James Corden and the hit show that nearly never was

LOS ANGELES | In two years, James Corden’s “The Late Late Show” has become an Emmy Award-winning benchmark for innovative late-night TV, spawning viral videos watched by hundreds of millions of fans around the world.

Yet the British comedian and actor revealed this week that the latest incarnation of the CBS talk show almost didn’t happen — thanks to a derisory contract offer from executives.

“CBS called to say they’d like me to do a test reel for ‘The Late Late Show’ and I was like ‘I don’t know’ because I was doing this musical on Broadway and I was writing this show,” the British funnyman said in Hollywood on Wednesday.

“Then they just offered me the show and it was a terrible offer. Anyone here from CBS will know the offer was appalling. And I said no to that,” he told a Q&A session at the annual PaleyFest television festival.

Corden, 38, said executives came back with a better deal after three months and he realized if he continued to say no, he would be turning down a dream opportunity to “be creative every day.”

Since taking over “The Late Late Show” from Craig Ferguson in March 2015, Corden has redefined the late-night talk show, bringing back the tradition — long lost in the U.S. — of guests sharing the sofa.

He has also popularized a joyously daft collection of recurring comical segments, two of which — Carpool Karaoke and Drop the Mic — have become viral pop cultural phenomena.

“Carpool Karaoke,” a skit in which celebrities from Justin Bieber to Michelle Obama sing along with popular hits in a moving car, is being made into a 16-episode spin-off series for Apple Music.

SLOW START

Corden introduced the segment soon after the show started and it quickly took on a life beyond late-night television, with 1.3 billion views on YouTube.

The most successful skit starred Adele, the mega-star British ballad singer who showed a close-up and more laid-back side to herself.

Adele’s segment has been seen more than 152 million times on YouTube in 14 months, the most ever for a segment from the world of late-night television comedy.

Corden and executive producers Ben Winston and Rob Crabbe “had never been more sure” of an idea, the comedian and actor told the audience at the event.

But “Carpool Karaoke” got off to a slow start with every celebrity approached refusing to take part.

“Everyone in this room, just in your mind, think of a recording artist. Pop one in your head, see them, think of their name,” Corden instructed the packed Dolby Theatre.

“Everyone got one? They said no.”

Over 80 minutes, Corden, Winston and Crabbe answered numerous questions about making the show from audience members and the moderator, actor Bradley Whitford of “The West Wing” fame.

One fan asked if Corden would consider having President Donald Trump as a guest.

“When he was running for president, he didn’t stop by our show, but I felt like we had the absolute game to play with Donald Trump,” Corden said.

“I really felt like the game I wanted to play if he came on the show was called ‘Stand By It, or Take It Back’ (with) Donald Trump and things that he had said on the campaign trail.

“You’ve got a chance now… do you stand by it or take it back? If you take it back, you have to take it back forever and if you stand by it, you’ve got to tell me why. I felt like that was such a good game… but he never came by.”

source: interaksyon.com

Jay Leno ‘Tonight Show’ goodbye gets more viewers than first farewell

LOS ANGELES | Jay Leno’s send-off as the host of NBC’s late-night talk show the “Tonight Show” drew 14.6 million viewers, Nielsen Media Research said on Friday, topping the audience that bid adieu to the host when he left the show for the first time in 2009.

Leno’s emotional farewell on Thursday was the comedian’s fourth-largest “Tonight Show” audience since he took the reins from Johnny Carson in 1992.

The finale attracted the same number of viewers who tuned in to watch Leno interview U.S. President Barack Obama in 2009, in what was the first ever appearance of a sitting president on a late-night talk show.

Carson, who led the show for 30 years, attracted 42 million viewers for his final show in 1992, in an era when broadcast television commanded far greater audiences than today.

Viewership of the “Tonight Show,” which has been the top-rated late night show under Leno’s guidance since 1995, was also helped on Thursday by NBC’s lead-in coverage of the first day of Winter Olympics.

Leno, 63, was given a star-studded good-bye with comedian-actor Billy Crystal as the featured guest and surprise appearances by Oprah Winfrey, Jack Black, Carol Burnett and Kim Kardashian, among others.

Audiences during Leno’s final week rose to nearly 5 million per episode compared to the season average of 3.9 million.

Guests on the show in the past week included actors Sandra Bullock, Matthew McConaughey, comedian Jimmy Fallon, former NBA basketball player Charles Barkley and musical performances from country singers Blake Shelton and Lyle Lovett.

Current “Late Night” host Fallon, 39, will take over for Leno on February 17 as Comcast Corp-owned NBC attempts to transition the show to the younger, under-50 demographic most coveted by advertisers while keeping its grip atop the ratings.

It is not known if Leno will pursue another show in television once his contract with NBC expires in September, but the comedian will tour his stand-up show as he has done in years past.

O’BRIEN’S FINAL JAB

Leno’s highest-rated show drew 22.4 million viewers in 1993, a year into his tenure, and was tied to the finale of the NBC comedy series “Cheers,” which was one of the most-watched TV episodes in U.S. history.

Other notable episodes during Leno’s reign include his first telecast in 1992, which attracted 16.1 million viewers, and 15 million viewers tuned in to watch the show after the 1998 finale of popular sitcom “Seinfeld.”

NBC previously attempted to make the passage to a younger audience in 2009 by slotting Leno into primetime and giving its marquee “Tonight Show” to comedian Conan O’Brien, who had been the host of “Late Night.”

Some 11.9 million people watched Leno’s final show in 2009 before handing off to O’Brien. But the failure of the Leno-O’Brien gambit led NBC to reinstall Leno as “Tonight Show” host after just eight months and forced O’Brien to end his contract with NBC, resulting in a very public, bitter feud.

Leno’s departure aroused congratulations, a wry mention and a jab from his late-night talk show rivals.

O’Brien, who was groomed for Leno’s seat only to be pushed out by the network and the host, said on his TBS cable program that he would allow himself a single joke at Leno’s expense.

“The Olympics start airing tonight on NBC … NBC will finally get to show somebody who is OK with passing the torch.” the comedian quipped.

CBS’ David Letterman, beaten out by Leno for the “Tonight Show” chair in 1992, ultimately straining their friendship, noted that Leno’s 22 years on the show were “remarkable” and congratulated him on a “wonderful run.”

ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel, who has been highly critical of Leno’s brand of middle-brow humor, the treatment of O’Brien and the handling of his departures, tweeted out a congratulatory note on Twitter.

“Issues aside, 20 years at #1 is a remarkable achievement. Congratulations and best wishes to @jayleno on an incredible run,” the “Jimmy Kimmel Live” host wrote.

source: interaksyon.com