Steven Wright & Conan On How Boston Has Changed | Conan O'Brien Needs A Friend

earlier in my life when I would think. all of these strange things and I love. to cartoon and draw oh I didn't know I. was not a I could I couldn't draw. or I never really tried that hard to. draw realistically or depict something. but lots of cartoons and lots of like I. would draw little silly characters and I. would make cartoons and that's fine. answer your phone. um no I'm I'm clearly I'm a priority you. would think I was shutting it off but I. want to see what this no I said. I shut it off.

the call and it was a Spam call when I'm. working with the guy what's involved I. don't know. I don't need blind. hold on wait a minute tell me more and. I'm going on and on about the stew still. um. but what I'm saying is I'm constantly uh. any anyone who's in this business and. and isn't uh realized that. um you know it is a complete.

crazy privilege to get to get any money. or rent or mortgage payment any money. that you can make uh in this world I. think I mean Sona you have a really good. perspective on it because you came at. this from this crazy angle and. um and now it's just well I gotta go in. and talk to Steven Wright I know and. it's. I I can't believe it like I I I would.

pay to do this I can't believe I'm glad. you said that oh no no no no no no no no. you should pay okay I forget I said you. know no no no no no you're right come on. you know I'm curious like I know I'm. very grateful I also think there's. something about. maybe I'd feel differently if I had. grown up in Los Angeles or grown up. around this but. it's very hard for me to explain to. people how Massachusetts and especially. the era that we grew up in.

um 60s 70s coming of age in that time. there was Show Business was further. removed from not just Massachusetts but. Massachusetts Vermont New Hampshire. Rhode Island that area the last thing in. the world you ever thought Could Happen. was that you could it be in Show. Business I saw no evidence that show. business existed I didn't see famous. people I didn't know anybody who was. related you know my dad's a fake.

scientist at the bus station like that. you never thought. that that you would get any chance uh. and I think it's a different world now. people people think about things. differently and Boston looks so. different now I mean the look at movies. from the 60s and 70s that depict Boston. look at the verdict look at. um uh friends of Eddie Coyle look at. these movies that show Boston in the. seven it's so gray and it's so.

unappealing in so many ways and kind of. depressed so real and so real and kind. of grittiness yeah no slickness at all. and then I remember leaving coming to La. getting involved in other stuff in my. career and then coming back to Boston in. the late 80s. and suddenly there's like panquatidians. everywhere and people were saying would. you like a crepe and I was like this is. not the Boston I grew up in you can go. back and look at those movies and I go.

like that's the boss that's it cars that. are rusted out yeah everyone's wearing a. gray jacket policemen are all really. heavy their belts are like around their. nipples and they're directing traffic. but I don't think they've ever shot a. gun in their life nobody's you know. people people aren't that nice it's cold. the snow all turns right away. right away somehow that all changed hey. whether you're stuck in traffic or. streaming your favorite podcasts that's.

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yeah now you've never read a book no no. books are overrated but uh and I listen. to this podcast on a hike fantastic up. in the mountains you'd listen to our. podcast I will contract you work here. yeah I have to I have to I have to. listen to it but it's great and and. honestly like the coverage is is insane. uh and yeah I love the service I love. the phone it's fantastic it's experience. for yourself how T-Mobile is America's. largest and fastest 5G Network you can't.

top them I like all the G's you bet you. do find out more at t-mobile.com Cy. that's. s-e-e-w-h-y fastest based on median. overall combined 5G speeds according to. analysis by UCLA of speed test. intelligence data 4. Q4 2022 good wow that's incredible yeah. I said exactly what they wanted. 5G details at. t-mobile.com it's just like a whole.

different vibe yeah and I think that. realness that you just described. makes us appreciate what do you mean you. you're gonna go do this show and that's. how you're gonna pay the rent what do. you mean because all you see is people. doing that's real like you know jobs. that's why I appreciate it. all the time it's like a it's playing. don't you think this is playing oh it's. it's totally playing it's like being in.

five or ten and you're finger painting. but with words yeah oh imagine this oh. imagine you know you're in the cafeteria. you're saying to your friend right and. then that's this becomes your career now. what do you prefer obviously you're very. comfortable on a stage you're great on a. stage. do you like being up in front of people. or do you prefer the part where you're. crafting it uh. uh two different things writing them in. cereal and then performing the material. I I the the right the performance is.

very intense to me even still now I mean. I'm not nervous but it's like walking a. tightrope. the way I it's like you were running. across a lake of thin ice and you're. trying to get to the other side without. falling through during the length of the. show right that's very intense I would. say that the the writing is more of a. it's enjoyable it has no intensity. you just mind in your own business and.

then something happens how do you feel. about being in front of the audience I. can't imagine on television night after. night after night how you know how how. it was so funny because there's a one of. the great comedy writers of all time. George Meyer worked at The Simpsons when. I was there and he's you know legendary. uh brilliant guy and he had worked on. the early Letterman show. and I was being considered as possibly. being one of the people who might.

replace Letterman and my name is. starting to show up in the trades and. you know my friend I'm working at The. Simpsons and my friends are like this is. crazy this is insane and when I I know I. don't think it's gonna happen but it's. crazy and they're like man but but. you're a funny guy this could be a funny. show I think you could do it and they're. all saying no no I think you could do it. I remember George Meyer I went out in. the parking lot and George Meyer was. walking with me. it's like oh man I wouldn't do it if I. were to you and I said really and this. didn't come from anything but he was. just being honest and he went I worked.

on one of those shows every day feed the. dragon. feed the dragon every day and he was. like don't do it it'll ruin your life. he wasn't wrong but. I'm also was the best thing I ever did. and and what I found was this magical. thing I realized very early on doing an. hour a day I remember the worst thing. about this job is that you have to do it. every day forever the best thing about.

this job is that you get to do it every. day for an hour because when you crank. up the volume like that. you start to uh over time. um think. what the hell what the let's give. it a shot that's a you know masturbating. bear let's give it a shot you know uh. dog puppet that insults people and says. you suck. um I want to poop on you let's try it I. don't know how you did it I don't know.

how you did that over and over and over. and over uh well my as I said to. somebody once they said Jesus you know. four thousand three hundred something. shows. what's the what's how did you do it and. I said the trick is. some of them aren't very good. that's just kind of true like yeah there. you you look at some and you go oh I see. how he did it that wasn't so good but we. always tried.