After conquering stand-up, prime-time TV and even a kidney transplant in 2005, George Lopez takes on late night with his new gabfest, "Lopez Tonight," airing Mondays through Thursdays on TBS (11 p.m. ET/PT). Lopez, 48, fills us in on what he has been up to and shares his hopes for his latest endeavor.

Would you have done a 10 p.m. slot, like Jay Leno?
I would have declined it -- being up against established shows with a story arc like "CSI" ["Miami" and "NY"]. It's a tough time [slot] to do a show. Jay would be welcome to be a guest on my show.

How will "Lopez Tonight" be different?
My appearance alone differentiates me from the other hosts. Leno, Letterman, Conan and Jon Stewart are really fighting over a small piece of what's there as far as an audience goes. But it doesn't speak to the whole pie. I can create a new audience and have it all coexist. There's more pie in the blend of the United States that I saw when I was campaigning for Barack Obama. He was inspiring all people.

President Obama even stars in a promo for your show. What would you ask him if he's a guest?
I don't believe it's possible to fly the leader of the free world to L.A. just to do a talk show. But my curiosity would be about what he does when he's not leading the country.

What about having your Hollywood golf buddies on the show?
I recently saw Hugh Grant [at a charity tournament]. We talked, but I never mentioned it. We have a friendship -- camaraderie. If he hears about it, it's his decision. I'm not out saying, "Hey, you've got to do my show." I'm not comfortable with that. If it's good, they'll want to come on.

You've talked about how you came from nothing, and now you golf with Clint Eastwood.
Sometimes when we're driving back home, I look over and it's Clint Eastwood, and there's always part of me that's a little taken aback. I was a fan before I was a friend. Golf is a game that humbles the rich as well as the poor. You can be good and come from nothing and be bad and come from everything. I didn't have a parental figure to show me what I was doing wrong. Golf made me look at my life and all the flaws that the game reveals.

Has your kidney transplant inspired you to give back more?
My wife and I became spokespeople for the National Kidney Foundation. Having a young daughter who's healthy and seeing those kids who are not well is one of the saddest things. You can help a little but can't heal. Before I was diagnosed, I thought I would live to be old, but being sick snaps you into the reality that you're not going to live forever.