September 18, 2001
This is our first show back on the air since
the tragic events last week here in New York
City. And I want to begin -- I said this
just before we started taping but I want
to start by thanking our studio audience
that've come here and support New York and
the show and everything just the situation
in general for being here I think it's tremendous
that you could be here. I also wanna say
that it's not my place, it's not what I do
to put this in perspective, it's not what
I do to try and help us understand what's
happened in the last week. I make a living
acting like an ass generally, and for those
of you who've seen the show that's sadly
true. No one is looking to me to put this
in perspective. But I do need to do, what's
very important to do, is to tell that we
air our show that's done out of New York.
We air our show that's done here in New York
City. There're about 104 people that work
on this show. And they live here, they work
here, and all of us have been affected by
what's happened. Last Friday we got together
and we tried to decide can we go and do shows
now, when can we go do show, can we go start
on Tuesday doing a show. And I have to be
very honest with you a lot of people felt
that we shouldn't, that we couldn't, that
it wasn't the right time. And yet I felt
strongly and a bunch of people on the staff
felt strongly that we have to get back to
work -- it's what all of us have to do. We
also have to come together a little bit because
this show Late Night with Conan O'Brien is
not me: This show is a lot of people that
work very hard, that live in this city. And
we need to come together to do our job. I
will be very honest with you: I have no idea
how to do what we've been doing. Tonight
I have no idea how to do it. Tomorrow I'll
have no idea. And the rest of the week I'll
have no idea how we're gonna get back to
doing this again. And that's how we all feel.
I've made a career of getting in right over
my head, and I've never ever felt more unsure
or more at a loss than I do tonight. I will
not lie to you: I don't know exactly how
we're gonna do this. But we're gonna try
to do it. That's what I've decided: we're
gonna try and do. That's what Max and the
band have decided to do. That's what the
writers have decided to do. That's what a
lot of people here feel the right thing to
do is to get back and to just try to move
forward and to make sense of our lives when
absolutely nothing make sense. I don't talk
about these things on the air but I was raised
Catholic. And today I did what I haven't
done since the first show went on the air
on September 13. I so felt that I needed
help, I needed somebody, something to help
me. Then I went across the street to the
St. Patric cathedral and sat there for a
little bit. I'm very glad I did and it had
nothing to do with what my religion is or
what anybody's religion is. It has nothing
to do with any of that. I sat in there and
it's beautiful beautiful building. I don't
care what faith you are, I don't care what
your belief. It's just this beautiful building
and it made me realize that as much as we've
lost this week, here I'm sitting in this
amazing structure: this city still has so
much. It's an amazing city; I'm not from
here I'm from Boston. I grew up fearing this
city. I grew up frankly hating this city.
I've been here for 8 years and I sat here
and then I realized we've lost so much and
again I'm not going to attempt to tell you
how much New York has lost. But sitting there
I thought this is such a beautiful place,
we still have so much, and we have to thank
God. And by I mean God it can mean whatever
that means to you. We just have to thank
God for what we still have and what we still
can do. I also know that if I say anything
else tonight -- I know we have a young audience
that watches us. I just know that over the
years people have come up to me and talked
me about the show and expressed enthusiasm.
There're a lot of young people watching.
And there's a lot of cynicism among young
people and if I could say anything tonight
to any of the people that watch our little
show at 12:30 at night who are young I would
ask you not to be cynical. I would ask you
to accept that as horrible and senseless
as this things is that there is goodness
in people, that collectively we're amazing
country, that we've done a lot -- I have
this guy on my desk, Robert Smigel game me
this Eisenhower mug, and it was on my desk
at the Saturday Night Live, it was on my
desk at The Simpsons. I've always kept it
here on the show since the day one, it's
been here on every show. We're in an amazing
country. There is a lot of goodness in the
world and I would ask young people not to
give in to cynicism in any way and to try
and rise above themselves and just somehow
be better in this situation, somehow grow
in this horrible horrible situation. Let's
try and grow. Let's try and accomplish something.
Let's try and make some sense out of what
is a horrible terrible senseless act. I wish
I could do more for my staff. There're people
here that are numb. There're people that
are very depressed as I'm sure there're all
over the country. There're people here that
are terribly terribly saddened and lost.
I wish I could do more. I wish I could say
something to them. All I can say is that
tonight we're gonna start and we're gonna
try and make this little show, which has
always been silly and unprofessional and
largely inconsequential in the larger world.
We're gonna try and do one of these tonight
and then we'll try tomorrow and then so on.
And so... Let's begin