Goodbye Jay Leno, Hello Jimmy Fallon
Jimmy Fallon will become the new face of “The Tonight Show” in 2014. According to the Huffingtonpost.com, NBC has confirmed that Jay Leno will end his career as host and Fallon will be taking over. The New York Times reported that this transition will occur in Feb. of next year when Leno’s contract expires.
Rumors about the transition have been floating around for months. Fallon has hosted his own TV show, “Late Night” since 2009. Fallon and his house band, The Roots, created a variety show that blends a variety of music, celebrity impressions, and an excited approach to the talk show format that has made the show unique to viewers and one of the top late night TV shows.
The new taping of show will be in 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City, which will be the first time the show, has been taped there since 1972 when Johnny Carson left. NBC has attempted to change hosts once before in 2004 when they announced that Conan O’Brien would be taking Leno’s spot in 2009. When the actual transition occurred Leno still remained on the top of the ratings. NBC then gave Leno his own primetime show to keep him from leaving the network, but with faltering ratings of both shows Leno was brought back as host. 
According to the Huffington Post, Leno said he felt better about this transition. He says he is more a part of the process. When releasing the statement about Fallon taking over the show, NBC did not mention the attempt with O’Brien, instead the network stated that Leno has been hosting since 1992.
The transition was brought on because of the threat of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” which initially aired at midnight, but moved to the earlier time of 11:35. Leno’s program is still top in both overall ratings. Kimmel’s show caused competition. According to tvline.com, Fallon stated: “I’m really excited to host a show that starts today instead of tomorrow.”
