O'Brien almost hired the TV star as a monologue writer for 'Late Night with Conan O'Brien,' but passed because they didn't have a spot open.
“Great comedian, great joke writer. We didn’t have a slot, but he had a good packet and people knew him, so I met with him.” O’Brien, now 61, went on to say he was around 32 at the time of this anecdote, about two years into hostingIssa Rae, 'Last of Us' Cast Set for SXSW Speakers Line-Up “I just kind of said that your stuff is great but we didn’t have an opening,” O’Brien said of the meeting.
. About a year later, Romano shot to stardom withThe pair ran into each other years later, and Romano told O’Brien he “was really bummed” to have lost the monologue job. “I’m like, ‘What are you talking about? Do you realize what we pay monologue writers?'” O’Brien said with a laugh. “Ray, Ray, hello! Ray, you’re Ray Romano. That doesn’t happen if you’re with me writing!’”On March 2, he will host the Academy Awards for the first time, less than two months after the Eaton and Palisades fires decimated several Los Angeles communities.of the gig’s timing. “And it’s not about me, obviously. This is a moment for all of us to step back and say, ‘Be humble.’ Just be humble and say, ‘This is a massive moment. This is a terrible thing that’s happened in Los Angeles.'”Danielle Directo-Meston. We use vendors that may also process your information to help provide our services. // This site is protected by reCAPTCHA Enterprise and the GoogleThe Hollywood Reporter is a part of Penske Media Corporation. © 2025 The Hollywood Reporter, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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