Conan Asks A Film Archivist To Doctor His Childhood Home Videos | Conan O'Brien Needs A Fan

You know, it's so funny cuz I was told. just before I got on with you that I've. met this gentleman before this Joey guy. and I thought, well, I won't remember. that cuz I meet so many people all the. time and then. someone said, yeah, you were at a. bookstore in Cambridge, Mass and he took. a quick film of you and I remembered it. cuz it was so unusual. You were very. nice and you said, hey Conan, nice to. meet you. Can I take a quick film of you.

and you held up a very cool home movie. camera. Yes. >> Oh, what? Look at that. >> one. What what year is that from? Maybe. 75. >> Maybe 1975. Yeah, I remember you holding. that up and taking a film of me. I don't. remember what I did, but I was really. intrigued because, you know, I'm fine. doing selfies and stuff like that, but. you held up this very cool home movie. camera and I love that you. walked the earth like Johnny Appleseed. taking little clips of people.

>> Yeah. We got um. this photo, too. Oh, there you go. What did you do with. my clip and can I sue you? >> [laughter]. >> I've been sued before, so I don't know. how much you're going to get from me. >> Well, I see some cool stuff behind you. and I want it. What did you end up doing. with that clip? Did you. release it anywhere or is it just in. your vault? >> I'm using it for the film about my life. Is that true? Yeah. Okay. Well, I'd like. to see a piece of that when it comes. out, you know. >> [laughter]. >> You'll have to wait a few years. That's. okay. I'm excited about that. All right,

tell us about yourself, Joey. It says. here that you're a film. preservationist. You're in Toronto right. now. There are obviously film. preservationists that say work on. the director's cut of Lawrence of Arabia. and try and restore it. You've had some. experience with that, but mostly you. focus on people's home movies. Is that. correct? That's right. I love home. movies so much. And you love them, why? I think I think the micro history is so. much more telling and and fascinating. than.

macrohistory. I mean I know you studied. history, so I think they're one of the. coolest historical documents to ever. exist and uh there's so much. there's there are so many universal. themes. in home movies, but then there's so many. like little individual things that you. can tell just about a a family or or a. you know, a relationship dynamics and I. don't know, it's just really beautiful. I love seeing you know, home movies from.

the 1930s, the 1940s, 50s, 60s because I. know what you're saying. You can read. about history, but when you see. someone's grainy old footage of their. Christmas and you really see what people. are wearing, what the furniture looks. like, how many like electrical cords are. going into the wall in some unsafe way. >> [laughter]. >> And I'm just Well, yeah, you just you. just see these little things that don't. exist now. >> Yeah, yeah, yeah. >> And you see mannerisms and also you see.

uh I think people have become very. uh media savvy and camera savvy and you. know, everyone has a has a has a video. device in their pocket right now, their. phone and everybody's very aware and. knows how to behave and there's a real. innocence when you see that old footage. People wave at the camera, they're. excited and I love I'm addicted to um.

Instagram is always serving me up film. that was taken in like 1903. in New York because I just look at how. people walk, how they dress, um the kind. of and they're very they're kind of shy, but sometimes they're very excited. They're not knowing and ironic and. cynical about the camera the way people. can be now. Is that true? I think that's. pretty true. Yeah, I was watching the Mel Brooks. documentary um which you did.

great interviews for and it's just so. fascinating to see. like Mel Brooks shooting super 8 footage. on the beach and all the people behind. him are so excited and they're waving. and people are smiling and today people. get so annoyed. They don't know what. you're going to do with the footage and. it's just like people are oversaturated. with. video content, I guess. It doesn't feel. like it's not special anymore. Whereas. when you look at really old home movie. footage, there's kind of a oh wow, they've got a moving camera.

And you know, even when because the. Kennedy family uh it was a well very. wealthy family and Joe Kennedy senior. worked in Hollywood making motion. pictures, he had access to really nice. color. film cameras and so there's all this. really cool footage of. you know John F. Kennedy and his. brothers and sisters goofing around in. front of a a really great uh color film. camera in the late 30s and early 40s and.

you. you can exactly be there. You know, you. can be there. A lot of them are taken in. Florida and you're just like oh wow, I. am there. I am seeing exactly what's. happening. You're not removed from it. You're you're in that moment. It feels. like being in the present even though. you're. transporting yourself to the past or. feel. I. rarely feel such a strong sense of. presence than when I'm. watching home movies. So people will. take their home movies, they'll bring. them to you.

and sometimes they have odd requests, don't they? Some people have bad. relationships with their siblings. So uh I've had a few people. say uh can you cut my sister out of this. footage? She's a No, we can't do. that. Can you do that? >> I would I mean that's. First of all, you can do it. >> but I can do it. Oh my god. >> Now, when you say cut them out, you mean. you you remove those piece of film or. you do some AI trick where you remove. their image and replace it with a.

refrigerator? >> [laughter]. >> I it's it's uh I spend a a very long. time figuring out exactly how to crop. the images. or mirror the images so that. I can get just the the person who gave. me the footage and like their parents. who have passed away and the sister. might be on the side and uh sometimes I. make the the edges fuzzy to get Oh my. god. >> their. their faces. Do you ever add like. instead of cutting them out, add devil. horns? >> [laughter]. >> Yeah.

