Why do all night show hosts sit and have their desk to the left of the interviewee?

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• slazer2au@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  That’s an American thing right?

  Have a look at Graham Norton, Parkinsons, The Last Leg, or The Jonathan Ross Show. People all over the studio.

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• cattywampas@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Probably because that’s how The Tonight Show Starting Johnny Carson was set up, and subsequent late night talk shows have generally emulated its style and setup.

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  • JohnnyEnzyme@piefed.social ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Hmm… did the Tonight Show desk-format change from what Steve Allen originally set up, or the Jack Paar period, before Carson came along?

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    • homesweethomeMrL@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Jack Paar Tonight show

      Image

      Steve Allen Tonight show

      Image

      Both of which seem to have had a second chair to their left for guests or co-hosts, and the chair we think of today for the guest was the overflow. Possibly Carson standardized it.

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• mech@feddit.org ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  The honored guest always sits to the right of the host.
  It’s been like this in European culture since the middle ages, and possibly much longer.

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  • 100_kg_90_de_belin@feddit.it ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    The good thief was crucified to Jesus’s right and the other thief was crucified to his left, so there was probably some symbolism in Semitic cultures too.

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• JohnnyEnzyme@piefed.social ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Could be influenced by the way in English (and various Western languages), script flows from left to right, which has some influence in our scanning things left to right in general, such as imagery, comics, etc. In such a scenario, the host is like the familiar anchor at the end of the sentence.

  Not saying this is the only or prime reason, but I imagine it plays a part.

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  • frankPodmore@slrpnk.net ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Supposedly this is also the reason that most 2D platforming videogames scroll left-to-right.

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• TachyonTele@piefed.social ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Studies have shown that turning left during conversation puts you at a subconscious disadvantage. While turning or facing someone to your right adds dominance to what you are- im making this all up.

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  • Carnelian@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Hey can we actually start spreading this around? I have this amazing mental image of some self proclaimed alpha male type trying to get on my right side to talk down to me but I just keep rotating in place so he ends up circling me like a little puppy

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    • TachyonTele@piefed.social ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Spread the word my brothers. Preach!

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  • vogi@piefed.social ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Coworker of mine told me about "The Invariant Right" –the concept of shoppers going always right, so you might be onto something. It could however all be made up as well.

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    • TachyonTele@piefed.social ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      I wonder if that’s true in counties that drive on the left side of the road

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  • starlinguk@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    And yet, the best show is Graham Norton’s and he sits on people’s right-hand side.

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• hesh@quokk.au ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Tradition basically

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• Semi_Hemi_Demigod@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Maybe for the same reason they have (or had) microphones on their desk: The shows started out just filming a radio program

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• DagwoodIII@piefed.social ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  https://youtu.be/zi8r5dlibW4

  Remember her from years ago. She tried to break up the monotony.

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  • OhmsLawn@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    That was very disorienting

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• anon6789@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  I always thought it stood out when flipping through the channels that Larry King was on the left of the screen. Can’t say I ever thought of him being on the other side until reading your question here, but that was the first thing that popped in my head.

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• OhmsLawn@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  I imagine it’s more natural for right-handed people to greet their guests without their back on the audience. That, and because that’s how Carson did it.

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• HubertManne@piefed.social ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  colbert and I think I have seen it with stewart to have had like a little intimate round table talk area.

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  • ripcord@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Jack parr, Tom Snyder, even Craig Ferguson for one experiment, lots of others tried different formats. They’re talking about by far the most common though.

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  • Archer@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    It was so noticeable on The Colbert Report when he was the one getting all the attention and hamming it up as he went over to his already seated guest because his character was an egomaniac. I had never thought about how strong the convention to have guests seated to the host’s right was before

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• LadyButterfly@reddthat.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  This is a really interesting question I’ve never thought of thanks for sharing it

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