Minnesota comic Chloe Radcliffe lands job with 'The Tonight Show'

Chloe Radcliffe's decision to leave Minnesota for New York is paying off -- big time.

On Monday, the fast-rising comic started her gig as the newest writer for "The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon."

Radcliffe isn't exactly sure how she initially impressed the producers, but she suspects it had something to do with her participation in NBC's highly selective Late Night Writers Workshop.

"It was fast and a little mysterious," Radcliffe said by phone from her office, just a few hours after arriving at work for the first time. The comic, who just had a piece published by the New Yorker, thinks her bubbly on-stage personality matches up well with the show's over-all tone.

"I'm very smiley and the whole team here is smiley," she said.

Radcliffe had to be feeling optimistic about her chances during the job interview when Fallon himself unexpectedly popped by.

"He said, 'Nice to meet you. You're so funny," she said. "I said, 'Oh, you're so funny!'"

The new gig, which consists of pitching jokes 60 hours a week, will cut into her stand-up time. She's already had to cancel two previously scheduled road shows. But she's still planning on performing in mid-February at Minneapolis's Comedy Corner Underground with her boyfriend, Jeff Scheen.