When did Last Call with Carson Daly change format?

Obviously, I missed the memo.

Carson Daly is a comedian?

I just watched a few minutes of Last Call with Carson Daly doing an imitation (he likely didn’t think so, but this is me talking now…) of Letterman’s awkwardness and body movements, Conan’s humor and body movements, all with a slight, hint of his own style.

But, not much of his own style.

That’s because his style (or what Last Call used to be, again all from memory) was Daly and another person sitting opposite with him. Basically, a very sparse and bachelor-pad living room setup, which suggested that you were invited into Daly’s apartment after a night out at bars and clubs. Daly, obviously, hadn’t picked up any woman for the evening and instead was spending his late night interviewing.

A realistic scenario, right?

Well, not really, but it fits our perception of who Carson Daly is rather than making him something he’s not.

I remember when he interviewed the SF Giant’s new multi-million dollar man, Barry Zito. But, it must have been four or five years ago. I was actually impressed. The conversation was good and he let people be who they are (and some people can’t masque stupididy on television).

Now, Daly has someone writing a standup routine for him so he can start out his show. Then he signals to his band (I didn’t really notice a specific leader, but they are a collegesque, acoustic music type band.) They play an interlude and then he goes behind the desk for a few more jokes.

I had to stop watching and write something.

Why do we have to create Carson Daly into something he isn’t—a standup comic? There are many more, well-deserving comics who don’t have shows.

And, I bet they can interview, too.

But, they probably haven’t dated Tara Reid.

Oh, and I’m glad to know that his pick of the week (according to the website) is a “best of” album by the Dave Matthews Band.

It’s too bad that he can’t promote new music out there.