Conan is an American television variety and late-night talk show that aired each Monday through Thursday at 11:00 p.m. Eastern time, on TBS in the United States for 11 seasons, from 2010 to 2021. The show premiered on November 8, 2010, and was hosted by writer, comedian and performer Conan O'Brien. He was accompanied by his long-time sidekick Andy Richter. Running for eleven years and identifying as a traditional late-night talk show, Conan drew its comedy from recent news stories, political figures, and prominent celebrities, as well as aspects of the show itself. The hour-long show was akin to O'Brien's previous NBC late-night shows and was directed by Billy Bollotino.
Starting January 22, 2019, the show was reformatted to a half-hour length. In November 2020, TBS announced that the show would air its final episode in June 2021. The final episode aired on June 24, 2021.
Guests for the show came from a wide range of cultural sources, and included actors, musicians, authors, athletes and political figures.
Episode format 2010–2018: Hour-long format Structure Conan initially followed the established six-piece late-night format popularized by evening talk show hosts such as Johnny Carson and David Letterman, and previously executed during O'Brien's tenures as host of NBC's Late Night and The Tonight Show. Each episode of Conan from its first eight years runs 60 minutes in length, including commercials, and typically consists of: Act 1: Monologue Act 2: Comedy Bit(s) Act 3: Celebrity Interview 1 Act 4: Celebrity Interview 1 continued Act 5: Celebrity Interview 2 Act 6: Musical or Stand-Up Comedy Guest, Signoff
Opening titles The original hour-long show opened with Richter proclaiming "Coming to you from Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, it's Conan!", and introducing O'Brien, The Basic Cable Band, as well as the episode's guests. For the first several seasons, each episode had a title, which Richter would announce at the end of the opening sequence. The titles were in the style of old-fashioned murder-mystery radio shows, television sitcoms or other assorted jokes. The episode titles were dropped in early 2014.
The original title sequence was designed by Rob Ashe, Dan Dome and Eric McGilloway. There were several different variations of the opening credits, with the final product being inspired by graphic designer Saul Bass. The opening design process was described by Ashe as utilizing "organic-looking textures made of construction paper, soak them in soda, and light them in Photoshop."
Monologue O'Brien opened each episode with a monologue drawing from current news stories and issues. The monologue was sometimes accompanied by clips and brief comedy skits, in addition to occasional interactions between O'Brien and Richter, and the audience.
Sketches and comedy bits
One or more comedy bits followed the monologue. Following the monologue, some comedy bits (such as those based on video clips) were presented from the monologue stage. Following the first commercial break, additional comedy sketches were typically presented from the desk area. Some sketches were original and appeared only once. Occasionally an additional sketch would air between the first and second guest.
2019–2021: Half-hour format In May 2018, O'Brien and TBS announced the show would be reformatted into a 30-minute show, with a looser structure starting 2019.de Moraes, Lisa (May 3, 2018). "'Conan's New Half-Hour Format Means Fewer Celebrity Interviews, More Comedy" . Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
In January 2019, O'Brien gave a more detailed description of the new format of his show. It would not feature a band or a desk area, and for the first time as host of a talk show, O'Brien would not be wearing a suit. He commented, "I really don't miss the desk. It started to feel like I'm doing someone's taxes." The last hour-long regular episode aired on October 4, 2018. The new reformatted version premiered on January 22, 2019, on TBS. O'Brien's first guest for the new-look show was Tom Hanks.Wright, Megh (January 14, 2019). "Conan Returns Next Week With Tom Hanks and the Cast of The Good Place" . Vulture. Retrieved January 23, 2019.Itzkoff, Dave (January 14, 2019). "Conan O'Brien Wants to Scare Himself With the New, Shorter 'Conan'" . The New York Times. Retrieved January 23, 2019.Martin, Montana (January 14, 2019). "Conan to Return to TBS Next Week with Revamped Format, First Guest Star Tom Hanks" . Paste. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the program switched to a remotely-produced format from O'Brien's home beginning March 30, 2020. In July 2020, it was announced that Conan would continue with this format, but would now be filmed with limited on-site staff from the Coronet Theatre in Los Angeles and no studio audience — making it the first American late-night talk show to return to filming outside of the host's residence (albeit still not from its main studio). O'Brien explained that "I got started doing improv at the Coronet in 1986 and I'm glad we've figured out a way to safely keep that theater going during this lockdown."
