Rupert and Steve and Irene’s Summer Vacation

You're watching the Let him podcast with Mike Chisen, endorsed by the Hello Delhi.

Yeah.

Welcome once again to the Letterman podcast. My name is Mike Chisum. All right, this is a fun episode. Um, Steve Young, prolific, late show, late night with David Letterman, writer, uh, 22 years, I believe his tenure was. Rupert G, of course, the iconic Rupert G. and then Irene Hoffman um at Irene's place in Greece, the cradle of civilization. And the three of them are having so much fun in Greece, uh having an adventure after adventure. We get together and we have a very, very nice episode here. Uh I hope you enjoyed the uh Rupert making sandwiches video that Steve shot, cut, edited, and released. Very, very cool to see that. I hope it warmed your heart the way that it warmed mine. And uh we just three friends get together and have a conversation here. Uh we talk a lot about Yeah, there's lots of Letterman stuff. We talk about if you know times where Steve and Rupert worked together, some of the some of the um uh the bits that they produced together, but we talk about uh Steve's episode of The Simpsons. I don't know if we've ever gone deep on that episode um here on the show here. I know we had privately, but we talk about that a little bit. And just a really nice conversation catching up and I just appreciate them very very much. I hope you enjoy this episode of the Letterman podcast featuring Steve Young, Rupert G, and Irene Hoffman.

All right, my friends. I've been told uh that envy is not a good thing. Um so I have joyous envy right now. I really wish

I wasn't here, but I was over there. You guys look like you're having a fantastic time. Rupert, Steve, Irene, welcome back to the show. Thank you for taking time out of your uh amazing amazing excursion to Greece to come on our little dog and pony show. Thank you so much. It looks like you're having so much fun.

Got a little bit of tan for the first time in a few years. [laughter]

Got the vitamin D going.

Irene, um before we hit record here, uh I I I wanted to ask this question beforehand just in case, but I thought, you know what? Let's let's let's uh let's do the tightroppe without a net. Um is this a dream come true having Rupert and Steve Young at your place in Greece? [laughter]

Absolutely. I couldn't I look he asked me, "Am I what you expected?" And I turned to him and I said, "You're exactly what I expected.

You're exactly what I expected."

At that point, baby.

Oh, in the best way. In the best way. and he does not um exude a lot of emotion, but sometimes when out of the blue he does and it makes you laugh because you're not expecting it. He's Mr. Beige. But I do believe he's having a good time just as much fun as we're having with him.

And and I think there's there's, you know, At first, you would think Steve is very quiet and introverted, but you know,

he's shown a lot of emotions and a lot of fun with us and um yeah,

that's the other side of Steve that we we never saw.

Well, you saw a little bit of it when you came to my show back then.

That's that's true. The show, but it's even better even more so now. And um yeah, it's it's just a joy. Steve is a wonderful guest and I'll tell you he makes the best martini.

Well, there you go. I was going to ask if there have been some Chavis uh uh exchanged and and and and if like I certainly would love to be a part of that. I want to have a martini with you guys in the worst way right now. Uh what's your secret?

They didn't they didn't do sh this time. This time it was Red Label.

Oh yeah, Johnny Walker.

Johnny Walker and there's the martinis. But when we've gone out a few times, I've been introduced to uzo. Do you know uzo? It's the stuff that tastes like licorice and it's clear except when you pour it into a glass with ice, it turns cloudy white like something's terribly wrong. But apparently it's okay.

I can't Mike, we don't have time for me to tell you some of the things that you know, Mr. dry beige. All of a sudden, we'll say something and I just for 10 minutes and then the next day I'm giggling over that same because I've got the image in my head from what he said.

Just he just does that. That's what he does.

Yeah. It just the humor just falls out of you, Steve. And we'll get to that in a second. Uh but let's let's not bury the lead here.

It's launched.

It's launched. [laughter] There you go.

Um, let's let's not bury the lead here for a second. Rupert, as far as making sandwiches, it's been a year and a bit uh since you had the deli. You still got it. You still you still can make a hell of a sandwich.

Oh, it's in my blood.

Yeah, it really is. It's very impressive.

I've always enjoyed sandwiches ever since I was a kid, and it continues now.

You know, it's funny.

Spreading the gospel. I I said that to somebody who um I I just um I've been going to my dad my my father uh went to a men's group every week and he did it for about 15 years and I have recently been going to that men's group and and it's it's kind of charming for them uh because my dad was such a fixture there and now they're seeing Mike Jr. show up and it came out that I host this show and uh and and and Rupert, your name comes up whenever I talk about, you know, hosting the the show here. always mention you and um one gentleman in particular who happened to be uh you know a real enthusiast of of of Late Show. Uh when he he asked about you and and and and was endlessly fascinated with little tidbits that I would give him about you and and one of the things that I said is no Rupert loves business and he was in business for a while but he had a dream. He always had a dream of opening up a sandwich shop and he was just he his mind kind [clears throat] of melted. He goes, "That was Rupert's dream." I'm like, "No, no, no. You don't understand.

That was his dream. He was in business. He was in a different uh sector of business, but he wanted to open a sandwich shop." And I

He conquered Wall Street. He had conquered [laughter] my finance. He was at the top of the pyramid of the garment industry. This is another thing I learned. And he said, "It bors me." And he said, "What I really must do is open a sandwich shop." And he boy did he boy did he make a go of that. Yes, there was some luck involved with Dave Letterman showing up, but he was he was he didn't need that in order to be a successful entrepreneur.

You just love making the sandwiches. Like you you truly love making the sandwiches.

Yeah.

Oh, I I totally

My this

my next pro my next project is buying a slicer for my home. Actually, [laughter]

I dream of a slicer. Wow. Are there like Amazon reviews that you read? Oh, yes. I have a handful of slices that I'm

This one's got a good safety guard so you don't cut off your fingers.

You can spend less, but you will lose a finger. [laughter]

All right, Mike. I And I don't I know we're not recording, but

No, we are recording. We're recording.

Oh, no.

Is there anything you want to retract? No, I I did I did want to tell you because I told Steve uh the Australians here usually where if we go somewhere they they do recognize and it hasn't happened on this trip in Greece, but we went to Paris for nine days.

We stayed in a super cool neighborhood and a house that was built in 1650.

Oh.

And we Oh, we and just meandered through all these restaurants and such. Mhm.

Every for three nights in a row. Excuse me. Aren't you the

Are you the [laughter]

Yeah, it is weird. Yeah.

