Jimmy Fallon and Jay Leno. (NBC)

Wednesday's official announcement from NBC that Jimmy Fallon will be replacing Jay Leno on The Tonight Show was the culmination of months worth of speculation, rumors and gossip. When the media learned that Mr. Fallon was not only moving the show back to New York, but would be hosting the program from Johnny Carson's old studio, the comparisons between this latest drama and the bitter NBC late-night feuds in the past--Conan vs. Leno, Leno vs. Letterman--were inevitable, despite the network trying to play off the move as amicable. Hell, trying for the 11:30 (or now, technically, 11:35) slot on NBC is more of a political bloodsport than Game of Thrones, with at least twice as much backstabbing and allegiance shifting. (Though less decapitation ... that we know of.)

Here are the five best rumors about the new Tonight Show, along with any responses from NBC or its players.

1. Rumor: NBC was so pissed at Leno for mocking its ratings that it pushed the 22-year veteran out.
Last month, The New York Times ran a piece about the fallout from a joke that Mr. Leno made on Tonight about NBC sliding into fifth place in the ratings. The article cited three sources that claimed that NBC's top entertainment executive, Robert Greenblatt, and Mr. Leno engaged in a flame war after the episode. As Bill Carter wrote:

This moment of conflict between Mr. Leno and NBC’s management preceded recent reports — denied categorically by NBC executives — that the network was preparing to make a change, moving out Mr. Leno and bringing in Jimmy Fallon, the star of its 12:35 program “Late Night.”

Damage Control: NBC staged a dinner for Mr. Greenblatt and Mr. Leno, though of course that only fueled the fires to speculation that this was a "last meal" kind of scenario.

2. Rumor: Jay Leno and Jimmy Fallon must hate each other.
It's happened with Jay Leno and literally every other contender for Tonight (including Carson, who wasn't a huge fan of his successor), or anyone who shares the time slot on a different station, so why should the brazen Mr. Fallon be any different?

Damage Control: On April 1, the two hosts got together and sang a parody duet of West Side Story's "Tonight."

Then again, it was April Fool's Day, so who knows how much stock to put in this bonhomie. However, Mr. Fallon does have a history of being, if anything, overly gracious to the cranky Mr. Leno.

3. Rumor: Fallon is already becoming the biggest late-night diva of them all.

Amid all these other swirling rumors was one that only applied to Mr. Fallon: that he had fired his longtime manager Eric Kranzler right before signing his Tonight deal.

Damage Control: Well, besides his former manager, everyone else seems to love Mr. Fallon.

4. Rumor: Jimmy Fallon rode in a sidecar of Jay Leno's motorcycle.

Thanks for this, New York Post:

Damage Control: The image turned out to be a fake, though without any sort of disclosure, you could be excused for thinking it was real.

5. That Seth Meyers will host in Fallon's former time-slot.

Every time a host moves up, it's an opportunity for some fresh blood to move into the recently vacated space. Right now, the biggest name being tossed around is Saturday Night Live’s Seth Meyers, which would be great ... Weekend Update every weeknight!

Damage Control: None, quite yet.

Best prank ever! (Bravo)

Ha ha. Love this. It's not even technically a "prank," so much as a very good method for finding out what former co-workers really thought about you. All you do is wait until they are on a nationally syndicated program, and then call up the show pretending to be someone named "Coco" from "New Hampshire." You don't even have to mask your voice!

Then you can ask them what it was like working with you (their former colleague), and they will be forced to say the absolute truth, lulled into a false sense of security by the thought that you (former co-worker) is not only not tuning into this nationally syndicated program, but could in no way be the caller yourself.

Pro tip: Do not do this on Andy Cohen's Watch What Happens Live, because that man either has Caller ID flashing on his teleprompter or has memorized the voices of everyone on television. Probably the latter.

We love you, Amy Poehler. We love you, Seth Meyers. We are kind of mad at you, Andy Cohen, for not letting this joke play out a little longer, but we love you too. And let us just say, we are really looking forward to when Shia Lebeouf tries this on Alec Baldwin next month.

Letterman and Fallon: Braving the storm (NBC, CBS)

The only problem? Neither Jimmy Fallon nor David Letterman had a live audience--a first, in both their histories--to laugh at their jokes. But what could have turned into that creepy David Lynch episode of Louie was actually an amazing bit of performance art as the two jokesters performed to the dead silence of a mostly-empty room. *Yanks collar* "Tough crowd!"

