9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(applause)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Letterman) Thank you, [br]I guess a lot of us,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
most of us, have been [br]thinking about Robin Williams.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I believe we found out a week ago[br]that he had died.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Many things come to mind [br]in a situation like this,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and, of course, more questions are [br]raised than can possibly be answered,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
but I started reflecting about it.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I knew Robin Williams for 38 years.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
38 years, which, in and of itself, [br]is crazy how time...

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(applause)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And I met him at The Comedy Store.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
He and I were kids, along [br]with Jay Leno, and Tom Dreesen

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and Tim Thomerson, and Johnny Dark,[br]and Elayne Boosler,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and on and on, and Jimmy Walker.[br]And we were all out there

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
at The Comedy Store and we wanted[br]to make people laugh.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We wanted to get on the Tonight show,[br]we wanted something because

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
we all felt that we were funny.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
In those days, we were working[br]for free drinks--

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
some were working [br]for more free drinks than others.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So you would go on stage,[br]and then you would do your little skits,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and then you would come off stage,[br]and if there was a new guy

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
coming on, you'd want to stick around[br]and make fun of the new guy.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(man off screen) Sure.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Because we were all worried[br]that somebody else is coming in

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
who's really funny, and then we'll have[br]to go back, in my case, to Indiana.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- (man off screen) Yes.[br]- (laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And I can remember the night[br]my friend George Miller

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and I, who was a very funny comic,[br]and was on this show many times,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
we were at The Comedy Store[br]and they introduced Robin Williams.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And, for some reason,[br]in the beginning he was

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
introduced as being from Scotland.[br]They said he was Scottish.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So now we're stumped.[br]We don't know.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
There's a Scottish guy, really,[br]coming to the United States?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So we were feeling pretty smug[br]about our position right away

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
because it's gonna be haggis[br]and that kind of crap.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So we're relaxed.[br]We're ready to go.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And, all of a sudden,[br]he comes up on stage

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and you know what it is.[br]It's like nothing we had

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
ever seen before.[br]Nothing we had ever imagined before.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We'd go home and are writing[br]our little jokes about stuff,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and this guy comes in [br]and we're like morning dew.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- He comes in like a hurricane.[br]- (man off screen) Yeah.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And now the longer he was on stage,[br]the worse we feel about ourselves.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And because it's not stopping!

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And then he finishes and I thought,[br]"Well, that's it. They're gonna have

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to put an end to show business[br]because what could happen after this?"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And then we get to see this[br]night after night after night,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and we didn't approach him[br]because we were afraid of him.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Honest to God. [br]You though, "Holy crap!

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
There goes my chance at show business[br]because of this guy from Scotland."

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And then, like shot out of a cannon,[br]he goes and he's on the Happy Day's show.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And then from the Happy Day's show, [br]he gets to be on Mork and Mindy.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Now there's some structure to his life.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
He's not at The Comedy Store every night[br]because he's got an actual job.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So the rest of us can pretend [br]that it never happened.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But, yet then, he goes from Mork and Mindy,[br]and then he starts making movie

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
after movie after movie.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
He's nominated four times[br]for an Academy Award.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And it wasn't really until Paul and I [br]started the NBC version of this show,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
which, by the way, [br]is still running in Mexico--

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- (man off screen) It is.[br]- (laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Very popular.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(applause)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But it wasn't until then that I[br]got to really know Robin Williams

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
because he would come on[br]to promote movies,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
or concerts or whatever [br]he was talking about,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and he was always so gracious,[br]and we would talk about the old times.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Never did he act like, "[br]Oh, I knew you guys were scared

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
because I was so good."

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And it was just a pleasure to know the guy.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And he was a gentleman and delightful,[br]and even in the old days,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
he was kind enough to ask me[br]to appear on his Mork and Mindy show.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Now this is a double edged sword.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Because he did it only [br]because he was trying

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to help other fledgling, [br]starting out comics.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- <i>Makes sense.</i>[br]- Right.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The other side of the sword is I have [br]no business being on that show.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I can't...I have no business [br]being on that show.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter and applause)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But he gave me a job!

