EW talked to The Late Show executive producer Rob Burnett about David Letterman’s surprising decision to include Jay Leno in a promotional spot during the Super Bowl.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Why did you decide to do this?
ROB BURNETT: Well, the 10 seconds we did with Dave and Oprah for the Super Bowl in 2007 went pretty well and CBS came back and said we got 10 seconds again for this one. Nothing is more simultaneously exhilarating and fear-inducing than hearing you have 10 seconds in the Super Bowl. We were banging heads together. How do we come close to topping the last one? Then Dave got this idea. My first call was to Oprah – she got it right away – and then I called [CBS Corp. Chairman] Les Moonves to make sure he was OK with Jay being on CBS. I have to give Les credit … he got it immediately. And then I called [Leno's executive producer] Debbie Vickers … who said, ‘Dave and Jay, in the same room?’ She laughed for a good minute and said Jay would want to call. I hung up, and two minutes later it was Jay. He said ‘This is the way show business should be.’ Debbie then cleared it with NBC Entertainment Chairman Jeff Gaspin and NBC-Universal CEO Jeff Zucker.
How did you manage to pull it off without the press catching wind of it?
We began having logistical meetings that would make the CIA proud. We had to figure out a way to keep it a surprise. NBC arranged to have Jay fly on the NBC jet at 7:30 in morning on Feb. 2 and he was at the Teterboro Airport [in New Jersey] at 3:30 p.m. We snuck him through the front door on Broadway. Jay wore a disguise …a hooded sweatshirt, dark sunglasses and a mustache. Fifteen minutes later, Oprah arrived … but not in a disguise. We shot it in the balcony of the Ed Sullivan Theater.
What was it like when Leno and Letterman first saw each other?
It was great, very professional, very cordial. We shot it in 25 minutes, and it went really, really well. It felt like one of those things where you wake up and say, “I had the strangest dream.” There was no frostiness. We were focused on trying to execute the joke. It would have been a more taxing event had it been us all going out to dinner. If anything was awkward, it was how it wasn’t awkward. It’s interesting… there was a lot of internal conversation about whether this was a good thing to be doing from a PR standpoint. Are we rehabilitating Jay’s image? Dave has a simple edict: If it’s funny, we do it. When CBS says it needs 10 seconds, it’s incumbent upon you to do the funniest bit you can do. Then we learned we had another five seconds. That may not sound like a really big deal but let’s face it … that’s someone’s college education [given how much the typical per-second spot goes for during the Super Bowl], so we were really thrilled about that.
You and Dave must have realized you had the potential to upstage the Super Bowl.
Well, that’s not our problem! [He laughs]. I’ve been asked the question more than once about all these advertisers who spent millions of dollars on their ads. My response is: They had a year, millions of dollars, and 30 seconds! We had one week, no money, and 15 seconds. The bottom line is, if you’re a comedian and you have the chance to do something funny in front of 100 million people, you should do it.
Watch Leno and Letterman declare a grumpy truce during the Super Bowl
This is too awesome … a disguise, haha, wow…
Well done Leno. What a great sport. Jau is back!!
I’m a bit disappointed in Letterman basically extending an olive-branch to Leno like this. It stinks of a ploy by Leno to rehabilitate his career. Does Dave really feel that this might actually be damage-control for his own recent scandal?
I meant that last bit about Dave as to whether he felt that this might vindicate him somewhat.
Loser spammers do a losers job for loser pay.
Good sport? He needs to built up his image again. This is not him being a “good sport”, it is a calculated move to get us back to his corner.
It was a good joke. There was no conspiracy plot, Jack Bauer. Take a day off.
who really cares? It’s a commercial, and people that make more in a year that would help a whole country, or the economy. Why doesn’t anyone care that these people sit on millions of dollars they can’t use, while they ask us to help the poor? Ohhh, a telethon, they go on tv for a night, and slum it, to make themselves look good for viewers… and the late night guys…all those millions…they can’t even spend them, how about saving people, and keeping plenty for yourselves…and not fighting. And NO, this stupid commerical doesn’t mean Jay and Dave are fine, and who really cares….
Apparently, Dick, you care. Why else would you take the time to offer up this social commentary, which must have taken you 15 minutes to write, on why you thought it was stupid. Seems you care a great deal. Don’t fall off the soapbox now…oh wait, no one would care?
Dick, you are well named.
Typical idiot thinking, oh wow those people have so much money, they should just throw it at the poor people and solve all their problems. Money doesn’t solve everything Dick. We have been pouring trillion’s of dollars into Africa for the past fifty years and it’s still poor. Money doesn’t mean everything buddy.
bravo to all parties involved. glad to see both guys being such good sports about it. now lets move on from this drama
Good Job CBS, but it would of been funny if Conan was also on it!!
Like NBC would have gone for that. And it would probably violate Conan’s severance agreement with NBC.
I thought the same, but all in all – it was brilliant!!!