Late Night with Jimmy Fallon (with Seth Meyers and Robert Zemeckis as guests):

The Late Show with David Letterman (with Denzel Washington):
http://youtu.be/Mq2UDYVjz8Y
http://youtu.be/8NPiYyssX7Y
http://youtu.be/Hab8YTGWOhg
http://youtu.be/AWRRSX6ihTg

Is it kind of weird that both shows were promoting the movie Flight? That movie's PR machine just won't quit!

While Mr. Meyers is said to be able to continue doing "Weekend Update" on SNL if he gets the gig, Mr. Friedman speculates he'll have to step down as head writer given the demands of the Live schedule. Could this be a period of renewal at Saturday Night Live after the departures of Kristen Wiig, Andy Samberg, and (we think...) Jason Sudeikis? Or another "Saturday Night Dead" epoch?

Seth Meyers unveils 'The Awesomes' for Hulu (Getty Images)

As an increasing segment of the population cancel their cable subscription and subsist on a diet of television and films streamed through their laptops, Internet video sites like Hulu and Netflix have hastily bid on a slew of original series in the hopes that one day soon, nobody will use their televisions unless Roku is involved.

While Netflix is funding series that appeal to a cult fan base--a new season of Arrested Development, House of Cards, Lilyhammer (already renewed for a second season), and Hemlock Grove-- Hulu's recent acquisitions point to a wide-net marketing strategy:  accessible shows for an audience of TV viewers who want more of the same.

Today, during Hulu's upfronts, viewers got a brief glimpse of The Awesomes,  an animated series by Saturday Night Live's Weekend Update anchor Seth Meyers.

The Awesomes will be joining Hulu's stockpile of original content, including Morgan Spurlock's A Day in the Life, Battleground, Don't Quit Your Daydream (a singing contest program), Flow (documentary series about parkour), and We Got Next (scripted comedy about pick-up basketball).

The Awesomes will be loosely based on Mr. Meyers' experience backstage at SNL, where he is head writer...except everyone will be superheroes.  Let the 30 Rock comparisons begin!

Dr. Anita Hill with a bunch of white guys.

This afternoon, Time magazine held its annual lunch and panel for it's prestigious person of the year issue. We went in with our money on Occupy Wall Street, but most of our other journo diners seemed to take it as a given that the honor would be bestowed on Steve Jobs.

It was an impressive panel led by Time's Rich Stengel: NBC's Brian Williams, Anita Hill, Jesse Eisenberg, Mario Batali, Seth Meyers, and Grover Norquist, president of the advocacy group Americans for Tax Reform.

The panelists themselves were split about the Jobs vs. the Arab Spring/OWS phenomenon (which Mr. Eisenberg voted for as a general "Populist Movement.") Mr. Williams cast his lot for the Apple founder, though Mr. Stengel was quick to point out that Time has never chosen a deceased person for their cover. (As if that would be a big deal...they put the friggin' iPad on there.) MSNBC contributor and Who's Afraid of Post-Blackness? author Toure may have had the only good point against putting Jobs on the cover, which he likened to giving someone who died an Academy Award even if they didn't give the best performance. "Did Steve Jobs actually change the world in 2011?" he asked the panelists. Mr. Stengel also likened putting Mr. Jobs on the cover with giving someone "a lifetime achievement award."

Mr. Batali was pro-Jobs, saying: "The smartphone has changed the world as much as the Bible has."

Mr. Williams worried that giving the honor of "Person of the year" to a protest wouldn't sit well with readers. "There is an institutional distaste for a movement without a face."

Perhaps that is why Dr. Hill chose  Elizabeth Warren for her attempts to enact real change in Washington. She also nominated a woman involved in the uprising from Cairo, because a "social justice movement" was more important than the technology behind it.

Mr. Meyers cast his lot with Nicolas Sarkozy or Angela Merkel should be in consideration for their role in trying to stop the euro debt crisis, but didn't know if they would end up being considered heroes or villains when the dust cleared.

Eloquent on stage, Mr. Eisenberg sounded like Jeff Goldblum on meth after the panel when we tried to ask him about Occupy Wall Street. Had he been down? What did he think of it?

"Sure, sure, sure," Jesse said, nodding his head vigorously.

Wait...so...he has been down to Zuccotti Park?

"Sure, yes, I have."

Thoughts?

"These protests are, uh, always good and, I hope that, you know, it grows into something."

There went our hope that the Social Network actor had winked at us earlier...it was probably just an involuntary tic.

