# Most uncomfortable talk show moments **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 24, 2004, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840 "2004-10-24T01:50:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![moriah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b2d939/32.png) [@moriah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moriah)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2004, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/141 "2004-10-27T08:15:23Z")
> [@Diogenes the Cynic](#): > > Does anyone remember the incident between former Rams/Saints quarterback Jim Everett and Jim Rome on ESPN? > > Rome kept calling Everett “Chris” (a deliberate refernce to Chris Evert) during the interview. Everett got more and more pissed and finally made some sort of threat like, “I dare you to call me that one more time.” > > Rome said “Chris” and Everett got up and physically attacked Rome on stage- cut to commercial. Thank-you. That helps to explain a parody skit of that incident on “Cheap Seats.” To me, the linked clip makes it look fake. Everett can’t act (angry) and Rome has a cheap smile on his face. Throwing the table over is show biz. Everett grabs Rome’s collar rather than hit him. Everett then rears back like he’s going to throw a punch but aborts that move unsure if he can pull off a fake hit that doesn’t look fake and doesn’t actually land. When Everett forces Rome of the step-up stage and Rome falls backward (which looks like the one unplanned part of the performance), Everett suddenly stops being menacing and looks like he’s checking if Rome’s OK. At that point, if Everett was really going to land a hit on Rome, he would have backed off happy that Rome fell down, or he would have hit him while he was down. Since neither happened, I call fake. > [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Drew Barrymore on Letterman. What the hell was she on? > > Rosie O’Donnell’s constant whining about the money she lost on “Taboo” because people wouldn’t come see the show. Apparently she doesn’t know the first rule of investing–sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. No, the first rule of investing is: Never put your own money in the show. The second rule of investing is: _ **NEVER PUT YOUR OWN MONEY IN THE SHOW!** _ ---
**Author:** ![jellyblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e480ec/32.png) [@jellyblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jellyblue)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2004, 8:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/142 "2004-10-27T08:41:51Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Would Bill O’Reilly walking out on an interview for NPR’s “Fresh Air” count? > > I forget the name of the host…Terri something or other? > > What happened with Michael Moriarty? Her interview with Gene Simmons was vintage trainwreck, too. She actually did a pretty good job with him - he was unspeakably obnoxious, basically implying that she only disagreed with him on some outrageous point because she was in desperate need of a good f\*ck. With him, presumably :rolleyes: . Well, I’ve duly read through all 3 pages of this thread and since no one’s mentioned it: Robin Williams, anywhere, anytime, but especially during his I-just-can’t-get-enough-cocaine phase. My problem is that this stuff is so cringe-worthy that I literally cannot watch it, so I miss a lot! ---
**Author:** ![Silentgoldfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@Silentgoldfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silentgoldfish)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2004, 8:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/143 "2004-10-27T08:49:48Z")
I’ve seen Robin Williams and Meg Ryan on Parkinson, and unless they’re exceptions it seems like American celebrities don’t get British interview shows. Williams was just annoying – he stayed on the set after his interview, fair enough, but started answering the next guy’s (Stephen Fry) questions and interjecting “Funny” every chance he got. Fry was beginning to look seriously pissed! Meg Ryan was just painful though – one word answers, despite very good and probing questions, a complete inability to answer any question outright, visible uncomfortableness, and when asked, “You’re obviously uncomfortable up here, if you had continued your journalism degree and were in charge what would you do?” answered “Wrap it up.” It was a funny exchange when Parkinson asked her about the explicitness of her film though – “It’s not that explicit.” “What? You see the whole kit!” “It was such an honour working with [the director] blah blah blah”… ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2004, 9:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/144 "2004-10-27T09:14:15Z")
Joan Rivers had two really bad shows back-to-back. She had the Beastie Boys on and was visibly afraid of them (Yep, these boys were considered _dangerous_ at one time). The next night, Poison–the TV-friendly hair metal band-- did their hit song “Talk Dirty to Me” and tried to chat up Joan afterwards. Joan made their jaws drop when she tried to compliment them: “You guys are the Beastie Boys…_with manners!_” She was off the air soon afterwards. Hard to believe that this was the show the Fox Network originally built itself around. ---
**Author:** ![vanilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f19dbf/32.png) [@vanilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vanilla)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2004, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/145 "2004-10-27T13:58:30Z")
Carson on the Tonight SHow. He had on Gallagher and Chevy Chase. Gallagher just _trashed_ Chevy, insulting him left and right, while Chevy was uber polite. Totally uncomfy. ---
