NEW YORK (AP) — NBC says it has reached a deal with “Tonight” host Conan O’Brien for his exit from the show, allowing Jay Leno to return to the late-night program he hosted for 17 years.
NBC made the announcement early Thursday that O’Brien will conclude his “Tonight” show run, seven months after O’Brien took the reins from Leno.
O’Brien landed the “Tonight” show after successfully hosting “Late Night,” which airs an hour later, since 1993. But he quickly stumbled in the ratings race against his CBS rival, David Letterman.
Under Leno, the “Tonight” show was the ratings champ at 11:35 p.m. Eastern time, but he proved an instant flop with his experiment in prime time.
