Director's Alert: Andy Richter Reunites with Conan O'Brien on the new "Tonight Show"

The Director's Cut blog has learned that Andy Richter, former sidekick for Conan O'Brien when he launched as host of "Late Night," will reunite with Conan as the announcer on "The Tonight Show."

Conan O'Brien will have a familiar face when he begins his new "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" on NBC where he will reunite with Andy Richter ("Late Night with Conan O'Brien") -- for the first time on a daily basis in almost nine years -- as the network announced that Richter will return to its late-night lineup as the announcer for the new show that begins June 1. In addition to his announcing duties, Richter will participate in comedic pieces.

Few performers enjoy the chemistry that Richter and O'Brien developed over their seven years together on "Late Night with Conan O'Brien." Richter will join O'Brien for the first time on a daily basis since May 26, 2000.

"Andy is one of the funniest people I know and we've maintained a close friendship since he left "Late Night," said O'Brien. "We have a proven chemistry that will be an incredible asset to "The Tonight Show." I'm looking forward to working with Andy on a daily basis again, particularly since he owes me $300."

Actor and writer Andy Richter rose to fame while having the best seat in the house on NBC's "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" as O'Brien's sidekick since its premiere on September 13, 1993. Since his departure from the show in 2000, Richter starred in the Emmy nominated "Andy Richter Controls the Universe" for the Fox network, and most recently starred in the series "Andy Barker, P.I." for NBC. Richter has been very active in the feature film world as well. His many appearances include such films as Robert Altman's "Dr. T and the Women" and "Scary Movie 2", "Elf" and "Madagascar: (both 1 and 2), "Talladega Nights", "Blades of Glory" and "Semi-Pro". This summer, he can be seen in the Fox feature "They Came From Upstairs". Richter attended the University of Illinois Urbana/Champaign and Columbia College, where he studied film and video.

"The Tonight Show" continues to be the most dominant late-night institution in television history. Since it first premiered on September 27, 1954 with Steve Allen, "The Tonight Show" has had just four permanent hosts, including Leno. Allen, host of the then titled "Tonight," eventually left late night to start his own primetime variety series on NBC. Jack Paar premiered on July 29, 1957. On October 1, 1962, Johnny Carson stepped on stage for day one of his tenure as host of "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson." Leno, who began guest-hosting "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" in September 1987, became host of "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" on May 25, 1992. O'Brien joined NBC as a writer on "Saturday Night Live" in 1988 and premiered as host of "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" on September 13, 1993. O'Brien becomes the fifth host of "The Tonight Show" on June 1, 2009.

"The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" will originate from Stage 1 at Universal Studios and will be produced by Universal Media Studios. Jeff Ross is the executive producer.

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Source: NBC

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