Yeah. Three nights in a row. Canadian drop, you know, saw me. Yeah. You know, and he he walked backwards and said, "Are you that guy from he

walked backward forward and then went back,

you know, and it's it's crazy. Um, you know, I kind of dropped the ball on on the whole 10 Well, it wasn't that dropped the ball. Life dropped the ball on me when it came to the 10ear thing. It's been 10 years. It's been 10 years since the show went off the air. And I mean, I've wanted to talk to I mean, I have on the sideline, you know, talked to a whole bunch of the staffers and people involved and whatnot. Um, that show endures and and when you look at um you know, I don't know if you've had a chance to see the Samsung channel, but they're they're putting up a lot of the the compilations on on on YouTube. um you know all the things that show it it it after a decade still endures and to this day Rupert getting pulled aside like that. It's just uh it's one of those things. Um I'm curious for all of you cuz you're all involved. I mean you know you were all there the last day and and and and going all the way back of course. Um, you know, Irene, you've got a huge history with the show and it dwarfs in comparison to Rupert, which dwarfs in comparison to Steve's 10 years later. Um, is it surprising to you that the show still has so much uh is so relevant?

No, but I I do want to tell say what Steve told me about that because I had said that I had gone to another uh late night show and it was utterly pleasant but he he said it succinctly. It was because you never knew, the audience didn't know. Everybody in the whole place didn't know what direction what strange direction it might take.

And that was the electricity. So, no, it doesn't surprise me at all. It to me, it's as solid and real and good as ever. Rupert, are you surprised that 10 years later after the show goes off the air, people are still recognizing you? Does that still

Oh, yeah. I'm totally surprised. I I thought they would have forgotten me after two years,

but really it but it just goes on.

It It doesn't hurt that you look exactly the same as you did 30 years ago.

God bless you, Steve. You made my day.

Please come back to Greece with us again.

Right. Talk about your age. Okay.

Talk about um Yeah. No, I'm I'm just totally surprised. Yeah, I thought it I thought it would have ended many many years ago.

Yeah,

it still goes on even in my neighborhood. I mean, I walk by, you know, people would say, "Hi. Um, I love what you did. I saw your retirement your retirement thing on YouTube." I mean, it just goes on and on.

Yeah. Not too long ago, I was walking with him and all of a sudden,

yo, Rubert, how's it going? and and he just holds his hand up and I said, "Is that a friend of yours?" Because I've never seen him in my life.

And then Rupert's early security guards push the [laughter] the the poor fan down to the sidewalk, "Do not speak to Mr. G." [laughter]

The original yelling across the street like that. Oh, that man.

No eye contact with him yet. Everybody on the Upper West Side knows how it goes. Except yeah, the few unfortunate tourists. They learn the hard.

We uh there was an opportunity that potentially we were going to do this, you know, right when Steve arrived. I'm really glad that it hasn't happened. You can tell that you've been there for a while. Um Steve, it is so nice to see you this relaxed. And uh I got to ask being Irene and and Rupert of course have told uh us and us on the podcast as an audience as well the magic of the island that that that that she has been um so blessed to have have so much time and and a piece of property there and whatnot. Has this um ignited your muse at all? The the the muse at all inspired you at all? Has this in a different way than roaming around the streets of New York and and finding the comedy that you do? Is it different over there?

I've been taking a lot of pictures and they may be pictures that would be a good B+ grade uh professional postcard.

Yep.

Occasionally I take some weirder ones. You may have seen a couple. But yeah, there are sites here that if I just pick up my phone and point it in any random direction and click it, I might get a pretty good picture here. And I might get a pretty great picture if you take enough pictures. I mean, just these islands and the ocean and the crazy aqua blue color of the water and just uh it is striking and and it's one of those things that makes me think and I say to people, you know, it's good to be reminded once in a while, wow, this can be a wonderful and amazing and beautiful planet to live on. Yeah.

And forget about Yes. the troubles in the world and and I'm used to being in New York City and seeing what I see there, but it's good to just rewire your brain of, oh, look what we coexist with here.

Yep. But Mike, this is such a sweet little picture he's he's painting. Do you know how hard it is to get him out of the super market? Because that's how you pronounce it.

Say it again, please. Say it again. Super market.

Supermarket. Super classy as I'll get outarket. That's classy as I'll get out.

Well, when they spell it in the Greek letters, that's the pronunciation. We can't get them out of the aisles. And I'm going, what what is so fascinating about the jars or the the bags or the and this guy it sees things in the packaging in the logos in the that he goes I I've got a photograph for you to look at. He goes, "I can read Greek." And in Greek, in the Greek letters, Golka, which Okay.

K a

But gola gola is spelled with an upside down V for the L.

Uhhuh.

And but it doesn't matter. He knew, he goes, I can read Greek because the next line was CocaCola in Greek letters and then D I E T.

Coca-Cola diet. It's fun to play brain teasers in a in a foreign supermarket

and he's clicking the whole time, clicking, clicking and I'm like, Steve, it's time to go. We've got everything ready to go and he's down some aisle. So yes, he talked about the beauty and the relaxation and kind of forget time. I told him if you know what day it is, we're not doing it exactly the right way. But but he will stop in front of a building that's got some signage or something that I don't I would I wouldn't even give a second notice to. And he's got something brilliant. There are some crazy like fractured English like it's right but it's wrong. Like somebody must have heard of Victoria's Secret at one point

and then they decided to open a store called

Secret Underwear.

That's right. [laughter]

He was fascinated with that sign.

Secret Underwear.

And there's a barberh shop and it's got the rotating pole. But the sign I don't know if it's I I just don't know. But it says barbershood. S H O O T D S H O O D. Like it's not barber shop and it's not barberhood. It's barbershoot.

But I said I believe if they're trying to say a hood of barbers because there were multiple

a hood of barbers.

Barbers. No, it's not hood of barbers.

It has to be barbershoot. Barbashoot.

Barbers.

So, anytime now that there's some conversation and I don't know what to say, I just say barbers.

But he's learned he's learned about 10 words. He has.

Yeah. Like thank you in Greek.

Wow. Good.

How do you say yes?

How do you say no?

Yeah. [laughter] He knows

toilet.

Where's the toilet? [laughter] It's a very automat poetically it's a very pleasing language. Um it's fantastic. Uh have you been

a song about yes no thank you toilet statement.

Oh. Oh Mike Mike. All of a sudden all of a sudden Mr. Beige shows up there's a about three steps up to the kitchen area and three steps down. And all of a sudden, one of those places he's This is what you see Steve doing. Ni and he's

Yeah. Yeah. And he's thinking of some kind of something or other that he can and he's dancing. This man,

you know, it's educational. It's for the kids. It's like Sesame Street.

It's for the kids. It's for the kids.

It wasn't expected at all. And we have times where the wind just dies.

Yep.

That's when the mosquitoes say, "Let's see if they've got a door open."

