I’m sure the head honchos at NBC Universal are proud as punch to be able to list HornyManatee.com on their roster of entertainment properties.

And they have an off-the-cuff, in-skit remark by Conan O’Brien to thank for it:

At the end of the skit, in a line Mr. O’Brien insists was ad-libbed, he mentioned that the voyeur (actually Mark Pender, a member of the show’s band) was watching www.hornymanatee.com. There was only one problem: as of the taping of that show, which concluded at 6:30 p.m., no such site existed. Which presented an immediate quandary for NBC: If a viewer were somehow to acquire the license to use that Internet domain name, then put something inappropriate on the site, the network could potentially be held liable for appearing to promote it.

In a pre-emptive strike inspired as much by the regulations of the Federal Communications Commission as by the laws of comedy, NBC bought the license to hornymanatee.com, for $159, after the taping of the Dec. 4 show but before it was broadcast.

The font of comedy springs from the unlikeliest sources. Not that “Late Night” is bereft of comedic material.

I’m not sure if the Horny Manatee crest is still riding as high as it was after its early December debut. I haven’t seen it mentioned on the show lately. Maybe it’s run its course.