I
nstead, Leno, 59, has spent the summer buried under the hood of The Jay Leno Show(premiering Monday), NBC's bold and controversial attempt to battle 10 p.m. scripted dramas with his broad humor.
"Maybe it's just me, but 10 o'clock feels like the new 11:30," says Leno. "People have kids and jobs; they just don't stay up. For them, we've got some of our Tonight stuff, plus a whole lot more."
Few TV-world experiments are being as closely watched as this one. Leno is venturing into a territory dominated by dramas such as CBS' CSI: Miamiand The Mentalist as well as ABC's Private Practice. Such programs have the advantage of scoring well among the desirable 18-to-49 demographic, and the disadvantage of being expensive, says Chuck Ross, managing director of online trade publication TVWeek.com.
"Scripted dramas dominate with viewers, but each episode costs many millions, or likely a week's worth of Jay's shows," says Ross. "Leno's other advantage is he'll have 46 weeks of fresh programming going against reruns."
Ross adds that Leno faces two hurdles: earning ad dollars from a less lucrative audience (ages 50-up) and delivering that crowd to 11 p.m. newscasts and O'Brien.
An easy way to plug an advertiser in an era when TV commercials are at the mercy of the DVR. Leno describes himself as "advertiser friendly," and NBC has already struck a deal with McDonald's, whose Monopoly-based promotion will find Leno announcing the chain's ad featuring NBC stars. Visitors to McDonald's will be steered by placards to Leno's program.
Today's challenging economy could well rewrite the old ad playbook, says Brian Steinberg, TV editor at Advertising Age magazine. "We'll see how much he can weave into his show. Because when the ads are part of the program, you're less likely to hit the fast-forward button," he says.| Find this article at: http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2009-09-07-jay-leno_N.htm |
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