Just thought I’d re-post this old photo of our dog Darby being too lazy to get up when the mail was dropped on him through the door-slot.

Conan O'Brien used his Harvard University commencement speech to argue that humility and the human connection matter far more than any diploma. "I always recognize the enormous role of luck in my life. Refusing to see how luck has played a role in anyone's success is simply ignorant. Many people are happy to mistake a lucky poker hand for their own brilliance, and fighting that human instinct has kept me sane. "I honestly believe that community, spontaneity, and a real commitment to humility has helped me build a rich life that means much more to me than any diploma. And believe me, I'm not saying the goal is to renounce accomplishments, but rather to metabolize them. If you carry your victories lightly, other qualities –- kindness, originality, courage, humor, and humanity –- have room to emerge. "Maybe the greatest lessons I've learned along these lines have been through my 24 travel shows. I have degraded myself in Cuba, Ghana, Korea, Armenia, half of Europe, Argentina, Thailand, Mexico, and Greenland, where I visited a real estate office and tried to buy the country. When I travel to another land, every quality I have discussed -- community, adaptation, and a sincerely humble approach -- are all necessary. When you don't speak the language, no one truly cares where you went to college, and you have no choice but to make friends. "It's on these travels that I learned a great lesson: let yourself be bad at things. I have been a bad dancer in every country I have visited. But the people laugh because it turns out everyone everywhere is related to at least one terrible dancer. For me, humility on these trips can easily lead to humiliation, which is also a useful tool. "Three weeks ago, I visited Amsterdam, dressed up as Van Gogh, and forced my way into the Van Gogh Museum, where I started loudly demanding a cut of the merchandising because I made no money during my lifetime. Guards forcibly ejected me. I was roundly mocked by patrons for my pathetic display. But I did see a lot of smiles. And not one person said, now that's a Harvard grad. "In Tokyo, I met with a teacher of Japanese etiquette who volunteered I wasn't her type. And when I asked her why, she just said, 'face.' In Ghana, after accepting a royal invitation, I was kicked out of the Ashanti Palace by the Queen Mother, because her favorite soap opera was starting. "I understand that I am preaching modesty and connection at a time when this is not in style. We are living through a period of extreme narcissism. Our current leadership in Washington believes that empathy is a weakness and that our nation stands supreme and alone. Add to that, everyone here today has a phone in their pocket that is algorithmically programmed to celebrate you and you alone by making you the protein-maxing hero of your own special journey. "Much has been written about how isolated and siloed we've become, but for me, the antidote is quite simple. By de-emphasizing what makes us special — in your case, a prized degree — we can really find one another, not as an exercise in virtue, but as a path towards greater laughter, love, and real growth."

The night after The Late Show’s final episode, Stephen Colbert was back on late-night television Friday… on Monroe, Michigan public access, where he was joined by "volunteer music director" Jack White and guest Jeff Daniels rollingstone.com/tv-movies/t…

It was bittersweet, last night at the end of Stephen Colbert’s brilliant run on the Late Show. Looking back on the decades he has given us and on his courageous and inspiring resistance to the corruption and lies of the Trump takeover, I see him as a true patriot. [1/3]

Stephen Colbert Follows CBS Finale 24 Hours Later With Hilarious Hour of Michigan Public Access TV, Featuring Jack White, Jeff Daniels, Eminem, Steve Buscemi and Byron Allen variety.com/2026/tv/news/ste…

Here's to Stephen Colbert, a man of great integrity and wit. Onward, friend, to bigger and better things.

“Please enjoy Colbert’s final shows,” John Oliver told viewers at the end of Sunday's 'Last Week Tonight.' “He’s the f*cking best. Good night, and good luck, motherf*ckers!” Full story: latenighter.com/news/john-ol…

"The moment you begin to censor the writer- and history bears this out in the ugliest of fashions -so begins a process of decay in the body politic that ultimately leads to disaster." Rod Serling Speech, Library of Congress (1968)

Today marks the 37th Anniversary of THE SHOT. Everyone posting vids of it with the national broadcasters. The only one that matters is this: with Johnny Red Kerr & Jim Durham on the call. #ChicagoHistory 🏀

Just remembered that I started there 29 years ago this week. Hard to believe.

My very messy old "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" office in 30 Rock years ago. I'm pretty sure there's a desk somewhere under all that crap. #ThrowbackThursday

R.E.M., “Seven Chinese Brothers”, live on TV in ‘84. Just the best, that’s all. Michael Stipe is on “Colbert” tonight by the way. youtu.be/uBBeqJZ80F8?si=l0S3… via @YouTube

This is Salem. She actually wasn't trying to jump on the couch just then. Was just making sure it was sturdy. With her face. 12/10

Anne Applebaum nails it:

This is Goose. He wants to know where you're going. If it's not too late, he'd like to suggest the park. 12/10

Hasn’t changed a bit. #OldTownAleHouse

Proud to be home to one of the most beautiful college campuses in the U.S. 🏫 hey.iu.edu/umu81

Conan O'Brien says he has "incredible empathy for people who have immigrated to another country" after traveling to Ireland and seeing his great-grandfather lived. "I went back to Ireland and I [saw] a great genealogist who said, 'I found where your great-grandfather’s home was.' The home is gone, but he found the little spot where he lived, near the Galbally Mountains. He said, 'I’ll go there and show it to you,' and I said, 'We’ll do it on camera.' "I was expecting to have these jokes loaded up; we had props and funny things we were going to do... But I got there, and I did not expect this because I'm not someone who wears my emotions on my sleeve, but I got emotional. It was very powerful. "This was a very small plot of land. He was a tenant farmer, so it wasn't his. He didn't have money, and he needed to move on because it wasn't working; probably not enough to eat, couldn't sustain. So, he left and went to America, and here I am a couple of generations later. "What's amazing to me is when you have that experience and you stand there, I have incredible empathy for people who have immigrated to another country. It takes an entire lifetime to go to a country where, often, people don't speak the language. They have to spend their entire lives just getting things started for the next generation; it's a whole lifetime that you're feeding into this process. "I was just thinking about this guy, whom I'll never meet, who had to do that. I think I was overcome by the fact that there's a lot of sadness in that story, and in a lot of these stories. People leave not because they think, 'Hey, I just want to go have fun in America.' They leave because they have to." (via Jimmy Kimmel Live)

The Underground Home of Chicago Journalism

This is Reedy. He’s so happy to share his favorite part of the day with you. 13/10