“I think it’s a bad move,” Lange said during an appearance on Late Night With Conan O’Brien in 2008. “I would have rooted for that bobblehead Leno to stay longer.”

O’Brien is embroiled in a bitter dispute with NBC, which decided to move Jay Leno back to the 11:35 p.m. timeslot after pulling the plug on his primetime variety show. O’Brien — a former television writer who has been in business with the network for 16 years, decided to leave The Peacock rather than push his show back a half hour.

“Mr. Lange was found by his mother at 9:36 a.m. on Saturday,” Hoboken Police Det. Lt. Mark Dompetello told E! News today. “She called 911 when she found him in a pool of blood. He was semiconscious [and] then became unconscious. Our medics came. Apparently he had nine self-inflicted knife wounds, and it was ruled to be an apparent attempted suicide. There’s no active criminal investigation.”

The tragic comedian has battled depression, weight problems, and drug and alcohol addiction for the better part of his life. This suicide attempt by Artie was not his first. In his book, Too Fat To Fish, the Stern colleague details attempting suicide back in 1995 by overdosing on thirty pills of Resterol (a sleep aid), Excedrin PM, and a pint of whiskey.

Hopefully, this time Artie will get the help he needs.

Lange reportedly stabbed himself multiple times in his Hoboken apartment over the weekend and was bleeding profusely by the time he was found by his grief-stricken mother on Saturday afternoon. Lange has a history of drug addiction and was collared on DUI charges in the Garden State last summer.

The comic has been absent from his post as Stern’s sidekick since early December. Artie also cancelled a number of stand-up gigs in the weeks leading up to the alleged suicide attempt. Despite his mysterious disappearance from the public eye, on Monday, shock jock Stern praised Lange’s strength and ensured viewers that the star has not be fired from the Sirius XM show.

“We all have our demons,” Stern said on-air this week. “Artie has given this show tremendous moments of great comedy. He’s a tremendous contributor. He is a good man. Don’t forget how great he is.”

Stern wouldn’t reveal why Lange has been hospitalized or why he’s been mysteriously absent from the show for several weeks, saying only that he is respecting a request for privacy from Artie’s family. Howard did, however, deny reports that Artie is leaving the show and being replaced by Jim Breuer.

“We all have our demons,” said Stern, referring to the comedian’s well-publicized battles with addiction. “Artie has given this show tremendous moments of great comedy. He’s a tremendous contributor. He is a good man. Don’t forget how great he is.”

Lange — a Howard Stern sidekick with a history of substance abuse issues and DUI arrests — was rushed to a hospital just outside New York City for undisclosed reasons early Saturday.

“I can confirm that Artie is in the hospital. Artie has chosen to keep all information on this matter between him and his doctor. There will be no further comment,” a rep for Lange said over the weekend.

Lange took a leave of absence from Stern’s Sirius-XM radio program in the days leading up to the show’s two-week holiday break last month. He also cancelled several stand-up gigs in recent weeks, including a New Year’s Eve engagement.The Howard Stern Show is scheduled to return live on Monday.