Conan O'Brien's legacy in the world of comedy is equal parts fascinating and ridiculous. From cutting his teeth in the comedic farm league known as the Harvard Lampoon, writing iconic episodes of The Simpons, to giving relatively unknown (at the time) Louis CK and Bob Odenkirk staff positions on his first talk show in the early 90's, Conan is deeply woven into the fabric of Funny. And today during an interview on The Howard Stern Show, Conan revealed a gem that adds yet another hilarious chapter to his mythology.
Back when he was merely a teenaged comedy nerd writing for the Lampoon, a then 19-year-old O'Brien devised a plan to meet one of his idols in standup: Bill Cosby. Mind you, this was during an era where Cosby was controversy-free and his stature as a comedian and cultural role model was unimpeachable. So O'Brien and his squad decided to honor him really just on some fanboy shit. They did this by inventing a fake award called The Harvard Lampoon's Lifetime Achievement in Comedy and somehow convinced Cosby to actually come accept it in person. Need proof?
Listen to the full story below. It involves Conan picking up the internationally famous Cosby from the airport in a hoopty station wagon and presenting him with a modified bowling trophy as the "award". Bravo.