Ah, yeah. Yeah. Rupert and I Rert and I have welts and you can only buy isopropyl al alcohol at the pharmacy, but they sell it in 95% strength and so you can soothe your bites.

Add a little cranberry sauce and a slice

and and this

hell of a cosmo.

Cranberry.

Yeah, but he hasn't gotten bitten once.

Well, we thought maybe there were like something like that.

You'd be scratching it. I'm just so I don't know.

He's mighty Steve Young. He's immune to mosquitoes.

I enjoy them. [laughter]

I know, but I told him if those were official mosquito bites, he would be scratching them till they were raw. But anyway, he's immune.

Oh, that's that's that's charming. That's charming that the mosquitoes are intimidated by the comedy uh prowess of Mr.

Not worth it. [laughter] He won't give us a good response. Move on.

Yeah. And and he's a white boy.

Yeah. Not not enough vitamin D in that one. Maybe perhaps [laughter]

until the end of this trip. Um how much longer are you there for?

Going back Sunday.

Okay. So, a few more days. You got a few more days there. Um needless to say, charged up the batteries in in all sorts of ways. I mean I mean just just I can see the relaxed nature uh and feel it through uh through the camera right now. might be the martinis, too. I don't know.

I was tense before cuz I think I'm always relaxed.

Well, I suppose that's I suppose that's true. I would say even like um

No, you know what? It's more It's more of an extroverted uh perhaps presentation of of of where you're at right now. I I just It's different. The energy is different.

Maybe it's the linen shirt.

Yeah. Well, it's funny that she's calling you Mr. Beige. Uh when when before we started recording, she called you baby angel, which I thought was a very interesting uh root beer and baby angel. We're going to keep workshopping names. I'm not sure I'm happy with either of those.

No, he hasn't told me to stop, but I haven't sensed that he wants me to stop immediately.

Uhhuh.

So, I continue until he tells me stop.

I don't mind Mr. page because it does show one half of the dichotomy which I and we were talking about how my exterior seems so pleasant and calm and then I open my mouth and crazy comes out [laughter] but crazy with such a dead pan pleasant a effect.

That's right.

And he has cracked me up so many times on this trip.

He was funny.

He's funny.

I had to go to Greece to get it confirmed. Yes. [laughter]

Um, let's for uh just just for some history sake, Steve and Rert, did you interact very much during the show's run? Were there times where you two interacted um you know, professionally or personally? Did you interact very much like like Steve, did you did you eat at the deli very much or also were you part of the bits that Rupert was in um other than just writing it in a room, you know? 140 ft adjacent and above. Uh were did you guys did you spend a lot of time together?

I never went out and shot a field piece with Rupert, I don't think.

No, but you shot a few pieces in the deli

probably. So, yes. And occasionally, yes, I I did get lunch at the deli, but not every day. So, I would say I had a casual but not inner circle level of uh knowing Roert. But I I will say something. Of course, after bathtubs, you had encouraged me to watch it and you had talked about it.

Yes.

And and then uh Rupert also saw it, loved it. But I did ask him and he said, "You know, I don't remember Steve as a a a real frequent presence, but every single time he ever did interact with me, always

and he's paid in full promptly

and ultra polite."

Oh, no, Steve. Yeah.

Ultra polite.

Very easy to work with. He said he said he was just a very polite

presence all the time and that made me happy because well I don't know how stressed out they get upstairs. I don't know but I would imagine

well we've heard stories we've heard stories that there was stress sometimes.

Yeah.

How crazy is that?

Yeah I can remember at least two or three times. Um, Steve, do you remember anything that you wrote specifically for Rupert?

We were talking about one thing that made me howl with laughter the way it turned out. I believe Rupert recalled it was called What's on the iPod?

And it would be this thing where like maybe in conjunction with the Grammys.

Yep.

All right, Rupert, we've got this uh iPod loaded up with a bunch of the Grammy nominated songs for this year.

We want you to put these headphones on and press play. The song is going to begin. and even if you don't know the song, just sing along with it. And so Rupert puts these earbuds in and sort of nervously presses play and goes baby. Yeah. Well, I like it when you just like bewildered but game and just the craziest unearly not quite music.

And I saw that real time.

We did that about six times.

I thought it was hysterical.

Yeah. just and I was telling Rupert about how to this day there's really only him and maybe a couple other people that I ever thought the combination of them and Dave just automatically was just killer and Rupert had such a gamely

pleasant trying to get along.

Clearly not a showbiz diva which was why it worked. If Rubert had been, "Oh, I've got to ride this thing to Hollywood." it it would have stunk to high heaven.

But Rupert was exactly who he was. A great friendly guy who had certain interests and talents, but being part of a comedy show would not have occurred to him. And that's why it worked.

Yeah.

Yeah. Absolutely. I that was a sentiment that we expressed uh many different people expressed at the uh uh the retirement party um how we talked about you know like like that was you cuz you it's not okay Rbert it's not like you didn't have opportunities you had all sorts of different opportunities um and I mean we're we're we're so far after the after the show that that you know

was supposed to be the main guy in the first Mission Impossible movie. Oh, no. I want to just make sandwiches. After that, they didn't call him again. But

it's in very interesting. What if,

but you did you had opportunities to go on other shows. You had opportunities to be part of other projects that that that you know at different degrees and whatnot, but you you you were really really careful with that stuff.

Yeah. No, I I was never interested. I mean, being with Alatia was good enough for me. I mean, it's brought enough memories to last a lifetime. And

yeah,

if if some, let's say, for instance, Jay Lynn had reached out to you and said, "Come on the show and do some stuff and we'll buy you a new slicer." Would you have done it?

No.

Absolutely not.

Not even for a slicer?

No.

No. Not just one slicer.

Well, the best slicer. The one with the finger guard.

No. No, no. Okay. Well, that is dedication.

We already had

I know my loyalty. It's only to one show and that is a late show David Letter. That's it.

That was it.

And I knew that.

Yeah. And I mean

and the day Dave retired was the day I said, "Good. It's over. I'm not doing anything else after."

Well, yeah. But the day he retired, um, Rupert was in a bad way for a long time. He was so melancholy.

Mhm.

And we would walk by the del, you know, we'd walk in that vicinity and he would just say, I'm like, I'm heartbroken. It's that

Yeah. For five years, it was just uh, you know, just work.

And now you've learned to live again here in Greece where rock and roll music is playing. And with Steve Young.

And with Steve Young

and peanuts. [laughter]

He's got me addicted to this stuff, too. And he loves them. And now I'm starting.

Are they honey roasted?

No. It's a medley.

It's a medley. There's um chickpeas.

Yeah, it's got some other

some little bits of corn.

