When I wrote the previous message here, I was sitting in my hotel room in San Diego. Now, I'm back in my comfy computer chair at home, feeling a new exhaustion from 4.5 days of Comic-Con. I wasn't this tired last night…and the closer to home I got, the more fatigued I became. Maybe that con's more work than it felt like at the time.

Sergio drove back and we stopped off in San Clemente at one of my favorite Italian restaurants. When the wind's blowing north, I can lean out my back window and smell the garlic from Sonny's, a mere 72.7 miles to the south. (On the way down, we stopped in San Juan Capistrano and watched some swallows return.) Sergio, by the way, drives like he draws: Fast and in the margins.

I still think I had a great time but I think I'm going to go into the bedroom and nap 'til WonderCon. To those of you who follow this blog and wonder, "When does he sleep?", you have your answer: Now. Good night.

So yesterday, I'm speed-limping to my first panel of the day, the annual Jack Kirby Tribute Panel, which is at 10 AM. A combination of my healing-slowly knee, pedestrian gridlock and a tardy shuttle bus has made me worried I will not be there to moderate on time. This, of course, is when I have my also-annual confrontation with a convention security person who can't think any farther than a literal, impractical interpretation of his or her orders. One of these once inspired a story in Groo the Wanderer where Groo, who has the I.Q. of a sea urchin, is told to guard a bridge and he guards it so half-mindedly that he will not let anyone ever cross it again, including the folks who hired him.

I'm verging on late. There's a huge line waiting to get into the convention center near where I need to get into the convention center. If I get in that line, I will miss this year's annual Jack Kirby Tribute Panel and maybe the 2014 one, as well. I decide it is not unfair of me to bypass that line since all those folks are filing into Hall H and I'll be going somewhere else.

There is no one using the adjoining exit door but there is a youngish gent who has been ordered to not let anyone pass in through it. I go up to him and ask rather politely, for I am nothing if not polite, "Could you let me in here? I'll be late for a panel I'm moderating."

"I'm sorry," he says. "But this is an exit only." Which might make sense if anyone is trying to exit but no one is.

I flash my badge and say, "I'm a guest of honor." It actually just says GUEST on my badge but I toss in the "of honor" part to ramp up the seriousness of denying me entrance.

He says, "No, sorry. Exit only."

So I resort to sympathy. "Come on," I say. "I had knee surgery three weeks ago. I can't walk to the next door and I can't wait in that line." He says no again. I glance at the time. It's 9:49 and I have a good ten minutes of hobbling to reach Room 5AB. I say, "Look, there's a whole room of Jack Kirby fans waiting for a panel I'm moderating…"

He says, "Jack Kirby? Come on in."

True story…and the reason I got to the panel on time. I started the proceedings with that tale, then introduced panelists Tony Isabella, Neil Gaiman and Kirby family attorney Paul S. Levine. It went quite well as you'll see when the transcript turns up in The Jack Kirby Collector.

Then it was over to 6A and our second Cartoon Voices Panel with the folks named in the above caption. As usual, the voice actors were brilliant, I did nothing and got a lot of credit. That's the way to do it. I later moderated Art of the Cover (with Jerry Ordway, Chris Samnee, Gary Frank and Dan Jurgens) and The Business of Cartoon Voices (with voice actors Candi Milo and Gregg Berger, and voice agents Pat Brady and Heather Vergo.) I'll write more about many of my panels in the coming days.

I didn't get into the main hall at all yesterday but folks told me it was a little less jammed. Someone said, "I like Sunday because it's not elbow-to-elbow but people are a little less friendly. I guess it's due to lack of sleep and maybe sadness that the convention is ending." I always do feel a little sense of loss as Brigadoon begins to disappear for another year and the pace winds down.

I hope you were there and had anywhere near as good a time as I did. So many great friends to see and new people to meet. So many new things to see. Even a knee that felt at times like The Lord of the Dance was doing a Flamenco number on it didn't kill my enjoyment of the event. I just had to look about and see what a good time everyone seemed to be having and it took most of the pain away. Well, that and a megadose of Ibuprofen.

Apart from occasional knee agony, I had a great time at Comic-Con yesterday. My day commenced with a panel, Remembering Joe Kubert. The rememberers included Sergio Aragonés, Russ Heath, Paul Levitz, Marv Wolfman, Jon B. Cooke and Tom Yeates. Those were the folks on the panel. Audience members, including Anthony Tollin and Arlen Schumer, added their thoughts and appreciation of one of comics' most beloved creators. All spoke of his unending passion for his work, his love of teaching and the fact that he did some of his best work in his last years. That is not always humanly possible but Joe did a lot of things that were not humanly possible. We spent a nice hour missing the guy a lot.

