Heeeere's Jimmy Fallon …

With the news having already leaked, NBC’s press conference Monday wasn’t actually about announcing Jimmy Fallon as a successor to host “Late Night,” taking over when Conan O’Brien assumes command of “The Tonight Show” in 2009.

The conference was more to present Fallon to the media. Reporters already know him from his six seasons on “Saturday Night Live” and, to a much lesser extent, a handful of movie titles. But they don’t know him as a late-night host. (Pictured: Jimmy Fallon, right, with producer Lorne Michaels)

So here was Fallon – in a suit and tie he bought special for the occasion, stumbling over his microphone stand, taking questions, coming across as self-deprecating, modest and likeably host-idential.

During one exchange, a reporter skeptically asked why Fallon and every other talk show host declares that they’ve had a dream since kindergarten to host their own show. Where is this kindergarten, exactly?

Fallon could have taken offense at the question, since its subtext is “you’re lying about your sincerity for wanting this job.”

Instead, Fallon said:

“It’s a magical kindergarten.”

[Modest chuckle from the reporters]

Fallon quickly tried again: “It’s taught by a talking unicorn.”

[Another modest chuckle]

And again: “We’re doing a show around it … a spinoff … a morning show.”

[Modest chuckle]

And again: “We’re probably going to add it on to ‘The Today Show’ as its eighth hour.”

[Big laugh]

“We’re going to see if Kathie Lee  can stick around and she probably will.”

[Another big laugh]

So … Fallon took a left-field lemon of a question and kept riffing on it until he found a joke that would work in the room -- in this case, a room full of reporters, where mocking a morning news show and its co-host is very much on our wavelength. This bodes well.

After the conference, a few reporters said they never particularly liked Fallon, but could now see him in the roll as a late-night host. NBC’s pick felt like it now made sense. And that was the whole point of the press conference.