Male Boldness Pattern

The Leno/Conan saga is mainly about ego, about two guys who have jockeyed for position. Right now Conan looks better than Leno, because he seems more like a victim of execs, and is using that for maximum (perhaps excessive) comic effect. But the alpha-male, "Le Tonight Show, c'est moi" ego is the same. It's about both publicly demanding the spotlight as something they've "earned." Personally, I would have expected a huge buyout to soften Conan's outrage a little. Imagine what he'd have done if he were dismissed like most mortals are.