♪ [ cheers and applause ] ♪ >> announcer: from 30 rockefeller plaza in new york, it's "late night with seth meyers." tonight -- jeffrey tambor, star of "dirty dancing," actress debra messing, host of "new york times" podcast "the daily," michael barbaro, featuring the 8g band with mark guiliana. ♪ [ cheers and applause ] ladies and gentlemen, seth meyers. >> seth: good evening everybody, i'm seth meyers. this is "late night." how is everybody doing tonight? [ cheers and applause ] great to hear. in that case, let's get to the news. president trump today called the appointment of a special council to investigate his campaign's ties to russia, the single greatest witch hunt of a politician in american history. though it didn't help his case much when he flew away on a broom.

[ laughter ] during a press conference this afternoon, president trump said that his administration is getting things done at a record-setting pace. for example, most presidents take four years to finish a term and it looks like trump's gonna get it done in like eight months. [ cheers and applause ] so -- [ laughter ] you're out! the justice department yesterday appointed former fbi director robert mueller as special council to oversee the investigation into trump and russia. "i'm gonna get to the bottom of this." said donald trump to a pint of haagen dazs. [ laughter ] everybody, calling me a liar. i'm not a liar. they're liars, i don't like -- [ laughter ] country singer toby keith will reportedly perform in saudi arabia on saturday, for president trump's first foreign trip. you're having toby keith perform

for muslims? [ laughter ] that's like having betsy devos give the commencement speech at a historically black -- oh, okay. i see what you are doing. [ audience groans ] [ applause ] i see what you're doing. you hate everything. an app that reminds women to take their birth control pills will now offer instructions on what to do if a pill is missed or not taken on time. and i gotta say, the app is more conservative than i expected. [ laughter and applause ] a yale university dean has been placed on leave after leaving offensive reviews on yelp. here's one of them. [ laughter ] one star. rapper a$ap rocky had 1.5 million dollars worth of jewelry stolen from his home in los angeles earlier this week. well, here's a free tip, stop spelling your name with a dollar sign. [ laughter ] that's like having the license plate "i love cocaine" and being surprised when the cops pull you over.

[ applause ] don't be surprised. why do you have so many letters in your license plate? and finally, a man from idaho was recently rushed to the hospital after a fidget spinner toy became lodged in his anus. [ laughter ] but doctors sent the man home untreated since that's where those belong. [ laughter and applause ] ladies and gentlemen, we have a fantastic show for you tonight. he's an incredible actor from such great shows as "transparent" and "arrested development." his memoir "are you anybody" is avaiable now. jeffrey tambor, he's one of our favorites is back on the show. [ cheers and applause ] another friend of ours who's back is starring in the abc adaption of "dirty dancing," debra messing. [ cheers and applause ] back on "late night" tonight. and i don't know -- i don't know if you've been listening to the "new york times" podcast "the daily." i'm addicted to it and i'm so happy its host is here tonight. michael barbaro is joining us. [ cheers and applause ] so looking forward to talking to him.

about how he pulls that together every day. before we get to all of our great guests, even by trump's standards, this has been an insane week. day after day there have been mounting scandals culminating with yesterday's appointment of a special council to oversee the russian investigation. and now, trump is heading out on his first foreign trip as president under a cloud of suspicion. for more on this, it's time for "a closer look." ♪ [ cheers and applause ] >> seth: the pace at which trump scandals have been unfolding over the past week has been mind-boggling. of course, the historical precedent everyone seems to be using for comparison's sake is watergate, but even that seems to be inadequate in describing how quickly things are moving. as senator john mccain explained yesterday. >> it's just another scandal, it's just another scandal that unfortunately continues every -- only it's now accelerated. watergate took many months and this thing seems to be taking hours. >> seth: yeah, this isn't watergate, it's the watergate express.

