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The Late Shift: Letterman, Leno, & the Network Battle for the Night Kindle Edition

by Bill Carter (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.5 570 ratings

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This “gripping” New York Times bestseller from the host of CNN podcast Behind the Desk tells the true story—and backstage drama—of late-night comedy (Los Angeles Times).

When beloved host Johnny Carson announced his retirement after thirty years on The Tonight Show, millions of Americans mourned. But inside the television industry, the news ignited a battle between two amazing talents—Jay Leno and David Letterman—who both yearned to occupy the departing legend’s chair. For NBC, it would be a decision with millions of dollars at stake. Soon these two comedians with strikingly different styles, who had once shared a friendship as they worked the clubs together, would be engaged in a fierce competition for the prize.

Based on in-depth reporting and interviews with those involved, and updated with a new introduction by the author—a producer of CNN series The Story of Late Night—The Late Shift is a “vivid, behind-the-scenes, blow-by-blow account” of the fight that ensued, as stars, agents, and executives maneuvered for control of the most profitable program in TV history (Chicago Tribune).

“Remarkably gripping . . . Takes us deep into the bizarre high-stakes world of broadcasting . . . A powerful story, and ultimately a sad one, filled with casualties as well as winners.” —The New York Times Book Review

“Solid reporting, based on extensive interviews with the principals, lifts The Late Shift into a class of its own. . . . The insights into the people involved are what make [the book] a page-turner.” —Orange Country Register

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Carter, who covers the television industry for The New York Times, writes of the corporate battles surrounding late-night talk shows in the wake of Johnny Carson's retirement.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Carter, a media reporter for the New York Times , provides an inside account of one of the hottest behind-the-scenes power struggles in the history of television: the battle for Johnny Carson's vacant seat on the Tonight Show.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07XL59Z6Y
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Open Road Media (October 15, 2019)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 15, 2019
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 2466 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 477 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #121,701 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #2 in Television Direction & Production
- #5 in Television History & Criticism
- #10 in TV Direction & Production

Customer Reviews:
4.5 570 ratings

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4.5 out of 5

570 global ratings

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kaduzy

This never gets old

Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2024

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I discovered this book in my university library years before the Leno v Conan showdown. It was eye opening. I had been a kid at the time all this was going on, way too young to stay up late enough to watch any of these guys (though Arsenio Hall was the favorite for all the adults in my family, so once in a blue moon I was able to watch that one) so I missed all the media hoopla the first time around. I decided to reread this when the Conan v Leno fiasco erupted, and suddenly this out of print book was going for hundreds of bucks on Amazon. I was lucky enough to a copy before the prices went juts, and eventually it was reprinted. It was also made into a TV movie. If you love it, be sure to get the sequel by the same author. And then for true die hards, read the Johnny Carson biography by his ex-lawyer Henry Bushkin (who is mentioned briefly in this book). It serves as an excellent prequel for those curious about why so many comics of that elder generation adored Carson.

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F. Moyer

The battle for late night TV

Reviewed in the United States on October 22, 2021

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I knew bits and pieces of the behind-the-scenes drama between Jay Leno and David Letterman concerning their individual efforts to become the new (and permanent) host of the Tonight Show after Johnny Carson’s retirement. But this book gives a much more complete picture of what was happening – and of why. There is much needed background information on the key players. Both Leno and Letterman had their loyal supporters; but the network leaders who had to make the ultimate and final decision seemed racked with indecision, recognizing that both men had their own unique strengths and weaknesses. But the consequent drawing out of their decision stressed everyone, especially Leno and Letterman. All that made this book feel much more personal and dramatic than most non-fiction books.

This book may have limited appeal. With Leon and Letterman now both retired, younger readers may not know or care. But for readers of my generation, they may find the book as interesting as I did.

