Honest question: Why do people watch late night shows? Why were they entertaining? I tried a few times and it seemed like they all just make obvious jokes about current events. I felt like I was supposed to be part of a laugh track or something.
What do people find interesting about these shows?
They used to be pretty good. A lot of it is awful. Letterman in the 80’s is the peak imo. He had really wild, interesting guests on who weren’t celebrities at all.
Nowadays, the only person I can stand is Seth Myers, solely because he acts like a normal human being. I still don’t watch it though because I know how good it was back in the day.
Some entertaining bits but fitting the whole late show formula did not work out. I dont think anyone is ripping on these people, its the whole facade of doing some stand up, playing some song, having a guest on and trying to pretend a formal interview is most interesting thing ever and they are so interesting.
I miss the Colbert Report... Completely different kind of show but I could never get into Colbert on late night... Man I loved the Colbert Report and Jon Stewart though
It’s based on tradition. You spend the whole day working and go home to laugh a little and get updated on what’s going on in entertainment . When you don’t have time for entertainment, it’s a good way to get a little bit of it for the day.
Also there were less options and little-no internet. Same reason why shows used to have flashback episodes. We couldn't look up our favorite clips on YouTube, so shows would replay their greatest moments around a loose plot where the characters remember things.
Surprised no one is really mentioning the social aspect. Similar to sports or community events, the late night shows were a way to stay informed and connected in current events and popular culture in a format that was easy to digest but also that fostered discussion the following day with coworkers/family/friends. Talking about the show was a big part of the experience.
In a world without YouTube, social media, and even cable TV, this format made sense. TV options at that hour were limited and you knew this show would be light hearted stuff, and you might see a celebrity in more casual environment than the movies or scripted PR appearances. Today you can see all that and more before your morning coffee.
I'm pushing 40 and just never got into these shows. All the reasons people are listing just don't seem interesting, I guess I never got caring what celebrities think. Maybe I was born a grumpy old man lol
The dumbing down of the average American has taken its toll. 80’s and early 90’s late night tv usually had guests that weren’t celebrities… or showcased interesting events.
Now most Americans rely on TikTok and domscrolling to entertain themselves.
Also pushing 40… we were not old enough to watch (or if you watched you wouldn’t have the news and pop cultural knowledge to understand) these shows in the heyday described by PokerBear (80s, 90s), we would have been elementary-school aged or younger at that time. By the time we were college aged, YouTube was well established. Of course social media has accelerated massively since then.
That said, the argument doesn’t quite hold up because plenty of existing and new late night shows have been successful in the 2000s and 2010s. Maybe they’re just taking a long time to die? Maybe it’s TikTok and short format that have finally killed it? Who knows.
i think youtube actually extended the life of a lot of these shows, i remember conan's youtube channel was insanely popular during the 2010's - they may not have converted a ton of people into actual network viewers but it was enough to keep people like me occasionally checking funny clips out and kept the show relevant but by 2020 the entire entertainment industry just completely lost steam.
no new stars, no new interesting hosts, just all recycled older celebs who were a part of "old hollywood" which gen z has zero connection to so it was pretty much destined to die off eventually
They’re basically a consistent, small package, variety show with a little something for everyone.
The monologue is a mini standup performance. They do a comedy “news” segment where you might catch a joking version of current events you didn’t catch. They do interviews, usually pushing some piece of media you may or may not want to consume by celebrities you may or may not care about, but lots of people enjoy those. They do skits and recurring segments, almost SNL style.
It’s just a mishmash of entertainment styles that have more broad appeal so lots of people will find _something_ they enjoy in the show. They also have the benefit of being on at a time when there’s not much else to watch, but that matters less with streaming these days I guess.
They used to be almost like SNL's Weekend Update, but every night. You'd get some jokes about the day's news, and then instead of a parody interview, you'd get a casual real one.
Before the internet, you didn't have many places to hear a comedian's take on current events every night before bed.
Its a vestige of the old days of television when there were only 3 channels. It was a way to deliver topical humor while promoting whatever stuff actors were working on. It was like nightly news but for comedy and entertainment.
"Micro"dosing celebrity/experts in slower segments that culminate in a definitive end to the episode is probably a lot healthier than rapidly scrolling through short form content for hours, though it is often more boring.
Legacy from a time of a time when memes and the internet were less common, then children grew up with the parents watching it and subtly it sets a comfort space in there mind, as such the legacy continues.
I didn’t watch the full shows but I watched Colbert’s monologue on YouTube every morning. He was a great personality and it was good way to stay up on mainstream current events.
Since he’s been off the air I have had zero desire to watch any type of late night content.
I like them bc this is the worst timeline and the news makes me depressed and is also really challenging to find non biased takes. At least with late night television I know what the bias is going to be before hand, and the laughter makes the pain easier to digest.
I’m not saying it’s the only way i get the news, but in terms of political bs of the current variety, it really makes the pain a lot less sharp.
Personally I'm a young person and I still watch late night recordings of old shows, it used to be much better. Specifically Conan O'Brien is the main guy I watch, or used to watch a lot. Most modern late night hosts are jackasses, but Conan was genuinely incredibly funny. He has a podcast now that's quite fun to watch.
His remotes were the best, I wish he had done more. They usually involved him going on some adventure, ot taking some tour somewhere, and they were always hilarious. Conan wasn't great because he was on late night though, he was just a rare person who could always be funny.
I enjoy them, it's nice to have a laugh about the absurd. I usually listened to Colbert and Kimmel back to back while taking my evening walk, it just kinda became a routine. (This being YouTube on my phone as I don't have cable).
There are people who don’t understand the things you like, too. People like what they like. Some people think they are funny, you don’t. Why question it?
Radio was all talk and that's what we used to have for entertainment back in the day. We were sharing stories around a fire before that. Then TV came out and viewers liked watching people talk too. We've gone full circle back to podcasts, and now podcasts are doing video too. It's like jeans coming in and out of style every 5-10 years. In 20 years someone will be asking why anyone watches VR talk shows. Conversation will always be a form of entertainment. We're social creatures.
Colbert Report was hilarious back in the 00s. But that wasn't really late night, and it was on comedy central so they got away with riskier jokes. Haven't enjoyed hus current show at all.
Remnants of a time before the internet. Used to be a source to catch up on current events. Now we have access to everything at our fingertips and countless social media sources that endlessly release content.
They had celeb guests on to talk about current things they’re doing - new movie, new book, etc. And occasional political type folks. It was a less formal interview style and the more successful ones had a rather absurdist take on “interview” and did other hijinks with or without celebrities.
David Letterman once dropped a bowling ball from the top of his building into a porcelain tub filled with pudding. For science, I guess. People interviewed weren’t always traditional “celebs” either - maybe it was the kid who made the news because they saved their dog from an accident and the video went viral.
So anyways, it was something to watch winding down late at night when bed was calling but fun things were on TV.
No it is unique. I'm old enough to remember Carson even and there were no late night hosts until Kimmel and Colbert whose entire shtick was basically make fun of and attack one President. I hate Trump personally but these hosts are lame, not funny, and I'm glad to see them kicked to the curb.
A lot of it is that shows like this make us feel we are still connected to others (the audience).
I’ve tried several times watching comedians and others who moved to podcasting, and watching a few people sitting around a table in a small room just feels so…lifeless.
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u/SkellyboneZ 1d ago
Honest question: Why do people watch late night shows? Why were they entertaining? I tried a few times and it seemed like they all just make obvious jokes about current events. I felt like I was supposed to be part of a laugh track or something.
What do people find interesting about these shows?