[ laughter ] in the trump era, every hour feels like a month. in fact, time now works for us the way crowd sizes work for trump. a few thousand can seem like 1.5 million hours. [ cheers and applause ] all of this, of course, came to a head yesterday with the appointment of a special council. >> a special independent council has been named to head up the investigation of the trump administration, and russian interference with the u.s. election. >> the department naming former fbi chief robert mueller as special council, the decision a bow to the growing pressure from capitol hill, after the president's firing of fbi director james comey, who was leading his own russia investigation. and the cascade of stunning developments this week that have followed. >> up until today, president donald trump has had the ability to control almost every news cycle. from this day forward, he no longer has control. and instead, if you will, of being the hunter, he becomes the hunted. >> seth: yeah, but i'm not sure

trump was much of a hunter before this. his only prey came in buckets. [ laughter ] shh, if you move too fast, you scare them off. [ laughter ] today trump took questions for the first time on the appointment of a special council during a press conference with the president of colombia. but even when he was trying to focus on topics other than the russia investigation, he didn't seem very sure of himself, like when he discussed the two countries joint efforts to end the production of coca from which cocaine is made. but he kept mispronouncing it. >> recently we have seen an alarmed, and i mean really a very highly alarmed and alarming trend. last year colombia cocoa cultivation and cocaine production reached record high. today i affirm the united states' willingness to assist colombia's strategy. to target and eliminate drug trafficking networks, illicit financings, cocoa cultivation. [ laughter ]

>> seth: cocoa? [ light laughter ] does he think chocolate and cocaine come from the same place? [ laughter ] in fact, we've already captured famous drug kingpin el choco. [ laughter ] now, in his role as special council, mueller will have broad authority. and he's gonna need it because there is a lot to look into, take, for example, trump's disgraced former national security advisor michael flynn. and let's face it, the guy -- he just looks shady. flynn looks like a guy who only comes into town once a year for supplies. shame about those missing hikers. police got any leads yet? [ laughter ] as you may know, flynn is under fbi investigation for his ties to russia. but he's also under investigation for taking secret payments from turkey without registering as a foreign agent. which you're required to do, by law. and last night, we got yet another bombshell, about what the trump team knew with regard to flynn and when they knew it. >> the "new york times" reporting michael flynn told president trump's transition team weeks before the inauguration that he

was under federal investigation for secretly working as a paid lobbyist for turkey during the campaign. >> despite the warning mr. trump made flynn his national security adviser. >> seth: so they hired someone who was under active fbi investigation for taking secret payments from a foreign government as the national security adviser. that's like hiring a baby-sitter who is still wearing one handcuff. [ laughter ] so just think about this for a second, donald trump and his associates are facing multiple fbi investigations over foreign payments and possible collusion with a foreign government. as well as investigations in the house and senate and now a special council. i just wish someone had warned us about the disastrous consequences of a president who would be under investigation while in office. >> the fbi now has multiple open criminal investigations into hillary clinton. and now she's gonna run the coutnry. she'll be under investigation for years, she'll be with trials. i mean, we went through it with him with the impeachment and the lies.

aren't we tired of this stuff? this election will determine whether we remain a free country in the truest sense of the word or we become a corrupt banana republic controlled by large donors and foreign governments. this is collusion and corruption of the highest order and it is one more reason why i ask, my attorney general, i will ask. to appoint a special prosecutor. [ laughter and applause ] >> seth: it's literally -- it's literally the only campaign promise he's actually kept. [ cheers and applause ] it's almost like donald trump is a time traveler sent to warn us about himself. [ laughter ] oh, god, i'm too late. [ laughter ] now the timing of all this chaos cannot be worse for trump

because on friday he sets out for his first foreign trip to europe and the middle east. and aides were hoping it would represent a chance to reboot his presidency. instead with all the turmoil going on, trump seems less than excited about the trip. according to "time's" trump, a confirmed homebody, has expressed dread about the trip asking aides whether it can be shortened to five days, from nine. so he's basically a kid who doesn't want to go to summer camp. [ laughter ] but what if they don't have the snacks i like? [ laughter ] and he doesn't seem to want to do much preparation for the trip either. according to a report in reuters yesterday conversations with some officials who have briefed trump and others who are aware of how he abosrbs information, portray a president with a short attention span. [ laughter ] he likes single page memos and visual aides. like maps, charts, graphs, and photos. and national security council officials who strategically included trump's name in as many paragraphs as we can because he keeps reading if he's mentioned. [ laughter ] they have to put his name in stuff to keep him interested.

