Say Something Conan

When Jay Leno signed off The Tonight Show, he said, "Stay tuned for Conan. First show right after the Emmys."

It seemed like a promo, urging the audience to watch O'Brien address his performance as host of the Emmys.

I thought it was crass. It was clear to me that NBC was trying to boost its ratings and profit from the Emmy controversy.

The awards show opened with a taped tasteless plane crash spoof that Conan O'Brien did live, just hours after Flight 5191 crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49 people. On Monday, NBC issues a statement, apologizing for the "unfortunate timing" and any "unintentional pain it may have caused."

Apparently, NBC and O'Brien decided that statement was enough.

During O'Brien's monologue, drummer Max Weinberg said to O'Brien, "Great job on the Emmys."

The audience cheered in agreement.

Conan said thanks. "We had a good time."

O'Brien did address a controversy in his monologue

He started a joke, "Big controversy over at CBS." He was referring to Survivor’s new season with racially-segregated teams. He said that they got the idea from the Third Reich.

O'Brien didn't mention the Emmys controversy at all.

When he got to the desk, O'Brien said, "Briefly, I’d like to mention… ."

I thought that was it. Here comes the apology. Instead, he thanked his staff and writers. He said, "They made it all happen."

O'Brien talked about taking the redeye back from LA. He said that he was worried about sleeping on the plane, so he took an Ambien. Blah, blah, blah.

He didn't say one word about the controversial opening spoof and all of the uproar. Nothing.

Then, after a break, Donald Trump entered as the first guest. Trump complimented O'Brien and told him that he did a great job, but nothing about the plane crash bit. He said, "You did so well." Trump asked the audience, "Are we proud of him?" The audience applauded its approval.

Mark Marin, comedian and former Air America personality, was the next guest. He, too, praised O'Brien for his Emmy hosting stint.

It was the elephant in the room and O'Brien said nothing.

That was inappropriate, too.