Remember when legends went out with class?

When Joe Montana announced his retirement, he meant it. Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show career ended with two simple, touching farewell episodes. When we look back to the golden days of of the Carsons and Montanas, we remember their milestones — not their second and third comeback attempts, their line-up shuffles, or their “will they or won’t they” press conferences.

They were great. They were legends.

And they didn’t mess around with things like that.

We’re pretty sure Carson would be disappointed to see the circus his Tonight Show has become. People are laughing — but the laughter has a bitter ring.

Whose fault is it? We don’t know. Maybe it’s Jay Leno’s, for not accepting that his time as a late-night comedian is running out — or for not being a good enough “lead-in” for Conan O’Brien’s Tonight Show.

Maybe it’s Conan’s, for not giving NBC enough confidence to commit to his show.

OK, it probably isn’t Conan’s fault. In fact, we’ll bet it’s NBC head Jeff Zucker’s fault, for being so damn wishy-washy. You want to promise the Tonight Show to Conan? Fine. Then you need to commit to Conan.

And for God’s sake, don’t keep Leno hanging around like a pathetic ex-boyfriend you’re stringing along on the side, just in case it doesn’t work out with the guy you’re almost pretty sure you’re going to stay with.

Come on, NBC. Think about it. You don’t tell Brett Favre he’s still on the team, but he can only play second-string because you’ve promised the starter spot to Aaron Rodgers.

It doesn’t matter that Favre is in the twilight of his career. You just don’t do it.

He’s Brett freaking Favre.

And you don’t put up a bunch of red tape to prevent Favre from going to another team in the NFC North for a year.

Because when that year is up, he’ll lead the Vikings to a 12-4 record, and they’ll advance in the playoffs while you get knocked out by the Arizona Cardinals in the last few seconds of the first round game.

Do you get it, NBC? If you’re so afraid to let Leno go to another network, why snatch away his Tonight Show spot? If you think he’s strong enough to compete with Conan, why shove him into a weak primetime show? You just don’t do that.

He’s Jay freaking Leno.

What we have here now, is what you might call a mess. Leno’s legacy is marred. Conan must sacrifice either his principles or his shot at hosting the Tonight Show. And poor Jimmy Fallon has to continue to hope no one notices he’s not funny enough to have his own show.

When did the retirement fake-out become the norm? Why don’t people take a lesson from Michael Jordan and retire with dignity…and then switch to baseball, and then come back to basketball — and then really retire…and come back for a stint with the — oh. Maybe he’s not a great example.

We applaud Conan O’Brien for his refusal to participate in what he called, in a written statement, the “destruction” of an American tradition. As he stated, the Tonight Show has aired directly after the evening news for 60 years.

The Tonight Show has become, in its own right, a legend of Johnny Carson proportions. You don’t mess around with that to make room for another show and compensate for poor business decisions.

You just can’t do that.

It’s the freaking Tonight Show.