2012: GOP Establishment wants Mitch Daniels and others to enter the race, thanks to unimpressive field. [Jeff Zeleny and Jim Rutenberg]

White House Correspondence Dinner: Full video of Obama and Seth Meyers. [C-SPAN]

Trump Jokes: There's a lot of them; Eliot Spitzer in attendance too. [Rich Schapiro]

Trump Jokes: After birther issue, "he can finally get back to focusing on the issues that matter, like: Did we fake the moon landing? What really happened in Roswell? And where are Biggie and Tupac?" said Obama. [Tim Perone]

Trump Jokes: "[A]lmost painful to watch, the juxtaposition of the president, flexing his new post-birther comedy chops, and the real estate mogul-cum-politician, grimacing at his table." [Helen Cooper]

WHCD Pics: Bloomberg points a finger at Rupert Murdoch. [Vanity Fair]

WHDC Pics: Colin Powell kisses Madeleine Albright. [The Caucus]

WHCD Pics: Wolfson hangs with Cee Lo Green. [Howard Wolfson]

WHCD Pics: Weiner chats with Steve Buscemi. [Vanity Fair]

Trump: After bumping into him, Joyce Purnick's mother warned her, "Stay away from that snot-nosed kid." [Joyce Purnick]

Cuomo Hides: Keeping a low profile and is just working. [Michael Goodwin]

Cuomo Campaigns: raised money in Soho from prominent LGBT supporters; April 13 fund-raiser at Howard Rubenstein's house. April 15 fund-raiser meeting at Regency. [Adam Lisberg]

Bloomberg Speeches: Goes to Oklahoma May 21 for Oklahoma Foundation. [NewsOK.com]

Michael Grimm: Says he made peace with Tea Party. [Tom Wrobleski]

NY26: Jack Davis pulling 23 percent. [Robert McCarthy]

Property Tax Cap: Cuomo tells reporters "I'm trying, I'm trying" to get it passed. [Brian Amaral]

State Senate: 303 staffers cut since Republican took over. [Joseph Spector]

Alan Hevesi: Says Hank Morris is an enemy. [Ken Lovett]

NYPD: Cop pulled over car carrying Dennis Walcott; no ticket given. [WABC]

NYPD Escort: The dry cleaner who connected P. Diddy with cop escort. Maureen Callahan]

Ticket Fixing: Cops pressured by union delegates. [Sean Gardiner]

Taxi Politics: Fare hike in exchange for permitting street hails for livery cabs. [David Seifman]

Food NYC: Coca-Cola opposes Bloomberg's push to ban food stamps from buying sugary drinks. [Noel Brinkerhoff and David Wallechinksy]

Charter School: New Geoffrey Canada project aims to educate students and the neighborhood. [Susan Edelman]

Buffalo: Federal government wants $700 million in misspent anti-poverty funding. [James Heaney]

St. Vincent's Hospital: Rally for one year anniversary of its closing. [astoria25]

And Michael Daly pays tribute to Hope Reichbach.

"I still walk closer to the curb because I'm sure that's going to happen," the 26-year-old novelist SNL writer said over iced coffee last week.

For Mr. Rich, whose writing is often inflected with an impending sense of doom — God makes completely irrational decisions, Dracula poses as the Red Cross — New York has always been a scary place. In his own assessment, living here has instilled an intensely neurotic style in all his writing.

"Just the sheer population makes it a scary place and with a city this packed with people there are sure to be a few murderers on your block," Mr. Rich deadpanned.

John Mulaney, an SNL writer with whom Mr. Rich writes frequently, said that these jokes are typical of Mr. Rich.

"I think nothing makes him laugh more than freaking out and panicking," Mr. Mulaney said.

Mr. Rich's illustrious origins are well documented. His father is Frank Rich, the Times columnist, and his brother Nathaniel is an editor at The Paris Review. His first book of jokes came out mere months after graduating Harvard — he has since published a second humor book — and he's working on the screenplay for his recently optioned novel Elliot Allagash, which was published in May. News of the film deal provoked an angry rant on Gawker, but Mr. Rich said he has "sympathy and respect" for his haters.

"I think that's not even the biggest travesty," he said of his perceived nepotism. "The biggest travesty is that anybody gets to write jokes for a living. It's a ridiculous profession and I feel like it should probably be against the law for everyone not just the children of successful journalists."

When Mr. Rich walked into the Brooklyn Heights restaurant where we met him, he could have been mistaken for a student on the way home from school, wearing a loose red polo shirt and carrying a backpack. Later on, three children began to make faces at him through the restaurant's window. 

"Hey kids!" he said smiling at them, admiring a small black toy carried by one of them. "I feel like toys are cooler now."

