Conan O'Brien

'Late Night' host still making sides split

By JOSEF ADALIAN

Conan O'Brien
O'Brien

� Judd Apatow
� Seth Rogen
� Michael Cera
� Jonah Hill

� Tim Allen
� Rowan Atkinson
� Kevin James
� Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson
� Adam Sandler
� John Travolta
� John C. Reilly

� Jason Reitman & Diablo Cody
� The Hot Fuzz Guys
� Walt Becker
� Tyler Perry

� Brad Bird
� The Simpsons troika
� Jerry Seinfeld

� Jim Gaffigan
� Demetri Martin
� Katt Williams
� Mel Brooks & Thomas Meehan

� The Lonely Island Guys
� Perez Hilton
� Funnyordie.com

� Bill Engvall
� Jenna Fischer
� Tina Fey
� Bryan Fuller
� Flight of the Conchords
� Tracy Morgan
� Steven Koonin
� Chuck Lorre
� Neil Patrick Harris
� Ricky Gervais
� Jaime Pressly
� Conan O'Brien
� Jon Stewart
� Amy Poehler
� Sarah Silverman

A critical darling for years, O'Brien's "Late Night" had never won an Emmy -- until this year. The TV establishment's validation comes as O'Brien draws ever closer to a planned 2009 takeover of "The Tonight Show" (assuming Jay Leno doesn't find a way to hold on to the gig).

O'Brien is mostly ignoring the media drama over Leno and is instead focused on keeping his 12:30 show as fresh as ever. A well-received five-night stand in San Francisco showed O'Brien has completed the transformation from college cult figure and now ranks as a latenight icon in his own right. Now, if he'd only agree to host the Emmys again�...

Point of view

O'Brien doesn't think his comedy has changed that much over the years. Instead, he argues that his audience has evolved with him. "I'm the same person I always was," he says. "My mantra in comedy has always been, 'Don't overthink it.' I'm always looking for a funny idea that makes me laugh, that makes everyone in the room laugh. If you do that, it'll probably make people laugh in the real world."