One oddity of this book is that it concludes Letterman essentially won late night after his moving to CBS. But that conclusion was based on the events and TV ratings of just a year or two after Letterman started at CBS. But in the long term, ratings numbers would indicate that many should conclude that Leno was the ultimate winner. Basically, the book’s ending was a premature conclusion (or at least a highly controversial one).

Bottom line: Interesting and informative, though no longer timely.

8 people found this helpful

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Desert Wind

Bill Carter does it again

Reviewed in the United States on July 21, 2023

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Excellent insider account of the Letterman/Leno battle for late night. This was a decision that came right down to the wire, and Carter takes us through it every step of the way.

It was interesting to see Carter’s account of the blowups with Helen Kushnick, Jay’s former manager. Kushnick could be volatile, but she was also a woman in a male dominated field and a loyal advocate for Leno’s talent and advancing his career. She also suffered personal tragedies, including the death of her 3-year-old son due an infected blood transfusion; perhaps she felt that she needed to put up a strong front in the cutthroat field she navigated. In the end, she ended up a tragic figure: blackballed in the industry, shunned by her former friend and client, and dying at a too young age of 51.

Carter also shows us the mindset of some of the key players in the agonizing decision-making process. Who was right in the end? Well, the interesting thing is that the book was published at a time when Letterman was in the midst of his 18-month honeymoon at CBS, and the ending was written from that perspective. Of course, Leno eventually overtook Letterman in the rating and would dominate the time period until his first “retirement” in 2009…but that’s a whole other story.

Reviewed in the United States on December 27, 2023

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Amazing stories of multiple enormous egos all trying to attain the same goal. Poor Jay Leno unfairly jerked around. Recommended

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A-Zander

Brought back many memories. So many typos- please get a proofreader.

Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2021

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This book mainly covers the time period from roughly 1987-1994, the focus being on Johnny Carson’s retirement and through the first two years of Letterman and Leno going up against each other at 11:30. The author also gives some of the back history of the people and events leading up to the showdown which is important in setting the context for how it happened the way it did. Knowing who the behind the scenes players were and how they affected the events was what I found most interesting. While I am a Letterman fan, this book makes clear that both he and Leno (and Carson) were treated badly by NBC and that NBC badly mishandled the entire situation. I recall watching the first 11:30 shows of both Leno and Letterman and that was a mostly fun time in my life so it brought back some great memories. I was very disappointed with the amount of typos in the Kindle edition. Wrong words, misspellings, errant punctuation marks are found throughout this book. It looks as if it was never proofread after being auto converted to Kindle format. Sloppy.

3 people found this helpful

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Red

Great Book

Reviewed in Canada on March 22, 2019

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Great Book and Service

One person found this helpful

E S Forward

TV Gold

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 23, 2016

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Great book. As a Scottish guy with somewhat limited exposure to US TV I was still aware of the cultural significance of Johnny Carson and his show, and remember fleeting reports of the fallout from this poorly handled situation. I had the book on my list for a long time and it's lack of availability as a Kindle book was largely what stopped me from reading it. I got fed up waiting and took the plunge buying the hardback in 2015. Devoured it on holiday and it certainly lived up to the anticipation. This is proper research and writing and although I'm sure there's some dramatic licence, you just get the feeling of substance and quality. I'd highly recommend this book to anyone, I'd give it 6 stars if I could. I then followed up with The War for Late Night - like lightening striking twice - and another fantastic and insightful book.

One person found this helpful

Donald G. Dutton

Late night tv battles

Reviewed in Canada on October 21, 2022

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Probably more than I needed to know..it’s unbelievable the Money time and energy that went into deciding which host Leno or Letterman, was going to wind up in which time slot on which network…I liked Johnny Carson but have been going to bed earlier since I guess…saw a bit of both L and L…didn’t think either was up to Carson’s level.

Leo

Battle for the Tonight Show

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 13, 2020

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An interesting story and a thoroughly readable book.

Shane Neal

Five Stars

Reviewed in Canada on December 8, 2016

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Really enjoyed reading about this Late Night TV Battle ! its long but worth the read

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