Behind the Curtain: An Insider's View of Jay Leno's Tonight Show
Behind the Curtain: An Insider's View of Jay Leno's Tonight Show book cover

Behind the Curtain: An Insider's View of Jay Leno's Tonight Show

Hardcover – July 10, 2014

by
Price
$18.00
Format
Hardcover
Pages
272
Publisher
Pelican Publishing
Publication Date
ISBN-13
978-1455619962
Dimensions
5.85 x 1.05 x 8.78 inches
Weight
1.1 pounds

Description

From the Inside Flap [Jay] Leno's penchant for topicality and Berg's news background combined to add a political sensibility and relevancy to Tonight's monologue and guest bookings, which is a big reason it became America's go-to, late-night show. But success was never a foregone conclusion. Leno and his producers formulated a strategy to become number-one, and Berg reveals how they did it.xa0xa0 In Berg's Behind the Curtain, Leno is portrayed as one of Hollywood's good guys, to be sure, but he's far more nuanced, complex and edgy than media profiles have suggested. His uncanny ability to read America's pulse better than anyone else in late-night television is the single most important reason The Tonight Show was number-one for so long during his watch. xa0 xa0xa0xa0 xa0 xa0 xa0 xa0 xa0 Leno never lost sight of his goal, which was to bring a little entertainment into people's lives before they went to sleep each night. Similarly, Behind the Curtain is mostly just a fun read, full of never-before-told anecdotes about Leno and the guests who appeared on Tonight with him. "The fact that Dave Berg's politics were mostly the opposite of mine and yet he never let that affect his encouragement of my comedy on The Tonight Show is reason enough to recommend this book. The other is . . . I requested a chapter to read and, after that, wanted to read the whole book. Because Jay Leno is somehow Everyman and simultaneously the most idiosyncratic guy in the world, and Dave Berg tells you how." —Bill Maher, comedian and host of HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher "Jay Leno is sui generis and Dave Berg is the one-of-a-kind, colorful, and astute chronicler of the individual and collective dynamic that propels timeless and accessible humor, the thing that makes the world go round. Dave does an eye-opening, insider's job revealing in a narrative with fun anecdotes what it was like to be behind the scenes at The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Along the way, Dave also sets the record straight about the enormous contributions Jay Leno made to late-night television, contributions critics have overlooked or been too quick to dismiss." >—James Carville and Mary Matalin, political consultants "In Behind the Curtain: An Insider's View of Jay Leno's Tonight Show , co-producer Dave Berg has captured the essence of Jay's day-to-day commitment and the backstage experience beautifully . . . The book is an entertaining read and tells the story with wit, love and insight, not the usual Hollywood gossip." —Gary Sinise, Oscar-nominated actor, film director, and musician "If I ever put together a baseball team of people that are special to me Dave would be at the top of the order. He's written a great book about both Tonight Shows, the one on stage and the one behind the curtain. . . . Love ya Dave!" —Dan Whitney, comedian, better known as "Larry the Cable Guy" "It was always a pleasure to appear on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Jay and his long-time producer Dave Berg would welcome me to the green room, and these moments before the show gave us a chance to laugh. Jay and Dave brought a great spirit and a lot of dignity to late-night television." —Mrs. Laura Bush, former First Lady of the United States "Dave Berg knows everything about late-night TV. And if you read Behind the Curtain: An Insider's View of Jay Leno's Tonight Show , so will you. A very entertaining and informative book." —-Bill O'Reilly, host of Fox News Channel's The O'Reilly Factor Dave Berg was a co-producer for The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and The Jay Leno Show, where he also appeared in numerous comedy sketches. He was a producer for The O'Reilly Factor, a writer for NBC News and the Los Angeles bureau chief for CNBC. He has written for USA Today, The Huffington Post, Reader's Digest, National Review, Christianity Today, The Washington Times, The Daily Caller and Crisis Magazine. He has a BA in political science from Northwestern University and an MS in journalism from Kansas State University. Berg lives with his wife Mary in Los Angeles. Read more

Features & Highlights

  • Jay Leno's Tonight Show comes alive in this book by insider Dave Berg, who spent 18 years as Jay's co-producer.  There were always two shows: the one on stage and the one
  • behind the curtain.
  • This narrative weaves both together, featuring the show's most legendary moments, including Hugh Grant's game-changing mea culpa, Arnold Schwarzenegger's shocking political announcement, and the historic booking of Barack Obama as the first sitting president ever to do a late-night show. But it doesn't stop there.  Every page is full of zany, wacky and serious moments with celebrities, political and sports figures at The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Foreword by Jay Leno and endorsements by Laura Bush, Bill O'Reilly, Bill Maher,  Gary Sinise, James Carville & Mary Matalin, Larry the Cable Guy and more.

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
30%
(199)
★★★★
25%
(166)
★★★
15%
(99)
★★
7%
(46)
★
23%
(153)

Most Helpful Reviews

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Come out from behind the curtain, Jay--We need you.