Episodes on location
October 31 – November 3, 2011: taped at the Beacon Theatre in New York City. Guests included Jimmy Fallon, Hugh Jackman, Matthew Broderick and Louis C.K. June 11–14, 2012: taped at the Chicago Theatre in Chicago, Illinois, as part of the TBS Just for Laughs Festival. Guests included Jack McBrayer, Andy Samberg, Johnny Galecki and Adam Sandler. April 1–4, 2013: taped at The Tabernacle in Atlanta, Georgia, to coincide with the NCAA Final Four being held a few blocks away at the Georgia Dome. Guests included Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd, Steven Yeun and Charles Barkley. March 31 – April 3, 2014: taped at the Majestic Theatre in Dallas, Texas, to coincide with the NCAA Final Four. Guests included Dirk Nowitzki, Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, Simon Helberg and Charles Barkley. July 8–11, 2015: taped at the Spreckels Theatre in San Diego, California to coincide with Comic-Con. Guests included Elijah Wood, Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson and Peter Capaldi. July 20–24, 2016: returned to the Spreckels Theatre in San Diego to coincide with Comic-Con. Guests included the cast of Arrowverse shows, Will Arnett and the cast of Game of Thrones. October 31 – November 3, 2016: taped at the Apollo Theater in Harlem. July 19–23, 2017: had live shows from the Spreckels Theatre in San Diego to coincide with Comic-Con for the third year in a row. Guests included the casts of Bright, Supernatural, Kingsman: The Golden Circle, The Lego Ninjago Movie and Game of Thrones. November 6–9, 2017: taped at the Apollo Theater in Harlem. July 18–22, 2018: had live shows from the Spreckels Theatre in San Diego to coincide with Comic-Con for the fourth year in a row. Guests included the casts of Breaking Bad, The Predator, Glass, and Aquaman. July 17–20, 2019: returned to the Spreckels Theatre in San Diego to coincide with Comic-Con for the fifth year in a row. Guests included the cast of It: Chapter Two, Tom Cruise, the cast of Veronica Mars and Orlando Bloom and Cara Delevingne from Carnival Row. Mark Hamill, Thomas Middleditch, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Norman Reedus, Kristen Schaal, Ben Schwartz and Isaac Hempstead Wright appeared in sketches. The Basic Cable Band also returned for these episodes.
Conan Without Borders
O'Brien has filmed several specials abroad. These episodes do not follow the traditional talk-show format, instead following O'Brien as he attempts to engage the locals and experience the unique cultural aspects of the area.
The series began in February 2015, following the onset of the Cuban thaw, with O'Brien becoming the first American television personality to film in Cuba for more than half a century. Conan O'Brien then visited Armenia, accompanied by his assistant Sona Movsesian. The series became some of his most popular work, winning an Emmy in 2018. The international shows became available on Netflix before moving to HBO Max.
History TBS announcement
Following the 2010 Tonight Show conflict, O'Brien announced on the first day of The Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television Tour that he had signed a deal with cable network TBS to host a talk show on their late-night lineup, beginning in November 2010. Before the deal was announced, O'Brien initially had reservations about the move, as it would place comedian George Lopez's show, Lopez Tonight, one hour later to midnight, effectively doing to Lopez what NBC had wanted to do with O'Brien. However, Lopez reportedly called O'Brien and expressed his excitement about the move. Lopez went on to state, "I can't think of anything better than doing my show with Conan as my lead-in It's the beginning of a new era in late-night comedy." Lopez Tonight would be canceled less than nine months later. In an official press release by Turner Broadcasting, it stated that O'Brien had only begun negotiations a week prior to the official announcement of the show. Steve Koonin, President of Turner Entertainment Networks, went on to comment of the announcement, "Conan has been the comedic voice for a generation. TBS already has a huge audience of young comedy lovers, and Conan's show will give these fans even more reasons to watch our network."
In his own statement about the deal, O'Brien stated, "In three months I've gone from network television to Twitter to performing live in theaters, and now I'm headed to basic cable. My plan is working perfectly." O'Brien's production company, Conaco, reportedly owns all rights to the show. In addition to the announcement of the television series, TBS also announced a one-hour TBS Special, featuring several writers for Conan, as well as comedian Reggie Watts, who participated in O'Brien's Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television Tour. The show was broadcast on June 27, 2010, leading up to the beginning of Conan in early-November. Additionally, in preparation for the show, a 24-hour "Live-Coco Cam" was set up on October 20, 2010, and featured various characters and staff members of Conan, including Richie Rosenberg, otherwise known as "LaBamba," as well as a short online broadcast from O'Brien's office entitled "Show Zero" on November 1, 2010. The show featured O'Brien as host, and was accompanied by Andy Richter, as well as Jerry Vivino, a member of the Basic Cable Band. The broadcast hosted several guests, including actor Jim Parsons and indie rock band Steel Train, and lasted a total of four minutes, and 51 seconds.
Weeks before the premiere, an orange Conan blimp was introduced to further promote the show. Designed by Blue Sky, an Atlanta firm, the dirigible provided aerial footage for 2010 Major League Baseball postseason games airing on TBS. It was subsequently incorporated into sketches on Conan, including a running gag where the blimp would follow actor Gary Busey around southern California, much to his chagrin.
Series premiere