TVSquad

If you believe in such things, Johnny Carson is likely spinning in his grave right now. The great star of The Tonight Show is about to be revealed, the good, the bad and especially the ugly and unsavory, in a memoir.

Johnny Carson's attorney Henry Bushkin is writing a book about the star, spilling all the secrets that he kept confidential while Johnny was alive, and it's all legal. Bushkin is looking for one more way to cash in on his client, one he soaked plenty when Johnny was alive.

Carson is a beloved TV icon, maybe the most beloved after Lucille Ball, but nobody believes that the affable, funny man who came into our bedrooms every night was a sweetheart. He was known to hold a grudge, to be snippy and cranky on occasion, and to have a temper.

While NBC is carefully plotting Jay Leno's exit from The Tonight Show, David Letterman is talking about staying on the CBS Late Show beyond 2010. And since the subject of Leno came up, Dave thinks the guys at NBC are nuts to treat Jay the way they are, especially since he's done such a great job in the 11:30 slot. Letterman even said he wants Jay on his show the day after his Tonight Show tenure ends.

Letterman, who was once the heir apparent to Johnny Carson's desk but was passed over in favor of Leno, has thrived on CBS even though he was crushed to lose The Tonight Show. The supposed feud between Letterman and Leno, and their competition for The Tonight Show, was depicted in the HBO film (and Bill Carter book) The Late Shift. (If you've never seen it, buy or rent it; it's one of the best films ever about how TV works behind the scenes.)

Goodbye, Jay -- you don't mind if we push you out of the chair, do you? If you thought NBC made a mess of the David Letterman/Jay Leno replacement switch-off back in 1992, then you might find it not very surprising that the hand off from Jay (I don't want to go) Leno to Conan O'Brien is portending to be just as sticky.

According to TV Week, NBC is poised to announce the official Jay Leno departure from The Tonight Show and Conan O'Brien arrival today. Our man at the TCA, Joel Keller, could have all the details later on, so keep checking back with TV Squad.

Reportedly, Leno will be exiting in late May, possibly on the anniversary of the date he took the chair from Johnny Carson, May 25. Carson's last Tonight Show was May 22, 1992; Jay's tenure commenced on Monday, May 25. The problem with re-creating that symmetry in 2009 is that those dates are Memorial Day weekend.

A funny thing happened at the beginning of the ABC executive session this morning. After ABC Entertainment president Steve McPherson got on stage, said some opening remarks, and opened the floor to questions, someone got up and identified himself as Tom Weinerman of the Sarasota Star-Herald Tribune. That was a bit unusual, as the reporters here never identify themselves before asking questions.

But then, people started recognizing the voice, or turned in the direction of the questioner, and realized what was going on: It was Jimmy Kimmel, and he had some pointed -- and funny -- questions for McPherson about the possibility of Jay Leno coming to ABC.

It was an historic occasion yesterday last Thursday on NBC's The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, didn't you know? The lady who lives to be banned -- and re-banned in the case of The View -- Kathy Griffin appeared as Jay Leno's guest. What's the big deal?

Well, if you recall the first season of Kathy's show, Bravo's My Life on the D List, the comic was rather brutally insulted by Jay when he called her ugly, and in the subsequent episodes of the show, Kathy revealed that she was put on The Tonight Show's "do not invite list."

And yet, the other night, there was Kathy in the prime seat, chatting it up with Jay, dissing celebrities as is her wont, and generally looking like the D List is now just the title of her show, not her true show business status.

Somebody give Ed McMahon a job, please! There are more stories emerging about the famous TV sidekick's financial woes, and it's just sad that he's in such dire straits.

Granted, he's not alone in these tough times -- and, yes, he has had millions in his time -- but the revelations that the former Tonight Show star and Star Search host is in money trouble strikes me as really unfortunate. And apparently that help from Jay Leno is slow in materializing. Why isn't Publisher's Clearinghouse giving him a gig?

The latest news is that Citibank is suing McMahon for $200,000, a loan they extended to Ed. In a lawsuit filed in L.A. Superior court on June 9, the bank is seeking $179,687 in damages, plus legal fees. This is on top of the potential foreclosure on his Beverly Hills home.

Last week, the news about Ed McMahon possibly losing his Hollywood home spread across the airwaves. Surprisingly, there were many comments here that were downright unsympathetic to the former Tonight Show sidekick. Apparently, people in show business are sympathetic. Current Tonight Show host Jay Leno has vocally offered to help Ed with his financial problems.

Jay, who is in the last year of manning the desk that Johnny Carson manned for years with Ed right by his side, promises to come through for Ed. According to Leno's PR man, "Everybody loves Ed. Jay and others on the show are discussing how they can help him."

