Conan O’Brien gets serious about silliness | American Masters | PBS

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On July 16, 2008, Conan O’Brien spoke about his style of late night and his reason for doing comedy. Interview conducted by director Michael Kantor for the six-hour PBS comedy series, “Make ‘Em Laugh: The Funny Business of America” (2009).

Chapters:
00:00 Silliness as the engine for O’Brien’s brand of late night
02:05 Taking arms in Groucho Marx’s war against the snobbery of cerebral comedy
04:32 The beautiful, simple currency of “funny”
05:33 The pointless genius of Andy Kaufman
07:39 Comedy as both a defense mechanism and a sanctuary for the perennially snubbed
09:57 Conan O’Brien hates jokes
11:45 Buster Keaton and the well of humor in sadness
12:30 Getting big in Finland and the pure, uniting joy of absurdity

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Now in its 38th season on PBS, American Masters illuminates the lives and creative journeys of those who have left an indelible impression on our cultural landscape—through compelling, unvarnished stories. Setting the standard for documentary film profiles, the series has earned widespread critical acclaim: 28 Emmy Awards—including 10 for Outstanding Non-Fiction Series and five for Outstanding Non-Fiction Special—two News & Documentary Emmys, 14 Peabodys, three Grammys, two Producers Guild Awards, an Oscar, and many other honors. To further explore the lives and works of more than 250 masters past and present, the American Masters website offers full episodes, film outtakes, filmmaker interviews, the podcast “American Masters: Creative Spark,” educational resources, digital original series and more. The series is a production of The WNET Group.