soon they're gonna have to start writing his intelligence briefings on a mirror. [ laughter and applause ] in fact, trump's aides aren't the only ones concerned about trump's ability to stay focused. during this trip, trump will meet with leaders of nato, our most important military alliance. and according to a recent report, nato is scrambling to taylor it's upcoming meeting to avoid taxing president donald trump's notoriously short attention span. the alliance is telling heads of state to limit talks to two to four minutes. [ laughter ] in fact, they're presenting the information to trump on a placemat. [ laughter and applause ] so -- as he heads out, on his trip to meet the leaders of foreign nations, trump takes with him a cloud of suspicion and questions about his competence. the constant drum beat of scandal and chaos coming from this whitehouse is exhausting. or to put it another way. >> aren't we tired of this stuff? [ laughter ] >> seth: yeah, that sounds about right. this has been "a closer look." ♪ [ cheers and applause ] we'll be back with jeffrey tambor, everybody.

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[ cheers and applause ] >> seth: welcome back, everybody. please, give it up for the 8g band right over there. [ cheers and applause ] also, all this week we've had one of the most influential musicians in the modern jazz world with us, and you can hear his grammy award-winning drumming on the iconic, david bowie's "no plan" ep. mark guiliana, everybody. [ cheers and applause ] thank you. >> thank you so much. >> seth: it's been a great week mark. great having you here. our first guest tonight is a two-time emmy and golden globe award-winning actor who you know from his work on "the larry sanders show," "arrested development," and "transparent." his new memoir, are you anybody" is available in stores now. please welcome back to the show, the always wonderful, jeffrey tambor, everybody. [ cheers and applause ] ♪ ♪

>> seth: welcome back, friend. >> thank you. thank you. it's great to be here. >> seth: i'm so happy to have you here. congratulations on this book. >> thank you. >> seth: what made you -- you've had this incredibly successful career. you've had a lot of opportunities i would think to sit back, and write a book. what made you think this was the time? >> when i was a young actor, i was on broadway, and it was pre-selfie stuff, and there was a -- >> seth: there was a time before selfies. wow. >> there was a time before cell phones. >> seth: wow. >> and this autograph seeker was outside and i came outside, i had three lines in the george c. scott, "sly fox." i came out, i had my $300 faux shammy sort of thing on with my hat, and he said, are you anybody? [ laughter ] and i said, i took thirty seconds, and i said, no. [ laughter ] and so i thought that would be a great entrance, plus i have four kids at home, twelve, ten, and two sevens. >> seth: two sevens -- >> and they have no idea what i do for a living. >> seth: really? >> no.

they think i eat lunch because they come to the set and i'm eating lunch. [ laughter ] so they tell their friends that, my daddy eats lunch for a living. >> seth: gosh. he eats lunch in a tent somewhere, yeah. >> right, and so i thought i would write in my waning years, i would kind of write, and tell them what daddy does for a living, and what that's all about. >> seth: well because i'm -- as i go through those ages, i'm thinking the stuff that i am most familiar with you, "transparent," "arrested development," larry sanders." those are maybe not perfect for their ages. what do they know you best from? >> "trolls." >> seth: okay. great. [ light laughter ] >> and "spongebob." >> seth: okay. [ light laughter ] and are they excited? >> well hold on now. there's a big -- i am the voice of the burrito on tv. [ laughter ] and that's a -- >> seth: wow, that's a big deal. [ cheers and applause ] so when you're not eating lunch, you're voicing lunch? >> i'm voicing lunch, and any character that comes on television with a low voice, they go like this -- is that you? [ laughter ]

>> seth: part of the promotion of this book is you let your children interview you. >> i did. >> seth: and it's really adorable. do you mind if we show a clip? >> i really do. >> seth: you just said you do. [ laughter ] >> seth: but did -- what did you -- what sort of instruction did you give them. >> all right, go ahead. no, i just -- we just said interview me like it's, you know, the seth meyer's show. >> seth: okay great. >> so, this is from our home. here we go. >> seth: all right, let's take a look. >> does anybody know what i do for a living? >> you go, hey now. [ laughter ] >> no, no, i don't go, hey now. i did so on a show. do you know what i do for a living? >> i have no idea what that means. >> what was it like to make your broadway de-butt. [ laughter ] opposite acting legend, george c. scott? >> well george c. scott, you don't know, was a very famous actor, he did patton, and i was very nervous making my de-butt. [ laughter ] a de-butt is hard. this is also my de-butt making a book. [ laughter ] >> seth: fantastic.

