Jordan Klepper, one of the hosts of The Daily Show, is such a fan of late-night that when he started on the Comedy Central series he found himself in an awkward situation.
Making his debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Klepper revealed that on his first day at The Daily Show in 2014, he called host Jon Stewart ‘Dad’.
Working on a piece about Crimea, which had just been invaded by Russia, Klepper said, “I realize I’m in way over my head, and we have to figure out a way to make this work. Luckily, the people on The Daily Show are some of the smartest folks, they crafted a bit around me being overwhelmed, being put in a place for their first time, like Crimea and their first day on their job. I remember brainstorming with Jon… and nervously throwing out ideas. In my nervousness, I called Jon ‘Dad,’ because I think I wanted, at that point, to make Dad happy.”
Father Stewart also gave him some advice before he went on. “Jon comes over, and he gave me advice that I cherish to this day. He says, ‘Don’t fuck up’,” he joked. “He’s smart as a whip, short as one as well, very tiny man.”
Klepper, who had his own Comedy Central show The Opposition between 2017 and 2018, had much praise for the late-night community, which has obviously had a tough summer with the cancelation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
“Honestly, the late-night world is full of such thoughtful, smart people. Seeing everybody get together, even a couple weeks ago, on Stephen’s show, to see everybody there, I think it’s a good team to be a part of,” he said.
“We’re very lucky,” Fallon agreed. “I’m lucky to be doing this.”