**Author:** ![Indygrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@Indygrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indygrrl)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2004, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/146 "2004-10-27T15:38:47Z")
> [@jellyblue](#): > > Her interview with Gene Simmons was vintage trainwreck, too. She actually did a pretty good job with him - he was unspeakably obnoxious, basically implying that she only disagreed with him on some outrageous point because she was in desperate need of a good f\*ck. With him, presumably :rolleyes: I thought that interview was f’n hilarious. Had she done any research at all on Gene Simmons, she would have known that’s how he was going to behave. Instead, she fell right into his trap and got all flustered, which is exactly what he wanted. She would have come off better had she prepared some humorous retorts to put him in his place. Gene’s pretty smart though, he’d probably be a difficult interview subject for anyone, especially Terri Gross. ---
**Author:** ![Lobelia\_Overhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/54ee81/32.png) [@Lobelia\_Overhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobelia_Overhill)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2004, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/147 "2004-10-27T21:01:44Z")
Here, in Ireland, we have the world’s longest running talk show - The Late Late Show. I haven’t watched it in years, but about 10 years ago in the first edition of that season Uncle Gaybo (Gay Burns - the former host) asked a woman in the audience something (I totally forget what the topic was) and her reply was “no fight no fuck, no fuck no fight”, the look on her face when she realised that yes, she had said that out loud, live on TV was priceless. Uncle Gaybo looked at the priest who was sitting directly behind the woman and asked what he thought? I think the woman nearly spontaneously combusted at that point Back in the days when we could watch David Letterman I remember he had that fella Shaq on as a guest. They were talking back and forth, then Dave suddenly went “oh this isn’t going anywhere” and looked away, Shaq looked at the camera stunned, there were a few minutes of stilted garbage till they cut to commercial … 😕 ---
**Author:** ![TeaElle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8491ac/32.png) [@TeaElle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TeaElle)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2004, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/148 "2004-10-27T21:59:25Z")
> [@YellowTail](#): > > There was a Letterman episode where he had the world’s fastest typist. So he pitted her against the fastest typist on his staff. In the first round, she forgot to put paper in the typewriter. So they tried again. When they finished her typing was complete gibberish because one hand was shifted to the left or right and she was typing the wrong keys. Gawd, it was hilarious! Actually, on the first round, the paper wasn’t properly inserted because she wasn’t familiar with the machine. She’d been given no advance warning that Letterman was going to engage her in this little race, had never seen the machine, etc. On the second round, she did type “gibberish” but it was because (as a non-American) she normally types on Dvorak keyboard which is, of course, an entirely different layout than the QWERTY keyboard that Letterman had provided. The poor lady was clearly mortified, then became angry because Letterman began making fun of her for something which was hardly her fault. **silentgoldfish** , Meg Ryan on Parkinson was the one moment when I prayed that his cool British reserve would fail and he’d snap and smack her in the head and say “You insolent bint! Your career is in the toilet, don’t act the primadonna with me!” She was being outrageously disrespectful, all things considered. If she didn’t want to be there, she should’ve just cancelled. ---
**Author:** ![YellowTail](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/b5ac83/32.png) [@YellowTail](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YellowTail)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2004, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/149 "2004-10-27T22:34:35Z")
> [@TeaElle](#): > > Actually, on the first round, the paper wasn’t properly inserted because she wasn’t familiar with the machine. She’d been given no advance warning that Letterman was going to engage her in this little race, had never seen the machine, etc. On the second round, she did type “gibberish” but it was because (as a non-American) she normally types on Dvorak keyboard which is, of course, an entirely different layout than the QWERTY keyboard that Letterman had provided. The poor lady was clearly mortified, then became angry because Letterman began making fun of her for something which was hardly her fault. Oh. But it was Letterman’s reactions that cracked me up. Everybody knew they were watching a train wreck happening but still couldn’t help but laugh at it. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/150 "2004-10-28T00:46:46Z")
I think someone mentioned Shirley Maclaine (sp?) on Letterman but I don’t think they mentioned her quote. “Cher was right, you are an asshole.” ---
**Author:** ![yBeayf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/e274bd/32.png) [@yBeayf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yBeayf)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/151 "2004-10-28T01:43:11Z")
> [@](#): > > I’ve long been interested, for example, in the details of Crispin Glover’s meltdown. If you’re really interested, I know there’s a video of it on ConsumptionJunction (no link, no idea where it’s buried, warning: site is incredibly not safe for work). ---
**Author:** ![tremorviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@tremorviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tremorviolet)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/152 "2004-10-28T01:59:35Z")
> [@pseudotriton ruber ruber](#): > > It would be great if people could provide links and such to some of this–I’m sure some has gotten garbled over the years, others are completely legendary, and still others are even better than our memories say. I’ve long been interested, for example, in the details of Crispin Glover’s meltdown. Don’t know about links but I actually saw the meltdown. Amazing. Crispin Glover came on wearing these really tight striped pants, big clunky black shoes,and his hair was long and stringy, hanging down in his face. He brought his collection of glass eyes to show Dave. As the interview progresses, Crispin get more and more gitated and pulls some magazine clippings from his picket. Finally, he stands and gesticulating wildly proclaims “I’m stong!” and throws a karate kick at Dave’s head with those huge shoes. Instant cut to commercial and he was gone when they came back… OK, did a search and found this [site](http://www.waxy.org/archive/2003/03/13/crispin_.shtml) which has a transcript and a link to images. It also mentions the _Consumption Junction_ video… ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/153 "2004-10-28T02:40:00Z")