Quick Draw! and my first Cartoon Voices panel followed in that order. The competitors this year for Quick Draw! were Sergio, Scott Shaw! and Neal Adams. Those who do not think of Neal as a speedy artist were quite surprised and impressed, especially when I made him draw a mash-up of one of his signature characters, Deadman, and Miss Piggy. Peter David, looking like he was never sick a day in his life, played our Secret Words game and later, we played it with the only person I know who's a superstar of British television, Jonathan Ross. My good pal Leonard Maltin played a new game I devised — Secret Movies, in which the cartoonists drew movie titles and he had to guess what they were. If we'd given Leonard the name of the director or the cast list, he'd have gotten every one in two seconds but he was a little stumped by Sergio's drawing of Ordinary People.

I thought the Cartoon Voices panel, which followed immediately in the same room, was one of our best. We had up there Grey DeLisle, Scott Menville, Kari Wahlgren, Chris Cox, Dave Boat and Michael Leon-Wooley. Michael told the funniest story anyone's ever told on one of these but I can't do it justice. You'll have to wait for the YouTube version, coming soon I'm sure to a computer screen near you. The cast did a spectacular reading of my hoary Snow White script and were joined for the finale by that superstar of kids' TV, Chuck McCann. More on this when there's video to show you.

My day continued with That 70's Panel on which we discussed comics of that era with Tony Isabella, Val Mayerik, George Perez, Marty Pasko and Elliott Maggin. Then I interviewed Leonard Maltin for an hour and presented him, on behalf of the convention, with the con's prestigious Inkpot Award. Then two parties. Then dinner with Peter and Kathleen David, and Maggie Thompson…and boy, was I tired.

I'd write more but I have a 10 AM panel on Jack Kirby, followed by three others today. I also have a knee that sometimes makes it rough to get over to the convention center so I'd better allow extra time. More later. If you're here, I hope you're having anywhere near as good a time as I am…

A disappointingly small number of convention attendees thanked me yesterday for saving their lives and not driving that little scooter around the convention floor. If you're here today or tomorrow and uninjured, you may owe that to my selfless decision. I could easily have mowed down whole squadrons of guys dressed like Star Wars troopers and I'm quite certain you would have heard a loud bowling alley sound effect.

I saw two different families yesterday which had painted their baby green. Notice to them and anyone else who has this idea: Painting your baby green does not make your baby look like The Incredible Hulk. It makes your baby look like he's not ripe yet.

I had a great panel yesterday interviewing my longtime pal — a special guest this year! — Tony Isabella. Tony and I go back to the days when the industry was wiser and no one would pay either of us to write a comic book. People sometimes say to me, "Oh, you do such a great job hosting these panels" as if it takes unparalleled skill and expertise. Really, all it takes to do these is to get them to ask you to moderate a panel with one or more interesting people on it and to then not ask that one or more any really stupid questions. I asked Tony how he got his start in comics and — poof! — ten minutes (approximately one-fifth) of the panel time was filled with interesting talk…from him, not me. Ask five of those and you're outta there and people think you're a great moderator.

Same deal later with a panel to honor the late Walt Kelly in this, the year he would have turned 100. His daughter Carolyn (aka My Best Friend) was unable to make it to the convention…though, lord, she wanted to be there for this and a reason I'll get to in a moment. But we assembled a dais of Kelly admirers and scholars to discuss the man and his work, primarily on what I think is the best newspaper comic strip ever…Pogo. We had historians R.C. Harvey and Maggie Thompson. We had cartoonist Jeff Smith and writer Paul Dini. And we had some great audience participation, including wise words of praise for Mr. Kelly from David Silverman, who is high on the list of why The Simpsons is so loved and lasting. I see no reason why we can't do another one of these the year Walt would have been 101 and David's agreed to join the panel, plus we should have Carolyn there for it.

Then, moving on into the evening hours…

There was a time I never thought I'd blog the following admission: I had a good time at the Eisner Award Ceremony. Long ago and far away, it was — shall we say? — a bit long. It was kind of like the portions of the old Jerry Lewis Telethon without Jerry. But it's morphed into a sleek, fast-moving show with both funny and serious moments. Most of the latter last night came via tributes to the late Kim Thompson. An awful lot of winners last night thanked him and lamented our loss of the guy…and not just winners who won for books published by his company, Fantagraphics. Kim's influence on the industry was such that people who won for work done for other firms had to acknowledge their debt to him.

I took stage three times, which meant six opportunities to pratfall while climbing or descending the stairs with my ailing knee. I made it all six. First, I presented the Bill Finger Award. In fact, I presented two of them. One was to the late Steve Gerber and it was accepted touchingly by his daughter, Samantha.

