Andy Richter of 'Late Night' turns in

NEW YORK - A lot of people who stay up late to watch "Late Night With Conan O'Brien" will tell you a big reason is to see the show's second banana, Andy Richter. As of Friday, those fans will have one fewer reason to watch. After spending seven years and 1,275 broadcast hours on "Late Night" (11:35 p.m., Channel 41), Richter is leaving the nightly grind to pursue other ventures. "I want to develop a show of my own," Richter said in an interview last week. "But I'm in no hurry to do that. The most pressing thing for me is that I have a lazy summer, take it easy a little while. There's no big project. Part of the reason I'm doing this is to take a break." The parting, which actually was announced on the show last August, is by all accounts an amicable one. No one is slated to take Richter's place, now or ever, according to the executive producer, Jeff Ross. As the designated sidekick, Richter has long been considered the show's X-factor. A genius at spontaneous response, he's been known to save a dying interview, or rescue a tongue-tied O'Brien, with a single scintillating bon mot or unexpected observation. Not bad for someone who had the role thrust upon him only days before the show launched. When Richter was hired in 1993, it was to write and produce the bits that O'Brien starred in. But in time Andy also became a star, chatting with celebrities at the Grammys or playing host to his own daytime talk-show parody, "Andi." Many people think of him as a sidekick in the mold of Ed McMahon, David Letterman band leader Paul Shaffer and even Regis Philbin, who once was Joey Bishop's right hand at ABC. True, Richter sits at O'Brien's right hand, and the two banter near the beginning of every broadcast. But any similarities to Ed McMahon end there. Richter was in nearly every respect O'Brien's peer. He was allowed to one-up the host on the air and to disagree with him on decisions behind the scenes. By contrast, McMahon was told early in the run of "The Tonight Show" to tone down his personality because it clashed with that of "Mr. Carson." Richter at first was inserted as an experiment to see if having someone to talk with would calm the high-strung O'Brien. Neither man had appeared much on camera before, but in no time they found their comfort level. The first couple of seasons were stressful on the show's staff, who were hammered by an unfriendly press and shadowed constantly by nervous NBC executives. The network didn't commit long-term to the show until well into its second season. And Richter was singled out for ridicule by some TV critics. One said he was "one of only a few people on TV who make Ed McMahon look like a bundle of talent." But like the rest of the staff, Richter responded by pushing the comedy output to exhausting levels. Today the show continues to have some of TV's sharpest comedy writing, but back then everybody made a point of churning out as much of it as possible. "I used to work one to two weekends a month, when my wife wouldn't see me at all," Richter said. "I would be flying out to the Arkansas State Fair, or the Mets training camp, or the Grammys. I would be shooting the segment, getting home, editing the segment and all the while doing the show every night. I can't imagine working that hard again." Richter said he will miss the immediacy of "Late Night," where "I can have an idea today and it will be on the air Tuesday." The downside was the idea couldn't cost any money or take much time to create. If it doesn't involve retouched photographs or costumes borrowed from "Saturday Night Live," chances are "Late Night" won't do it. "It would be nice to have some big production values," Richter said. "It would be nice to write a sketch about knights in shining armor and actually be able to have knights in shining armor." But after 1,275 tapings of "Late Night," what would really be nice for Andy Richter is getting some sleep. To reach Aaron Barnhart, phone (816) 234-4790 or visit the TVBarn Web site at www.tvbarn.com @ART CAPTION:Andy Richter @ART:Photo (color) >>>