A Late-Night Afternoon

It was so hot in LA on Thursday that my soap melted in the shower. It was no way to start the day, but in the heat of the afternoon, things were much improved. There was ice cream, lemonade, air conditioning and Max Weinberg. Max Weinberg? Yes, all courtesy of The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien.

In some ways, seeing the C.O.B. is no easy task — that is to say I’ve been trying to catch the man live for nearly ten years. But if you live in LA, or know in advance when you’re coming to LA, the good people over at Universal City — specifically the audience relations crew of the Tonight Show — will go the extra mile to get you into the seats.

The first step to catching Señor Conando live is this link. It is the gatekeeper. Anyone wishing to attend will be asked for available dates six to eight weeks from the present time. For instance, I emailed for reservations back at the beginning of July. You’ll be contacted sooner than later about availability, then you’ll receive calls and reminders. But the staff will — at least in my experience –up their game to bring you to the show. Two prime examples: I was actually supposed to see Monday’s taping but missed a deadline (show up by 3:30 p.m. at the latest!); they turned around and got me tickets for Thursday, which I totally didn’t expect to happen and in that Thursday heat — the heat that had the smoke of unstoppable forest fires rolling off the mountains on the horizon of Universal’s lot, the show staff gave those waiting in line for the taping ice cream and lemonade pro bono.

I’m a massive O’Brien fan, but I’ve had some mixed feelings about his iteration of The Tonight Show so far. Seeing the taping made me a lot more pro a lot of things. The studio itself is beautiful — sleek and much more intimate than it appears on television. I didn’t mean for that to sound like a romantic sentence exactly, but I’d be breaking some rules of journalistic integrity if I did not admit my love affair with the show.

I felt as if Mr. O’Brien was a little different nowadays in his new digs, but seeing the 7-foot crimson devil live, I realized he was up to the same ol’ tricks. He was silly, self-deprecating, and random as ever. One of the main segments of the night was bringing out “puppies dressed as cats.” Now that’s classic O’Brien.

But a taping of a show is different than the in home, out of the TV box version. There is waiting, and there are studio lights and applause signs and camera rigs. I’ve seen all this before, and perhaps some of you have too, but Conan and his staff were just better at it. Comedian Jimmy Pardo (relatively famous in his own right) played warm-up guy and was quick-footed, funny and engaging with the audience. He brought out Andy Richter. Richter, in turn, brought out the fantastic Max Weinberg and The Tonight Show Orchestra (once just “The Seven” on Late Night). It’s something seeing Andy, the band, and later Conan in three dimensions for the first time. They’re real! Boy are they.

It’s a shame there’s commercials on television — not just because they interrupt but because, without them, everyone would see how great Max and his band really are. They played to and through the audience. LaBamba held his mic out for sing-alongs; Mark “The Love Man” Pender sang his heart out and held a single note on his trumpet for something like five to ten minutes. He even came right up next to my seat and wailed. At this point, everyone’s starting to get excited, and they’re definitely entertained.

Then the stage manager gave the fingered countdown, Andy did his announcements and boom — there’s Conan O’Brien. I made eye contact with the man and my heart fluttered like it hasn’t for any woman I’ve seen in years. I’m not sayin’…I’m just sayin’.

The guests were Mike Tyson, mentalist Keith Barry and musician Matisyahu. Again seeing a pop icon like Tyson in the powerful, ear-biting flesh was something. But Conan steered the conversation with what could have been a difficult guest so that Tyson didn’t just come off as funny, but as even complicated and sympathetic. He handled Barry’s illusions with convincing shock and awe, even if he as the host may have been in on it (who knows?). And to err on the technical side, the lighting, staging and sound of Matisyahu’s performance were spot-on. After some free bonus Conan where he taped promos, he went back behind the curtain and the audience back to the sunburned streets where real life continues.

I’ve covered quite a few events and gone to many others in my time, but I’m not sure I could name a more positive environment I’ve been to in LA than “The Tonight Show Studio.” Even if I wasn’t a die-hard, I’m confident I still would have been delighted. I entered the theater worried about all matters of life, my unemployment, my potential homelessness, my expired milk, and left with nothing but optimism and some merchandise. That tells me that not just Conan but the whole team over at The Tonight Show accomplishes their mission and seem to have fun doing it.

I may have grown worried over these past months about Conan’s transition to p.m. late night, but I’m now convinced Conan has grown or is growing too — comfortable in his new chair behind his new desk, maybe even to grow funnier.

So go to the Cone Zone. See it live. If nothing else, my Mom might call you from the east coast too and excitedly tell you she saw you in the audience. How cool is that?

The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien airs weeknights at 11:35 p.m. on NBC.