For the second time in about four years, Jay Leno is stepping down from NBC's iconic late-night franchise "The Tonight Show." This time, he'll exit in spring 2014 to make way for "Late Night" star Jimmy Fallon.
Fallon will take over sometime after that, the network announced Wednesday, confirming the industry's worst-kept secret in recent history. NBC Chief Executive Steve Burke explained that the timing is intended to mesh with NBC's broadcast of the Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia, which apparently is not a gag from an "SNL" skit.
"Saturday Night Live" impresario Lorne Michaels is taking over as executive producer; Debbie Vickers, who has produced the show for the past two decades, will exit along with Leno. And the show will return to its original home at 30 Rock in New York, where it was based until Johnny Carson, "Tonight's" longest-running host at 30 years, moved it to Burbank in 1972.