The Tonight Show

When Mike was a little boy, he'd go to bed at an appropriate bedtime and lay awake worrying about this or that. As time ticked by and the night grew later, he would start to hear his Dad, out in the living room, chuckle. The chuckle got louder and pretty soon, full on laughter could be heard coming from the family room. Mike would wonder what in the world could be causing his Dad to laugh harder than he ever did around the family. Before long, curiosity would overtake him and he would begin to sneak out of his room. He would crawl on his belly, the way GI JOE would crawl through the mud on the commercial. He would crawl behind the sofa and peek out from behind to see what his Dad was laughing at. There on their small color TV would be Johnny Carson and Mike didn't quite understand the jokes but he would silently giggle along with his Dad. Before long, a commercial would come on and he would scurry back to his room and eventually fall asleep.

The year Mike and I got married, Johnny Carson retired as the host of the Tonight Show. I remember the last show with Johnny Carson when Bette Midler sang One For the Road. It seemed like the whole world stopped what they were doing to bid farewell to Johnny Carson.

So when Leno bid farewell last Friday, Mike and I set up to record the final episode and figured we would feel the same sentimentality that we did 17 years ago. But as much as I wanted to feel something, I felt flat, uninterested, meh. I asked Mike why we weren't feeling anything about Jay leaving and he said it was probably because we didn't care. Good answer Mike. Glad I asked you. Way to be there for me. So I called my Mom and asked her why I felt so blah about Jay Leno leaving and she explained that Johnny Carson was the host for-EVER like as in 30 years. But Jay was only the host for 17 years and Johnny was the host during your childhood. You don't remember a time when Johnny Carson wasn't on TV. So it's natural that you would feel more sentimental. Ohhhhhh. That helped me a little bit.

But now, I have watched two episodes of The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brian and I realize none of this was the case. It's just that I love Conan. I really truly do.