The other one went to Don Rosa, who is happily alive and present. The Finger goes to a writer who has not received due reward, either in terms of recognition or bucks. Gerber probably qualified in both areas. Rosa is a different story. Don Rosa's stories of Donald Duck and/or Uncle Scrooge made him one of the best-known cartoonists in many other countries with the U.S., as some refuse to admit it does in some areas, lagging behind other nations. Where Don qualifies is in lack of financial recognition as explained here. The audience seemed delighted with the selection of Don, who came up and thanked the late Bruce Hamilton…the publisher of Disney Comics who started a much-needed trend. Before Bruce, it was policy for those who wrote and drew Disney comic book material to remain anonymous…you know, the way Bill Finger was on such much of his work. Bruce bent, then broke that policy.

Then since my friend Carolyn couldn't be there, I accepted the Eisner for Best Archival Collection/Project — Strips, which went to this worthy book…

…and like so many at that podium, I acknowledged the tragic loss of its co-editor, Kim Thompson. Carolyn is continuing on, co-editing now with Eric Reynolds. In fact, she's hard at work on Volume Three, which I expect will win this award next year if it isn't beaten out by Volume Four. There are a lot of excellent comic strip reprint projects out there but, I'm sorry…it's tough to beat a whole book of Walt Kelly in his prime. (Full Disclosure: I work on these books but I don't make a dime off them and Carolyn does the heavy lifting, including the superb design work. So I don't hesitate to praise them or even to include an Amazon link so you can get in on the fun.)

Later, I went up for a third time to accept a Hall of Fame Award for Joe Sinnott and to wonder aloud why it took this long to give one to the best inker comic books have ever seen…and maybe the nicest person. Congrats, Joe. Couldn't have gone to a more deserving guy.

All in all, it was quite the crowd-pleasing ceremony and I was delighted to (a) not have to follow Jonathan Ross and Neil Gaiman and (b) be allowed to accept two of the only awards that did not go to Chris Ware. Then I went back to my room and put ice on my knee.

Can Saturday at the con top Friday at the con? Hmm…maybe I'll get over there and see. Check in with you later.

Yesterday, I saved the lives of many attendees of the Comic-Con. I turned back the scooter I was given.

My knee was giving me grief and I decided to accept the convention's offer of a little electric vehicle in which I might toodle around the hall. I toodled up half an aisle, hung a right and took it right back to where I got it and turned it in. That's how little time it took to convince me that the way folks walk around the convention, looking everywhere except where they're going, I would wind up hitting someone.

Others, I am well aware, manage these little go-carts very well. Maybe the new, deluxe one I was given just had too much pep or maybe driving one is simply a skill I lack. I'm a pretty good driver in a real car but after about three minutes of fevered braking every time someone blindly walked into my path this morning, I decided I was bound to hit someone…and I'd rather limp. So limp I did, all around the convention center. It didn't feel great but it felt better than injuring another human being or even an editor.

We had a good panel with Elliott Maggin, Gerry Conway, Paul Levitz, Marv Wolfman and Marty Pasko on the days when Superman was edited by Julius Schwartz. A lot of folks video'ed it so I would imagine it'll be up on YouTube before long and will direct you there when it is. For all of the writers, myself included, those assignments were a double dose o' pride. There was pride in working on Superman and pride in working for Julie Schwartz.

Later in the day, we had The Sergio and Mark Show with our special guest, Stan Sakai. We reported on the status of the long-delayed Groo Vs. Conan mini-series (should be scheduled any day now) and told what else we'd been up to lately. One news site is reporting that Sergio and I announced we're collaborating on a history of MAD magazine but we're not and no such thing was said on the panel.

For those of you scoring at home: That's two panels down, eleven to go.

The hall didn't seem oppressively crowded today except one time when I made the mistake of limping my way down an aisle lined with gaming companies. Many of these exhibitors deliberately and successfully plot how to keep a huge crowd clustered around their booth…which means "in the aisles." Mostly, this is accomplished with offers: If you stick around a bit, you'll see something really cool and you might get something for free. Do your best to avoid those areas.  If you can, it ain't bad in there.

I met with my new editor for a new comic I've agreed to write starring characters you know and love. It was supposed to be announced at the con but there's a bit of a delay so it won't be…though a lot of people seem to already know about it. I'll tell you all about it when I can.

Before I go, I'll leave you with something I've learned as a comic book writer of forty years: If someone comes up to you and says "You are one of my two favorite comic book writers," the other guy they mention will always be the person you consider the worst writer in the business.

Good night from Comic-Con Nation. Round Two starts in eight hours.

Owing to insane traffic, Sergio was an hour late yesterday picking me up for the drive down here to San Diego — which for the next four days, might be better referred to as Comic-Con Nation. The con doesn't occur only in that huge (but not nearly huge enough) building by the bay but all over the town. It was bumper-to-bumper much of the way down the 5, the result (I imagine) of Opening Day at Del Mar Racetrack. Starting this morning, it'll be bumper-to-bumper due to us.