Corn.

And this is the less elaborate party mix. We don't need to spend a huge amount of your [laughter] time on this, but we had another one a few days ago that we ran through that had little cracker bits in it. Yeah. In my opinion, you want to focus on the nuts. But,

right. So, and then when I see him picking through them and then I go, "Oh, I think I want some, too."

What if I put one of those in my mouth? Oh, what? Oh, it's food. It is good. Okay.

It's good food. Crunchy.

Focus on the nut should be on a t-shirt somewhere. Um the the uh uh uh the I got I want to stay on the party mix for a second here. This is Greek party mix not available in the United States or uh Canada.

It seems extremely American. In fact, my intense survey of the grocery stores have proven that there is a very heavy influence of American junk food and popular food and

just with lettering on it

because but the one thing they haven't done and I used to put it in my suitcase gif. No gif peanut butter. We did see in Greek. Oh, and sag. But I don't have it in my neck of the woods.

No sag available in Greece.

You got to put some upside down bees on that.

Yeah, you'd have to have some up. But they they do spell what they have and I'll guarantee you. It's not SAG. It's not GIF. It's something that I'm not going to try.

Well, there was a kind I found that I like the label. It just said hungry not.

Yeah, [laughter] you took a picture of it.

Hey, they get right to the point. That sounds good to me. Let's just get it done.

But uh the question is you eat it and then you're hungry not or it's good for when you're not hungry because you don't really want it and it wasn't worth it anyway.

No. Yeah. Now it's confusing. I was there and now I'm now I'm uh not the nice thing about your flourishing.

What's the deal with hungry? Not

Oh my god.

Thing about sag peanut butter in in in in Greece. Just spell it in Greek. All you have to do is just put it upside down and there it is. There's sag in Greek. And uh just like that. Our good friend Walter Kim and Nancy

when when I get to New York um I'm going to um devour some of that. I do like and I like doing it like this. I just open my mouth and let it flow.

I asked Walter if it was okay because like I use Walter's name very sparingly here like like because I'm just so grateful that he is as kind as as he is. And I asked

Walter Matau or

Walter Matthau. Yes. The grumpy old man himself. Yeah, he's he's the best. [laughter]

Steve is on a roll. [laughter]

That's right. I'm some sort of peanut fueled mania.

Well, clearly he's not he's hungry not. Um but I asked Walter if I I said, "Can I talk to Can I Can I talk about Rupert sent me the uh you know, he was he was delighted when I sent him the text. I believe he was delighted or he feigned delight very well. Um, and as he was trying to just say, "Stop texting me." Uh, you know, I sent him the picture of of the SAG peanut butter. I said, you know, not available in Colona, but, uh, they tariffed the hell out of it and I got it. And, um, he was he was charmed by that. Rupert sent me the, uh, the bottle of sag peanut butter. And I said, "Can I talk about it on the show?" Like, and he goes, "Oh, yeah, absolutely." So, this is Walter Kim's, uh, peanut butter. It's it's literally uh the ingredients. It's got three ingredients. Um, and the ingredients are peanuts and uh sea salt. Oh, so it's two ingredients. I'm sorry. I thought it was three. I thought it was peanuts and salt contains two words. So

that's right. That's right.

Could you check the expiration date on that thing?

Yeah. Uh, 2048. Oh, pretty good. Right on. It'll

last 2048. No, it's [clears throat] clearly not humorous. Uh it does not it has no expiration date

which to me

okay

um that says a lot right there.

And uh by the way it it does give the very handy instruction. Um and obviously you know the instructions like this are caused you know because somebody out there didn't know how to do it. Uh if oil separation occurs flip bottle over. That's all you got to do is this. Oh if oil situ saturation just flip the bottle.

Sure. But they don't tell you how to flip the bottle. [laughter]

Um, that reminds me of a Homer Simpson gag at somewhere. It's There's a Simpsons gag. Aren, maybe you might know what it is. Um, Homer was talking about a warning label. It might have been from Silica Gel, do not eat or something like that. And Homer made the the remark. Um, oh, they made that for me. They made that because of me. Which I thought was a really um I I like that joke a lot. Steve, you wrote a

I don't remember, but that's that's Homer.

Yeah, that's Homer.

Now, Steve, you wrote a Simpsons episode. Has Have you and Irene gone deep on the Simpsons at all? Have you guys talked about that at all? Because Irene goes very deep on the Simpsons.

Yes, I've learned about that in a way I hadn't fully understood before, but she probably has seen my episode, which is called Hurricane Netty, but it's quite back far in time now, and she was unable to call it up on the internet here. It's like geo fenced or I don't

I have to wait till I get home because I put my my uh

uh provider on vacation mode and because of that they're not letting me have it here. But it it's it's season 8. I forgot if it's episode three, season 8. I'm not sure. But um I they did let me see little bits of it. I I love it. I I so far

it's a good episode and I I've explained to her and that and a lot of people don't understand this. If a an episode of a TV series has one writer's name on it, it's not that that's wrong. It's that it's only about 10% of the story,

right? And yes, I took the reigns and wrote up uh an outline and a first draft, but using the material that the entire room came up with and then I handed it off and it was further worked on without me. So, yes, I do have some jokes in there, but it's hardly my creative vision.

It's just I [clears throat] was a good team member for that short amount of time. But see the other thing, the little segment that I saw yesterday because I'm trying to, you know, cough it up. Um, the visual jokes that just from the very beginning of the episode, I don't know if somebody sits around like a writer who says, "Well, let's get the cartoonist to have this." And there I can't remember exactly what I'm what I'm trying to tell you that got my humor, but there's a visual of something kind of floating off in the wind. And it's funny, but I don't know if the writers sit down and say, "Let's see if the cartoonist can draw that."

The the writers packed every episode, I'm sure still do, with a thousand details which will only be fully understood if you freeze frame it,

right? In fact, they were always talking about, "Oh, we got to write some more things for the background for the freeze framers."

Yeah. For the freeze framers. Oh, like us. Yeah. Like

I was one.

Me, too. In high school, we used to pause the Simpsons all the time, especially when they do the throws. They would throw from one scene to like another across the like the opening credits does it did in the the do the Bartman video a bunch of times where it would throw across and you'd see all the characters that were inserted, but you had to go literally frame by frame. Now, I want to make sure this is the episode where Ned loses his house and the and the and then everyone goes and builds him a house and then he loses his mind. This is the episode you wrote you are credited with writing, right?

That's correct.