[ cheers and applause ] >> aren't they great? >> seth: yeah. >> yeah. >> seth: i like that they all, even the twins sit completely different ways. one's very upright. one's a full sloucher. >> right. right. >> seth: yeah. >> i love that i actually -- i can't say. why is -- may i ask a question? >> seth: sure. >> it's a little off topic, but why is there a nurse outside my dressing room? [ laughter ] >> well, i feel like this is something you worry about every time you come here. i've tried to explain. >> well, last year, she was further and now she's really close. [ laughter ] are you guys worried about me? >> seth: no. we have a nurse. we have to, being a show, we have to have a nurse on set. >> really? >> seth: the nurse is here for everybody. she doesn't think that you are anymore at risk. [ light laughter ] >> oh, because the tetanus shot was real. >> seth: now wait -- >> yeah. >> seth: if she gave you a tetanus shot -- >> i already have one. >> seth: okay, i'm worried this wasn't the official nurse. [ laughter ] >> oh. >> seth: we do have like, sort of a prankster second. >> she had alcohol on her breath. [ light laughter ] >> seth: okay, yeah, and yet you went along with the whole -- >> yeah, well, you can't have

too much of a tetanus shot. >> seth: yeah, that's true. one of the things you talk about, some early stage fright before, even pre-acting, your bar mitzvah. >> yes. >> seth: you were very concerned about your hebrew. >> i was high at my bar mitzvah. >> seth: you were high? [ laughter ] >> yes my mother -- >> seth: but now, how did you get high? >> my mother said, are you nervous. i said, yes, of course, and she said, well here's a miltown, which is xanax. [ light laughter ] and, but i know what you are talking about. my cantor, cantor bornstein ate cottage cheese sandwiches and in the hebrew religion, it's very guttural, and i would say, baruch, and he would say, no it's baruch, and the cottage cheese would come -- [ audience groans ] by the end of my lesson, i looked like one of those ceilings in the valley. [ light laughter ] but i was high at my bar mitzvah. >> seth: wait, how did you? how quick? did it work? >> oh yeah, i was like flying. i was all, hey how are you? hey. i got another tune for you. >> seth: wow. >> yeah. [ laughter ] >> seth: that's great, and did you feel it right away? did the miltown go to work right away? >> it didn't.

during the speech, i got -- i kind of went off. it was interesting. yeah. [ laughter ] i kind of did like an ella fitzgerald, jerry lewis sort of -- >> seth: got it. did you enjoy your bar mitzvah? did you enjoy going to other people's bar mitzvahs? >> i was high at my bar mitzvah. [ laughter ] >> seth: okay, but what about other ones, when you, when you were sober at other -- when you went to friends' bar mitzvahs. >> are you asking me if i'm happy at other people's bar mitzvahs? >> seth: when you were 13. >> yes. >> seth: did you have fun then. >> now. >> seth: you didn't really. >> no, actually i've never told this, but i was so allergic to wool that at my own bar mitzvah, i put on flannel pajamas, and i put them under my wool suit. so it looked like i was -- well i was high from here up, and i looked like an elephant from here down. [ laughter ] it wasn't pretty, folks. >> seth: do you -- have you had a -- cause i guess your twelve-year-old -- is he in a world where it's going to -- or, or -- the twelve-year-olds a girl or a boy? >> let's see, he is a boy. >> seth: okay, gotcha. so are you going to have to as a parent, start going to a bunch of bar mitzvahs, do you think? >> no. >> seth: okay, you're not going to go? >> no. >> seth: okay.

[ laughter ] >> i have miltown at home. [ laughter ] >> seth: you talk about your career, and it's very exciting. you talk about a lot of your highs. you were -- [ laughter ] well, now we're back on highs. [ cheers and applause ] oh. before i get to that, i want to -- i'm very impressed with this. >> what? >> seth: i did not realize you own a book store in l.a.? >> i do. skylight bookstore in los angeles, and get this, bucket list time. i'm reading my book, "are you anybody" at my own book store next week. >> seth: how -- that's fantastic. how old -- how long have you -- >> doesn't that merit applause? [ cheers and applause ] i love that i said merit, applause. >> seth: well, you are a book store owner. you're very -- >> right, i have to say merit. >> seth: you use big words. >> yeah. i don't do this lightly. i have to tell you, i'm 72 years old. my days are limited. i want my kids to know what the heck is going on while this actor walking around their house mumbling these lines, and i want them to know what the proccess is.