Preview Night, which for some reason is not just called Opening Night of Comic-Con International, was a nice preview of crowded aisles. I hereby make my annual observation that the hall would not be nearly as crowded if (a) people with cellphone cameras and elaborate or scanty costuming did not stage photo-ops anywhere they wanted regardless of where others are trying to walk, and (b) half the attendees weren't shouldering a free goodie bag the size of a Toyota Corolla. Limit the bags to the size of your average trick-or-treater's and you could get another 3000 people in that place.

Speaking of crowds: The best thing I can say in their defense is that they seem to be keeping people like my old pal Mike Gold away. Mike, sounding very much like Charles Lane screaming at you damn kids to stay off his lawn even though it isn't his lawn, complains there isn't very much here about comics. When folks make that complaint, I have two responses…

1. I somehow seem to be able to spend 4.5 days at each one of these things talking mainly about comic books. Last night, I dined with a nice gathering of folks from TwoMorrows and we talked comics. Later today, I'll be moderating panels about the Superman comics edited by Julie Schwartz and another about my work on Groo the Wanderer and other comics with Sergio Aragonés. Tomorrow in one, I'll be interviewing my old pal Tony Isabella about his time writing for DC and Marvel, then later I host a panel about the work of Walt Kelly, creator of (I say) the best comic strip ever, Pogo. I've been doing panels like these at this convention for 20+ years and the rooms always seem to be full…though never with anyone who I later hear bitching that there's nothing there about comics.
2. Hey, you don't think there's much here about comic books? Go visit the DC and Marvel booths. There isn't much there about comic books, either. It's hard to have a convention that focuses mainly on comics when the two largest publishers have long since decided they don't focus mainly on comics.

Still, I think Mike has the right idea: You don't like what the con's become, stay away. It's not like you'll be missed and the place will seem empty without you. There are cons with a different ratio of comics-to-other media and a lot of them could use your business.

And also drop by Comicmix, the fine website that Mike and other folks I know operate. They have some great articles about comics past and present, and also about things like Star Trek and the Lone Ranger movie. It's like a good comic book convention: You just have to look and see what interests you. I always find plenty there, just as I'll find more than enough as I embark on Day One of Comic-Con International 2013. (Day One? My God, I feel like I've been here a month already. A year if you count freeway time…)

Thursday, July 18 – 1 PM to 2 PM in Room 5AB
SUPERMAN: THE JULIUS SCHWARTZ ERA
In celebration of Superman's 75th Birthday, we look back at the Man of Steel in Comics' Bronze Age. In 1970, veteran editor Julius Schwartz assumed command of the primal hero and charted a course for a new generation. To discuss it, we assemble many of the writers who worked with him in keeping Superman flying high: GERRY CONWAY, MARTIN PASKO, MARV WOLFMAN, ELLIOTT S! MAGGIN and Moderator MARK EVANIER!

Thursday, July 18 – 2:30 PM to 3:30 PM in Room 8
THE SERGIO AND MARK SHOW
Same guys, same panel, same stupid barbarian. The folks who've brought you Groo the Wanderer (and vow to do so again soon) will tell you what's up with that and what's up with all their other silly projects. Featuring the world's most honored cartoonist, SERGIO ARAGONÉS and his faithful sidekick, MARK EVANIER, plus the creator of Usagi Yojimbo, STAN SAKAI, and the world's hardest-working colorist, TOM LUTH.

Friday, July 19 – 10 AM to 11 AM in Room 9
SPOTLIGHT ON TONY ISABELLA
Comic-Con Special Guest TONY ISABELLA is the man who brought you Black Lightning, It the Living Colossus, The Shadow War of Hawkman, The Champions and so many more memorable comics, plus his long-running column in Comic Buyer's Guide. He will be ruthlessly interrogated about them and other milestones of his career by his longtime friend, MARK EVANIER.

Friday, July 19 – 5:30 PM – 6:30 PM in Room 8
A CELEBRATION OF WALT KELLY'S 100th BIRTHDAY
The creator of one of comics' great newspaper strips, Walt Kelly, would have been 100 years old on August 25th of this year. His magnum opus, Pogo, is now receiving its first ever complete reprinting in an Eisner-nominated series from Fantagraphics Books. So it's a good time to remember him with Kelly fans JEFF SMITH (Bone), Paul Dini (Batman), comic historian R.C. HARVEY, MAGGIE THOMPSON (Comic Buyer's Guide), CAROLYN KELLY (co-editor of the Complete Pogo series and Walt's daughter) and Moderator MARK EVANIER (Groo the Wanderer).