See, that episode that does not surprise me at all that that is a Steve Young episode because there's a lot of stranges in that episode. It is a and I don't know how much of that strangeness

uh was just started by you and then carried on with other people, but this is the room with the electricity like like this is that to me seems like a Steve Young line. Um

this happened all the time at the Letterman show where somebody I know would watch the show and the next day say, "Oh, I saw something on the show last night. I'd know it was your joke." They'd read it to me and nope. Never. Maybe once in a hundred times because the whole room had the vibe.

Yep.

And yes, there were different subflavors of it, but even people might in the room say, "I've got an idea. I'm going to pitch." It seems to me like a Steve Young idea.

Yes.

So other people would kind of try out something in your lane, but the lanes were not marked clearly, and you never know. But

it's very hard to say that you can identify someone's jokes. And Mike, when I went out to the Simpsons for the cold reads, um the writers and I thought to it was a big conference table and it was a tiny trailer, but the writers, it seemed like maybe eight to 10 writers were huddled on the left hand side from where I was sitting of the conference table. The actors were on the right hand side and they had no amplification whatsoever in this trailer, but boy did their voices boom. And then you had Matt Graining in the middle, Homer sat across, Dan Castelonetta sat directly across, but I was of course very intrigued by u I never looked at the script. Why should I look at the script when I'm looking at these actors who are and they move in their chairs and they go forward and back? But the writers caught my attention incredibly.

Mhm.

But it seemed the three times that we went to the cold read, other than like let's say Tim Long, it seemed like a different collection of writers. So, I did pick his brain about that kind of thing.

Um, I want to go back to that episode for a sec. Like Tim Long, by the way, shout out to Tim Long. Please come on the show. Um, uh, you know, fellow Canadian, in fact, uh, I want to go back to that episode for a second because I'm curious, that episode actually, like every once in a while, a Simpsons episode, especially early on, would advance the lore a little bit. It would actually advance the greater storyline with something that that that uh it would make the the the the things that we kind of take for granted in the show um you know it would give it a little bit of width and breadth. Your episode did that because it was the uh origin of Ned speaking the way that he speaks the oy doy stuff like the the little things like that. Was that ever in your mind when you were creating the outline for the show? Or was it just, hey, Ned's house could get hit by a hurricane and go and the town could come together and then you realize and then the third the second and third act it's about Ned's past and uh and and how he became how he become like like I'm curious as to

how that

I do remember this episode. I think that was all worked out in the room when I was there for two days and everybody was saying maybe this, maybe that. Oh, I like that. Oh yeah, let's make it like that. what else happens next? So, communally, it's sort of hammered out. It's not nailed down yet, but there's still maybe this, maybe that when you're writing it, but that whole thrust of that premise and its t turns, I think, was figured out in the room. And the whole premise of here comes the hurricane and only Flanders house is destroyed. That existed as like a one paragraph

thing before I even got there. So, it wasn't like I brought them this idea.

I gotcha. But uh this was enough into the show's history that they were now luxuriating in the let's explore the backstories of the B-level characters.

Yes. Yes. And now I down now that you've said that I do remember the episode and um

yeah I didn't realize how communally you know it it works. I just

I wish I could take credit for much more of it but I can't. Well, and John Schwarzen welder, if I said his name right, I don't I'm sure I did not.

Yeah. Yeah.

He's, you know, he's like forever a consultant because they they ship things back and forth and he to him and such and then they go from there. But I didn't really know much about any of that at all. He had informed me. But those writers, they intrigued me on I I looked a as often as I could over to them. And then the one time

that I whispered. I think that's Matt Greening. And I said it really quietly, but we're in a tiny trailer. And he turns around and says, "How you doing, folks?"

Um,

I couldn't talk. I could not talk at all. I just went like this and he said, "Well, depending on how much you laugh today, um, in 6 months you'll see how we've, you know, tweaked the the script that you have in your hands today." And I just was like thrilled. And he had his Docker's pants on. I was so happy. Here he is, mega successful. And he's got those doctor's pants and some tennis shoes on. and it we were ready to roll.

But James L. Brooks was also in the room uh the third time. Yeah.

With Eric Idol.

And James L. Brooks when he laughed at a joke,

I told Steve

those trailer walls shook. That's how booming uh his his laugh was.

It was in a trailer.

Trailer. You'd think a successful show could afford to rent some good office space.

No [laughter] trailer.

All right. Well, they clearly know.

And Eric Idol had to had to duck under the doorway because he's so tall and the doorway was short and he ducked under. [clears throat] It was fun.

Did you uh did you meet Granny when you were there, Steve?

Did you?

Yeah, a little bit. And then later they needed a writer for the animated Christmas special that he was producing.

Yeah.

And he [clears throat] said, "Oh, let's get that guy Steve Young from a few months ago." And uh I didn't work with him closely, but I guess he liked me well enough. And one time when he came into New York, he said, "Hey, I'm going to be in New York. You want to hang out?" So we went to the Museum of Modern Art together.

Wow.

Sorry. You never told me that.

That must have been Yeah.

He had a great formulation. We were just looking at abstract modern art, which to me can ride a very tricky line between interesting and worthless.

Yes.

But he said, "My definition of whether art is worthwhile or not

is would I rescue it from a dumpster?"

That's a great line.

That's pretty good. That's pretty good. And I I think 60% of Museum of Modern Art art is great. I

60%. Okay. They've upgraded

I [laughter] for me 60%. See

uh so so

says you're right. Okay. [laughter]

To go to go back to the Simpsons for a second. I've gone back and forth a little bit with Bill Oakley. Uh, I want to have him on the show because the one of the things I've always wanted to explore um in this show is the connection between the Simpsons and the Letterman universe because there's a lot of connections um a lot not just because uh you know of the early exodus of from Letterman um writers and and and people who who joined the early version of the Simpsons, but but also the the humor and then along the way all throughout the years the shows have just been connected. Um, The Simpsons always has little has little Easter eggs and lines that that reference the Letterman show. Um, you know, there are blatant examples like Dave Dave did a couch gag and um perhaps one or two other appearances, that sort of thing. I'm super curious

the collaboration between your writer room and the writer room on The Simpsons. Um, would it would it be similar or was it entirely different? writer's room

because uh we were doing a show that was on every day. It was a different animal. And in the writer room at The Simpsons, I mean, people put in serious long days there.

Yeah.

But they were all working on the early forms of scripts that would air

10, 11 months later maybe.

Sure.

So, yes, there's always the pressure. or the pipeline is relentless, but it's not quite the same feeling of we got to get something figured out in the next 20 minutes cuz the show goes on in 3 hours.

Mhm.

But in the in the end, it was similar sorts of people there, I suppose, just doing a different kind of project.

