Jay Leno: Three months, 1,000+ product placements

Time.com reporter and blogger James Poniewozik writes that Nielsen has released its year-end list of TV's top shows -- for product placement. In first place? Jay Leno, whose show was conceived to be "advertiser friendly." According to Nielsen, there have been 1,015 plugs since the show launched in September.

By the way, that number refers to paid product placements -- such as the frequent shout-outs to Ford (used in the Green Car Challenge) -- as well as unpaid plugs for movies and the like; Nielsen doesn't distinguish.

There were no other talk shows in the top 10. Following Jay were "WWE Monday Night Raw" (with 787 sponsor mentions), "The Biggest Loser" (704), "American Idol" (553), and "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (483).

David Letterman, Craig Ferguson and other late night stars say goodbye to Diane Sawyer

Signing off after over a decade on the popular AM show, Diane Sawyer said goodbye today to "Good Morning America." Offering their best wishes were five late night TV hosts: David Letterman, Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon (who invited Diane over for "Scattergories and Sambuca at my house"), Stephen Colbert and Craig Ferguson. Watch the segment here.

Sawyer is leaving "GMA" to replace Charles Gibson as the anchor of ABC's "World News." She'll begin her new early-evening gig on Dec. 21. George Stephanopoulos will replace Sawyer starting Monday on "GMA."

Craig Ferguson: His 1,000th show is coming up!

On Tuesday, Dec. 15, "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" will celebrate its 1,000th telecast with a special lineup of guests -- and puppets. Here's who will be partying with Craig that night:

The show will be hosted by Wavy the puppet. Joining the alligator are humans Kristen Bell, Maria Bello, Jason Schwartzman, and L.A. pop band the Broken West. And from the movie "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," Jason Segel will appear along with his puppet Dracula.

Ferguson became the third "Late Late Show" host on Jan. 3, 2005. The program was previously hosted by Tom Snyder, who presided over 777 shows between 1995-1999, and Craig Kilborn, who holds the record with his 1,190 broadcasts between 1999-2004.

David Letterman: A Christmas tradition

There's nothing better during the holidays than tradition, is there? For fans of "Late Show with David Letterman," one of the most beloved traditions is the annual Christmas appearance of Jay Thomas and Darlene Love, so I just wanted to reassure Dave fans that they are scheduled to be guests on the Dec. 23 episode. Also on that night: actress Maggie Gyllenhaal, promoting her new film "Crazy Heart." (Edited 12/16 to add that Maggie will now be appearing on Monday's show, and Alec Baldwin is due to take her place on Wednesday.)

Here's a 1995 clip of Love performing "Christmas (Baby, Please Come Home") on "Late Show":

Colbert's new nemesis: How do you pronounce "DeSeve"?

On last night's "Colbert Report," Stephen featured a "Who's Attacking Me Now?" segment which took to task White House advisor G. Edward DeSeve. While poking fun at the administration's Recovery.gov web site, Colbert singled out Recovery Act Coordinator G. Edward DeSeve as particularly untrustworthy, pronouncing his last name as "Deceive."

A few days ago, DeSeve struck back, referring to the Comedy Central host as "Stefan Colburt." "Not only did he call me out, but he perverted the pronunciation of my name," said DeSeve, perverting the pronunciation of Colbert's name.

"You're just steamed because I nailed you hot and hard, and neither Stephen Colbert or Stefan Colburt back down," the faux pundit fired back. But how do you pronounce DeSeve? It took some Internet searching, but I finally found a 2002 interview with DeSeve, then a professor at the University of Maryland, from NPR's "Talk of the Nation." Host Neal Conan introduced "Ed DeSeve," pronouncing "Seve" in such a way that it rhymes with the first syllable of "heaven" or "Kevin" -- or like "seven" without the "n."

You're welcome, G.E.D.

Bonnie Hunt: Saying goodbye to her talk show?

Just a couple hours ago, my husband and I were watching a TiVo'd episode of "The Bonnie Hunt Show" -- we're not regular viewers, but recorded it today because one of our favorite comedians, Patton Oswalt, was on. "This show is really cheap-looking, like something on public access," said my spouse. (It didn't help that Oswalt was promoting a movie, "Big Fan," which currently exists in something of a netherworld -- no longer in theaters, not yet out on DVD.) Hunt herself is a reliably good talk show guest and has a pleasant personality, but the program never seemed to catch on. Another likable blonde, Ellen DeGeneres, gets all the daytime buzz.

And now, TV blogger Josef Adalian is reporting that "The Bonnie Hunt Show" will finish out its second season, but after that, it's bye-bye Bonnie. "Bonnie Hunt has told her staffers that her daytime talk show will end its two-season run in September," he reports. "Indeed, many syndicated insiders have considered 'Bonnie' a dead show walking since the middle of last season, when it became clear that the show's ratings weren't improving." In addition, stations airing "Bonnie" must pay a licensing fee to producer Warner Bros., instead of the more desirable barter fee (stations would rather not pay up front for a show, especially one like "Bonnie" that draws middling ratings; with the barter system, they split ad revenues with the syndicator).

Adalian states that the show's ratings haven't improved -- "Bonnie" has averaged around a 0.9 rating this fall, the same as last year. By comparison, "Ellen" scored a 2.3 in the same period, according to Broadcasting & Cable.

Jimmy Kimmel: Costco cover boy

Talk Show News always likes to spotlight the latest magazine covers featuring late night stars. So far, we've seen hosts on the covers of publications like Playboy, Entertainment Weekly and Time. Maybe membership warehouse store Costco's magazine, The Costco Connection, doesn't have the same prestige, but Jimmy Kimmel is a self-described Costco fanatic and had even expressed the desire on his show to have his mug on the cover.

The article, which is available online for non-members, features Kimmel's shopping tips and musings on his love for the store. "This is my Disneyland," Jimmy told reporter Steve Fisher. "This is where I realize it's great to be an American, when I walk through Costco." Kimmel, a member since 1994, reveals that he bought his ex-wife's engagement ring at the store, and says his last wish is to be buried in a Costco casket.