Saturday, July 20 – 10 AM – 11 AM in Room 4
REMEMBERING JOE KUBERT
We lost one of comics' most beloved and respected creators in August of '12. Joe Kubert started drawing comics when he was twelve years old and didn't stop until he'd inspired and taught a couple generations how it was done. Come hear all about this extraordinary man from folks who knew and worked with him: SERGIO ARAGONÉS, NEAL ADAMS, PAUL LEVITZ, RUSS HEATH, TOM YEATES, JON COOKE and your Moderator, MARK EVANIER.

Saturday, July 20 – 11:45 AM to 1 PM in Room 6BCF
QUICK DRAW!
It's the fastest, funniest panel in the whole convention! (Well, some folks think it is — mainly Sergio and Mark..) Once again, your Quick Draw Quizmaster MARK EVANIER pits three super-speedy cartoonists against one another as they go mano a mano to create great cartoon art right before your very eyes. Competing this year are SERGIO ARAGONÉS (MAD Magazine, Groo the Wanderer), SCOTT SHAW! (The Simpsons) and this year's Special Guest Quick Draw-er, NEAL ADAMS (Batman, X-Men). Plus a couple of surprising surprises!

Saturday, July 20 – 1:00 PM to 2:30 PM in Room 6BCF
CARTOON VOICES I
Each year, Moderator MARK EVANIER gathers together a bevy of the most talented cartoon voice actors working today and invites them to explain and demonstrate their artistry! This year's lineup includes SCOTT MENVILLE (Teen Titans Go, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), GREY DeLISLE (Scooby Doo, Pound Puppies), CHRISTOPHER COX (Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, Family Guy), DAVID BOAT (Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, Family Guy), MICHAEL LEON-WOOLEY (The Princess and the Frog) and KARI WAHLGREN (Bolt, Tangled).

Saturday, July 20 – 4:30 PM to 6:00 PM in Room 5AB
THAT 70'S PANEL
It was a time of change in comics with a new generation intermingling with the old and taking command. Hear what it was like from MARTIN PASKO (Superman, Swamp Thing), TONY ISABELLA (Black Lightning, The Champions), VAL MAYERIK (Man-Thing, Howard the Duck), ELLIOTT S! MAGGIN (Superman, Green Arrow), GEORGE PEREZ (Teen Titans, Justice League) and Moderator MARK EVANIER (Groo the Wanderer, Blackhawk).

Saturday, July 20 – 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM in Room 5AB
SPOTLIGHT ON LEONARD MALTIN
He's been called America's most knowledgeable film critic and historian, and he's the author of more than a dozen books of motion pictures, in addition to his annual (and best-selling) Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide, a book no lover of film can be without. This year, he's a Comic-Con Special Guest and for this hour, he'll be interviewed by his longtime friend, MARK EVANIER.

Sunday, July 21 – 10:00 AM – 11:15 PM in Room 5AB
THE ANNUAL JACK KIRBY TRIBUTE PANEL
Each year, we set aside time to talk about Comic-Con's first superstar guest and the man they call The King of the Comics, Jack Kirby. Jack left us in 1994 but his influence on comics, film and this convention has never been greater. Discussing the man and his work this year are NEIL GAIMAN, TONY ISABELLA and Kirby family attorney PAUL S. LEVINE. And of course, it's moderated by MARK EVANIER.

Sunday, July 21 – 11:30 AM – 12:45 PM in Room 6A
CARTOON VOICES II
Yesterday's Cartoon Voices Panel will have been such a hit that we'll have to do another one with different but equally talented actors from the world of animation voicing. Once again, Moderator MARK EVANIER has assembled an all-star dais that will include BOB BERGEN (Porky Pig), ALICYN PACKARD (The Mr. Men Show, Poppy Cat), MAURICE LaMARCHE (Futurama, Pinky and the Brain), CANDI MILO (Dexter's Laboratory, Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends), NEIL ROSS (G.I. Joe, Transformers) and maybe someone else.

Sunday, July 21 – 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM in Room 25ABC
COVER STORY: THE ART OF THE COVER
What does it take to make a great cover for a comic book? Let's ask four of the top artists…all folks who've created some of the best. Come hear the "shop talk" of JERRY ORDWAY (Superman, The Power of Shazam), GARY FRANK (Action Comics, DC Universe: Legacies), DAN JURGENS (Superman, Booster Gold) and CHRIS SAMNEE (Daredevil, Thor). Moderated by MARK EVANIER.

Sunday, July 21 – 3:00 PM – 4:30 PM in Room 25ABC
THE BUSINESS OF CARTOON VOICES
Interested in a career doing voices for animation and video games? There are plenty of people around who'll take your money and tell you how to go about it…but here's 90 minutes of absolutely free advice from folks who work in the field. Come hear cartoon voice actors GREGG BERGER and CANDI MILO, agents PAT BRADY (C.E.S.D.) and HEATHER VERGO (Atlas Talent) and your moderator, voice director MARK EVANIER (The Garfield Show).

