RIP Neutron Jack

Jack Welch, former chairman and CEO of GE, dies at 84

He came from the East
They called him a beast
This king of terror insane
Neutron Jack, the people would whisper his name

 

According to Bill Carter, he gave us Leno over Letterman.

 

From what I remember (from Carter's incredible book from 1995)...

Bob Wright was Letterman's biggest NBC management supporter and Jack Welch liked Letterman but saw him as too disruptive and knew that Leno was the team guy.

No one pines for the "old days" of Jay Leno. He was no pioneer and he wasn't even that funny. But he won the ratings vs. Letterman.

I watch Dave's "Late Night" segments on YouTube constantly before he went to 1993 and, from the first episode, lost his fastball. Financially, choosing Leno over Letterman was a VERY smart choice for NBC.

 

Leno’s sin is not that he was middle of road white bread somewhat funny; it’s that he was a really smart and cutting guy who deliberately went vanilla in order to secure and keep the big seat.

 

Vanilla sells to the masses, unfortunately.

 

Don Geiss was the real brains at GE.

 

Plus the affiliates LOVED Leno. I met the guy three times working at two different small-market affiliates.

Dave wouldn't never done that shit.

 

Yup. Personally I much preferred Letterman, but it's not hard to see why others wouldn't. He's a grumpy cock. Sidenote: I interviewed the mother of the woman who stalked him for years, Margaret Ray. The creepy thing is, the mother just up and told me. I had no idea who the mother was. I was interviewing seniors at an assisted living facility in CT and when I asked her what her name was, she told me and quickly followed, "My daughter is Margaret Ray, the one who stalked David Letterman." Said it so matter of factly, sent tingles down my spine. Margaret Ray ended up throwing herself in front of a train, IIRC.

 

I loved Letterman in the 80's; my best friend says to this day he sleeps with a fan on every night because that was the only way he could drown out my laughing at night during those college nights. Top Ten, Super Dave, the sidewalk interviews, the irreverent interviews, I enjoyed them all. Was bummed when he went CBS.

 

I am a GE retiree who started in Fairfield during the Jack regime. I am not saddened by this news.

(My least favorite business to work with was NBC.)

 

No kidding, small world. I went to hs with Bob Wright's son, Chris.

 

Letterman on NBC: hilarious.

Leno as a guest on Letterman on NBC: hilarious.

But by the time it all shook out, neither was as funny when they were head to head. Leno wanted to keep the chair