Um, writing together. Yeah. And and I I appreciate the fact that, you know, the daily grind is a very very different deal. I just thought the writers, you know, um the Yes. and effect. It seems to be a huge part of the Simpsons um you know formula where where writers hear something and then they add little bits to it and it becomes this new thing that's that's really is a collaboration. You've done a good job describing that. I was curious if uh if there was any Letterman influence on that. Well, we we on a good day in the Letterman room, somebody would have the first half of an idea and put it out very meekly saying, "I don't know where this goes." And somebody else takes aha and slam dunks it with something that no one else would have thought of. That's great. I did see a good version of that when I was in the Simpsons room because it's all about the things happening around town with the hurricane and they somebody pitched the hurricane blows the roof off the prison where they're about to electrocute the condemned prisoner

and and he flies out of the electric chair at the last minute and says so long suckers. And Matt Greening said, "But then what if he flies directly into high tension wires and gets electrocuted?"

We said, "Well, that's right. It was tension wires." Yes. I thought he got struck by lightning, but it was wires. Yes. [laughter]

It's funny.

That is funny.

Oh my word.

There's a visual joke um in that episode, too, where they're touring the the the house that the neighbors all half-hazardly built together. Oh, yeah.

And it's a perspective. banded together to rebuild Ned Flanders house, but once you get in, you realize they had no idea how to Yeah. to do anything.

And and again,

it was inspiring and then it was horrifying and

right horrifying. And one of the things that I think, oh man, that that feels like it's within the Steve Young vein of humor is uh one of them opens the room and I I forget which one opens the door, but all you see is the other side of the room and all you see is Todd's eye looking at you because the perspective is they they use it's a perspective joke to make it seem like the room zoomed into nothing.

And uh that that to me again that episode just feels like

what looks like a long hallway. They start down, you realize, oh, it actually only becomes this false.

Yeah. And

I remember that now.

There you go.

Oh my god.

There you go. Uh, it was a hell of an episode and I recommend anybody who's got uh Well, here up here in Canada, we got the we got Simpsons on the Disney Plus. They have that down in the States. I think they do. I think the Simpsons are

That's where mine is.

Yeah. I highly recommend jumping in and watching that episode. It's a really really good one. Um, Irene, one of the things I wanted to know is, have you gotten them out dancing yet? Yeah, Steve danced danced and Rupert did not videotape it.

I was gonna ask if there's no footage. It's

probably for the best. There is photographic proof, but no one has to watch video of it.

He got it. I I

can I send him the pictures?

Yes,

I'll send you the pictures. My

But I wanted I wanted Steve to post them because because there's a photograph of his dancing next to me. I should have put him behind me. Um, and I told him, "You just watch the f first or second dance or that's that's your cue." But,

um, before long, you know, you're holding hands and you've you can feel the the next person and before long, I could feel he got it. He got he got the beat and he I don't know if he had fun or not. I was delighted that he was.

No, Steve looked like he was enjoying that. I kind of figured out that

uh uh uh uh uh [laughter]

and he's smiling away at one in one of the photographs and that made me

That's right. We cannot post that photo

that one. Yes. [laughter]

No one will see me.

It's not It's not on brand. Um

it ruins his brand. [laughter]

I want to I want to be very ginger. Uh I've been asked this question very gingerly. Um, you know, not to tell any too too many tales out of school, but uh do the do the Greek women have they taken to this uh titan from America who has come and invaded your little island?

Irene will tell people American comedia graphos like oh Americans. Oh, Simpsons.

Oh, immediately when I say the Simpsons, they light up because they every single one of these people watch it a lot.

I say that's right. I'm Homer Simpson. But yeah, but he doesn't know what else that I say in Greek. And I said, "Look at him.

Calm, mildmannered, and yet can write that kind of comedy. He I always end with, look at him, how calm and mildmannered he is, but he can write the comedy." But um I I did want to say something else about I thought you were going to ask um you know we were there's a lot of really pretty uh young girls here and there you're EU now you know back in the day we were very isolated and they were whatever and so I said Steve we are going to go by some of the nightclubs where the really well. We girls are. He goes, "Okay, [laughter] okay." So, we strolled and I and and and I'm going like this. Look at that one. She's just gorgeous. And he just gives that casual glance. Yeah. And we keep on going and I go, "Wait a minute. Look at that one over there."

And I say, "These wi these women could be my daughters. It's hard for me to think about. Hey, baby. Don't you ought to get with the the grayhaired guy. I've got a guitar back at the place.

He got granddad. He goes, "You want You want to You want to You want to have a a swirl with the granddad?"

A swirl? [laughter] Yes.

I'll tell you what it was like before there was the internet. [snorts]

Candi's not home right now. I can't wait to ask her if she wants to go for a swirl. Um,

that sounds great.

That's Do you You brought your guitar though, right?

He did. He did. Yes. I brought a a sort of travel friendly guitar.

Yeah. And you've broken it out like have you written anything? Have you played a lot?

I did the uh the read a book video that I think you saw.

I did.

That was recorded.

I guess it was here up on the roof looking out over there.

And that music was recorded here. That's why I fixed up your closet with the towels and blankets for a vocal booth. Right.

And it was a musty. I mean, musty closet and I I just accidentally opened the door and there's the this beach towel and this blanket and I went, "Don't tell me." He goes, "No, it's a great recording studio

in Nashville. You pay thousands of dollars for that musty smell that gets it's authentic."

But he did it. He used it. He goes, "No, it's good. It's good." And then I had right before I left, I had the beginnings of that riff, you know, but uh I thought, well, maybe I'll do a video with Rupert making a sandwich, so I did it.

It's f It's in my opinion, it's perfect. Now, his very

It's perfect, but his very first version of it had a metronome. you know, I'm sure you know, whatever. The people the reason people use metronomes. I fell in love with that version, too. And I said, "Oh, Steve, please give me a song with

because it had some percussion in it. It had it had percussion."

Yes. I put on a a drum track. I knew how many beats per minute I'd done the metronome to, so I went on YouTube. You can find all sorts of styles of drum tracks in different beats per minute. And I found one that was 118 beats a minute in this sort of swampy rock bluesy groove and creative commons. Uh, okay. For reuse.

Yeah.

So, I took that.

Yes.

Chopped it up a little bit, moved it around so different things hit at the different parts. But yes, it's a real drum track. And he did a little cool syncopa because uh all of the dances here that are uh ethnic to this island involve syncupation, right?

Uh step, hold, step, pulled, you know, you you hold and step. And he found this little tiny bit of that and I went

Yeah. I just really loved it. But can we talk about the sandwich element of this? Because I had forgotten what a magnificent sandwich can be like with somebody who puts 14 ingredients in it. Yes.

