Lisa Rogak - Angry Optimist

On the flip side, many people have floated the idea that a natural next step for Stewart would be in the world of politics. But as before, he denied that he had any desire to run for political office on any level, answering the query, as usual, with a joke. “I would consider it, but unfortunately, there are some photos of me that would preclude me even from working at the post office, quite frankly.”

But he’s also given a more serious, practical answer: “I make a lot of money writing jokes,” he said. “I get to go home, nobody bothers me. I don’t have to get people to vote on things.”

Despite years of making people laugh, making people famous, and changing how people view the news media and politicians, Stewart retains an aw-shucks attitude toward the amount of influence he’s wielded through the years. “I deny that I am powerful,” he said. “Power implies an agenda that’s being acted on. Every generation has had its people who stand at the back and make fun of those in charge. I’m not saying I’m powerless and in a vacuum, but if I really wanted to change things, I’d run for office. I haven’t considered that, and I wouldn’t because [comedy] is what I do well. And the more I move away from comedy, the less competent I become.”

He cautioned that there was a good chance that The Daily Show would cease to exist once he made his final exit. “When I leave, I leave,” he said. “My entire biology functions on a Daily Show schedule, so when that ends, it will be an enormous change.”

As one of the oldest employees on The Daily Show —as well as holding one of the longest tenures—there was another reality that Stewart had to face. “There will come a time when I will be holding the team back, and I will have to hang up the sarcasm since I’m not able to do it as nimbly as I need to.”

Fast forward a decade—or two—and he doesn’t believe he’ll still be in the same spotlight. “I’m not going to disappear, but I don’t want to work this hard.”

Stewart openly admits that the show and its relentless pace has aged him, in a similar way to how presidents look considerably older after only a year or two in office. “Look what’s happened to me in the ten years I’ve been doing it: I’d [look like] the Crypt Keeper at a certain point.”

He admits that when he finally leaves The Daily Show, there will be a void in his life that nothing will be able to fill. “Without the show I’m just an old guy yelling at the TV.”

“You just have to keep trying to do good work, and hope that it leads to more good work,” he said. “I want to look back on my career and be proud of the work, and be proud that I tried everything. I want to be able to look back and know that I was terrible at a variety of things.”

He also gives ample credit to his youthful soccer obsession for helping him get where he is today. “Comedy and hosting a talk show is about the closest thing to sports that I have found,” he said. “You don’t know the outcome, and it really is up to you to do your best. If you lose, you lose, but you lose with dignity. You didn’t want to be good for a small player or a guy with no left foot. You wanted to be good, to take your best shot at the top guys and see how you came out.”

“Being funny is the same way,” he continued. “You never think about the fans or the audience, because it’s not about that, though if you don’t have an audience, you’re screwed. It’s about the act of writing jokes. The thrill is in the creation of the comedy, or the doing of it, just like it is with soccer.”

After all, deep down, he still considers himself just a guy from Jersey. “I love it there to this day. What’s not to like? You have cheesesteaks, sand, sun. It’s great. There are places to bodysurf, bars, places to get your ass kicked by a biker with tattoos. In all honesty, I love the Jersey shore.

“The one thing I did that was great was I moved from Trenton, New Jersey, to New York to try and become a comedian,” he said.

“And the one great thing I’ve done is try.”

Eternal thanks be to Superagent, aka Scott Mendel.

To be followed by everyone at St. Martin’s, including Peter Joseph as well as Tom Dunne, Sally Richardson, Melanie Fried, Margaret Brown, Aleks Mencel, Christy D’Agostini, Kathryn Hough, Laura Flavin, Joan Higgins, and the late Matthew Shear.

Also great thanks to Seth Bookey, who was an immense help when it came to digging into the life of Mr. Leibowitz.

Finally, to Alex Ishii for still being good for something…

The page numbers for the notes that appeared in the print version of this title are not in your e-book. Please use the search function on your e-reading device to search for the relevant passages documents and discussed.

Introduction

“little hairy man of comedy”: Dennis McLellan, “He Has Faith in His Jokes.” Los Angeles Times, May 27, 1993.

“man screaming into the camera”: Chris Smith, “The Man Who Should be Conan.” New York magazine, January 10, 1994.

“the court jester of the family”: Manuel Mendoza, “Late Night’s New Kid Faces the Real World.” Chicago Tribune, September 23, 1994.

“too smart for that little body”: A. J. Jacobs, “Jon.” Esquire, July 2001.

“I’m nervous about everything”: Fresh Air, NPR, September 29, 2010.

“gives Jews their comic angst”: Maureen Dowd, “America’s Anchors.” Rolling Stone, November 16, 2006.

“because we’re not in charge”: Tad Friend, “Is it Funny Yet? Jon Stewart and the Comedy of Crisis.” The New Yorker, February 11, 2002.

“than I should be”: Stephen Thompson, “Interview: Jon Stewart.” AV Club, November 11, 1997.

“it’s going to fail”: Ed Bark, “ Show Time for Stewart.” Dallas Morning News, January 10, 1999.

“and I don’t like working’”: Frazier Moore, “Jon Stewart Plans to Keep Pace with Quick-Witted Daily Show. ” Seattle Post-Intelligencer, January 14, 1999.

“and turn it into something funny”: Bill Moyers Interviews Jon Stewart, PBS, July 11, 2003.

“I hope I’m not prying”: Larry King Live, CNN, December 8, 2004.

“two of them had to be—no?”: Larry King Live, CNN, December 8, 2004.

“something that will make you laugh”: Theresa Bradley, “Solidly Stewart.” ABCNews.com, November 14, 2002.

“ Who wasn’t? ”: “Oprah Talks to Jon Stewart.” The Oprah Magazine , June 1, 2005.

“coming from that perspective”: Jon Stewart, “Jon Stewart on the Art of Self-Deprecation.” GQ magazine, June 1999.

“It is all-consuming”: Jim Sullivan, “Jon Stewart: Growing Up on MTV.” Boston Globe, May 6, 1994.

“‘You know what? Screw this’”: David Segal, “The Seriously Funny Jon Stewart.” Washington Post, May 2, 2002.

“what I was doing”: Fresh Air, NPR, September 29, 2010.

“we want to stay ”: Larry King Live, CNN, December 8, 2004.

“always open an ice-cream store”: Manuel Mendoza, “Late Night’s New Kid Faces the Real World.” Chicago Tribune, September 23, 1994.

“is mind-boggling to me”: Lee Breslouer, “Giving Everyone His Daily Dose.” University of Delaware Review, September 1999.

“sort of a dream life”: Robert Strauss, “Jon Stewart: You Know, That Guy on the Tube Television.” Los Angeles Times, November 30, 1994.

Chapter 1

“and actually played outside”: Geri Richter Campbell, “Dish.” Jane , January/February 1999.