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
In those days, [br]jobs were hard to come by,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and there I was, and I [br]was on Mork and Mindy,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and I can remember between[br]the dress rehearsal

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and the actual taping of the show,[br]the director of the program,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- Howard...Howard...Howard Shore--[br]- <i>Howard Storm.</i>

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Storm. Howard Storm comes up to me[br]and he says, "Well, you've been trying

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
all week, so this is your last chance."

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- (laughter)[br]- Oh.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So even to the detriment of the show,[br]Robin was kind enough to invite

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
me to come on because he thought,[br]"Why can't I spread this around

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and have some of my friends[br]share in my success?"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Which is exactly what he did.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
He then was on our show,[br]this show and the old show,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- a total of merely 50 times.[br]- <i>A total of 50 times?</i>

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- 50 times. 50 times.[br]- (applause)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And two things would happen[br]because Robin was on the program.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- One: I didn't have to do anything.[br]- <i>Yes.</i>

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
All I had to do was sit here[br]and watch the machine.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
<i>Yeah.</i>

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And two: People would watch.[br]If they know Robin was on the show,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the viewership would go up[br]because they wanted to see Robin.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And, believe me, that wasn't [br]just true of television.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I believe that was true [br]of the kind of guy he was.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
People were drawn to him[br]because of this electricity.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Whatever it was he radiated[br]that propelled him and powered him.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And then he came back [br]after my heart surgery,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Robin was nice enough [br]to come on that night

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and it was very, very funny[br]and very, very appropriate.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And here is a picture [br]that I will now cherish,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
even more than I had previously.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- There are four people right there.[br]- <i>Wow.</i>

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Two of which wildly funny, [br]insanely funny. Two are not.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter and applause)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Letterman) The handsome woman[br]there is Mitzi Shore.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
She owned The Comedy Store.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We all, the three of us, worked there.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I think Robin and I, it'd be [br]safe to say,we started there.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Richard Prior was already Richard Prior,[br]but he would work there

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and the guy in the middle,[br]I trimmed hedges.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- So we would like to--[br]- (applause)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We put together a segment [br]of Robin William's appearances,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and moreover, more than anything,[br]it will make you laugh

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and, really, that's what we[br]should take from this.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
He could make you laugh [br]under any circumstances.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- Here he is on our show.[br]- (applause)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It's from the Gandhi on Ice collection!

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Oh, god, how you doin', Mr. Williams?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
God, Mrs. Doubtfire is very funny.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
You know, you're much more attractive[br]as an older woman.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- (Letterman) Hold him! Hold him![br]- Okay, I got him. I GOT HIM!

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- Alright![br]- (Williams) TAKE IT EASY, DAMMIT!

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- Our next--[br]- It's my first day on the job!

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Aren't you glad you didn't [br]see this in the surgery?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- "Hey, Dave! It's me!"[br]- (laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- Take it's gonna be real funny.[br]- (laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Well, you had a television show,[br]Mork and Mindy.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- Nice.[br]- And the producers,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
for some unknown reason,[br]invited me for a little thing on the show.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- That's right! You played a--[br]- I've never seen anything.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I'm not bringing myself [br]to watch it until tonight.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- You have it here?![br]- (laughter and cheering)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Somebody has stolen my Rolls-Royce!

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Well, don't worry, Ellsworth.[br]Losing your Rolls-Royce is a concept.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- Getting it back is a reality.[br]- <i>(laughter)</i>

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It's amazing when you win the Academy Award,[br]you have about a week

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
where everyone's like, [br]"Hey, Good Will Hunting! Way to go.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Good Will Hunting, [br]Academy Award. Way to go."

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And two weeks later, it's like,[br]"Hey, Mork! How are ya'?"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(laughter)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(reflective music)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(applause)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
God bless you, my friend!

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(reflective music)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(applause)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Oh my, that's...

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
well...

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
What I will add here is[br]beyond being a very talented man,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and a good friend,[br]and a gentleman,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I am sorry, like everybody else,[br]I had no idea that the man

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
was in pain, that the man was suffering.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But what a guy.[br]Robin Williams.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- We'll be right back.[br]- (applause)