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Conan O'Brien

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Conan O'Brien
File:CONANOBRIEN.jpg
Conan O'Brien
Born18 April 1963
Brookline, Massachusetts, USA
Occupation(s)Late night talk show host (Late Night with Conan O’Brien), comedian, and television producer
Websitehttp://www.nbc.com/conan/

Conan Christopher O’Brien (born April 18, 1963) is an American comedian best known as host of NBC's late-night talk show/variety show Late Night with Conan O'Brien.

O'Brien is scheduled to take over for Jay Leno as host of The Tonight Show in 2009. As of 2006, Conan's Late Night successor is unknown, but is rumored to be Carson Daly.

Biography

Early life

Conan Christopher O’Brien was born in Brookline, Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston. He is the third of six children in an Irish American family, one of four boys. His father, Dr. Thomas O’Brien, was a research physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital and an associate professor at Harvard Medical School, specializing in infectious diseases. His mother, Ruth Reardon O’Brien, is a former partner of the Boston law firm of Ropes & Gray [1]. His sister Jane is a comedy writer and producer.

After graduating as the valedictorian from Brookline High School (Brookline, Massachusetts), O’Brien entered Harvard University. Throughout his college career, he was a writer for the Harvard Lampoon humor magazine. During his sophomore and junior years, O’Brien served as the Lampoon's president, making him only the second person ever to serve as president twice, and the first person to have done it in 85 years. He graduated magna cum laude from Harvard in 1985 with a concentration in American History and Literature.

Television career

O’Brien moved to Los Angeles upon graduating from Harvard to join the writing staff of HBO's Not Necessarily the News. He spent two years with that show, and performed regularly with improvisational groups like The Groundlings. He also acted in corporate infomercials to earn money during this period.

After Not Necessarily the News, O’Brien worked as the warm-up comic for The Wilton North Report, a Fox show that was on the air for just four weeks. O’Brien then moved on to the Happy Happy Good Show, a stage show being put on in Chicago, Illinois at the time. In January 1988 Saturday Night Live's executive producer Lorne Michaels hired O’Brien as a writer. During his 3½ years on SNL he wrote such recurring sketches as "Mr. Short-Term Memory" and "The Girl Watchers", the latter of which was first performed by Tom Hanks and Jon Lovitz. O’Brien also wrote the sketch "Nude Beach", which became infamous due to the fact that the word penis appeared in it no fewer than 42 times, much of it in the form of song [2]. He also appeared as an extra in some skits, occasionally with a speaking role. In 1989, he and the other SNL writers were awarded an Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy or Variety Series.

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Conan O’Brien on The Simpsons.

In the spring of 1991, O’Brien left SNL to write and produce a pilot for the television show Lookwell, starring Adam West. It was broadcast on NBC in July but was not picked up as a series. That fall, O’Brien signed on as a writer and producer for the Fox series The Simpsons, where he also became a supervising producer. In a speech he gave at Harvard on Class Day in 2000, O’Brien credited The Simpsons with "saving" him, a reference to the career slump he was experiencing prior to his hiring for that show [3]. During his time as a writer for The Simpsons, he created the character of Captain Horatio McCallister (the Sea Captain) and he named Patty and Selma Bouvier's iguana (Jub-Jub; something Conan would say during awkward silences while writing.) Of the episodes he wrote while there, he considers "Marge vs. the Monorail" to be his favorite.

Late Night

On April 26, 1993, Lorne Michaels chose O’Brien to be David Letterman's successor as host of Late Night and Andy Richter signed on as his sidekick. Initially O'Brien was only signed on as a writer and producer for the new show, but when no host was found during the auditions, the hosting duties were given to him. It received generally unfavorable critical reviews for the first 2-3 years after its debut. Indeed, the show was reportedly cancelled by network executives, but was allowed to remain on a week-to-week basis when it was realized there was no programming available to replace it.

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Conan with guest Jack Black

Since then, however, O’Brien and the Late Night writing team have consistently been nominated for an Emmy Award for Best Writing in a Comedy or Variety Series, though they have not won as of 2006. In 1997, 2000, 2002, 2003, and 2004 he and the Late Night writing staff won the Writers Guild Award for Best Writing in a Comedy/Variety Series.

In 2001 he formed his own television production company, Conaco, which has subsequently shared in the production credits for Late Night.

In the 2003-04 television season, Late Night with Conan O’Brien averaged 2.5 million viewers each week, easily beating out every other show in its time slot.


Other work

In 2005, O'Brien appeared in The White Stripes' music video, "The Denial Twist". The band had previously been a week-long musical guest on Late Night when they were promoting their 2003 album, Elephant. He has appeared on the equally surreal (and late) talk show Space Ghost Coast to Coast, Episode 77: Fire Ant, in which he and Space Ghost argue between themselves about a number of things, including whether or not anyone actually watches SGC2C. Space Ghost later quips "Well that's very stupid, and you won't make it in television," an obvious parody of early reviews of O'Brien's show. After a while, Space Ghost ignores the interview entirely to follow a fire ant that bit him (for about 11 straight minutes). As Space Ghost is crawling out of the studio, O'Brien gripes that "For all these people know, my show is...a...cop...show...on Fox...or something," to which Space Ghost replies "...Isn't it?"