I guess this is why Letterman never talked about Leno being on Oprah’s show? It was a surprise, but Leno is one of the last people I want to see on my tv.
Get over it!! Jay will be back on top (or close to it) by summer. It’s just TV, moron! The fate of the country or the world doesn’t depend on if YOU or anyone else watches Jay Leno on YOUR tv!!!
Wow. What an overreaction. Yes never said anything about ratings, just his opinion.
Well maybe Leno is not really that bad of a guy. He is just a Yes Man that is all and we should blame NBC executives for all this crap. Jay is a good guy.
‘watch Pink performance at the Grammys on defSpot com ..everyone is still going nuts over it’
Voila Jon! YOU hit the nail right on the head! I’ve been posting time and time again on this board that it was NBC’s doing! NBC created this crappy mess and most blamed Jay! This is all a stunt for ratings; I wouldn’t be surprised if we see some ad or some incarnation of Conan O’ Brien popping up to pitch something! Props to ya Jon for catching on!!
But I think people are blaming Jay for *being* a ‘yes man’. You can’t always say yes when the effect on other people is crappy.
So should Jay have just quit when Conan’s manager duped NBC into giving Conan the Tonite Show?
Crappy effect on other people? What about the effect quitting by Jay would have had on his staff?
Hmmm, “Poor Conan” said YES to scarfing the Tonite Show from Jay, when everything was cool the way it was. So… oh well, the ratings have spoken.
PS: My bottom line, I am a Conan fan, as I am a Jay fan. Other people screwed it up. Best luck to both of them to continue careers entertaining us.
If Jay had quit, yes, it would have affected his staff… but putting The Jay Leno Show in 5 nights a week prime time took away jobs from 5 hours per week of scripted television people. Jay’s not a saint for not quitting. And what about Conan’s people? Now they don’t have jobs. It isn’t that simple.
Also, ratings are delicate. Conan’s humor is more cerebral and offbeat, and might have needed a bit more time to gain the following it deserves – and with the Jay Leno Show as a lead in, can you blame him for sub-par ratings?
I think what a lot of people are really talking about here is what they want the future of late-night humor to look like – Conan-style or Leno-style? Trying to bring Conan’s humor to a larger audience is exciting, not evil.
Let’s not get carried away here just because he agreed to perform in a very funny bit that he himself could never have conceived in a million years — Jay Leno is still a weasel who is more notable for his political skills than for actually being funny.
lots of people are “good guys”, doesn’t mean they should own the network, etc…
wow, three articles on this commercial on the front page of the site? really?
yes. it’s a slow news day. but the super bowl + late night upheaval makes it newsworthy …when else does anyone ever talk about any impact commercials have?
they are usually a reason to reach for the mute button, so for D & O & J to tag teaming together to get viewers attention in an entirely unexpected way ( for pop culture watchers anyway) it was quick touchdown for pop/comedy -culture aficionados… DId they top their previous effort ( also noteworthy)?
Yes, yes, Yes sir , they did.
Who needs 60 seconds?!!
It was brilliant! And very funny. Accolades to all involved.
Just another PR recovery attempt by Leno, which, according to some comments already on here, is going to be bought by alot of people. Oprah apparently is in charge of manipulating the public into loving “good ole Uncle Jay” again. Sorry, Queen Oprah…I’m not one of your Stepford fans.
And shame on Dave for helping Leno do ANYTHING.
how does this make Jay look good? it wasn’t jay’s idea. it wasn’t jay’s network. it makes cbs and dave look good. jay was just along for the ride.
If you actually READ and comprehend how this all started – Leno had nothing to do with it – no spin or PR BS. As for Oprah – she made it clear on her show when Jay was on she was NOT on his side.
Get over it and get a life!!! Conan is rolling in money and has projects in the works with NBC. He just ain’t funny and that’s the bottom line on why he tanked as host of the Tonight Show.
When I saw Dave, Oprah and then Jay Leno on the same couch, even if they were apart from each other, this was a huge coup for both men. Absolutely hilarious 10 seconds and probably the one commercial people will remember for a long time.
And it’s a mark of professionalism from BOTH Jay and Dave!
I thought it was terrific and proved everyone involved still has some sort of sense of humor. That said, I still wouldn’t watch Leno hosting the Tonight Show if you paid me …
Brilliant! ALL 3 ROCK! It can be done! Way to lead the way!
Any one catch another commercial on NFL CBS earlier in the day: G.Bush & B.Clinton 4 Haiti. .. Just sayin …
Anyone catch another commercial on NFL CBS earlier in the day? G.Bush & B.Clinton 4 Haiti. .. Just sayin …
Very funny–glad to see that Dave is less bitter than I thought he was. It should be an interesting Spring.
Hilarious! as Jay said “this is the way show business should be”.
my respect has grown for all
involved.
Thought it was great just wonder how Conan feels.
left out
I wondered that too, but my guess is he knows and appreciates why Dave did it — because it’s damn funny!