My first memory of Late Night with Conan O’Brien was in the summer of 1994. It was the summer in between my 5th and 6th grade year. I was sleeping over at a new friend’s house learning the then new Magic the Gathering card game and staying up to watch the then new Late Night with Conan O’Brien. (I also watched an old British show called Red Dwarf). I, of course, being 11 years old did not understand much of the humor, but Conan and Andy had goofy memorable faces. At the time, that was good enough.

Once I was in middle school I began to stay up later. This lead to my first late television watching: scrambled porn. Couldn’t quite get a picture on my room’s TV. Plus, it was just scrambled HBO anyway; but late at night, it’s porn to a 11 year old. After about 5 minutes…I would switch to The Late Show with David Letterman on CBS.

Letterman was my first late television show love. I used to love when he sent Rupert Jee., of the Hello Deli, out to say what Dave told him to say through a hidden headset. Dave had great and memorable interviews with Madonna, Julia Roberts, and Regis Philbin (not to forget Dave’s mindful comments after 9/11). It is ironic that the show I came to appreciate even more, is the same show that Letterman started back in the year of my birth (1982): Late Night. Check out Conan’s first appearance on Late Night here.

Late Nights with Late Night

I started staying up just a little later as I got older. Watching Conan became a standard ritual which also lead to me being tired every day of the week except Saturdays and Sundays. Late Night shaped my humor and to this day I still enjoy the plainly stupid: The laugh for the sake of how dumb something is.

In college I used to order off the Wendy’s dollar menu, when the double stack was made correctly, and watch Late Night every night with my Andy Ricter: Fish. I failed classes by not going due to being so damn tired. And you know what? I’d fail so many more classes to be in that Cone-zone every week night from 12:30 to 1:30.

Some Late Night Favorites

• The Fedex Pope – I was him for one Halloween
• Conan’s trips to other places – Finland and Ireland to name a few
• Triumph the Insult Comic Dog – Star Wars episode II is the best
• The K-9 with a gun
• The final Hunter S. Thompson interview

Final Goodbye

The show was unquestionably funny, so when the last episode aired I did not have to see jokes to remind me of what the show is. I came to respect Conan and his Late Night team to the point that I would rather just see him remember good times with me, the viewer. I watched till the end and heard his thank yous and goodbyes. I even started getting a bit emotional when he started to do so.

Will Conan’s show be the same? Will it be better? What Conan’s future holds is uncertain, but what Conan’s past gave me will be remembered always. Thanks Conan. I will miss Late Night with Conan O’Brien.