NBC Executive and Leno Said to Have Clashed Over Jokes

NYT via Drudge ^ | 15 Mar 2013 | BILL CARTER

[shove_it]

NBC has aggressively denied recent reports that it plans to replace Jay Leno soon as host of “The Tonight Show,” but the network’s top entertainment executive, Robert Greenblatt, recently stirred up a bit of a feud with the late-night star over jokes about the network.

Three executives close to the situation reported this week that Mr. Greenblatt had taken offense to monologue jokes Mr. Leno made last month in the wake of news stories about NBC’s ratings struggles and how the network had fallen into fifth place in the sweeps month of February — behind the Spanish-language network Univision...

[shove_it]

“For the first time in history NBC is going to finish fifth in the ratings period,” Mr. Leno said. “We are behind the Spanish-language network Univision — or as we call it here in Los Angeles: Cinco de Ratings.”

Doncha just luv it?

[AppyPappy]

If you can tell a host to avoid jokes about the President, you can get him to avoid any subject

[OrangeHoof]

Fifth place??? That’s terrible. But then so is 95% of NBC’s programming. Just unwatchable garbage, unless you’re gay or a flaming lib or both.

[The Sons of Liberty]

Leno hasn’t been shy about spearing emperor Baraq Hussein the antichrist, so I’m guessing the libs in the NBC hierarchy were rubbed the wrong way.

[nascarnation]

NBC now regularly finishes first in the ratings in only three places: the evening newscasts, “Saturday Night Live” and Mr. Leno’s “Tonight” show.

So the top source of news for the masses is devout Baraqqi Brian Williams. That explains a lot in itself.

[Ruy Dias de Bivar]

****...Mr. Greenblatt had taken offense to monologue jokes Mr. Leno made last month in the wake of news stories about NBC’s ratings struggles...****

So what was the difference between Leno’s jokes and the old LAUGH IN joke of news of the future, “when President Goldie Hawn requested that NBC stop the bombing”?

For those in the dark, at that time (1968-1969)the US was bombing North Vietnam to the chagrin of the leftists in the US.

NBC’s TV lineup that fall also bombed big time.

[bigbob]

Unless and until the trend of CMCSA (Nasdaq) changes, this will not matter one bit.

[jimbo123]

Personal life

Greenblatt is gay and is the first and currently the only openly gay broadcast TV president.[9]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Greenblatt

[fatnotlazy]

Explains a lot.

[Paladin2]

Doesn’t sound like he is really happy.

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks shove_it.

I’ve come to like Leno a little, but the fact is, he’s not very funny, and the talk show format has now officially been done to death. He should add a “who’s the daddy?” DNA segment and give the Maury fans something to watch at night.

[fatnotlazy]

And that NBC would be willing to kill off the Tonight Show where they are first in that time slot would be just plain stupid. But then again, the alphabet networks haven’t been known to be Einsteins.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

All humor has truth at its core.

[DManA]

Making jokes about the network on late night TV is a tradition going back to Steve Allan.

NOW it’s a problem?

Is this really about Leno making the occasional joke at the expense of the democrats?

[DManA]

I’ll never forget one Laugh-In “News of the Future” where they predicted the fall of the Soviet Union to within a few years.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Maybe NBC should change their programming to 100% gay instead of just 90%?

That'll fix it.

[DManA]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYCvOmQLgS0

But there was one about the Soviet Union too.

[jimbo123]

The homo NBC exec is fighting to save his job, but he’ll be gone a year from now.

[Makana]

I expect Jay has his FU money stashed away.

[ZirconEncrustedTweezers]

And if not, he could sell off his car collection.