>> seth: and you have a lot that they should be very proud of, and one of the things, which i did not realize is that you were the first actor to say the c-word on television. >> how do you know that? i was. yes. on the gary -- they're applauding -- they're applauding the c-word. >> seth: wouldn't give it up for your book store? [ light laughter ] >> unbelievable. >> seth: the bookstore, they were hands in lap. >> this audience. where did you get them? [ laughter ] >> seth: yeah, yeah. they're a -- >> yeah, i said it in the "garry schandling show" and he -- you know, garry was a -- he loved mistakes, and he loved error, and the line was bitch, about his wife, i said the c-word during rehearsal, and he said, let's go. let's go on the air. >> seth: really? >> yeah. >> seth: and so -- and that was -- >> did you know him? >> seth: no, i never met -- i passed him at a couple parties, and said hello real quickly. do you miss him. you must just miss him terribly. >> i miss him terribly. yeah. >> seth: where was the last -- when was the last time you saw him? >> i saw him in santa montica. we had lunch with judd apatow. he and i and -- he and i went and sat out in santa montica, and we just -- we just --

i loved him. he was -- there was -- you know. he gave me my big break, and i now work with jill soloway, who's another -- you know, and a great, great alchemist, great director, and i don't know if you know it, but "arrested development" just got picked up. >> seth: congratulations. [ cheers and applause ] another fantastic show. >> so go figure that this actor, this writer gets to do "arrested development," and "transparent," maura pfefferman, the role of my life. >> seth: yeah, well, i -- it always strikes me that everytime i see you that you've been in three all-time shows. it's an incredible -- >> i would take one of them. did you notice this? >> seth: no, what is that for? >> i have no idea. >> seth: okay. [ laughter ] >> eli, made sure that. eli, thank you. that's my son. >> seth: oh, that's lovely. >> yeah. >> seth: all right, well, look. you obviously have good kids. [ cheers and applause ] >> thank you. >> seth: you've got good kids. >> and you have a one-year-old. >> seth: i have a one-year-old too. >> yeah. >> seth: yeah. >> they're -- >> seth: i'm so glad you wrote this. >> he or she. >> seth: he. >> sleeps through the night? >> seth: he does >> okay. >> seth: he does, and i'm so glad you wrote this. because i always wanted him to know about you.

[ laughter ] >> thank you. >> seth: you are very welcome. jeffrey tambor, everybody. [ cheers and applause ] "are you anybody?" in stores now, and you can find my exclusive chat with jeffrey on late night's facebook page, because we're going to keep talking. we'll be back with debra messing. ♪ [ cheers and applause ]

♪ [ cheers and applause ] >> seth: welcome back, everybody. our next guest is an emmy-award winning actress who will appear in abc's upcoming adaptation of "dirty dancing" airing next wednesday night at 8:00 p.m. let's take a look. >> what about paris? remember our honeymoon? walking down the champs-elysees? drinking vencrose at the bistro next to the hotel? >> go to paris if you want. i have to put a request in at the hospital. how about a year from next christmas? we can bring the girls. >> that sounds wonderful. >> seth: please welcome back to the show debra messing, everybody! ♪ [ cheers and applause ]

>> hey. >> seth: thank you for being here. >> so lovely. >> seth: i'm very impressed with french. are you a french speaker? >> so not. >> seth: so not. >> so not. >> seth: did you have to learn that stuff phonetically? >> oh my god. was it -- what is it? >> seth: yeah. i noticed right as you spoke french they cut -- >> they cut. >> seth: it just swung around. >> literally, it was originally four words and i tried for a week. and i just went up to them the day of the shoot, i'm like, i can't say it. i can't do it. >> seth: just give me croissant. >> i said i could do -- i could do oui oui. >> seth: oui oui. [ light laughter ] [ speaking french ] oui oui. and then turn and you'll be out of the scene. >> that's all i got. >> seth: so was "dirty dancing" -- because the film came out, like i think 1987. >> yup. >> seth: i think for people of our generation, it is an incredibly important film. was it an important film for you? >> oh my gosh, it was everything to me. >> seth: yeah. >> i mean, i remember sitting in the theater with my mother. she was a singer in that era.