This is from Paul Dushkind…

I enjoy reading about the late night hosts, but you haven't addressed the issue: could Leno, who was under contract to NBC, have turned down a return to the Tonight Show if he wanted to? Conan seems to think he could have.

Well, I never read Jay's contract — and I doubt Conan did, either — but if the Bill Carter book is correct, yes, Jay could have refused to go back to that time slot. I'm not sure why anyone could or should have expected him to…but I believe he could have.

You know, the whole debacle was based on a number of flawed premises, starting with a prediction within NBC that in that last five years of the Leno Tonight Show, Jay's ratings would fade, whereas Conan's popularity would soar. If anything, the opposite occurred. But another big problem was that both Jay and Conan made key errors in their contracts. Conan did not secure a time-slot guarantee — something that was fairly standard in deals like that. He had no contractual assurance that his Tonight Show would air at 11:35, thus making it possible for NBC to consider sliding him later.

Leno's omission was even more curious, given how obsessed he was with remaining on the air continuously. At all costs, Jay wanted to avoid being off TV for an extended period, which is what would have happened if he'd rejected the offer for the 10 PM show and anything else NBC offered him. He couldn't immediately have gone to Fox or ABC or elsewhere. NBC had him under contract and while they would have had to keep paying him megabucks for the duration, they could have kept him off television, interrupting his continuity with the viewership, causing much of his staff to scatter if he didn't elect to keep paying them himself, etc. Obviously, one of the main appeals of the 10 PM offer for Jay was that it kept him in the same place (same offices, same studio, same parking space, etc.) and got him back on television much quicker.

What he should have done when he made his deal to do that last five years of The Tonight Show was to hold out for terms that would have made him a free agent the minute he was no longer appearing five nights a week on NBC. And if he didn't get it then, he really should have gotten it when he made the deal for the 10 PM show since he had even more clout at that moment. He didn't. Instead, his lawyer secured for him an unprecedented "pay and play" deal which seemed to suggest he could sue NBC for breach if they took that show off the air. But the meaning of "pay and play" was so unprecedented and to go to court would have been so messy and time-consuming that no one took that seriously as a threat. Jay seems to have ruled it out because it could have keep him off TV for years…so I'm not sure what the point of it was.

I suspect that some who fault Leno for his conduct in replacing Conan are operating on the theory that Jay, once his 10 PM show was axed, said to NBC, "You owe me all this money so I demand you kick O'Brien off and give me back The Tonight Show." But that would have been suicidal of the network if they didn't think Jay would have done a lot better there than Conan…and there's no evidence such a demand was ever made. Indeed, in the Carter book, when Jeff Gaspin tells Leno that the 10 PM show is being terminated and proposes the half-hour at 11:35, Leno asks if NBC will release him from his contract if he refuses. Gaspin says no. Assuming that's true, Leno at that point had two choices: Agree to a new show for them or just wait out the expiration of his contract for a year or two. If he'd chosen the latter, he would have made a lot of money for doing nothing but he would have been off television for a long time…and of course, his staff would have lost their jobs.

So NBC offered Leno a half-hour show at 11:35 and planned on bumping O'Brien's Tonight Show to 12:05…to which Jay said, "If Conan's in, I'm in." Some say that it was even wrong for Leno to say that…and they're assuming, I suppose, that if he'd refused to ever return to 11:35, NBC would have left Conan there indefinitely. Do we believe that? I don't. I think they would immediately have started lining up someone else for to host The Tonight Show. They had to have someone.

In 30+ years, there had never been a moment when NBC didn't have at least one person (sometimes, two) in the "on deck" circle for The Tonight Show. During Carson's tenure, it changed from time to time — at one point, Bob Newhart or Joey Bishop; at another, David Brenner or McLean Stevenson; later, Joan Rivers and, of course, Leno. And for much of that time if Johnny had suddenly quit or died, there was David Letterman. There was always a host-in-waiting, even though unlike the Conan situation, canceling Johnny due to low ratings was generally not a concern. Throughout Leno's run as host, they always had Conan.

So then one day, they have Conan behind the desk and it's too soon to think about Jimmy Fallon moving up. Conan's fans have claimed the ratings weren't as bad as NBC insisted, especially since his numbers with younger viewers were decent. Clearly though, NBC was not happy with them. The NBC/Conan relationship probably reached the point of no-return when the President of NBC Sports (and a former dabbler in late night programming) Dick Ebersol got sick of seeing Conan's handlers and friends blaming Leno. He took to the pages of the New York Times to call the then-current Tonight Show "…an astounding failure by Conan."

