MELISSA BLOCK, host:
When public figures have public troubles, late-night comedians are more than happy to turn them into punch lines. Well, apparently the same rule applies when it's the comedians themselves who are embroiled in controversy. Exhibit A: The ongoing flap at NBC.
ROBERT SIEGEL, host:
There, executives want to move Jay Leno back into his old "Tonight Show" slot after a failed bid in primetime. But that requires bumping the actual "Tonight Show" and its host, Conan O'Brien, by half an hour. Both hosts are unhappy, and they've used their respective shows to vent, to poke fun at each other and to skewer NBC.
(Soundbite of television program, "The Jay Leno Show")
Mr.�JAY LENO (Television Host): Well, some good news from Afghanistan. Did you hear about this? Critics of the war have stopped referring to it as another Vietnam. They're not calling it that anymore. The bad news, they're now calling it another NBC.
(Soundbite of laughter)
(Soundbite of television program, "The Tonight Show")
Mr.�CONAN O'BRIEN (Television Host): Ladies and gentlemen, hello there. I'm Conan O'Brien, and I've been practicing the phrase: Who ordered the mochachino grande?
(Soundbite of laughter)
Mr.�O'BRIEN: That's my - look for me, and please tip, okay?
(Soundbite of television program, "The Jay Leno Show")
Mr.�LENO: As you know, we're not just a show anymore. We are now a collector's item.
Mr. O'BRIEN: Big local story: This weekend, no one was seriously hurt, but this is true, a 6.5 earthquake hit California. Did you know that? True story, yeah. The earthquake was so powerful it knocked Jay Leno's show from 10 o'clock to 11:35.
(Soundbite of laughter)
Mr.�LENO: NBC said they wanted drama at 10. Now they got it.
(Soundbite of laughter)
(Soundbite of television program, "The Tonight Show")
Mr.�O'BRIEN: Everybody now wants to know what my plans are. Everyone's asking me. All I can say is I plan to continue putting on a great show night after night while stealing as many office supplies as humanly possible.
BLOCK: The material here is so rich that the rest of the late-night bunch, even those not embroiled in a dispute with NBC, have not been able to resist getting in on the comedy, David Letterman on CBS for one.
(Soundbite of television program, "Late Show with David Letterman")
Mr.�DAVID LETTERMAN (Television Host): Here's my goal, my dream for American television. I just want everybody who wants a show to have a show. That's all.
Unidentified Man #1: (Unintelligible).
Mr.�LETTERMAN: Conan's going to 12:05 to do "The Tonight Show," which as somebody pointed out, really 12:05 is no longer "The Tonight Show."
Unidentified Man #1: No.
Mr.�LETTERMAN: It's tomorrow's show.
Unidentified Man #1: It's the tomorrow - yeah.
(Soundbite of laughter)
Mr.�LETTERMAN: It's the next-day show.
SIEGEL: And finally on ABC, host Jimmy Kimmel came out with a remarkable disguise this week, a white-haired wig and a jutting prosthetic chin.
(Soundbite of television program, "Jimmy Kimmel Live!")
Mr.�JIMMY KIMMEL (Television Host): My name is Jay Leno, and let it hereby be known that I'm taking over all the shows in late night.
(Soundbite of laughter)
BLOCK: The jokes will no doubt continue until NBC manages to resolve what is, for them, no laughing matter.
(Soundbite of music)
SIEGEL: This is still ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News.