As previously noted, Conan O’Brien is bringing his “Late Night” show to San Francisco for a five-night stint at the Orpheum Theatre beginning Monday. Before he hopped on the plane, Conan took some time to chat with me about what he has planned for the tour. You can read that interview by clicking here.

Conan, I found, is very chatty and aimiable and we touched on several subjects that didn’t make it into the story. He told me, for example, that he has a sister in San Rafael, who gave birth to a girl only days ago, so he’s looking forward to seeing his new neice while he’s here.

He also expressed some displeasure with his own network for the quick cancellation of “Andy Barker, P.I.,” the hilariously offbeat sitcom that he helped create and starred his former sidekick, Andy Richter. Here’s what he had to say about the experience:

“I have to be careful not to bitch too much about it, because the failure rate in this business is so high and there’s an arbitrary nature to it. But the network pretty much admitted that they didn’t get fully behind it. They kind of half-promoted it when it debuted, and then nothing. … And creatively, it was kind of like the rap wars — the East Coast (executives) and West Coast couldn’t get together.”

“Basically, I feel like it was never given a good chance. When you leave a baby out in the cornfield, of course it’s going to have trouble surviving. … And I really feel for Andy. I think he’s a really brilliant talent. But now it’s just another missed opportunity.”

By the way, if you’re attending any of the shows next week, let us know about your experiences.

While watching another hilarious episode of “30 Rock” last night, I breathed a sigh of relief that NBC has refused to let Alec Baldwin out of his contract. In case you haven’t heard, Baldwin let it be known this week that he wants to bail out on acting for a while to concentrate on repairing his relationship with his daughter (and his image) in the wake of that much-publicized phone recording. Plus he said he’d like out of his “30 Rock” contract in order to avoid bringing any shame to the show.

Obviously, I admire Baldwin’s resolve (if it is sincere) to make happy with his daughter, and now that the show is done for the season, he should have time to work on that. On the other hand, I’d hate to see him leave “30 Rock” because he’s a vital cog in making it as funny as it is. His performance last night, in fact, was one of his best of the season.

Anyway, let’s move on to some other good stuff this week:

– Great to have “Heroes” back. Now let’s get on to saving the world.
– Loved Jack Black and “The Simpsons” segment on “American Idol”
– Jim imitating Dwight on “The Office.” Priceless.
– Effusive judge Bruno on “Dancing With the Stars” continues to crack me up.
– “The Sopranos”: Uncle Junior’s misadventures in the sanitarium. The dark humor in this show is one of its main draws.
– Go Warriors.

OK, on to your views. What turned you on about TV this week?

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Now, wasn’t that interesting?

Last night’s charity-minded “Idol Gives Back” special was one of the strangest, most spastic viewing experiences in recent memory. Part of the time you watched in solemn reverence as heartwrenching scenes of African and American poverty filled the screen. Other times you rolled your eyes and/or cringed uncomfrotably at ridiculous segments like Celine Dion singing alongside the ghost of Elvis Presley.

And then you seethed in anger as the producers pulled off an ill-conceived stunt by torturing poor Jordin Sparks into believing she was eliminated when she wasn’t.

Weird stuff.

The good news is that “Idol” induced millions of viewers whose normal idea of tragedy is a bad Sanjaya hairdo to actually think about the AIDS crisis and the hardships that still exist in New Orleans and elsewhere two years after Katrina.

It’s just too bad the Idol producers had to go about things so awkwardly — and in some cases, so crassly. I admire, for example, the sentiment to not banish any of the contestants on a night devoted to being humane to one another. But why not just announce that at the top to the show, instead of wasting valuable time and stringing us (and the performers along)?

Oh, but the Elvis thing topped them all. And I’m absolutely stunned that Celine went along with something as ludicrous and creepy as that.

The road trip nears. Conan O’Brien will be doing his show from San Francisco all next week and NBC has just announced the guest list. BTW, if any of our local readers are planning to go see Conan at the Orpheum Theatre, let me know. I’ll be writing and blogging about his visit and would love to have some local input in our pieces.

Also look for an interview with Conan in Saturday’s Times. I had a chance to chat with him yesterday and the man is hilarious even over the phone.

Here’s the lineup:

Monday April 30 – Dana Carvey, Arctic Monkeys
Tuesday, May 1 — George Lucas, Will Arnett, Chris Isaak
Wednesday May 2 — Robin Williams
Thursday, May 3 — “American Idol” judge Randy Jackson, Bob Weir & RatDog
Friday, May 4 – Snoop Dogg, Tom Waits

We’re told to also expect some surprise guests throughout the week, as well as remote reports from all over the city and nearby areas from wine country to Silicon Valley.

Photo courtesy of NBC

A popular morning gabfest just got a lot more quiet — and perhaps a lot less interesting. Rosie O’Donnell has just announced that she’ll be leaving “The View” after only one year. The reason? Money, of course. Rosie and ABC apparently could not agree to terms on a new contract.

Ms. Mouthy will exit the show in June.

In her one year on the show, Rosie vented her wrath toward a number of people — from “American Idol” judges, to Donald Trump, to Kelly Ripa. And while many of us would have paid big money to have her jaws wired shut, her verbal spewings boosted the show’s profile — and ratings. And so now Barbara Walters and her fellow producers have a big mouth to fill.