It's no secret that the country is in severe financial straits, especially people who are caught in the real estate merry-go-round where they find themselves unable to pay their monthly mortgage. Amazingly, someone as seemingly well-heeled and secure as Ed McMahon is one of those people struggling. Johnny Carson's sidekick on The Tonight Show is on the verge of losing his Beverly Hills home through foreclosure.

Published reports claim that Ed McMahon's home on Mulholland Drive, part of the gated hilltop development called The Summit, has been on the market for sale since 2006. Unfortunately, moving real estate in a depressed market is very tough. Complicating matters for McMahon is the neighborhood, in particular, one neighbor: Britney Spears.

It seriously sends a message to CBS when even Nightline as well as Leno is beating Letterman in the ratings. Nightline averaged 3.6 million viewers for the week ended May 19. The Tonight Show with Jay Leno averaged 5 million and The Late Show with David Letterman averaged 3.4 million according to latest Nielsen Media Research data.

It's tough to believe that David Letterman has fallen from grace so far and is now largely irrelevant. Given the gap, perhaps NBC should look into keeping Leno for a little bit longer rather than have him leave in 2009, particularly considering that even Craig Ferguson is beating Conan O'Brien in the ratings.

I remember when Letterman was a shot of adrenaline to the late night wars. What has Letterman done (or not done) to place him in the number three position? If CBS decided to replace Letterman, who would be the logical choice for the timeslot?

Remember that song, "Everything Old Is New Again"? Well, it's true. In the old days of broadcasting, it was typical for the host of a show to appear during the hour or half-hour doing a live commercial endorsing the sponsor of the program. That old idea is being re-invented and ABC will soon announce that Jimmy Kimmel will be doing live spots on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Call it the ultimate in product integration, if you will, but it's just one more way for advertisers to guard against DVR watchers zapping through the commercials or live viewers clicking to another channel. And if they're smart, they'll make the commercials clever enough to be worth watching. The live ads will launch in May.

New TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

• Chappelle's Show - Best Of
• CHiPs - Season 1
• The Cosby Show - Seasons 3 and 4
• Dark Angel - Seasons 1 and 2 (Thin)
• The Dead Zone - Season 5
• Doctor Who - Stories 115, 116 and 117
• The Fall Guy - Season 1, Volumes 1 and 2 and also a Season 1 set
• The Henry Rollins Show - Season 1
• Hex - Season 1
• Hogan's Heroes - Season 6
• Mission: Impossible - Season 2
• The Outer Limits - Vol. 1
• Rescue Me - Season 3
• Robin Hood - Season 1
• Seinfeld - Season 8
• SpongeBob SquarePants - Bikini Bottom Adventures
• Survivorman - Survivorman
• The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson - Best of Standup Comedians and The King of Late Night
• Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - Season 1
• What's New Scooby Doo? - Season 2

Either the talent bookers at The Tonight Show are really stupid or they're geniuses. Either of those extremes are the only ways to explain Wednesday's roster of guests: George Carlin, a comic legend who has been doing caustic observational and issues-oreinted comedy, most of it left-leaning, for over forty years, and Ann Coulter, a conservative pundit with a flair for the inflammatory statement. Carlin will be promoting his work in the new Pixar flick Cars; Coulter will be promoting her new book.

Recall that just a few days ago Coulter stated that the World Trade Center widows that pushed for the creation of the 9/11 commission were reveling in their fame, and they're enjoying their husbands' deaths. And Carlin has been spending the last ten years or so telling his comedy audiences that the government is corrupt, religions are idiotic, and that the human race is going to kill itself off (yeah, this hasn't exactly been his funniest period, though I still think he is one of the best stand-up comics ever). So let's just say that the two don't see eye-to-eye on anything. At all.

And the paneling format of The Tonight Show is a perfect environment for some explosive arguments between the two. It's too bad that Jay Leno is the host; he'll probably put a stop to things at the first airing of the word "bitch".

Last week, dear brother Joel (really, he's my brother, except I'm prettier) asked you, the beautiful TV Squad readers, if Meredith Vieira could be taken seriously as both the host of both Who Wants to be a Millionaire and Today. Some of you said there was no problem with Vieira's credibility; others said it should be one or the other.

Well, folks, lovely Meredith is not the first person to do double-duty as both a game show host and a news personality. As Joel stated in his post, Joe Garagiola hosted and was a panelist on a number of game shows while on Today. However, he is a recent example. Truth be known, during the early days of television news people regularly double-dipped between one format and another without a complaint.