NBC Dumps Conan for $45 Million Payoff; Reinstates Jay as Tonight Show Host

Posted by REALITYTV on Jan 21st, 2010 and filed under TV. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed. | Viewed 467 times.

Conan O’Brien will receive $45 million for himself and his staff in an exit deal clearing the way for Jay Leno to return as host of The Tonight Show, NBC announced Thursday.

About one-fourth of the money ($11 million to $12 million) will be divided among O’Brien’s 200-plus staffers as severance, under terms of the deal announced on NBC’s Today. O’Brien’s last show will be Friday, and Leno will return to Tonight, the show he hosted for 17 years, on March 1.

Leno: Don’t Blame Conan (Or Me)

O’Brien will be allowed to appear on another network as early as September, but likely without such old friends as Masturbating Bear. …