Jimmy Fallon almost in tears as Conan O'Brien praises his ‘Tonight Show’ success: "What you've done..."
Conan O'Brien hosted NBC's popular 'The Tonight Show' from 2009 to 2010, the television host recently returned to his roots after almost fourteen years to promote his Max series 'Conan O'Brien Must Go'. An overwhelmed O'Brien reminisced about his time on the show with Jimmy Fallon. He also praised the comedian for taking the show to the next level after his exit, “I’m very happy for you,” O'Brien said while cutting Fallon's outro. “I’ve had the honor of meeting every Tonight Show host going back to Steve Allen, and I think what you’ve done with the show is beautiful and you made it your own. You’ve done so much great quality work, and I couldn’t be happier for you,” he expressed gratitude as Fallon visibly choked over the television producer's kind words.
According to The Things, unexpectedly, Fallon disclosed that he made his talk show debut on O'Brien's show. He then showed a picture of himself as a guest on "Late Night" in 1999, adding, “I was honored to be on your show.” Recalling the moment, O'Brien acknowledged that Fallon's parents were more anxious about his appearance. “You know what I remember most? You were on the show, great. And I come out in the hallway and your parents are in the hall, which is right here. His parents are in the hall and they’re like, ‘How did Jimmy do?’ And so I just said, ‘That kid’s going all the way!' And then I realized I say that to everybody.”
Fans labeled O'Brien's return to the show as one of the greatest moments in late-night history, "This is such a bittersweet moment. Conan's such a class act. The way he taps that table in the end, you can tell he's moved on already, but the scars will be there forever," a fan praised the comedian in the YouTube comments section. One of the top comments included O'Brien fanboying over Fallon, "Conan cutting Jimmy's compliment off to compliment him and making Jimmy tear up.... man.. there's just no one out there like Conan," an online user gushed."This is probably the most genuine and relaxed Jimmy’s been on his show. He just lets Conan talk and really toned down his invasive niceness, and he genuinely engages in a conversation," a fan applauded their camaraderie.
"You can tell Jimmy gets a little emotional at the end there. He really respects Conan. Bless both of them," a viewer chimed. As per The Hollywood Reporter, O'Brien became sentimental about making a 16-year comeback to the show. With all the memories flooding in the celebrated talk show host remarked that it was "weird" to see "other sets built in what used to be his show’s studio." 'The Tonight Show' was taken over by O'Brien from the iconic stand-up comic Jay Leno, who returned to headline the NBC program until 2014, when Fallon took over. As per USA Today, NBC network faced severe backlash for replacing O'Brien with Leno within a year, however, the former never returned to host the talk show again.