MANHATTAN — Jay Leno and Conan O'Brien may be turning on each other, adding to NBC's late night scheduling woes.
The funnymen have taken swipes at NBC for days. But then, adding a new level of late night drama, Leno expressed sarcastic sympathy for O’Brien during his Wednesday night monologue.
“Conan O'Brien, understandable, is very upset," Leno said. "He had a statement in the paper yesterday. Conan said NBC has only gave him seven months to make his show work. When I heard that ... seven months! How did he get that deal? We only got four! Who's his agent? Get me that guy. I'll take seven!"
O’Brien returned fire in his monologue, implying that NBC and Leno crushed his lifelong dream of hosting "The Tonight Show."
“And I just want to say to the kids out there watching: You can do anything you want in life," he said. "Unless Jay Leno wants to do it, too."
The NBC fiasco started when the network announced it would move Leno back to 11:35 p.m. and push "The Tonight Show" to 12:05 and cut it to a half hour, prompting protests from both O’Brien and Leno.
The two aren’t the only talk show hosts weighing in.
On Tuesday night, Jimmy Kimmel mocked Leno, appearing with a wig and fake chin.
"Hello, hello, my name is Jay Leno," Kimmel said on his ABC show, "Jimmy Kimmel Live."
"I'm taking over all the shows in late night."
Leno returned fire at Kimmel the following evening, showing a clip of Kimmel’s spoof and saying he was going to do his own impersonation of Kimmel, but “realized I do not have enough black shoe polish here at NBC to get my hair that dark."
But the clash between those two is friendly – both plan to appear on each other’s shows this week.
“If Jay and I can come together and guest on each other’s shows,” Kimmel deadpanned, “Then surely there is hope for peace in the Middle East."