and i just fell in love. and i just saw her and i was like, i'm baby. i'm baby. i'm baby. >> seth: yeah. >> and, of course, of course, now i realize that every single person who has ever seen the film says, "i'm baby." [ laughter ] but at the time -- >> seth: yeah. >> i mean i was her age and i had curly kinky hair and i was, you know, quirky and not very, didn't have a very hollywood-looking nose. and i was like, you know what, i'm just going to be in plays because there is nobody in movies who looks like me. and then baby. >> seth: and i got to be honest, i think a lot of people said it and they maybe weren't right on the money. but we have an era picture of you. and you were pretty close. [ cheers and applause ] that's pretty baby. >> i mean, look at that hair. >> seth: yeah. >> i mean, and that took me two hours to control. >> seth: yeah. and just backlit hair. >> backlit. >> seth: you put a light behind it so people could see you

everywhere. >> i put lip gloss to try and like make people look there instead of here. you know. >> seth: i -- for me that movie was very troubling, because every -- i felt like every time -- like if you had -- went on a date in that era, girls wanted to watch it. so you'd like rent "dirty dancing." >> yes. >> seth: and it was such a bummer, because at that age i did not have a lot in common with patrick swayze. [ laughter ] there was a lot being offered in that movie that i was pretty confident i was not going to deliver in any way, shape, or form. >> oh my god, he was hot! >> seth: and then hot and then could dance. and it was just. there was too much. >> and sing. >> seth: and sing. >> she's like the wind. i mean, c'mon. >> seth: yeah, i forgot about that part. man. >> but all those songs are in it. >> seth: yeah. oh that's great. and then you get to sing in it. >> i do. >> seth: were you nervous about that? >> i was so nervous and so excited. >> seth: yeah. >> they're like "oh, by the way, you have to sing a solo." i'm like what? [ light laughter ] and they're like, "no, everyone, the whole cast sings." like there's gonna be, you know, an album. and i was like, all right, okay, i'm terrified, which means i have to do this. i have to do this. and so i took some singing lessons with liz caplan in

new york. >> seth: you cancelled your -- you cancelled your french lessons. >> cancelled everything. i said, no more french until i can do the singing and got ready and did it. and i'm pretty -- pretty proud of myself. >> seth: that's great. well done. i'm so -- >> thank you. [ cheers and applause ] >> seth: to be noted, a little bit more story in this version. >> yes. >> seth: there's a little bit more back story in your character, because it's not a character that we know a ton about in this one. >> no, no. when i was sent it and they offered it, i was like, well, who was that character? because it was so small in the film. but because this is an event movie, it's more than an hour-and-a-half, which is how long the film was. so they built up the characters within the family and you learned so much more about the dynamics between the parents, themselves, and the kids. and it's really -- it's really interesting. that's what made me want to do it. and the thing that's exciting is you find out what happened to baby and johnny after the summer ends. >> seth: wow. [ audience ohs ] >> in this version. that's right.

>> seth: i'm guessing crime spree. [ laughter ] they go on a dancing crime spree. i can't wait to see that. i mean was that close? was i close? >> you were very close. you got to watch. >> seth: i will watch. something else i'm going to watch, it was announced this week, very exciting, "will and grace" is coming back. [ cheers and applause ] and -- >> what's that? >> seth: i know. we were talking back stage because there's now a trailer with a little clip and it was, watching it was great to realize how quickly as a viewer, how comfortable i felt seeing you guys all play those characters again. was it fun -- once you got back in and started doing it, was it fun? did you -- were you hesitant to do it? >> oh my gosh. when we -- when we do that little skit, we were stunned at how fun it was, and we all looked around and megan was like, can you see this again? and then when it actually became real, my only concern was that i wanted to be assured that it was going to be -- it was going to be the show that we always did. >> seth: yeah. >> which was, you know, to be as

funny as we could be, but you know, outrageous and provocative and talk about what's happening in pop culture and social, you know, things and political things. i mean, that's what the show always was. and i was like, if we're going to do that, i'm in. >> seth: and so, is it safe to say the election had something to do with this show being back? [ light laughter ] >> absolutely. it did. >> seth: yeah. >> i mean, our show would not be coming back at all had we not come together to do that little skit. because it was only by doing that skit that we realized that it was possible. i mean, it's 11 years ago since the show ended. literally in history it's never happened that a cast has come back together after 11 years on prime time television. so it wasn't even in our minds or was a possibility. >> seth: sure. >> but because that little skit got seven million views, nbc, they were like, wait a second. [ light laughter ] maybe we should bring them back? and then, we're like, okay, let's do this.