Youth has been a fertile source of material for Mr. Rich. Elliot Allagash is set at a fictional New York private school not unlike Mr. Rich's alma mater Dalton, and SNL cast member Bill Hader, 32, pointed out that if an SNL sketch ever involves a fairytale, Mr. Rich had a hand in it.

For the record, the school in the book is not Dalton. "I thought it would be more Dalton-y but it's not," said one of Mr. Rich's former teachers.

“I always write out of a sense of fear and doom,” Mr. Rich said. Obviously New York provides him with ample material there, as does being Jewish and reading about God's smiting in the Torah when he was younger. "The Old Testament God is just a hilarious comedy character," he said. 

WHENEVER MR. HADER visits Brooklyn Heights Mr. Rich gives him and his wife the "hard pitch" on the neighborhood.

"[He] takes us on a long walk and... knows the all the little interesting anecdotes about each building like, 'that's where Norman Mailer wrote whatever book,' 'that's where Truman Capote wrote Breakfast at Tiffany's. He lived on the garden level,'" Mr. Hader said.

Mr. Rich does most of his writing in his own Brooklyn Heights apartment, by the window. He and Mr. Hader worked on their horror comedy screenplay for Judd Apatow in that apartment. When Mr. Rich and Mr. Hader write they take breaks at the local deli Lassen & Hennigs where Mr. Rich orders a Knickerbocker — a sandwich with fried chicken, bacon, cheddar and mayo on a buttered roll — which he said he eats about three times a week. SNL head writer Seth Meyers said via email that watching Mr. Rich wait for his sandwich at the Second Avenue Deli on rewrite day is a "true joy."

Mr. Rich is aware that he draws on his unique angle on New York in his novel.

"It's certainly not McInerney's or Bret Easton Ellis' New York," he said. "It's more about the idea of New York." In this way, he thinks Elliot Allagash's New York is like the London of P.G. Wodehouse, or Arthur Conan Doyle.

Simon is "fairly fanatical about the city, its history, its lore," according to his father, who told us that his sons' recommendations for New York reading have led him to books he may not have otherwise discovered.

Simon's brother Nathaniel wrote: "All three of us are obsessed with New York lore, with the city in previous eras, its forgotten and hidden aspects, its purest expressions of urban insanity. But we share other obsessions too: hot sauces, the Mets, Sichuan food."

Comedy was one of Simon's personal obsessions. As a kid, he would around 30 Rockefeller Plaza, now his work place, to catch glimpses of the Late Night with Conan O'Brien writers and would pass by the Your Show of Shows writers' room near Carnegie Hall just to marvel at the "holy moly" — his words — quality of it.

Now, though, Mr. Rich seems content with the "holy moly" of Brooklyn Heights.

"There's a plaque on a brownstone near here that claims that the curveball was invented in Brooklyn Heights," Mr. Rich told us. "Like, the pitch. And that alone is reason enough to live in this neighborhood."

"He was probably burned for being a warlock," he added, referring to the inventor. "What a terrifying thing to make a ball curve."

Looks like Barney Frank isn't on Team Coco. The Massachusetts senator appeared with Jay Leno last night and took the opportunity to offer his take on the Tea Party movement. (Hint: Not a fan.)

One person who might disagree with Senator Frank: Pat Buchanan, who told Hardball's Chris Matthews last night—and we're going to go ahead and present this bit without comment—that "both sides were right" during the Civil War.

Seth Meyers asked about White House pressure not to run, which the fake Paterson—portrayed by Fred Armisen—likened to "the Pope calling a local priest to tell him to go to hell."

(In the above video, scroll ahead to about 12 minutes in.)

"By the way, you know how to go to hell, Seth?" Paterson asked. "You take the Holland Tunnel straight to New Jerzzzey."

Mocking of the governor's blindness—which he has before said offended him—was again part of the bit. New Jersey put-downs were once again numerous.

Paterson was asked about whether he thought Andrew Cuomo or Rick Lazio would have a chance beating him.

"Are you kidding? Those cologne soaked city-slickers will never be able to connect with the gumbies in upstate New York. I dare Andrew Cuomo to show his pretty face in Utica: The locals will just hide in their caves and throw boulders at him."

Meyers also asked whether Paterson wanted to be a senator instead of governor.

"I had great dreams of living in Washington, D.C., walking zig-zag up the Capitol steps. You know, shaking hands with an even mix of humans and statues … trying to stick my ATM card in the Vietnam memorial, then showing up late for votes and flicking off the senators from ... New Jerzzzey."

There was no immediate statement from Paterson's press office.