Jimmy Fallon will bring fresh comedic sensibility to ‘Tonight Show’
With Jimmy Fallon officially set to take over “The Tonight Show” from Jay Leno next year, viewers can expect plenty of changes to the nearly 60-year-old late-night franchise. Of course there’s the show’s geographic relocation, from Burbank to a souped-up new studio at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City.
But there’s also a vast stylistic difference between Leno, 62, and Fallon, who will be several months shy of his 40th birthday when he takes over “Tonight.”
In his two decades at NBC, Leno has consistently led the ratings -- mostly, his critics claim, by playing it safe with middle-of-the-road jokes and softball interviews. His monologue is heavy on the topical humor and Borscht Belt-style punch lines, and his most popular bits include “Jaywalking,” in which he quizzes clueless tourists on the streets of Los Angeles, and “Headlines,” a collection of unintentionally funny newspaper clippings submitted by viewers.
-- Meredith Blake, Los Angeles Times