On March 7, 2006, NBC announced that it had ordered a pilot episode for Andy Barker P.I., a new comedy executive produced by O'Brien (who will also co-write the pilot). The show will star O'Brien's former sidekick Andy Richter. [4]

Conan O'Brien

On September 27, 2004, NBC announced the planned 2009 retirement of Tonight Show host Jay Leno. O’Brien was named Leno's successor [5].

Partial filmography

Family

On January 12, 2002, O’Brien married (former) advertising copywriter Liza Powel in her hometown of Seattle, Washington, in a nuptial Mass at St. James Cathedral. Elizabeth Ann Powell was born November 12, 1970, is from Bainbridge Island, Washington (near Seattle), and is the daughter of Seattle Dixieland band-leader Jake Powell [6]. They met in the spring of 2000 when Foote, Cone & Belding (FCB), the advertising agency she worked for, redesigned the ads of O'Brien's Houston Sponsor, Hilton Furniture.

They have one daughter, Neve, born on October 14, 2003 in New York City and a son, Beckett, born November 9, 2005 in New York City [7][8].

O’Brien is a distant cousin of Denis Leary through marriage.

Comedy and mannerisms

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Conan O'Brien's Anti-Sweden, Pro-Finland agenda
  • When making a (usually unscripted) joke, he will almost always follow it with "uuuhh" seemingly as a subconsious way of covering up his embarassment.
  • His left arm spasms repeatedly (and apparently subconsciously) just before he tells almost every punchline
  • Clasps his hands and says 'yeah' during his monologue, between setup and punchline
  • Often knocks over his desk microphone (on purpose) and says that it is made out of chocolate
  • Calls his furniture such as his desk or guest chair "Bessie Lou"
  • His sketches sometimes have a surreal tone
  • Makes extensive use of chroma key, puppetry, and cheap-looking models pulled by threads
  • Sometimes switches into a silly voice or affectation and back again, similarly to Robin Williams but not so manic; has joked several times that his real identity is the actor "Chip Whitley"
  • Often jokes that his show is underfunded and unpopular due to its late time slot when it is, in fact, the top rated show in its timeslot
  • Frequently jokes that he is nerdy, unpopular, and sexually unappealing
  • Often takes shots at NBC, saying that their "ratings are in the toilet"
  • Often moves outside the camera frame or very close to the camera during his monologue
  • Often hops around like a bunny
  • Often quiets applause of audience members prior to his monologue by saying "Keep cool, my babies" in falsetto, while making a hushing hand gesture
  • Often manipulates his pompadour for comic effect
  • Sometimes hisses like a cat. Originally, this was a snake impersonation, while Conan would state that he was "comin' atcha". He now continues to do it, though he allegedly no longer remembers what the hiss is supposed to be, or why he does it.
  • O'Brien and his guests often look at the backdrop (a night-time view of New York) and comment on how late it is (e.g. "Yes, it's very late at night right now.") in irony because the show is recorded in the daytime
  • Often makes fun of his own puffy red hair, large head, and pale complexion
  • Always hops onto a small star painted on the floor and gestures toward the band at the beginning of his show
  • Almost always comments on the audiences' applause before his monologue, usually saying that they either sound angry or that they got quiet really fast.
  • Often makes fun of Kirstie Alley, Luciano Pavarotti, Ruben Studdard, and Star Jones for being overweight; George W. Bush, Paris Hilton, Michael Jackson, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Snoop Dogg, Clay Aiken, and Kevin Federline are also frequently lampooned on the show
  • Does a hyper impression of Tom Cruise and refers to him as "the guest that will never be on our show"
  • Performs the string dance at the request of guests on his show, and sometimes on his own
  • Frequently displays his ability to move his hair up and down by using his scalp muscles
  • When members of the audience shout out "I love you!", O'Brien will reply "I love you too, sir", regardless of whether the person yelling is male or female
  • During his monologue he often unbuttons and re-buttons his suit
  • Often ends the show by saying "Bye-bye, everybody, bye!" in a high-pitched voice
  • Slides across the floor showing nothing but the top of his hair, similar to shark movement
  • Licks lips and puts his "tongue in cheek" when making a joke with delayed applause
  • O'Brien will often start clapping his hands and singing "I'm a-gonna go to Hell when I die" after he makes a particularly harsh joke (particularly in reference to Star Jones). Audience claps along, and he often responds, "Don't clap along to that!"
  • After getting low applause he leans back clapping his hands and saying that it was just like in the U.S senate: "Very good, Mr. O'Brien, very good."
  • Often tells viewers that he will one day do an entire show, where all his staff and guests are just dancing without any interviews or sketches, from beginning to end, during the show's entire duration.
  • The Conan O'brian show is home to the infamous Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog. At one point, following a Triumph road trip to the Canadian province of Quebec, O'Brien apologized following a public outcry over a skit many Canadians found offensive.
  • During his monologue ask the drummer Max Weinberg if he also thinks that it's a great show tonight, then Max nods his head or similar, and then Conan repeats something like "You're a very strange man".
  • Always repeats "We've got a very good show tonight" between his intro and his monologue.
  • Often makes fun of members of the houseband The Max Weinberg 7, for fun. For example if a part of the program contains for example men without shirts, Conan says "Did you like that, La Bamba?", and La Bamba answers with a dismissing and wondering grimace.

