The Quad

Issue date: 11/17/08 Section: Entertainment

stuff onstage is two cans of Red Bull and a caffeine pill chaser for the psyche. He is a blur of boundless energy, elastic voiced, a troubadour satirist with a guitar.

Exhibit A: During one bit Saturday night at The Improv in Schaumburg, he did 16 spot-on celebrity impressions in 160 seconds.

Fallon, he of charming boyish aloofness, of meticulously kempt/unkempt hair, is a prince in waiting.

In March, the "Saturday Night Live" alumnus inherits NBC's vice presidency of late-night television. As "The Tonight Show" swears in President Conan O'Brien, Fallon will take over "Late Night's" 12:35 a.m. EST slot.

Let's not play down the moment: Since 1982, only two men, O'Brien and David Letterman, have taken the helm of NBC's late-night talk fest. It's a once-in-a-generation seismic reshuffling of the late-night landscape, known for its long stretches of dormancy. And it could trigger aftershocks.

For one, Jay Leno (who some would note is being evicted for O'Brien) is expected to land at another network, possibly ABC. This could mean the man presently there, Jimmy Kimmel, would jump ship (to Fox, one persistent rumor has it).

The one sure thing is that Fallon is a ball of nervous excitement who just wants to get that first show, on March 2, over with.

"Definitely there's a pressure about it," Fallon said between sets Saturday. "You don't want to let anybody down."

Much of the show's detail remains under wraps, but Fallon revealed this much:

It will follow the standard talk-show format: monologue, desk comedy bit, two guests and a band.

"It's 80 percent there," Fallon said of the show's development process.

There will be no sidekick.

A bandleader has been chosen, but Fallon won't say who, other than that "it's amazing."

On Dec. 8, the show will launch a behind-the-scenes video blog on NBC.com.

The show will tape at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, though not in its famed studio 6A, where O'Brien, Letterman, Johnny Carson and Jack Paar hosted their shows. (O'Brien will be moving to Los Angeles to assume "The Tonight Show" duties, but not soon enough for crews to redo the space for Fallon.)

Since the announcement of Fallon's takeover was made in May, the 34-year-old has spent much of his time touring at comedy clubs, he said, aiming to "not get rusty." He has watched DVDs of old Johnny Carson shows on a loop, and studied the likes of Dick Cavett, Mike Douglas, Steve Allen, Jack Paar and even Garry Shandling's fictitious Larry Sanders for talk-show nuance. He has picked Leno's brain, plans to dine with O'Brien this week and hopes to chat with Letterman soon.

Continued...

Page 1 of 2 next >

Article Tools