OK, so there probably won't be a masturbating bear or an insulting cigar-wielding puppet, but that won't stop the UB community from coming in droves this weekend to see Conan O'Brien, the last speaker in this year's Distinguished Speaker Series.
O'Brien, the host of NBC's "Late Night" show, will take the stage at Alumni Arena as a comedian in his prime and still on the rise. In 2009, O'Brien will take over Jay Leno's spot hosting "The Tonight Show."
Tickets to the 8 p.m. event, which are now sold out, were distributed free to students early last week, but due to the limited distribution window, many undergraduates were left out in the cold.
O'Brien, also known for his writing on "The Simpsons" and "Saturday Night Live," is this year's Undergraduate Student Choice speaker.
Steve Group, a sophomore media studies major, said that he would like to go, but couldn't get a ticket.
"There's just not enough tickets, and too long a line," he said. "I didn't even hear much about the times really, it really wasn't advertised to much."
Mike Gunderman, a junior psychology major, was also unable to get a ticket.
"I wanted to see him," he said. "I have classes from 12 p.m. to 4, straight through, and I couldn't really have skipped any of them, so I couldn't get tickets."
O'Brien isn't expected to just do a stand-up routine, but Student Association President Dela Yador is sure it will still be an entertaining night.
"Students need to realize the Conan event is not intended to be a comedy," Yador said. "However, this is going to be a very interactive Distinguished Speaker event."
During Saturday's speech, the television pundit will answer questions submitted by students on the SA Web site, a different process than with other, less popular speakers.
O'Brien was chosen at the Undergraduate Choice Speaker based on feedback cards filled out by students at the end of each year's speaker series. This year's choice was unique because SA was able to bring the student body's first choice speaker.
"Every year at the end of the series, cards are given out asking what speakers students would want to see at UB," Yador said. "Conan was a heavy favorite so we made it happen."
Yador said he believes the lecture will range from talking about his show to how he plans on taking over "The Tonight Show" in 2009. Other possibilities for the speech, however, are also an option - O'Brien isn't just an average comedian.
"People are going to find out how brilliant this guy is," Yador said. "He graduated from Harvard and has accomplished a lot in his life."
Harold Sherrell, a senior communication major, said he thinks O'Brien will put on a good show.
"Ever since I've been a freshman, UB has been able to bring in big name people to perform/speak and this year is no exception," he said. "I'm a big Conan fan."
"I think it's going to be like a long opening monologue to his show," Sherrell said. "Tom Cruise and Katie Homes just had their kid, and there's always something new going on in Iraq. I'm sure he'll have plenty of stuff to keep everyone laughing."
Kathryn Vossler, a senior English and communication major, said she excited for O'Brien to come to UB.
"It's amazing that Conan is coming here," she said. "I think that shows UB is becoming a place for A-list celebrities to show up. Hopefully more celebrities will continue to come and speak to UB students."
"With his endorsement of the Finnish president, I think people are expecting Conan to say something political," Vossler said. "People want to hear what he has to say, not just his jokes. There is more to him than Triumph the Insult Dog. It will be exciting to see Conan out of his usual environment of his nightly show. He will definitely use this opportunity to do something different."
Combining his talents as writer, performer and interviewer, O'Brien has been the much-loved host of "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" since 1993. Notorious for its off-beat sketches, the program was named "the most consistently funny and original show on late night" by The Boston Globe, and O'Brien himself has been described by The Washington Post as "modest, wry, self-effacing and demonstrably the most intelligent of the late-night comics." He and his writing staff have won four Writer's Guild Awards for Best Writing in a Comedy/Variety Series.
O'Brien is a graduate of Harvard where he was elected President of the Harvard Lampoon for two years. He began his career in comedic writing with HBO's "Not Necessarily the News" and frequently performed on the program. In 1988, he was hired as a writer for "Saturday Night Live," and one year later, he and his colleagues won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy or Variety Series.
From 1991 to 1993, O'Brien worked as a writer/producer and eventual supervising producer for the Fox series "The Simpsons" and created some of the show's most popular episodes, prior to taking his current position as host of "Late Night with Conan O'Brien."
In 2009, O'Brien, who has been described as "one of TV's hottest properties" by People magazine's 25 Most Intriguing People issue, will become host of the highly acclaimed "Tonight Show."
"I hope students enjoy it," Yador said. "It is going to be a very memorable event."
