O’brien ends TBS show with snark, gratitude
Conan O’brien stayed true to form as he wrapped his TBS show “Conan” after nearly 11 years, bouncing between self-deprecating and smart-aleck humor before allowing himself a touch of sentiment.
“Try to do what you love with people you love, and if you can manage that, it’s the definition of heaven on Earth,” he said, marking the end of his third late-night show over 28 years. It’s a tenure second only to Johnny Carson’s 30 years on “Tonight.”
O’brien’s next venture is a weekly variety series for HBO Max, set to arrive in 2022 with an as-yet unannounced format.
The hour-long “Conan” finale Thursday was largely a trip down memory lane with clips of guests including Steve Martin, Tom Hanks and Sarah Silverman, and highlights of specials taped outside the United States. Will Ferrell appeared by Zoom from Boston, with Jack Black on hand to salute O’brien.
Ferrell noted that he’s been a guest for the conclusions of O’brien’s previous shows, “Late Night With Conan O’brien” and “Tonight,” both on NBC but with widely varying runs: the former from 1993 to 2009, the latter for less than eight months in 200910.
“It’s kind of become a tradition,” O’brien said of Ferrell’s presence.
“It’s become (expletive) exhausting,” Ferrell replied. He then proceeded to perform farewells that he suggested O’brien should bank for probable future need, including for his new HBO Max series.
“People would say six episodes isn’t a lot, but you packed enough entertainment in them for eight episodes,” Ferrell said. He then lauded him for a string of projected talk show flops on Al Jazeera and Delta Airlines, and his Youtube “classic unboxing videos.”