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<p/><br></br><p><b> About the Book </b></p></br></br>In this dramatic account of the politics and personalities behind NBC's calamitous attempt to reinvent late-night television, Carter offers a detailed behind-the-scenes account of the events of the unforgettable 2009/2010 late-night season.<p/><br></br><p><b> Book Synopsis </b></p></br></br><b>Bill Carter, executive producer of CNN's docuseries <i>The Story of Late Night</i> and host of the <i>Behind the Desk: Story of Late Night</i> podcast, details the chaotic transition of <i>The Tonight Show</i> from host Jay Leno to Conan O'Brien--and back again. <p/></b>In 2010, NBC's CEO Jeff Zucker, had it all worked out when he moved Jay Leno from behind the desk at <i>The Tonight Show</i>, and handed the reins over to Conan O'Brien. But his decision was a spectacular failure. Ratings plummeted, affiliates were enraged--and when Zucker tried to put everything back the way it was, that plan backfired as well. <p/> No one is more uniquely suited to document the story of a late-night travesty than veteran media reporter and bestselling author, Bill Carter. In candid detail, he charts the vortex that sucked in not just Leno and O'Brien--but also Letterman, Stewart, Fallon, Kimmel, and Ferguson--as frantic agents and network executives tried to manage a tectonic shift in television's most beloved institution.<p/><br></br><p><b> Review Quotes </b></p></br></br><br><b>Praise for <i>The War for Late Night</i></b> <p/>"Hugely entertaining...A suspenseful piece of business journalism."--<i>The New Yorker</i> <p/>"As thorough and detailed a story as he tells, Mr. Carter entertains us every step of the way, peppering the page with more rich comedic details than your average late-night monologue."--<i>The New York Times</i> <p/>"Makes last year's battle royale seem far more interesting than the programs themselves."--The Daily Beast <p/>"A boisterous, two-timing, high-stakes drama about the business of comedy at a sinking TV network."--Associated Press<br><p/><br></br><p><b> About the Author </b></p></br></br><b>Bill Carter</b> joined <i>The New York Times</i> as a national media reporter in 1989. He is the author of the <i>New York Times</i> bestseller <i>The Late Shift</i>, two other books on the television industry, <i>Monday Night Mayhem</i> and <i>Desperate Networks</i>, and has written numerous articles for <i>The New York Times Magazine</i> and other publications. He has been a guest on <i>Nightline, Today, CNN, Charlie Rose, NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams</i>, and many other shows. He is the executive producer of CNN's docuseries <i>The Story of Late Night</i> and host of the <i>Behind the Desk: Story of Late Night</i> podcast.

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