Trivia

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A promotional poster for the Finnish tabloid Ilta-Sanomat, featuring Conan and Tarja
  • On October 11, 2005, O'Brien first pointed out on his show that he resembles the President of Finland, Tarja Halonen (who is female), after meeting a Finnish man (who was actually Finnish actor/director Lauri Nurkse) in the audience before the show. Since then he has done many comedy bits about that fact, including one that promoted Halonen for a second term. Halonen's appearance in American popular culture received publicity in Finland. About a week and a half after the initial show, O'Brien showed actual Finnish newspaper articles which commented on the resemblance, one calling them "like two berries." It is an expression roughly equivalent to the English phrase "like two peas in a pod." After the initial publicity received by O'Brien's sketch, Tarja Halonen's re-election campaign started advertising on the Finnish broadcast of Late Night with Conan O'Brien. Halonen was re-elected as the Finnish President on January 29th 2006. O'Brien is extremely popular in Finland, where his show airs in prime time. O'Brien visited Finland from February 11-14 while NBC aired the 2006 Winter Olympics. O'Brien and Halonen had a 15-minute meeting, during which Halonen admitted the resemblance between the two. O'Brien presented her with some candy in a heart-shaped box, and Halonen returned the favor by giving O'Brien some Finnish Moomin dolls for his children. O'Brien's visit received tremendous media attention in Finland where he was met with huge crowds and followed by paparazzi. O'Brien described the experience as "surreal". [9]
  • Although O'Brien is 6' 4" (1.93 m) tall, many people are of the impression that he is of average height at most, as he spends most of his show sitting down. His stature only becomes apparent when he stands up to greet his guests.
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Conan O'Brien 10th Anniversary Promo
  • During O'Brien's first rocky year as host of Late Night, his predecessor, David Letterman, was very supportive, making an amicable appearance as one of O'Brien's first guests and later filling O'Brien's audience with the stand-by audience from his own show. Letterman would also invite O'Brien as a guest on The Late Show. Years later, when NBC announced that O'Brien would take-over The Tonight Show (a job previously coveted by Letterman), Letterman openly congratulated O'Brien on The Late Show.
  • Ever since his first show as the host of Late Night, O'Brien has kept four black & white photographs on the wall next to him. Those photographs are pictures of Steve Allen, Jack Paar, Johnny Carson, and David Letterman. O'Brien has stated on his show that those pictures represent television personalities who have hosted late night shows in New York City, where Late Night is taped. Allen, Paar, and Carson have died during O'Brien's reign as Late Night host; after each of their passings, O'Brien took the time to remember them on their show, discussing personal anecdotes and how each one was supportive of him when he first started hosting Late Night.
  • Conan is an avid guitarist and music listener. He frequently features little-known musical acts on his show not because of an inability to book big-name acts, but to give talented, lesser-known artists some exposure.
  • O'Brien is an admitted fan of legendary rock band Phish and has been spotted at several of their concerts.
  • O'Brien is a fan of Arrested Development, and occasionally makes references to the show. He also has cast members frequently on as guests.
  • While attending Harvard, O'Brien was roommates with Damon Krukowski, who later would become drummer for the seminal indie band Galaxie 500. O'Brien had bought himself a drumkit previously, but had only recently given up playing it. So he loaned it to Krukowski, whom he knew would get more use out of it. O'Brien's drum kit can be heard on many of Galaxie 500's early recordings. Conan has even drummed with The Max Weinberg 7 on at least one occasion on the show, in a sketch in which he and Max Weinberg, whose parents were under the impression that he was the host and had come to see the show, switch places.
  • O'Brien is lampooned on the comedic site Conan vs. bear, an on-going gag in which artists create depictions of him fighting or competing with bears in various ways.

Quotes

  • "...although you see me as a celebrity, a member of the cultural elite, a kind of demigod, I was actually a student here once much like you. ... I was, without exaggeration, the ugliest picture in the Freshman Face book. When Harvard asked me for a picture the previous summer, I thought it was just for their records ... I looked like a mackerel that had been in a car accident. You see, in those days I was six feet four inches tall and I weighed 150 pounds. Recently, I had some structural engineers run those numbers into a computer model and, according to the computer, I collapsed in 1987, killing hundreds in Taiwan." — Conan O’Brien, 2000 Harvard Commencement Speech [10].

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Conan O'Brien.
Preceded by Host of Late Night
1993-2009 		Succeeded by
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Preceded by Host of The Tonight Show
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