O’Brien will take it one show at a time

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Conan O’Brien wants viewers to think of his “Tonight Show” debut Monday as the introductory course to a new late-night era.

“I’m not going to cure cancer on the first show, and I’m not going to jump Snake River Canyon. I’m not going to levitate. Sometimes people forget this is the first show of what I hope will be many, many, many shows,” O’Brien said.

Besides, he said, viewers accustomed to Jay Leno as host for 17 years, and those who watched Johnny Carson holding court for 30 years before that, need time to warm up to a new guy.

That would be the lanky fellow, formerly of New York, who sports a red pompadour and intriguingly off-kilter comic sensibility.

“My hope is that people will watch the first night and say, ‘Hey, there was some fun stuff in there and he cleans up nice. I might try him tomorrow night,’” O’Brien said.

He’s far from unprepared. There was a five-year waiting period to claim ownership of “Tonight” after NBC announced the plum job would go to O’Brien, and he’s ready for his transition from the 12:30 a.m. “Late Night” to the 11:30 p.m. “Tonight.”

O’Brien, a former TV writer (“The Simpsons,” “Saturday Night Live”), was a raw, largely untested performer when he started with “Late Night.” Sixteen years later, he knows how to work the room, including the big one represented by “Tonight.”

A test run was very encouraging, O’Brien said Thursday.