And I thought, wow, this is and Dave used to sort of say, it's a meal in itself. And I thought that's not an exaggeration at all. Look, there's like four kinds of meat and cheese and lettuce, tomato, and and uh

onions and then the various dressings and seasoning and the mustard and the mayo. I wow. Wow. Just to see that done in front of me. And I did get Rert to try a few things like, oh, Rupert, hold the salami up and go, oh. And so he would do that or smell the slice of cheese. And I, oh, do some crazy knife action for me. And it's so I thought, yes, it's fun to see Rupert make a sandwich, but ideally we can intersperse it with little bits.

But at lunch, we actually thoroughly love these sandwiches cuz they're delicious. But I said, "Steve, you do need to know that under no circumstances do any of the Greeks anywhere on this island have sandwiches for lunch. They have olives, feta, a sardine, a glass of uzil, a big chunk of bread, watermelon when it's in season, grapes, um, uh, tomatoes, peppers. Never are they going to have what we and we love.

This is how the world changes. We introduce new things. A hundred years from now, Greeks will say, "Of course we eat sandwich for lunch." Why would we not eat sandwich for lunch? That's 14 ingredients. meal. [laughter]

They are delicious and I've been trying I've lost about 14 lbs and I am so thrilled about that. But the sandwich comes along and it's like I'm going to have half.

Yes.

And I just immediately wolf it.

It was worth it though, wasn't it?

Oh yeah. Those sandwiches are delightful. [clears throat]

I would have had the whole thing. You could see Rupert laughing at various points when I had told him like pick up the the piece of red onion, put it near your eye like and then pretend you're like making you crying. [laughter]

Then he puts it down and you can tell he's just laughing at the absurd. But that I thought was good because just shows I'm not just joylessly grinding out this thing with a guy who doesn't want to do it. Yeah.

Oh, no. I enjoy working with Steve on

Yeah. No, he Rupert's a good Rupert's a good actor. He just doesn't

Oh, I can't. Except when you when I said whip your face toward the camera and glare at me anyway.

Yeah, he [laughter] did. He did some weird.

Yeah, it was very good.

I think it turned out spectacularly and he loves to spend a portion of the day and I interrupt him and he's like, "Oh god, she's going to interrupt me again." But he takes a shadow shadowy place in this house that I refuse to clean. The pine needles or actually refuse to clean much. And I said it's a beach house, Steve. I did tell you that it's a

pine needles are very clean. They're on the floor, but they are clean.

They're clean. And he tucks himself away and we play musical chairs to to find uh shade.

Yeah. And if there's quiet time, especially I think he loves siesta time because that quiet time, it's like please don't bother me because I am microscopically working on this little thing idea that I've got and he loves it. He's like like so focused on it. Yeah, we've talked about this that you know you're doing something you should be doing when

six hours go by in a heartbeat and you realize, oh, I forgot to eat a meal because I was so excited about working on a thing.

That's how I get with editing these things or recording the music or

putting it together.

Yeah, that's what he does. And

it's really crazy, Steve. Like like you think about it. Um and and and I understand that on the show um like when somebody was doing an extra or something like that, they became basically a producer and they would have to wear a whole bunch of hats uh to to see the idea through fruition. However, you have taken that to another level when it comes to this because you conceive and then the writing part. Okay. Then you you got to you got to be your own DP and shoot it. Like you said, you got to make sure the audio is right and and and and your your standards are are that high. Uh because they were ingrained, I assume, because they were ingrained in you for so long.

Standards are high in the amateur category.

Sure. Okay. Well, we'll call it that. But you're also probably better than most amateur editors that are walking around on the earth right now. And you've had to become that. Um not just because you're directing somebody in a different department, but you're actually doing it yourself. Um,

it's it's really crazy watching the way that you can conceive, shoot, cut, and release these videos the way that you do, Steve. I just I I just I love it and I'm so grateful that you're that you're doing it. It's that humor that

like again when at 10 years when Dave went off the air, there's a certain type of humor that's that that that exists u you know, the subversive, the esoteric, whatever you want to call it. Um, you know, and and and it's it's getting rarer. It just really is. it it seems to be disappearing in so many ways and you're keeping that alive. Like I'm so grateful for the stuff you're putting out, man. And I'm sure that you're really enjoying me singing your praises right now. I'm sure it's just really

Thank you. I I've been en enjoying finding ways in the modern world and the modern

ecosystem to do the things I want to do. And the tools are all there. Now, whether it's a guitar you can plug into a laptop or an editing suite that's pretty powerful on your phone, you still have to have an idea

and and know kind of what to do and what not to do and when it's time to stop and all that. And the letter and show built in a lot for me of have the good idea, develop it, and then stop. And I'm sure I've said this many times, get out before people get tired of it. Y.

So that's why so many things mine are either 40 seconds or two minutes, but it's rare to be a 9minut uh

Yeah.

exhaustion fest. Well, that's I I I I' I'd enjoyed the 9 minutes, but the the cool thing about this video that he made is that we do absorb a lot of the details,

but I you we don't realize that he's meticulously working on each of those details so they kind of wash over and through us. We feel it, we sense it, but we don't really know exactly what it took for him to to get the the effort and it's in so many disciplines make it look like it was just obvious and couldn't have been any other way. But I was telling Irene that a lot of the like f I throw all the pieces down but then I sliding things by a tenth of a second or whatever because you may not consciously feel jarred by it but some a subconscious

Yes.

tiny trigger of oh that wasn't quite right even if you could never say why but then if you fix it you go ah that's it.

Yeah.

And the show calibrated that uh that that that in you over the years right because of how meticulous It was. Yeah.

I I never thought I was born to be an editor or a filmmaker, and I still don't consider myself either of those things. I'm a a miscellaneous weirdo who has learned to play with some toys and tools

and an actor.

And an actor. Today, today was you you threw up the post today um about the uh the short that you're in. Let's talk about that a little bit. Yeah, it's uh last fall I was at the Mystic Connecticut Film Festival with the uh one that we did last year. My friend Mark Kefir and I made this one called The Daykeeper about me as the lighthouse keeper who had the daytime shift when you couldn't really tell whether the light was even on. But some uh some other film people I saw in Mystic who saw the the daykeeper and enjoyed me and it said, "Oh, you know, we're we're gearing up to do another film uh make a new short. Would you be interested in maybe an acting role?" Cuz because we saw you thought I said, "Oh, sure." So that's one thing I love about this sort of part of my life is leave your apartment, go someplace, whether it's Indianapolis or Connecticut or wherever and you might meet the people who want to do the next thing with you and it's maybe not a thing you would ever imagine yourself. So, yes, I end up playing this uh hitman in this short film and uh we spent a couple days shooting up in uh I guess it was uh Connecticut near the Massachusetts border and me digging a grave in the forest and all this. But uh that was a lot of fun and it turned out quite well. talented people making it and uh we're in uh Indie Shorts which is a very good film festival and then

on to Woods Hole in Cape Cod which is one of my favorites also.

