Monday night, Jimmy Fallon began his monologue by thanking the audience for watching “NBC’s longest-running nightly comedy show,” which earned him a round of applause. He then continued, “I remember when we first started, Jay Leno was still hosting The Tonight Show.” (Pause for awkward silence.) Back in the halcyon days of March 2009, the only hype in late night on NBC revolved around whether or not Fallon, who, let’s face it, was most famous for not being able to keep a straight face throughout an entire SNL sketch, would be able to successfully take the reins from predecessor Conan O’Brien.
Yet here we are, one year later, and not only did Fallon manage to emerge from the whole NBC Late-Night Kerfuffle unscathed, he’s also managed to slowly gain his footing in late night. He’s still not the strongest interviewer, but through recurring sketches, games, slow jams, and a seamlessly integrated social media platform, Fallon has deemed himself worthy of a “Year in Review” list. And now, we present our favorite moments from Late Night With Jimmy Fallon‘s first year on the air.
Zack Attack!
Fallon introduces Mark Paul Gosselaar, but who walks out of the curtain? Zack Morris. What begins is an epic segment complete with time-outs during which Zack talks to the camera in acid wash jeans and hints at the long-awaited Saved by the Bell reunion.
Neil Young Sings
Fallon’s recurring gigs as singer Neil Young are always a highlight on the show, but we have a special place in our heart for Fallon-as-Young singing Larry “The General” Platt’s American Idol viral audition hit, “Pants on the Ground.”
Robert is Bothered
When you’re Robert Pattinson, life is tough. Not only do people think you are actually a vampire named Edward Cullen, you are apparently perturbed by Snickers ads. And Shark Week. And … Daniel Radcliffe. So you need to go into a tree to sulk about them all. Really, Robert? A whole website, just devoted to things that bother you? Guess what? It turns out Robert is even bothered by Robert is Bothered. Meta!
Real Housewives of Late Night
There is no shame in admitting to watching the fluff that is The Real Housewives of Atlanta/New Jersey/New York/Orange County. After all, despite the housewives’ ridiculous habits, most of them are also very philanthropic. Late Night‘s recurring mini-series, which is a parody of Bravo’s hit, has earned “mazels” from the network’s head honcho himself: Andy Cohen.
6-bee
Fallon really has one heck of a writing staff backing him up, because his show parodies are spot-on. This parody of Glee, in which the Late Night cast needs to raise money to buy cue cards so they can get to sections (or something like that; the plot is secondary), will have you feeling the same exaltation and, well, glee, that you felt when the cast of the real show performed “Don’t Stop Believin’” at the end of the pilot.
Here’s to a fun and successful first year, Jimmy. The Roots continue to be great, night after night. Just a few requests: Please interview The Mighty Boosh again during year two. More Slow Jamming the News, less Lick It for $10. Cheers!
Photo by Steve Garfield via Wikimedia Commons.