I think it's silly to say Jay had some obligation to Conan to not be available to go back to late night. I don't see what Jay owed Conan other than to hand off The Tonight Show to him with graciousness and good ratings…which he did. Would you have been as polite as that to the guy who hadn't hesitated to bump you from the best job you ever had? But leave you out of it and let's say Jay did for some reason decide to sacrifice a large chunk of his career, as well as the jobs of his staff, to help Conan. Suppose he'd said. "Nope! I'm not going back to 11:30." That might have bought O'Brien a little more time on the air but the following would also have happened…

NBC would have started looking for his replacement. And they would have started looking hard and fast because it can take a while to find the right person and put his or her show together. They were already displeased with Conan's ratings and so were the affiliates. (Carter says that when the network polled station owners as to who they wanted at 11:35 at that point, not one voted for O'Brien.) NBC had to be worried the numbers would drop even more, damaging perhaps their most valuable franchise and time slot. So without Jay as an option, you would have heard they were talking to Jon or talking to Steve or talking to Jerry or talking to lots of people about taking over for Conan. Folks within NBC like Ebersol who had decided Conan had to go would have leaked it to the press. Other comedians who dreamed of taking over The Tonight Show — i.e., almost all of them — would have had their managers planting stories that they were under consideration.

I was always a big fan of Conan O'Brien and his whole operation — Andy, the writers, the producers, everyone. Conan was, is, and will remain a major talent in television and a stunning success story. He was a guy who wound up in an impossible situation — an unknown replacing David Letterman — and really made it work. But I wasn't fond of his Tonight Show and obviously, I wasn't the only one. At some point, the suits at NBC wanted to get him out of the 11:35 time slot and if possible, ease Leno back in. Maybe that was a wrong decision or at least a premature decision…but my main point here is it wasn't Jay's decision. Jay doesn't program that network.

It's amazing how little power that guy had there given his winning year after year after year. Ordinarily when you're in first place, you're safe. Jay was in first place when he didn't have the power to stop them from offering his job to David Letterman. He was in first place when he didn't have the power to stop them from actually giving it to Conan O'Brien. Later, he was in first place when he didn't have the power to stop them from giving it to Jimmy Fallon. But apparently someone's premise is that when his 10 PM show flopped and he was at his greatest point of failure, he had the power to get NBC to dump Conan O'Brien.

People faulted the guy for even being available but if it hadn't been him, it would have been someone else. The network gets what it wants and if they wanted Conan to stay, he would have stayed and if they wanted him to go, he would have gone. Had Jay refused the slot, Conan would have been a walking deadman, carrying on a few more months while rumors swirled about as to who NBC was courting to replace him.

I'm sorry it went down that way. The one time I met Conan O'Brien, he was funny and eminently likeable. Given all the network promised him, I think he deserved a lot better. But that's true of a lot of people in television. It's kind of how the industry operates and it's the reason he had a contract that they had to settle to the tune of $45 million. He had it better than many folks. There are people who get screwed over and don't get $45 million as a consolation prize…and almost none of them get another show months later. Some of the news stories about the whole mess acted like he was the first person to ever suffer the disappointment of having his series canceled.

This'll probably be the last message on this topic for a while. I'm aware it's Old News and no longer of interest to many…but it's bugged me for some time that people who don't like his comedy (or are on opposite him) were trashing the guy. Let's move on to other topics. It's Comic-Con Time!

Someone has found a lost treasure: It's a print of Buster Keaton's 1922 two-reeler, The Blacksmith, with much footage that differs from the version some of us have seen for years. It was not unusual for European prints of silent films to differ from American ones. In fact, it was common. They often shot silent films with two cameras right next to each other so they could wind up with two first-generation negatives — one to retain in the U.S. and make prints of and one to send to Europe so it could be duplicated for that market. Usually, the two negatives were edited alike but there were sometimes differences. This Keaton find sounds like it varies a lot from what we've seen here. Read all about it.

I've been negligent in plugging Stu's Show here but tomorrow, he's got a great guest — Sheila James Kuehl, best known for her portrayal of Zelda Gilroy on the classic TV series, The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis. She was adorable and funny as you know on that show…and if you don't know, order yourself the new boxed set and see for yourself. I find a lot of programs from that era that I once enjoyed don't hold up very well. This one does. The dialogue is sharp and witty, and the performers deliver it with expert precision.

I met Sheila some time back and found her to be one of the sharpest, smartest actors I'd ever encountered — and not just sharp about acting. She was working in administration at U.C.L.A. at the time and not long after, she went off to law school and then on to a career in politics and public service. I believe she was the first openly gay person elected to the California legislature and she's been a tireless worker, not just for gay rights issues but for things like health care and homelessness. She is apparently planning to run for the seat currently held by Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky and I intend to vote for her.