>> seth: well, that's great. because trump's victory has brought a lot of stuff back. some of it from the 50s, and -- [ laughter ] it's nice that something is coming back that i'm actually looking forward to. so thank you so much for that. >> thank you. >> seth: thanks for being here. [ cheers and applause ] i can't wait to see "dirty dancing." >> it is so great. >> seth: debra messing everybody. "dirty dancing" airs on abc next wednesday, may 24th at 8:00pm. we'll be right back with michael barbaro. [ cheers and applause ] ♪ you could spend days weeding through financial documents to refinance your home.

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♪ [ cheers and applause ] >> seth: our next guest is the managing editor and host of the "new york times" fantastic podcast, "the daily," which releases new episodes weekday morninings. please welcome to the show, michael barbaro.

[ cheers and applause ] ♪ ♪ >> seth: how are you? >> i'm really well, you know on our show we just have little plastic bottles of water. >> plastic bottles, well that's the difference between on camera and the podcast. we need to make it look -- >> this mug has the name of your show on it. >> it's a mug, it's a beautiful piece of ceramics. >> note to self. >> seth: so, you started this podcast in april, is that about right? >> we started this podcast in february. >> seth: february. okay, great. i'm sorry. i have been listening. >> never correct the host. >> yeah, exactly, but i will say time has been sort of different. it's folding in on itself. >> it's been distorted. >> seth: was it your idea to do this podcast, how did it start? >> i wish it were my idea. >> seth: yeah. >> now, it was the idea of very smart people that the "new york times" went and hired from the world of audio who thought it would be a brilliant idea to take the engine that is the "new york times" newsroom and transform it into sound, and to

create an incredibly intimate powerful relationship with the journalists at the times, and your ears, and it's been really successful, and it's been so fun. >> seth: it's been incredibly effective at that. for me as a listener. it's twenty minutes every morning. you get it up at 6:00 a.m. >> yep. >> seth: and i feel as though we have a slightly similar problem now, which is our best laid plans often get thrown out of the window by what's happening with the trump administration. has that been the case for you? do you have to throw things out all the time? >> oh yeah, i have become a professional writer of thank you e-mails that double as condolence letters to my colleagues because we have had to kill a segment. this president and his administration, they slay the best laid plans in journalism. and we are supposed to have the inside track to what's going on at the "new york times." the show is built around one or two big stories a day that we're going to really layout in rich detail, we invest all this time and energy to it. and then at 6:00 the president fires his national security adviser. fires the director of the fbi. bans travel from seven countries.

we just have to blow it up. >> seth: you do have, of course, this incredible resource which is you have to apologize to this person. then the expert on the thing that just happened is what just right down the hall basically? >> yeah, one phone call away. so part of what we do on the show is we call my colleagues, wherever they are on earth. >> seth: and you record. you play the conversation? >> we play the conversation so that when they pick up the phone, and they're still screaming at somebody -- >> yeah. >> we play it. we do that and it's become such a recurring theme, and it's really popular that we have occasionally skirted the line between what a reporter would want to us play and what we would want to play. so now what we occasionally do is, we capture people bickering, we capture somebody in a sort of foul mood. we'll capture all these wonderful details. you're in kinkos, you need to ask josh at kinkos if you can use the phone. that's in the show. we now occasionally send that to the reporter, we say is this okay? >> seth: yeah. >> usually -- usually -- >> seth: yeah, one of my favorites is - one of my favorites is recently -- because again, you were talking to them as the news is breaking. >> live.

