Conan O’Brien’s new show, “Conan,” finally debuted on TBS last night after months of hype — looking pretty much like his two former shows, “Late Night” and “The Tonight Show.”
O’Brien opened “Conan” with a filmed sketch recounting his departure from NBC. The sketch, which started with him refusing to move “Tonight” to 12:05 a.m., featured him being gunned down (twice) Ã la Sonny in “The Godfather” — then working at Burger King and as a kid’s party clown.
O’Brien, who’s doing his new show on the Warner Bros. lot in LA, then came out to thunderous applause and a standing ovation from the studio audience (“That lasted longer than my last job,” he said — one of his many jabs at NBC).
The “Conan” set features the standard-issue host desk and guest chairs to the side, complemented by a background featuring a nighttime scene with a full moon shining over an ocean landscape. (“You can smell the salt air wafting in,” O’Brien joked.)
O’Brien’s blue shirt matched the background’s blue, moonlit sky. Sidekick Andy Richter introduced O’Brien from a lectern off to the side, reminiscent of Ed McMahon’s introductions of Johnny Carson.
“Welcome to my second annual first show,” O’Brien quipped, noting that he named the show “Conan” “so I’d be harder to replace.”
There was lots of forced laughter between O’Brien and Richter, and they both donned Conan Halloween masks that were actually called “ex-talk-show masks” (for legal reasons).
Ricky Gervais supplied a witty taped message congratulating Conan on his new show (then did several “alternate” takes in case Conan failed and ended up on the Food Network or morning TV in Dayton, Ohio.
Conan’s first guest was Seth Rogen, who got the first-ever bleeps on “Conan” (by uttering the “s” word).
By the end of the show, with musical guest Jack White — with whom Conan jammed — O’Brien had removed his tie for a casual look. Whether America will be as comfortable with this new “Conan” remains to be seen.