Showbiz411

Jay Leno can’t stop himself. He’s mad at NBC over the replacement story, he’s mad at them over Bob Greenblatt asking him to back off telling jokes about NBC’s ratings. On Monday night it was the St. Patrick’s joke about NBC execs being snakes.

On Tuesday, Leno continued:”Did you hear about this? A 28-year-old woman from Serbia has a rare brain condition where she sees everything upside down,” Leno said, setting up the joke. “The good news? She’s now been given a job at the White House as President Obama’s economic adviser.” There’s a pause. Are we safe? No. Leno continued: “Isn’t that crazy? It’s unbelievable. She sees everything upside down. In fact, she thinks NBC is at the top of the ratings.”

Johnny Carson made jokes about Fred Silverman and NBC all the time, especially during the lowliest time when the Peacock network had “Supertrain” and “Me and the Chimp.” But times have changed, we are in the Twilight of the Gods here. Greenblatt is feeling pressure from Comcast. Leno knows how to rankle him. It’s going to be a long week.

Roger Friedman

Roger Friedman began his Showbiz411 column in April 2009 after 10 years with Fox News. Friedman previously wrote the Intelligencer column at New York Magazine, He writes for Parade magazine and has written for Details, Vogue, the New York Times, Post, and Daily News and many other publications. He is the writer and co-producer of a film about R&B Music called “Only the Strong Survive,” which was released by Miramax in 2003 and was a selection of the Cannes, Sundance, and Telluride Film festivals.