you're back i'm sitting with don rickles
when i was a kid growing up
one of the big events probably the big
television event in my life
and i would share this with my parents
was
and my brothers and sisters is when you
would appear
on johnny carson's show as a guest it
was television unlike anything i've seen
before i don't think anything's been
that funny
since you had a great relationship with
john yeah well well john was
unique wrestler's soul he was a he was
the kind of guy you know as
we as you people know conan has some
notes and
they tell me what we might like to talk
about and so forth with johnny we would
do notes and all of a sudden i'd come
out
and the notes for instance would say
don't talk about
the world's fair or whatever i'm making
it up and he would just turn around and
say uh how's your mother
which had nothing to do with anything
right right and i'd say you never liked
my mother
why do you bring that up and we do ten
five minutes about our mothers you know
and it was funny
and it was completely improvised and you
could tell as a viewer
that things were going off the rails in
a great way that's the best television
absolutely and he was the kind of guy
that made you look good you know
and you don't find that around too much
anymore
it's very rare no um that's a joke
i know i know uh you are also your best
friend and i find this a little
incongruous your best friend is bob
newhart i i i think uh another genius
and one of the great comedians of all
time
and i only say it's a little incongruous
because your styles you're both
extremely nice decent people in real
life thank you but your styles are so
different
well yeah bob's a brainy kind of
comedian and i'm a kind of guy that gets
laughs
i can see bob now at home watching well
what
what that's funny that's funny that's
funny
i had three television children but what
what what did you have what did you do
what did you have
you guys you guys traveled the way yeah
yeah before 9 11 we traveled the world
together and the secret is which he
always can't stand the secret is the new
young people and you folks in the
audience tonight
always know the secret is he always said
i always say the wives if the wives get
along
the guys become great friends and that's
the truth and bob's wife and my wife are
like sisters
they really are as friends and and bob
is from the midwest and i'm from new
york and i always go hey what do you say
sweetheart
and bob goes basically i think lincoln
was a great man
yeah i made that up he doesn't say that
he said something dumber than that yeah
anyway uh but no he reads when we're in
paris he reads the new york times and i
find out if the dodgers are winning you
know what i'm saying
but yet when we sit together our values
are the same we believe in the same
basic things in life and
we have great times together for example
we go we're in
munich germany and uh barboy says no no
no
don't don't don't kid around you know
what i mean this is germany and they
lost the war and it's it's it's not
funny anything you do
yeah i said bob relax what am i doing
don't don't don't and we start walking
down the street and i go
um
don't do that we're going we're going to
get in a lot of trouble
don't do that
and then the waiter comes over and says
would you care for the fish yeah with
the salad like
we would like to sell it they go dude
you like to torture him it's funny yeah
and the whole trip he's a nervous wreck
but then i give him his scotch and i
have my vodka and we get over it uh
anyway
it's the key to a good friendship with a
lot of booze i want to congratulate you
i can't believe this after all the
i think really brilliant work you you've
done on television finally you get your
first emmy
and if no one has deserved an emmy more
than this man right here
but for you to get that is it's just a
thrill
you should have 500 of them but thanks
as a matter of fact it's
it's two emmys you have two enemies okay
all right all right for the show
mr warmth and don rickles projects and
and my performance
i was delighted at 82 years of age and
god has blessed me to
to come up with an emmy and i i
and you know in life we all we all wish
that you you have a big family with your
folks and so forth
and i was just an only child and i i
said that night even with the
i had living in the kidding around i i
dreamed of my mother rest her shoulder
to be there with me when i got it but i
know she i knew she knew about it and i
was i was delighted for her i really was
it was
it was she was a great influence in my
career similar to the show gypsy
she wasn't that kind of woman that kind
of strong and aggressive but she had a
great she was sort of a jew patton
jew patton yeah
but she she didn't wear a helmet only on
holiday
uh rickles letters
simon schuster uh david rosenthal is the
publisher he's here tonight
and david ritz was a great friend they
helped me put this whole thing this book
is hilarious
and it's the holidays go out buy this
book and give it as a gift buy three of
them rickles letters
is uh is available in stores now don
will be at the buffalo thunder resort
and casino
in santa fe new mexico december 28th
i cannot tell you what an honor and a
thrill it is to have you come out on
this show and talk to me thank you so
much may i just say one thing to you yes
really yeah with all the ribbing and so
forth when we first met i was delighted
to see how time has passed and you're
still in there and still the top guy and
i thank you for your kindness i really
do it's a good man
mr john rickles everyone take a break
when we come back john legal's almost
here