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Seeing as I watch television more than most people I know, I thought it would be appropriate that I explain my vote for the best talk shows.

1) Jay Leno-Johnny Carson was a great host, but he was not an "everyman" like Jay. If you see Jay on the street and say hello, he says hello right back to you in a personal way. He does not think he is too good for us common people. He does not live the celebrity life of going out and staying in the VIP section. Jay tells a joke while including people in the joke. The key to comedy is timing, and he has alot of it. Jay also does good work for charity. I remember after September 11 he had one of his motorcycles on the program, and he had each and every guest sign the motorcycle. After so many people signed it, he auctioned it off, and the money was donated to charity.

2) Conan 0'Brien-There is no one who has that "silly" comedy gift like Conan. Conan began his career writing for Saturday Night Live, and later the Simpsons. He knows silly better than anyone. This is especially proven when he is interviewing his guests. I remember back in 200 he had actor Alan Cumming on the program, and Alan said that when there is a love scene in a movie, there is some person who leaves a piece of cloth between the actors so that they do not touch. Conan asks in a rhetorical way,"First of all, who is putting this wax on?" "{impersonates person} "OK slop slop!" When Conan talks to viewers after his monologue, he is not some rich celebrity who only cares about the money. A few months ago, he started a website named hornymanatee.com. I belong to a group that signed a petition to Conan to ask him to write about the atrocities that are happening to manatees right now, and different ways people could get involved. I just learned recently that Conan has accepted the petition and will do what he could to make these manatees' lives better.

3) Ellen Degeneres-Very few people have humor and compassion, and Ellen is one of those people. this comes across when she has regular people on the program talking about things they have gone through recently. I remember she had a man on the program who had gone outside one night for a walk, passed out (he is a diabetic), and was saved by two dogs. Ellen deeply cares for those people who are hurt or suffering. She loves animals, and I have read that she belongs to several animal advocacy groups. She is a great listener, and never has a need to interrupt her guests a million times asking questions that are not even

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