A Little Of The Old In And Out



In: Jimmy Fallon. While we remain profoundly skeptical about the alleged "talents" of Jimmy Fallon without Tina Fey as comic-foil(Exaggerated cough suggesting feigned detachment), we have learned never to bet against Lorne Michaels. And the SNL Exec is overseeing Fallon's new show that is taking over Conan's slot. Even Howard Stern, virtually undefeated in combat in show business, once fell before Lorne. From EW:

"It's time to play musical chairs — specifically, the ones that the late-night hosts sit in. NBC is set to announce on May 12 that Saturday Night Live vet Jimmy Fallon will take over next year for Conan O'Brien (who'll assume the Tonight Show throne currently occupied by Jay Leno, in a move made public way back in 2004). Peacock execs first approached Fallon about the gig in 2003, the year that he guest-hosted on Letterman. While he left SNL in 2004 to pursue a film career that has yet to take off (Taxi, Fever Pitch), he's recently been honing his stand-up chops across the country. In Fallon's favor: SNL/Late Night With Conan O'Brien exec producer Lorne Michaels will oversee the new show. 'Jimmy's a smart pick,' notes one network exec. 'He's a young, cute guy that will draw women in — and I don't bet against Lorne Michaels.'

Out: John Edwards. Does it really matter in the end if former Senator John Edwards -- who may or may not be fishing for a cabinet post in 2008 -- endorses Senator Hillary Clinton? Evidently not. From Politico:

"For all the speculation surrounding John Edwards’ conspicuous silence on the eve of his home state’s primary, one important fact has been overlooked: According to North Carolina’s political class, the former Democratic presidential contender has virtually no clout at all in his home state.

"The former senator and 2004 Democratic vice presidential nominee, they say, was like a political comet. He seemingly appeared out of nowhere, inspired awe with the intensity of his talent, blazed through a single term in the Senate, then disappeared from the radar almost entirely."

In: Boris Johnson. Tory Boris Johnson, the new Mayor of London, handed Gordon Brown's government a beating last week. From The International Herald Tribune:

"As votes were tallied across the country after elections on Thursday, it emerged that the Labour Party had suffered its worst local election results in at least 40 years. With final votes in for the 159 local councils in which seats were being contested, Labour lost 331 seats over all, and the Conservative opposition gained 256

"The Labour Party took an estimated 24 percent of the overall vote, placing it a woeful third behind the Conservatives, with 44 percent, and the Liberal Democrats, with 25 percent.

"But it was the mayoral race, in which Johnson, 43, defeated the experienced Labour incumbent, Ken Livingstone, 62, by 1,168,738 votes to 1,028,966 votes, that was the biggest shock - a sure sign of a deep national weariness with the Labour government."

Johnson will meet on Friday with New York Mayor-mogul and "connector" Michael Bloomberg.



Out: Yahoo! Wow. How stupid was Yahoo! CEO Jerry Yang to turn this deal down? From Bloomberg:

"The move puts Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang under pressure to bring the share price near the $31 Microsoft first offered. Sunnyvale, California-based Yahoo, owner of the No. 2 search engine, fell 32 percent in the year before Microsoft's offer. Bigger rival Google Inc. expanded revenue more than three times faster than Yahoo last quarter.

"'Google is coming on strong on all fronts, and Yahoo has to figure out a game plan to keep from getting swallowed up,' Endpoint Technologies Associates President Roger Kay said in an interview with Bloomberg Radio. 'Yahoo has to pick up the pieces and march forward with what it has in hand.'"

(image via timeinc)

In: ABC. ABC has won the first two Thursdays of May sweeps. From Medialifemagazine:

"ABC held its Thursday lead for the second straight week, though it was down from last week, when it debuted a new-look lineup with 'Lost' taking over the 10 p.m. slot.

"The network finished first last night with an average 4.4 adults 18-49 rating and 12 share, according to Nielsen overnights, just ahead of No. 2 CBS’s 4.1/11.

"But while the network had the night’s top-ranked show with 'Grey’s Anatomy' at a 6.0, it saw all three of its shows decline week to week. 'Grey’s' slipped 5 percent from last week, its first week back from the writers’ strike."