Dave was quite the sport by inviting Glover back. This time he showed Dave some kind of potatoes he had collected. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/154 "2004-10-28T03:36:55Z")
> [@vanilla](#): > > Carson on the Tonight SHow. > He had on Gallagher and Chevy Chase. > Gallagher just _trashed_ Chevy, insulting him left and right, while Chevy was uber polite. > Totally uncomfy. I usually can’t stand Chevy Chase, but he really made me laugh on another episode of Carson. The other guests included Roger Ebert and Carson (or Leno? I think Carson) asked him his opinions of Chase’s movies (while Chase, the previous guest, was present). Ebert (rudely) launched into a scathing dissection of Chase’s films as if Chase wasn’t there, complimenting one or two of the early ones but then finding several very wordy ways of saying “all the rest sucked rabid wombats and he has the acting range of a smirking mannequin”. The audience laughed (uncomfortably) as Chase sat there and took it, then as Ebert’s back was turned away from him he began doing the same silent mouthing he used to do on Weekend Update and the crowd went wild. Ebert had no idea why as everytime he turned around Chase stopped. When Ebert finished, Chase made a polite “quip” that was one of the best “f\*ck you’s” in talk show history and perhaps the funniest moments in Chase’s (admittedly disintegrated) career: “So Roger… tell us about your next movie.” ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/155 "2004-10-28T04:31:50Z")
> [@Starving Artist](#): > > **AveDementia** , I show that show too, and I couldn’t agree more. If I remember correctly, John Stewart and Jeneane Garofolo were two of the comedians and I remember thinking at the time that they were two of the lamest excuses for comedians I’d ever seen. They were at least somewhat known at the time and I chalked up whatever success they had achieved as being the result of good writing more than an innate ability to be funny. This impression was further reinforced when Stewart hosted an awards show (Oscars or Emmys, I forget which) and was so bad that even he had to admit while standing at the podium that he sucked. > > And while John Stewart seems to have acheived a fair amount of success with his show since then and lots of people love him, I still haven’t seen anything to change my mind about either him or Garofolo. > > I was cheering Vanilla Ice that day. I don’t think Jon Stewart was there-Dennis Leary and Chris Kattan were, but not Stewart. (I loved when Leary made a “Don Johnson Cocktail”) ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/156 "2004-10-28T05:16:06Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > I don’t think Jon Stewart was there-Dennis Leary and Chris Kattan were, but not Stewart. (I loved when Leary made a “Don Johnson Cocktail”) **Guinistasia** , you seem to have a better recollection of it than I do so I started to acknowledge the point with my thanks for the correction, but I just couldn’t shake the feeling that Stewart was one of the offenders. (This because it was the first time I realized I just really didn’t care for him.) So I decided to Google it and it appears that Garofalo was the host, with Stewart, Leary and Kattan comprising the rest of the group. The following site has info from a variety of sources: [http://www.angelfire.com/me2/kattan1/cksnippets99.html](http://www.angelfire.com/me2/kattan1/cksnippets99.html) ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2004, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/157 "2004-10-29T00:31:58Z")
> [@Starving Artist](#): > > **Guinistasia** , you seem to have a better recollection of it than I do so I started to acknowledge the point with my thanks for the correction, but I just couldn’t shake the feeling that Stewart was one of the offenders. (This because it was the first time I realized I just really didn’t care for him.) So I decided to Google it and it appears that Garofalo was the host, with Stewart, Leary and Kattan comprising the rest of the group. The following site has info from a variety of sources: > > [http://www.angelfire.com/me2/kattan1/cksnippets99.html](http://www.angelfire.com/me2/kattan1/cksnippets99.html) Ah, then I was wrong-I couldn’t remember Jon Stewart being there. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2004, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/158 "2004-10-29T01:13:14Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Ah, then I was wrong-I couldn’t remember Jon Stewart being there. No problem…and besides, you showed me the right way to spell Stewart’s first name. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2004, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/159 "2004-10-29T01:44:42Z")
A long time ago there was a late-night news show on CBS called **Nightwatch**. Charlie Rose was the anchor. One night he interviewed John Cougar (before he was John Mellencamp), and the interview was a disaster. Rose was trying to get in his face about something - the values of rock n’ roll or something. Can’t remember what it was. But Cougar got more and more angry, until finally he swore at Rose, ripped his microphone off, and walked off the stage. It was quite something. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2004, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840/160 "2004-10-29T02:55:41Z")
I remember **Nightwatch**. One of my favorite shows for a long time was _McMillan & Wife_, and several years after it was cancelled CBS started showing it late at night. I was in hog heaven. Then CBS came up with that _Nightwatch_ piece of crap and slotted it in the same slot they had been broadcasting _McMillan & Wife_ in, and not only did they not just move it to a later time, they stopped showing altogether. Man, I was puffed! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-uncomfortable-talk-show-moments/270840.md?page=9)