Well, did you catch it on his acting on the the book video that is hysterical read a book?

Yeah. the very end, you know, he wants us to read uh something about eating insects [laughter] and he sits back in and he's over here, sits back in the chair and then just makes this face that to me is just perfect. But

yeah,

the mild

Yeah.

skeptical disgust, but I did own that book and I brought it from New York to Greece so I could shoot that final shot myself.

Yes. Yes, he did. And here's RER. Where do you find those unusual books? You know, [laughter] just like, oh my gosh,

over the years, man. Well,

have you found any I got to ask every time I talk to you, have you found any any new uh uh industrial music uh publications or recordings of any sort to add to the collection, or is it still

Yeah, a friend of mine tipped me off to some uh IBM record that I I probably can get that I'd never heard of. There's like some Atlanta branch of employees singing dismally specific songs about what it's like to work at the IBM branch in Atlanta. I I haven't heard it yet, but yeah, that once in a while there's still something new there. But uh like the the books thing, that was me at a flea market and and this table full of books and I've started picking up. Oh, that's crazy. I got to take a picture of that. By the time I had like three, I thought, I think it is gonna be a song. So, to me, that's kind of the outlet now is anything I see out in the world, my antenna is up and that could be the next little project.

Well, when he told me about the flea market thing because I I love to I scan. I I'm a really good scanner, but then I'm I also micro micro look. Yeah.

And in uh Paris, they have one of the best flea markets ever. And of course, we had already been there three and a half hours, and I could tell that my friend was starting to get tired. And I wanted to micro, but when he told me about, you know, I just linger around and look at in flea markets. Once I saw him scoping out the aisles in the super market and like it he just was just so I said, "Oh yeah, he's definitely he's a flea market kind of guy." Cuz he just just zeroed in on the strangest things.

Bert, anything for you at flea markets?

No. No, I'm not a big fan of

He just walked along with me.

No vintage meat slicers for Rupert.

No,

I got four very cool things. And uh Rupert's response was,

"Yeah, they're they're nice. That's it." [clears throat]

How hot is it right there? How hot is it where you are right now? Are you Are you sweating?

We're lucky right now.

It's in the 80s, right? It hasn't been I mean it's hot in the direct sun in the middle of the day, but I don't think it gets much above 80.

Yeah,

it's uh it's been fun to watch the sunset this last hour and and watch the the sun changing your your your lighting has changed all around you and it's just it seems so magical and beautiful and uh I'm moving into the I am moving into the close here.

Um first off is there okay let's go back daykeeper you people can see that now right? Oh, that's still uh still got a few more possible festivals and I'm sure sometime later this year we'll put it out on YouTube or whatever. But yeah, that is still sort of behind the closed door.

All right. It's so good. I love it so much. [laughter] And uh I can't wait to see the next uh what's this one called?

The new one.

Peace, Quiet, and a Little Dirt.

Right. Peace, Quiet, and a Little Dirt. And Steve Young plays a hitman if you can believe it. uh if you're lucky enough to be able to go to one of these uh shows uh that that that that that is screening this, go do it. Um otherwise, we'll keep you posted as to when this stuff comes out. Um I just want to say to the three of you, thank you very much all for your friendship. Was there anything that we missed? Is there anything that we need to Irene, is there anything that uh

We had uh we had a tiny buzzing vehicle go by that obliterated much of your last 30 seconds of audio.

Oh, good. You said I

I really No, no, no. I just said I said we're moving into the close here. Um, is there anything that we missed before we uh close up this installment? Is there anything else that we wanted to talk about before?

No, we've done adventures. Tomorrow we do plan another adventure to a a a gorgeous place and Steve's been a great sport. Um, I he's had his quiet time as much as I I've just intruded and interrupted.

Creative genius. You must leave me a

genius alone.

But he's been a he I because Rupert and I always whisper back and forth. Rupert says, "You think he's having a good time?"

And then I always say, "I think so." And then

then he says, "Why are we whispering? He's he went for a walk an hour ago."

Oh, he does take he take He's adventurous.

Oh, he's very independent. He's independent and adventurous. He takes walks and you know CocaCola diet.

Yes. If he has to communicate, he's got a But no, I think he's having fun. I'm I've been thrilled to have him with us.

Um I appreciate that very very very much. I I like I say, I'll I'll kind of move to the close with how I started. I have a lot of envy. I wish I wish that we could be there and Candy and I it's still on our bucket list to get out there with you guys um one of these times. I just appreciate the invitation. I'm so grateful that Steve accepted it and he's out there. It's just awesome to see you guys doing this stuff. Um, hey Rupert, how's uh hello.com going?

It's uh it's still up. Um, I'm thinking of putting some money into it and adding more videos and pictures to the site.

Awesome.

But uh yeah, I I'm working on that now. So that's going to be my next project.

Well, that's excellent. Um, still the only sponsor, um, you know, SAG peanut butter, they're a friend of the show, but the only sponsor of the Letterman podcast, of course, is hello-dy.com. Go to hell-delly.com for official Late Show with David Letterman merchandise, like mugs and shirts and all sorts of fun stuff curated by Rupert G himself, who may or may not put some videos on there. He's enjoying retirement. Leave him alone. He'll do what he's going to do. Um, I love you guys very, very much. I'm extremely grateful for my friendship

and uh I just want to say thank you for uh for all your well wishes while I've been going through what I've been going through. I'm excited that we're back. Um and uh I'm really excited that in our first few episodes that come out that you guys are a part of it. So thank you very very very much. I love you very very much.

Thank you Mike.

Thank you for having us.

Um I want to hang out with you guys in New York sooner than later. I'm putting out to the universe that we can make that happen. Mike, are you planning on coming to the city um in the near future?

What the the desire is there uh like you wouldn't believe. Um we don't have any concrete plans, but we Candy and I were talking on the couch last night and it's like we need we need to get to New York so badly. So, uh when we do, you will be the first to know.

Okay. Yeah, let's all work on that.

Absolutely. Absolutely. Um and I've got a I've got a You know what? I'll uh I'll hit stop here. Um, and I'll tell you about I've got a bucket list idea for the show here. And if it if it did happen, uh, it would be a really really really cool thing. So, I'll tell you about that in a minute here. But, uh, let's button it up now. Um, this has been another episode of the Letterman podcast with Mike Chisum. That's G. That's Steve Young. That's Hoffman. Thank you all very much.

I hope you have a fantastic day

and uh, thank you and good night. Overcoat and underpants.