Conan O’Brien Remembers Robin Williams’ Kindness After Tonight Show Firing
Conan O’Brien recently opened up about a touching moment with Robin Williams, recalling how the late comedian reached out to him after his sudden firing from The Tonight Show in 2009. O’Brien was struggling after the show ended, unsure of his next steps.
“I was lucky enough to have some great interactions with Robin Williams before he passed,” O’Brien shared on his Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend podcast. “One of the most memorable examples to me is when I went through my whole Tonight Show debacle. Finally, the show is done, and I don’t know if I have a career anymore. What am I gonna do next? I’m lying on the floor in the living room of my house, and my phone rings, and I pick it up, and it’s Robin Williams.”
O’Brien was stunned by the unexpected call, especially since he had no idea how Williams had gotten his number. “How are you holding up, chief?” Williams asked, checking in on O’Brien. The actor reassured him, “You’re gonna be fine, you’re gonna be great.”
But Williams wasn’t done yet. He knew that O’Brien shared his passion for cycling, so he told him to head down to a bike shop in Santa Monica. “And I said, ‘What?’” O’Brien recalled. “He said, ‘No, no, no, just head on down there. Ride around, you’ll feel better.’”
When O’Brien arrived, he found a beautiful Colnago cruiser waiting for him—one Williams had specifically customized for him. “I get down there and it’s the most ugliest—I mean, it was just greens and shamrocks and everything,” O’Brien laughed. “And he was like, ‘You’re going to like that bike, chief. Don’t worry about it.” It was an unexpectedly bright gesture during a dark time.
O’Brien’s gratitude was evident. “I thanked him many, many times,” he said.
Eric Idle, a close friend of Williams, described this act of kindness as “typical Robin.” “That generosity and kindness combined with the wit of the man is not a common combination,” Idle noted. Williams’ care for others didn’t stop with his friends—Idle also shared how Williams taught him the importance of empathy when interacting with fans. “I would just tell them to f— off and they would laugh and go away,” Idle admitted. “Then I watched Robin and his empathy, remembering that this is somebody’s moment in their life… it’s a big moment in their life.”
For O’Brien, Williams’ gesture was a reminder of the kindness that can exist in the world, even in the entertainment industry’s toughest moments. “I just couldn’t believe that he was thinking about me,” O’Brien said, still moved by the memory.
