Thanks to the great folks on the Conan digital team I was able to score a last second pass and mini-tour to the taping of their final show of the Atlanta excursion. It was an unseasonably cold and wet April day in Georgia’s capital. Thankfully I was in a former establishment of worship to watch a comedy show. The Tabernacle is a beautiful and storied venue. If you ever have a chance to catch any sort of show there, do it.
A few notes before I get into my clip-by-clip synopsis:
- It’s really kind of amazing the manpower that goes into pulling off a late night variety show. I was of the belief that espresso machine guy handled like 75% of the duties, but it turns out there are A LOT of people behind the scenes. The place was a well-oiled machine even two thousand miles from home.
- The earliest someone got their to camp out for tickets was 4AM. That’s some mindless dedication.
- Jimmy Pardo is a warm up guy after my own heart. Not at all scared to take shots at the audience while deriding himself for any jokes that didn’t land.
- I simply could not believe how excited people were to see Mackelmore & Ryan Lewis. I guess there really is something to this YouTube thing.
- My version of Atlanta (I’ve been here about a decade) isn’t really at all southern, so I always feel a bit odd about the city I live in receiving such treatment on a national level. Not really a complaint, just something that is perpetually lingering in the back of my mind as the show went on.
No photos were allowed during filming, so I’m just going to follow up each of the clips with some of my thoughts and then some (amateur-ish) photos on the last page.
The Monologue
I’ve attended a few late night showings in my day (Letterman, mostly), and there is something surreal yet cool about having one of your late night heroes monologue only most exclusively about where you live. The Clermont Lounge joke in particular is seriously inside-ATL and I enjoyed it a little too much. I would love to have a breakdown of all the places Conan and Andy ate during their stay.
The chop is the worst.
Conan Kills General Sherman
Dude next to me would have definitely still taken a bite. The armrest was his for the entire evening.
Conan Enrolls In Southern Charm School
I’ve been a Conan geek since I was a teenager and it was his on location improv bits like this that initially won me over and always had me coming back. This whole thing is just classic Coco.
Speaking of classic Conan, he’s long been regarded as one of the genuinely nicest guys in show business. In between segments is where this shines brightest. He’s waving and goofing with the crowd, engaging his crew, cutting up with Andy, and just randomly jumping up and down to the music to let the band know he appreciates it.
I expected no less, but it was still nice to witness in person. Some lady even stormed the stage to give him a t-shirt (not sure what it said) and he seemed genuinely touched by the gesture, even waving her back so he could get more info. Hero.
Hank Aaron Helps Conan Take The Georgia Citizenship Test
After a week chocked full of Atlanta-related cameos (Jack McBreyer, Ludicrous, Walking Dead cast members) I was hoping we’d be in store for one. Hammering Hank was a nice touch. And the citizenship test itself was STRONG. Drunk Waffle House ties with Falcon vs. Hawk for best part.
This is probably also a good time to mention the difference between The Tabernacle setup and Conan’s Burbank studio. The Tabernacle is just one large stage designed for musical acts and comedians, so in between each segment that required a different design the stage hands worked quickly and efficiently to rearrange the entire set for the next segment. Like I mentioned before, quite the tight ship for a road team.
Charles Barkley Part One
Charles called Shaq a “fat ass” and it was glorious. Almost as glorious as Andy’s line of the night.
Charles Barkley Part Two
I’m pretty confident in inferring that Conan was staying at the Buckhead Ritz Carlton a decade ago because Barkley has notoriously frequented the bar there since taking his TNT gig. I haven’t personally run into him but know several people who have.
I could listen to Charles tool on Jordan for the rest of my life.
Barkley and Vitale Call Weird Mascot Dunk Contest
The stage crew dismantled the set, put up a hoop, and got Charles and Dick mic’d up in record time. The whole bit from there was equal parts fun and awkward and I’m still a little weirded out by how many low blows Vitale took at Barkley.
Mackelmore And Ryan Lewis Performed “Can’t Hold Us”
You could almost hear the collective, “Wait. They’re not doing ‘Thrift Shop’?” That was my favorite part.
In Conclusion
To close the show Conan gave a heart felt thanks to the city and then when the cameras turned off sang to the audience with improv lyrics about how we all wanted to leave and grab a drink but couldn’t because we felt obligated to listen to him sing a made up song. That will be my lasting in-person memory of Conan O’Brien. And it is beautiful.
Random photos from a subpar photographer on the next page.
