I feel like a kid again. Seriously.

I was 11 or so during the first “Late Night” wars – and having always been a night owl, I was a huge fan of Johnny Carson at that age. I loved the show – and I loved David Letterman as well. Sure – I didn’t always get the jokes, but I really enjoyed those shows, and it was fascinating to me to see what happened behind the scenes.

Watching the HBO movie about that event gave me a look into that world, and now with the Internet, we can kind of see it more transparently than we could back then. What we’re seeing right now has completely blown my mind. Jay has been give a prime time show on NBC that will come on directly before Conan’s “Tonight Show” 5 days a week.

That’s unprecedented, and a brilliant move on NBC’s part. It gives the network an amazing number of options that they wouldn’t have had if Jay had left for another network.

First, now Conan won’t have to be competing against him…which would have probably killed Conan anyway. Second, they now still have Jay if Conan’s “Tonight Show” fails miserably.

What really makes it interesting though is how everyone must feel behind the scenes. How does Conan feel? Betrayed? Relieved? A little of both? What about Jimmy Fallon (who is taking Conan’s spot on “Late Night”)? Does this ad even MORE pressure to him…or does this make him the new Carson Daily? (there’s irony there my friends).

There are just SO many questions to be answered. This is an interesting move by NBC, and it has me more fascinated with their Late Night line-up than I have been in years.

How about you?