>> a ton of requests. Yeah, devil horns, a. Hitler mustache to like a brother or a. sister, you know. >> [laughter]. >> Uh that is so strange. >> you'd want to cut out all all your. siblings so you could live out your. fantasies of being an only child. >> Yeah. [laughter] Yeah. And then add. multiple parents that all love me. >> [laughter]. >> And parents from like Leave It to. Beaver, The Brady Bunch, everyone just. hundreds of parents that love just.

filled with adoration. >> Just all these fictitious characters. >> like a Jesus halo behind my head. >> [laughter]. >> It'd be funny to get a request to give. you different parents. Yeah. Yeah. That's very strange. I'm did. >> [laughter]. >> did very much love my parents, so I. won't be doing that. And my siblings, I. will say, so won't be doing any of that, but I you know, it's so fascinating to. me how you then get dragged into the. pettiness of the people. >> Yeah. Like take this person out or what. about you know, hey, I I had some acne.

back then. Fix that. Do they ever say. that? >> [laughter]. >> I've never gotten that, but I'll do my. best with that Would I have to do that. for you? >> Oh god, no. Pristine skin, all that. Be. like, give me a tan.". >> Yeah, give me a tan. >> [laughter]. >> Can you give me really good upper body? Is there a way that you can on film. [laughter] make me go through puberty at. like 13 or 14 as opposed TO 19? >> OH. >> [laughter].

>> WHAT? DID YOU REALLY. >> JOKE, SONA. >> know if you just shot up really late and. your voice changed really. >> up late. >> That's okay. >> voice hasn't changed yet, so. >> [laughter]. >> what do you mean my voice changed? Did. you Have you seen it change yet? I'm. still waiting. Still waiting for these testicles to. show [laughter] up. Can you have MY TESTICLES DESCEND ON. CAMERA, JOEY? >> [laughter]. >> JOEY? I want those things to drop during the. Carter administration. During the choir footage? >> [laughter].

>> Exactly. Oh my god. Do you. So, it's so funny that you've that. you've contacted us and that we had this. interaction, which I remember, and I. think that's so cool. You always have. that very cool 1970s. film camera with you. Do you. You don't shoot everybody, but you must. see particular people and you just ask. them, "Hey, is it okay if I take some. footage of you?". >> Yeah. And are they They're mostly happy.

to do that? >> Everyone is happy. I've never had anyone. It's kind of the opposite reaction to. the cell phone footage. People are. pretty excited to. be shot on film. I guess it's still a. novel experience, so. Also, they. probably think. You know, you can do so much malicious. stuff with. you know, footage that's taken on a. phone. You can add things. You can take. it out of context, but. you don't think that when someone your. camera is so cool and retro and.

adorable, you don't feel that that's. something that you could do with that. I. mean, I'm sure you could, but it it. feels like it's You're coming from a. really friendly, good place, which is. very Canadian of you. >> [laughter]. >> Thank you. Um. >> Yeah, he doesn't seem like a threat. I just remembered I remember what I did. with the footage. Of me? It's actually. It's at the Academy Film Archive in LA. What? The film that you took of me? Yeah, the home movie footage. You're. kidding. Is that a joke? >> uh. No, I was a film archivist at the uh. Academy. I did an internship there as a.

home movie archivist. Oh, wow. >> And so they acquired my home movies at. the end of the summer and they they have. this whole uh Joey Luftback collection. That's so cool. So you're preserved. forever. If If you never hosted the. Oscars, you would still be in the. Academy. [laughter] Hey, I wasted my. time. It's all I'm aiming for. That is so. amazing. Uh so, while you were working. there, did you get to look at any There. must be stuff that you had access to. >> Oh, so much. >> during the brief time that you were. working for the Academy that you were.

able to see. What did you get to see. that really, you know, stands out? >> Alfred Hitchcock's home movies. No. >> Pretty amazing. There's footage of him riding a like a. tricycle. Wow. >> It's pretty funny. >> That's a big tricycle. >> [laughter]. >> Yeah. Yeah. >> Steel reinforced. I think it was his. kids. It was really small. >> Made by the US Army Corps of Engineers. >> [laughter]. >> Yeah, Orson Welles on a pogo stick. Again, US Army Corps of Engineers. [laughter]. 700 people were killed the day he went.

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