Think about it: My review of "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" co-producer Dave Berg's book about the inner workings of the broadcast is the 52nd for a book that has been available through Amazon for less than a week. This speaks to Jay's popularity among a certain "baby boom" demo that doesn't quite know where to go at late night anymore to get their needed jolt of humor.

Berg--for the most part--provides the reader with a substantial amount of the "behind-the-curtain" drama that went on behind Jay's NBC career. What was particularly interesting was Berg indicating that the producers had access to the television ratings at 15-minute intervals and they could tell who their nightly audience liked--and didn't like--as the show continued to 12:36. Those who caused a ratings decline would often find themselves locked out.

Berg--as expected--lasers off all or any of Jay Leno's warts as either a performer or person and gives him a near-perfect portrayal. Since the book provides many otherwise hard-to-get show biz snippets and inside takes, I found this transgression to not really get in the way of Berg's story especially since there is indeed lots to like about Jay.

Apparently, there is absolutely no room for error in the late night talk show game. A large part of the book describes the daily war that goes on among all of the shows for guest bookings. There was a constant concern that one bad show would cause the show to lose momentum and give its competitors a real boost. By the same token, it was important to sometimes be lucky (think Hugh Grant) which Berg, like many others, cites as the immediate reason why David Letterman lost his two-year reign as late night champ after only two years in 1995.

What I found most interesting in a book in which Jay wrote the Foreward (but indicated he hadn't read the book at that point) is Berg's and the show's obsession and resentment with David Letterman and his show. Frankly, I had thought that any animosity between the Leno and Letterman shows could be sourced at the Letterman camp but this book is evidence that this is not the case. For example, Leno would have worked every day of the year but was forced to take six weeks off; Letterman takes twelve weeks off. Leno taped every weekday while Letterman tapes five shows in four days because Jay thought it was important for the monologue to be fresh. There is a separate chapter called "The Audience" where Berg, based on his own research, claims that the Letterman people almost has contempt for its audience members while the Leno show treated audience members as if they were "customers." This summary is only a sample of what the reader will find on the Leno vs. Letterman front.

Jay's successor, Jimmy Fallon also gets a few digs. Berg claims that while Jimmy "excels at comedy sketches and musical numbers", he needs to work on his "interviewing skills." He indicates that Jimmy's "monologue was also a little weak at first, but it has improved." (Well, as a side note, it is my view that the monologue has not really improved; this is why so many of us don't know where to go for our late night comedy fix; David Letterman might as well phone in his monologue these days.)

Berg predicts that Leno will still show up somewhere on the dial, perhaps at CNN. I had thought that Jay would make an appearance or two on Letterman as Dave winds things up over the next year or so, but after reading this book, I really wonder if that is going to happen. I also wonder whether Jay will be a welcome guest on Fallon.
21 people found this helpful
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A happy walk down memory lane.

I had to review this book right now, even though I am at the 2/3 point in reading it. I LOVE this book! It is a wonderful trip down memory lane. I enjoyed learning about the inner workings of the show during the long, successful Leno years. The book's content is clear and well-organized. The anecdotes re Jay and his guests are priceless. If you are interested in Tonight Show history and are a Jay Leno fan like myself, you will appreciate this book.

My only regret is that Jay Leno is no longer at the helm of the Tonight Show. The book heavily emphasizes the role of ratings in TV programming and network decisions. Given the long-term ratings success of the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, I am stumped as to why he was replaced by Jimmy Fallon. Jimmy is a hilarious and talented performer and a decent host, but his humor is sophomoric, appealing mainly to younger audience members. Twenty-something's aren't the only viewers of late night TV. (In fact, "late night" is an archaic term. Thanks to DVR recordings and on-line streaming, people watch late night shows at all times of the day.) Mature viewers like myself were a big part of the Tonight Show audience. We have the leisure time to watch the show and the money to support the sponsors, so why the shift to a juvenile-behavior format? I tried many times to watch Jimmy Fallon's version of the Tonight Show and lost interest because of the constant silliness. Jay's version of the show was well rounded and more mature, while incorporating plenty of fun. I wish Jay was still on the job. Since that is not the case, I was able to console myself a bit by reading Behind The Curtain.
8 people found this helpful
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A lot of fun with some heft to it --sort of like dark chocolate.

