Who's the best? Who's the worst? Here's my take: Standup: I lovelovelove Craig Ferguson. His routine is a lot different from the others in that its much more self-deprecating, rather than him bashing on other people. Also, every once in a while, he uses his show to spread a message, like the time he did a eulogy for his late father, or my favorite episode: Spoiler <object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/7bbaRyDLMvA&hl=en_US&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/7bbaRyDLMvA&hl=en_US&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object> Skits/Games: Jimmy Fallon is very awkward as far as talk show hosts are concerned, but I find his skits to be original and much more interactive that others'. I love his thank you notes and the impromptu rock bands. Also, he includes his guests in his games. It's all pretty laid back, which I like. Interview: I have to give this one to Ferguson again. He's very personable, and never scripted. Even though it leads to some awkward moments, more often than not he's able to create a spontaneous AND hilarious dialogue. All the other late night shows are so obviously scripted, its laughable. Band: I love The Roots, but I love Paul Schaffer more. Epitome of a great Late show band leader. Overall: It's close, but I'm giving the nod to Jimmy Kimmel. While in my opinion, he isn't the best at any single aspect, he's strong in all of them. He has me laughing throughout the show, even if they're cheap laughs. Ferguson's skits are so cringeworthy, I can't bring myself to watch them. My rankings: 1. Kimmel 2. Ferguson 3. Fallon 4. Leno 5. Letterman I hear his name a lot, but I don't even know what Carson Daly looks like. I refuse to watch Lopez.
I don't care about the interviews, I usually turn it off when the interviews come. Until Conan comes back this fall, I have watched some of Jimmy Kimmel who is the best out there right now. As much as people hate Jimmy Fallon, he has some very funny skits. Leno and Letterman both blow
Monologue: Bill Maher, Leno, Letterman a close second when he does Palin, Bush jokes. Interview: Letterman Do not care for the music or skits. You know who needs a late-night talk show? Seth Meyers
<object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/VxGQzs22K3s&hl=en_US&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/VxGQzs22K3s&hl=en_US&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object> by far aresnio
letterman has the best interviews but the guests need to be people hes known awhile. madonna is always a fun interview, jim carey, tom hanks, julia roberts, kevin spacey was a funny interview too. the joquain phoenix one which blew up was great. since he's known them awhile, letterman is great with those guests. obviously most the comedians like ferrell, sandler and such make it funny, but they're like that on every show. letterman has some epic interviews every once in awhile
I caught Craig Feguson by accident about a week back. Never saw him before. You're right, he's really good at the standup. I've heard he does good, smart interviews as well.
There is something about Fallon's show that I like, he's not the best interviewer...but for unknown reasons I enjoy the show. Leno is alright...because of his show you know he will deliver good guests the majority of the time. Letterman at this point is always sarcastic and kind of pokes fun at his guests (to their face)....it's just his thing. Conan in my opinion has the best social skills when it comes to the guests.....you can always see him talking to them during breaks and trying to engage. Watch Leno, when he goes to commercial....most of the time he just sits there and so does the guest. Ferguson I rarely watch....just can't get into it. And in regards to the Arsenio clip.....I'm to young to remember the show....but gangster. :grin:
1. Jimmy Kimmel - I literally laugh out loud watching this dude, especially when he first started. 2. David Letterman - Maybe it's a loyalty bias, but I remember watching Letterman during the Rockets battle against the Knicks. Just brings back memories. Plus, he's funny 3. Jimmy Fallon - I enjoy watching his show. The Roots are awesome, and I get that SNL feel every once in a while. On top of that, he has improved SO much. Although still there, the jittery interruptions have gone down considerably. 4. Jay Leno - Makes the list because he was funny back then. I always had a bias against him since he was Letterman's rival. I don't watch enough of Ferguson to put him up there. Every time his show comes on, I always feel like I'm up too late
I usually just keep it on NBC since you can't beat a combo of leno and fallon....Letterman/ferguson are good at interviews, but everything else doenst get my attention. Leno has some other funny stuff and i like fallon's unique skits and games, especially the basketball shoot out. Kimmel is pretty good overall too, buti can always catch him online easily if i want to see something specific, so i skip him on TV.
I used to hate Fallon but he's gotten better. His monologue were disastrous when he first started out. It was embarassing to watch him say punchlines and get no laughs. The monologue now is an improvement (not saying much). But everything else about the show I like. IMO monologues: Leno interview: don't watch them skits: Fallon/conan I find letterman boring in everything. His "top 10" gets a chuckle out of me at best.
Colbert and Stewart aren't on the major networks and aren't really in the same category as these guys, so I didn't include them. I was thinking about including O'Brien, but he isn't a current host, and to be honest I never watched much of his show. I watched him over Letterman during the 10:35 slot, but I wasn't watching much late night while he was hosting due to work. I'd put him between Ferguson and Fallon.
Jimmy Kimmel is the best <object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/D7VlyZGqwak&hl=en_US&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/D7VlyZGqwak&hl=en_US&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object> <object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-PZNfOZXPJk&hl=en_US&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-PZNfOZXPJk&hl=en_US&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>
