Yes, Johnny Carson preferred that David Letterman get his job (I watch Letterman, although less so lately), but the network saw Leno as the logical heir. Letterman is just too acid-tongued. It makes for some fun comedy, but the “Tonight Show” is about harmless and lighthearted fun. It made sense that Craig Kilborn, who was harder-edged than Conan, followed Letterman. Craig Ferguson, like Letterman, let’s his liberal political ideology affect his monologues.

Conan O’Brien, a former writer for the “Simpsons,” is mild, self-deprecating, and inoffensive. Yet he is still funny. One great thing about Conan is that his show might be the only one (besides Letterman) where the sidekick actually matters. Having Andy Richter come back is fabulous. Richter is one of those people who never had the success outside of the show that his talent merited. Conan and Richter can take the most mundane things and make them funny. I used to love when they would sit and have those old fashioned staring contests. Of course it was great when they would put on black robes, dim the lights, shine flashlights on themselves, and talk about life “In the Year 2000.” Two of those I will always remember, from 1994.

Conan: “In the year 2000, an assassination attempt on the President will be narrowly averted when the shooter misses from close range. The gunman’s name…John Starks.”

Richter: “In the year 2000, baby seals will no longer be killed for their warm, shiny coats. However, they will still be killed…for revenge.”

Even when Conan O’Brien made fun of political figures, it was so over the top that it was seen as harmless. The skit with the lips cut out was hysterically funny. The Bill Clinton character would come out and say “Yee-haw! Nee-haw! Woo doggie!” After Clinton defeated Bob Dole, the Clinton character said that he was “…going to seek punitive action against the states that didn’t vote for me. I’m gonna wup those states. I’m gonna wup their @sses.”

As Conan innocently tried to get the President to settle down, the Clinton character continued. “Forget gays in the military. I’m sending gays to those states. Let’s see how they like being called ‘Oklahomo’ for awhile. Conservative my @ss.” Conan would then interject with mock indignation cries of “Sir, that’s highly inappropriate.”

The Don King character was hysterically funny:

Conan: “Christmas boxing sir?”

Don King Character: “That’s right Conan, I’m calling it the ‘Mayhem in Bethlehem.’ ‘The Holy War in the Holy Land.’ $49.95, only on pay-per-view.”

Conan: “The O.J. Simpson civil verdict?”

Don King Character: “That’s right Conan, I’m calling it the ‘Molesto in Modesto.’ ‘The Fury With No Jury.’ Only on pay-per-view.”

Conan would wrestle with the fake demons in his head. On one side would be the devil. Yet on the other side, instead of an angel, would be a bear. The devil would advocate bad deeds, and the bear would recommend that Conan eat some honey.

The importance of all of this is that comedians that need viciousness to survive are as weak as comedians that need foul language or bigoted jokes to make a living.

Rush Limbaugh has remarked that early in his career, he was being molded into a shock jock. He heard Joe Pyne tell a caller to “gargle with razorblades.” Yet when Rush studied the great comedians of all time, he noticed that they were not mean, and did not insult people. In fact, outside of Don Rickles, where everybody knew it was an act, all of the top comedians were nice.

Comedy has gotten coarser today, as has society in general. This can be seen in the failed attempts at humor over Barack Obama. Too many liberal comedians will not mock him, and too many conservative comedians just echo the viciousness that liberal comedians directed at George W. Bush (although with much less ferocity and drool.).

Conan O’Brien has stayed above the fray. He is silly, and sometimes sophomoric, but he simply refuses to be mean. Even Triumph the Insult Comic Dog just wants somebody to poop on.

Conan is a nice guy, and It is good to see a nice guy finish first. As boxing promoter Don King would say, “Congratulations Conan, my jughead, potato eating friend.” May your successor in 2026 be just as nice and just as funny.

eric  aka the Tygrrrr Express

blacktygrrrr@earthlink.net

Careening between train wreck and brilliance (often within the same five minute segment), “Red Eye” has been providing necrophilia jokes and toilet humor alongside serious political commentary and biting social satire for over two years now. In fact, “Red Eye,” which airs nightly at 3:00 am on Fox News, recently celebrated its 500th show. In honor of this momentous occasion, I would like to address those poor unfortunate viewers who have yet to tune in, and inform them why they need to start warming up their TiVos like, NOW! people.

The ringleader is Greg Gutfeld, former editor of Maxim U.K and Men’s Health magazines. His cohorts include Bill Schulz (the best side-kick since Andy Richter) and droll and dreary ombudsman Andy Levy. This crew is rounded out nightly by a rotating rogue’s gallery of bloggers, comedians, news anchors, beauty queens, medical examiners, rockers, freaks, and former C.I.A. agents. Oh, and Gutfeld’s mom.

The beauty of this ever simmering stew is you never know how it’s going to go down – sometimes it warms the belly, and sometimes you gag on the mix (Nutmeg?! In stew?!). You find ostensibly serious people being unexpectedly hilarious (Michigan Congressman Thaddeus McCotter’s fierce, young-Mr. Burns-visage belies a devastating Don Rickles wit), and ostensibly funny people addressing serious subjects – all with wildly varying success.

“Red Eye” is like a great punk song – individually the instruments are out of tune and none of the musicians have the slightest clue what they’re doing. But somehow it all comes together in a life-affirming vortex of awesomeness that makes you bang your head and pump your fist and thank God that the Ramones were too stupid and too smart to do anything else.

But “Red Eye” is not a punk song – it is a television show.  Its sire is not the Ramones, but Steve Allen (R.I.P.), a mantle once picked up and gloriously carried by David Letterman, before he got infected with namby-pamby liberalism and I-know-what’s-best-for-you paternalism.

“Red Eye” will have none of that, and as a consequence is both the most daring and disgusting hour on the air. The “Red Eye” crew act like they are not even aware that they are on television half the time; or at least, they act like they are acting like that, and that is their genius.

So the question is not really “Is there a stranger show on television?” to which the answer is manifestly no. The question is “Is there a better show on television?”

Yes, frequently. But watch anyway. We’d hate for these boys to have to get real jobs.

Matt Patterson is a columnist and commentator whose work has appeared in The Washington Examiner, The Baltimore Sun, Townhall, and Pajamas Media. He is the author of “Union of Hearts: The Abraham Lincoln & Ann Rutledge Story.” His email is mpatterson.column@gmail.com.