But this, 'JIMMY FALLON -- makes Jimmy Kimmel look good.....i t's painful to watch,...g enuine flop as an interviewe r of any sort...</p><p> You feel bad for him.' is SOOOOO spot on.</p><p> I cringe whenever I watch his show (which isn't that often for that exact reason.) On the subject of the interviews , I think the rankings would go #1 Craig Ferguson, close #2 would be either Stewart or Colbert, then Letterman would be 4th, then I don't know.</p><p> He's the best.</p><p> Then Bonnie Hunt who is still relegated to daytime.I'm still deciding about Wanda Sykes.</p><p> Johnny Carson -- raised the bar on late night TV to a whole new standard.</p><p> He had a connection toanothersunnyday 06:10 PM on 2/28/2010 Permalink | Share it HDR 02:38 PM on 2/28/2010 Permalink | Share it HUFFPOST SUPER USER Travis Bonnett 12:33 PM on 4/02/2010 Permalink | Share it robsolo 01:35 PM on 2/28/2010 Permalink | Share it HUFFPOST SUPER USER Travis Bonnett 12:37 PM on 4/02/2010 Permalink | Share it Dots 12:40 PM on 2/28/2010 Permalink | Share it HUFFPOST SUPER USER PlayTOE 06:49 AM on 2/28/2010383 Fans 3 Fans 1 Fans 136 Fanshis guests and audience that was outstandin g.</p><p> David Letterman -- is class, but still has not surpassed Johnny.</p><p> Craig Ferguson -- Is the first late night host since Carson to live up to that same high standard of both humor and honesty.</p><p> He is the new king of late night.</p><p> Bring on the hate! I just drove in from Austin where I spent about an hour with Craig Ferguson.</p><p> Of course my daughter and about 1500 people were there.</p><p> He was hysterical and made good use of the "f" word.</p><p> In fact, I doubt that I've ever laughed more at that word.</p><p> He was brilliant in his use of THE word.</p><p> My daughter has never watched his late night show so she was a bit taken aback and alarmed when he closed the show with "Oops, I've Done it Again" and I leapt to my feet and joined in thesinging.</p><p> Leather Boy and the other guy were there and besides "singing" with him for the closer,they both came out and danced around just before Craig came on.</p><p> IT WAS WONDERFUL! !!!!!!!!! DARN RIGHT he's the king of late night! My favorite by far.</p><p> TV schedule as follows: Stewart, Colbert, then Ferguson.</p><p> Oh my, how I love this Scottish lad.</p><p> Just discovered Craig Ferguson this year and I LOVE him!! He's sweet and so very funny.</p><p> You are right on--Letter man and Ferguson are great men of late night.</p><p> Letterman and the rest are toast !! FRONT PAGE POLITICS BUSINESS MEDIA ENTERTAINMENT COMEDY SPORTS STYLE WORLD GREEN FOOD TRAVEL TECH LIVING HEALTH DIVORCE ARTS BOOKS RELIGION IMPACT EDUCATION COLLEGE NY LA CHICAGO DENVER BLOGS Advertise | Log In | Make HuffPost your Home Page | RSS | Careers | FAQ | Contact Us User Agreement | Privacy | Comment Policy | About Us | Powered by Movable Type Copyright © 2010 TheHuffingtonPost.com, Inc. | "The Huffington Post" is a registered trademark of TheHuffingtonPost.com, Inc.</p><p> All rights reserved.</p><p> Permalink | Share it PatA 01:49 AM on 2/28/2010 Permalink | Share it matildagage 10:42 PM on 2/27/2010 Permalink | Share it bigmamarosycheeks 08:40 PM on 2/27/2010 Permalink | Share it Okieborn 08:11 PM on 2/27/2010 Permalink | Share it Page: 1 2 3 4 5 Next › Last » (12 total)
