Remember how I said that Jon Stewart's stated reasons for abdicating should probably be taken at face value? And that his announcement would probably shake loose all sorts of offers from which he could pick and choose? Well, Bill Carter says the same things and more about all that. You may find a ratings chart he has there particularly interesting. Note that it only covers viewers 18-49.
HBO has renewed John Oliver's show through 2017 so that removes any chance he'll take over Mr. Stewart's job. One wonders if Last Week Tonight would have gotten a one-year renewal if Stewart wasn't leaving. Also, in a series of recent tweets, Jessica Williams made it as clear as possible that she's flattered at the rallying but does not want the post and doesn't think she's qualified for it. I assume that means "yet."
Thomas Lennon has been hosting The Late, Late Show the last few nights and has been the best (so far) of the temp hosts. That's not a hard thing to be. Tonight is Lennon's last night, then we have Lauren Graham on Thursday night and Will Arnett on Friday.
Next week is split between Billy Gardell and Kunal Nayyar, then Drew Carey returns for the first week in March. All of these were taped some time ago. As I understand it, after the recording of the Arnett show this week, CBS dismantles Craig Ferguson's old set and begins remodeling the stage for James Corden, who debuts March 23. I'm not sure what fills the two weeks after Carey's last show on March 6 but I'm guessing reruns of the guest-hosted episodes.
Finally, here's a video of Jimmy Fallon from his Monday night show, talking about what it was like to be at the SNL40 telecast and afterparty. Don't watch this if you have an aversion to the words "crazy," "amazing" or "legend." He sure seems to have had a good time…