What do you think? Did your day just get a little less Rosie? Or are you gleefully humming “Ding Dong the Witch is Dead”?

For the full Associated Press story, click here.
Photo courtesy of ABC

It was a night to be inspired on the “Idol Gives Back” special, and, for the most part, the remaining finalists gave it their all. It was Jordin Sparks, however, who gave a little something extra.

The six performers were assigned “inspirational” songs to tie into the show’s two-night charitable theme and Jordin brought down the house with a powerful, goose bump-raising rendition of “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” It’s an old classic, but she made it sound new and alive. Randy called it one of the best vocals in six years of “Idol”. Paula deemed it “glorious” and Simon raved, “fantastic.” Clearly, the 17-year-old from Arizona is building major momentum. Don’t bet against her being in the final.

On the flip side of the equation is LaKisha Jones. Once considered a strong favorite in this competition, she now finds herself in a perilous position. Jones failed to win the judges over for a second straight week. And once again she stumbled with a song by an “Idol” winner. Last week it was Carrie Underwood’s “Jesus Take the Wheel” and last night it was Fantasia’s “I Believe.” The judges made it clear they preferred the Fantasia version. If Jones does survive, we strongly suggest she avoid anything by Kelly Clarkson.

The other finalists were all pretty solid, with Melinda Doolittle once again impressing everyone with Faith Hill’s “There Will Come a Day,” and Chris Richardson opening the show with an affecting version of Eric Clapton’s “Change the World.”

Tonight, the stars come out for the two-hour capper of “Idol Gives Back.” Clarkson, Gwen Stefani, Josh Groban, Pink, Celine Dion, II Divo, Rascal Flatts and Earth Wind & Fire will all be featured in live or taped performances. Bono will also drop by to talk about ONE: The Campaign to Make Poverty History.

Television’s May sweeps kick off on Thursday, so brace yourself for highly hyped finales, kooky crossover episodes, big-name guest stars and an onslaught of weddings and funerals.

In the TimeOut section today, I sift through some key questions many viewers will have going into sweeps. We also offer a complete rundown of dates for season finales. Check it out by clicking here.

When I interviewed journalist-author David Halberstam a few years ago in San Francisco, he had just published his book, “The Teammates,” about the lifelong friendship between old Boston Red Sox players Ted Williams, Dominic DiMaggio, Johnny Pesky and Bobby Doerr.

Our meandering conversation, for a moment, got around to sports nostalgia and he spoke about how he, for the most part, had no use for mementoes such as autographed baseball cards or bats. And so I felt a little weird a few minutes later when I asked him to sign his book for me so I could include it in my collection of autographed works by Pultizer-winning writers.

After Halberstam was killed on a Bay Area road Monday afternoon, I found myself rummaging through my bookcases to find that simple, but highly prized possession. There’s something about wanting to make contact with a piece of a person’s life in the wake of a sudden death.

Among a couple of other other things, Halberstam wrote to me on the title page, “Thanks for coming …” Of course, it is we who should be expressing gratitude to him for a lifetime of extraordinary work.

Yes, Mr. Halberstam, you indeed, were among our best and brightest. … Thanks so much for coming.

When we last checked in with our friends from “Heroes,” things were looking pretty bleak.

Mohinder was pinned to the ceiling, courtesy of the despicable Sylar, who also had Peter in his clutches. H.R.G. and Matt had been captured and imprisoned by a slimeball who looks a lot like Eric Roberts. And Nathan was being hounded by the enigmatic Linderman.

Seven weeks later, “Heroes” is back and it’s rally time. If they’re going to save the world, they had better pick up the pace because only five episodes remain in what has been an electrifying season thus far.

Fans of “Heroes” will certainly welcome back the show with open arms. And so will NBC, which has seen its ratings go in the tank. “Heroes,” created by Pittsburg native Tim Kring, is the most buzzed-about show of the season and one of the few sure things NBC has in its stable. (Memo to Kring: Now might be a good time to renegotiate that contract).

I’ve already taken a look at tonight’s episode and while I won’t deem it one of the show’s best, it does a fine job of re-establishing multiple story lines and setting us up for the stretch run. Among the highlights: A nasty little confrontation between Sylar and Peter (with some nice special-effects work) and a very revealing conversation between Nathan and Linderman.

Speaking of the latter, give a great big thumb’s up to Kring and his team for the casting of Malcolm McDowell. It’s a kick to watch the veteran actor chew up the scenery. A perfect choice.

Watching the Warriors in the playoffs last night brought back a flood of memories for me. The last time Golden State made the postseason was 1994, when I was a sportswriter and covering the team for the Times.

That squad, which featured the likes of Avery Johnson, Chris Mullin, Chris Webber and Latrell Sprewell, has been the subject of a lot of retrospectives (on TV and in newspapers) in recent days and it’s been fun to wallow in nostalgia for a while.

But it’s even more fun to watch the Warriors play so dazzlingly. And let’s hear it for Baron Davis. Incredible!

This just might be interesting, after all.