She'll probably be discussing (mostly) her TV career with Stu tomorrow, which is fine. She did other things than Dobie and you'll want to hear about them all. As usual, you have two choices of how to listen to Stu's Show…

There's the free way. "Tune in" while they do it live tomorrow (Wednesday) at 4 PM Pacific, 7 PM in the East, other times in other climes. The show runs a minimum of two hours and sometimes goes longer. This is the best way to hear it because not only is it free but it somehow seems more participatory even if Stu doesn't get around to taking phone calls. Listen in at the Stu's Show website.

You can also listen to it the pay way. Go to that selfsame website after the live webcast. There, you can download it or any of hundreds of wonderful episodes for a measly 99 cents each. But to get the real deal, order four for the price of three. In fact, while you're there, you might want to order Stu's fine interview of Dobie himself, Dwayne Hickman. But you'll enjoy any Stu's Show you download. Even the ones where the guest is me.

Here's another musical number by the Golddiggers from, I believe, their 1970 summer series that occupied Dean Martin's time slot. The song is "Elegance" from Hello, Dolly — and has everyone here heard the rumor that this song wasn't written, like the credits of that musical said all the songs were, by Jerry Herman? Some claim, though I believe Mr. Herman denies, that he had at least one ghost-written tune forced on him by the producer, David Merrick. There was this one and the claim is that it was written by Bob Merrill. Mr. Merrill, of course, wrote a number of fine Broadway scores and also worked as lyricist-only with Jule Styne on Funny Girl and, more importantly, Mister Magoo's Christmas Carol. Talented man.

So did he write this or did Jerry Herman? Beats me.

I have written here before of how I used to trespass in the NBC Studios in Burbank in the early seventies, wandering from studio to studio, trying to look like I knew where I was going and belonged there. I watched Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In tape. I watched Bob Hope do his specials. I watched Johnny Carson, when he brought his show out from New York, tape. I watched Flip Wilson rehearse. And I watched The Dean Martin Show rehearse, which of course meant I never saw Dean…there. I saw him once when I went as a legit audience member but never saw him at rehearsals…which was okay because I usually did see either Lou Jacobi or some other great comic actor. Or sometimes, there were The Golddiggers or their spin-off group, The Ding-A-Ling Sisters. No hardship watching them practice in leotards.

Perhaps you have figured out that I had…well, I guess at age eighteen, I was too old to call it a "crush." What I was doing was trying to strike up a conversation with a certain Golddigger and deftly segue into a suggestion of dinner. I suppose I had other things in mind but was quite willing to settle for dinner. Hell, I would have settled for conversation over a Milky Way bar from the vending machine in the hallway and I had all sorts of witty banter locked and loaded should the opportunity arise then…which, of course, it didn't. (Don't watch this clip and try to guess which one I had my eye on. She's not in it.) But I did develop a fondness for the act quite apart from any physical attractions towards the ladies. Here they be…

Twin baby pandas! Do you hear what I'm telling you? Twin baby pandas!

57 Amazing Behind the Scenes Photos from Iconic TV Shows. Some of them aren't that amazing but some are. There's one of William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy on the set of Star Trek reading MAD. That is, of course, the issue that featured "Star Blecch," the first parody MAD did of that TV series.

If you haven't had enough of the George Zimmerman case — or still haven't decided what to think of it all — I have two more articles for you to read. And I'm going to suggest that if you read one, you read the other. They present two ways of looking at the case, both of them valid to some extent. They both think Zimmerman used bad judgment and caused the death to occur but was not technically guilty under the law.

One is by William Saletan. He thinks an awful lot of what people believe they "know" about the case is just plain wrong. I think he's wrong on at least one point. He says Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law wasn't invoked in the case but as the other article notes, and as former State Senator Dan Gelber points out, the instructions to the jury of how to apply the law roughly summarized "Stand Your Ground." But Saletan is a sharp guy and I can't dismiss all he writes about the way evidence was misrepresented in the press.

Then we have Ta-Nehisi Coates, telling us that what was at fault in this case was the way the laws are written; that they favor anyone who shoots another person and then says, "I felt threatened." It sure sounds that way. And the folks running around now claiming that Zimmerman should never have been charged really seem to want it that way.

This is one of those inspirational videos — a true story with the moral that if you don't give up, you can't be defeated. I'm always leery of that advice because I think there are times in life when you can't win and it's self-destructive to not give up on one goal and redirect your time and passion to another, more attainable one. I mean, if I decide my goal is to be elected Miss Teenage U.S.A., that's not going to happen and it won't be because I gave up before I got my dream. Dreams are great but they need to be grounded in some reality. I know some folks who I think pissed away their best years and a lot of attainable successes because they obsessed on an unattainable — or at least, unlikely — goal.

But this one is about a runner with an attainable goal: To finish the race he starts. Obviously, since I'm telling you what I just told you, he makes it. How he makes it may cause you to get a tear or two on your monitor…