Andy Richter Says The Leno Feud Is 'Not That Important'

I was furious when I learned what Jay Leno had done to Conan O’Brien. Some could even say I was hoppin’ mad! Because Leno couldn’t move on as he had contractually agreed to do, Conan was forced to exit his post as host of The Tonight Show so Leno could return. I’m still mad about it. And I have felt righteous in that anger! Like my long-simmering feud against the Houston Astros (they know what they did), I have no issue throwing a stink over something I am not directly involved in.

One cannot mention Leno’s name before me without getting an earful about his uselessness, which would likely be said via bad Leno impersonation. I have taken zero days off in my scathing takedowns of that denim-clad car aficionado. Zero!! If anything, I wish there would have been more years since he crossed Conan and crew to grant me more opportunities to curse his very existence!! … What’s that? Andy Richter is being way more chill about all of this than I am?

Richter recently spoke to CinemaBlend, and like a bad penny, Leno came up. Richter was asked if it was weird being mistaken for Leno on The Masked Singer, and Richter noted it wasn’t because they’re cool with each other. “I actually sat down at the diner counter a couple of years ago and it was a busy Sunday morning at a very popular restaurant in Burbank,” Richter told the site. “There was one seat left at the counter, and I sat down, and I turned to my right and there was Jay Leno eating breakfast.”

The former co-host of Conan O’Brien decided to stay at the diner and eat next to his former rival. “It was like, ‘Well, I guess we’re gonna chat now.’ And it was fine, you know, I mean, all of that showbiz rivalry is like high school rivalry. Once you’re past it, it’s not that important.” Richter is handling the situation like a mature adult. Sometimes you do have to move on.

Does this mean I should end my years-long ribbing of Jay Leno? A ribbing that exists primarily in my mind? Should I be mature as well, and cease taking umbrage with a man I’ve never met but who screwed over a different man I’ve never met?

Absolutely not.