Conan O'Brien started his first night as host of The Tonight Show with a show that looked as though its budget might have been able to help out General Motors significantly. The opening bit -- a long, amusing run across the country from Manhattan to his new studio in Los Angeles -- showed that O'Brien used his time preparing to replace Jay Leno wisely. Also that he's thinking big.This taped piece, along with others about taking over a Universal Studios tour tram, another in which he ribbed L.A. car-culture by driving some unhip wheels around the town, and even the short but elaborate sight-gag of Conan at a Lakers game, with the camera panning from Jack Nicholson in a floor seat to Conan up in the rafters -- all these suggested just how much careful, clever planning the host is bringing to his new job.
All in all, a large-scale, impressive debut. But we all know that success in late-night depends on the long haul -- Conan knows this as well as anyone. So now I want to see how he follows up his glitzy debut. Conan O'Brien officially took over for Jay Leno as the host of "The Tonight Show" on Monday night, and the funny man had a long way to go to get from New York to his new spot behind the "Tonight Show" desk.