Most of the rave reviews emphasize how fun this book is to read. There is no denying that. However this book is a bit heavier than one might be lead to believe. Berg does a nice job at portraying the non-stop pressure there was on everybody to put on "The Tonight with Jay Leno" just about every night (because Jay is adverse to vacations). He doesn't shy away from ripping critics of the show, detailing much of the tension between Jay & Dave & he doesn't soft pedal Helen Kushnick's reign of terror during the show's early years. Granted some of this was covered in Bill Carter's excellent "The Late Shift", but Berg brings another point of view to the "battle for Carson's seat".
There is a very poignant chapter on JFK Jr. that is almost worth the entire price of the book. He also shares some very entertaining takes on other celebs from the many fields that the show included. This is not a "tell all". Jay is portrayed as a workaholic that just anybody would love to work for. (I met him & spoke to him for about 20 minutes a few months before he just the permanent & tell you that Jay is a great guy.)
Until Jay one day decides not to be such a nice guy (which will happen when the Cubs win the World Series) & write a memoir about the show & about what how he really felt about the unfair raps on him & the show & the guests ("friends of the show" & others) & the corporate politics that helped save the show while almost trying to sink at the same time we have this really fine book written by one of his top people.
4 people found this helpful
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Not a great book, not even a good book

Not a great book, not even a good book. If you're looking for the dirt on anyone, this isn't the book for you. Don't waste your money.
3 people found this helpful
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and so I thought this would be fun. Some of it was interesting

I was looking for some light reading after enjoying a fascinating, albeit depressing book about Hurricane Katrina, and so I thought this would be fun. Some of it was interesting, but Mr. Berg spent way too much time congratulating himself and Jay for their high ratings and too much time bashing the competition.......it seemed very unprofessional. As I neared the end, I came close to tossing it into the trash when Mr. Berg began to praise Bill O'Reilly and Rush Limbaugh as fine human beings. If he thinks those who peddle hate and division of our country for a living are worthy of adulation, then he needs to reevaluate his values. I have to say this book was a huge disappointment and certainly didn't do Jay Leno any favors.
3 people found this helpful
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and so I thought this would be fun. Some of it was interesting

I was looking for some light reading after enjoying a fascinating, albeit depressing book about Hurricane Katrina, and so I thought this would be fun. Some of it was interesting, but Mr. Berg spent way too much time congratulating himself and Jay for their high ratings and too much time bashing the competition.......it seemed very unprofessional. As I neared the end, I came close to tossing it into the trash when Mr. Berg began to praise Bill O'Reilly and Rush Limbaugh as fine human beings. If he thinks those who peddle hate and division of our country for a living are worthy of adulation, then he needs to reevaluate his values. I have to say this book was a huge disappointment and certainly didn't do Jay Leno any favors.
3 people found this helpful
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One of the most BORING self promoting books i have EVER read

One of the most BORING self promoting books i have EVER read. Who cares about this guy who wrote it? I didn't.
I LOATHED EVERY BORING MINUTE.
3 people found this helpful
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Keep The Curtain Closed

Don't understand how Leno can write forward to the book. The first chapter basically throws him under the bus while discussing all of his alleged negative character traits.

The rest of the book is entertaining only if you identify with the generation of entertainers and celebrities of the past quarter century. Otherwise, it becomes a matter of "who cares?". Berg makes himself out to be everybody's hero while he denigrates those in the grave who cannot defend themselves.

Bottom line- I watched the show less than a handful of times while it was on. The same for the Letterman show. The era of late night talk shows died with Johnny Carson. He was a legend regardless of the mean streak in his personality. He booked mostly legends. Today's celebrities are of the 15 minute variety. If lucky, the most watched late night shows get 5 to 6 million viewers on a daily basis. I was hoping for some interesting insights. All this book did was justify my not getting involved with watching the shows.
2 people found this helpful
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I miss Jay Leno

I was upset when Jay Leno was forced into retirement for the second time around and I have to say I miss his shows. Some of my favorites were Fruitcake Lady and any time that Terry Bradshaw was on the show. Jay and Terry had me laughing until the tears were flowing!

This book written by Dave Berg, a producer on Jay's show, gives some inside glimpses into the many guests that made appearances. Some that stand out are JFK Jr., numerous Presidents, political candidates from both sides of the aisle, and sports figures.

Dave Berg presents Jay as a humble man and a workaholic who loves his job. I was also surprised to read that Jay consulted at least one time with Johnny Carson. I had read elsewhere that there was some animosity on Johnny's part because he wanted Letterman to do that Tonight Show.

Berg also tells a number of anecdotes about Jay and David Letterman. The comparisons are night and day. Letterman, who has never seemed that funny to me, is portrayed as a man who is a loner and who thinks of his late night show as art. Jay does his show because he truly loves comedy and he likes to bring happiness to those who watch.

I will never forget Jay's good-bye on the last night of the Tonight Show. He told the audience that he had lost his entire family; his dad, his mom and his brother. The show and all the people on it are his family. Dave Berg talks about that night too and how he thinks that Jay will come back and do a show elsewhere because comedy is truly his life.

Dave Berg said that Jay never raised his voice to him or any other person on the show. I think that sums up the type of man that Jay Leno is. "Behind the Curtain" gives an inside look at Jay and the many people who have appeared on The Tonight Show during Jay's tenure.
2 people found this helpful
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Just blah . . .

Boring . . . didn't finish it.
2 people found this helpful

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