>> seth: someone else often needs them to actually do their work, and i remember one reporter saying, i got to go, somebody is giving me the stink eye, and it's very clear. is there a sense, are they excited to talk to you? >> yes. >> seth: okay, all right good. >> they are absolutely excited. they are absolutely excited to talk to us until very suddenly they're not because they have to file their story, or the editor is giving them a stink eye. >> seth: one of the things that's been great for me is you know, i've read these bylines over the years, now i feel like i am getting to know the reporters at the "new york times." >> because you are hearing them. >> seth: you are hearing them, and you're getting to understand sort of, what i like about it is they all seem like incredibly reasonable people. i can't, i'm so sorry the "new york times" is failing as badly as i'm hearing it's failing. [ light laughter ] but it just doesn't seem fair. >> you know what, there's nothing fake about them. >> seth: yeah. >> when they are real. >> seth: did you know them all? did you have a relationship with everybody? >> i have a relationship with about half of them. >> seth: gotcha. >> and the other i am dating, and courting, and cajoling all day long. i've been a reporter at the "times" for 11 years, and i have a lot of, a lot of

relationships, but nothing has helped me get to know the reporters at the "times" better than being on the phone with them all day long, and hearing them talk about the stories that they cover in a way that i never understood just how well they understood. i mean, these people live the journalism that they're covering. whether it's isis, whether it is the economy, whether it is president trump. the people i work with are extraordinary. >> seth: it is also extraordinary for me, because i read these things, and i will admit there are times where it becomes -- you know, it's outside of what i understand and it's hard to follow. >> right. >> seth: and you realize, it's such a nice thing to go along with the article, to listen to these people sort of talk about it in sort of more casual terms, helps you learn it. >> yeah. >> seth: i feel a lot better, and you have done, this last week, i think, again, like us. you got caught up a lot. is it michael schmidt? is he the name of the writer? >> michael schmidt, the world should know the name michael schmidt. >> seth: yeah. he sort of broke a lot of the stories this week, and so that was incredible. but you have also done really

wonderful work where you call people -- people outside the bubble. for lack of a better word you spoke to a coal miner? >> that's right, exactly the right way to put it. >> seth: and it was really wonderful because you allowed this coal miner, you gave him the space to sort of talk about how much it means to him to have coal jobs come back, and even though we now know more about the environmental impact of coal, for this man, he was willing to go back in the mine the next day. how did that come about? how do you find someone like that? >> a colleague of mine had talked to this coal miner, his name was mark grey. he worked in southern kentucky in coal mines his whole career until coal mining started to fall apart as an industry. and i called him and i just wanted to put this enormous debate we're all having as a country and as a world about environmental policy into a very human context. and as i began to talk to him he was so generous in inviting me to come to a coal mine and in recognizing that i'd never been to a coal mine, and i began to get quite emotional.

>> seth: yeah. >> and that all happened in the context of the episode. i would say i didn't just become a little emotional. i began to break down. >> seth: yeah. >> and in keeping with the way our show works, that all ran. i'll tell you, it's not easy to keep asking someone questions when you are falling apart and kind of crying in the middle of the interview, but i managed to do it. >> seth: yeah. >> i thought the interview was a really powerful testament to -- to just letting someone talk, to just letting someone tell their story and this man's story was a story people think they understand in their heads. one way or another. they like the industries. they hate the industries., but in listening to this guy talk, you very powerfully understood where he was coming from, and it reframed this debate that feels kind of distant and difficult to understand. >> seth: personally, i had that same reaction, okay.

there are a lot of things i believe, i feel as though i've done the work to reach these conclusions and i do sometimes forget that it affects people in a negative way. so i thought it was just really lovely that you took the time. >> thank you. >> seth: and i really do enjoy when you have people on, but again, as much as i never heard "new york times" reporters talk before, i certainly have never heard a coal miner get to speak like that? >> so, you are recommending more miners, less "times." >> seth: i guess just, yeah, basically. i think it's the right amount of miner time, but when you reported, you have actually dealt with donald trump. you have interviewed him. >> several times. >> seth: and what were your first interactions with him like? because, is it safe to say that he is more charismatic on a one to one when he's dealing with a reporter than we would led to believe with his attacks on the press now? >> oh, yes, absolutely. i first called donald trump when i was a city hall reporter at the "new york times." i wanted, this was a really noble investigative piece of journalism i was working on to know more about mayor michael bloomberg's golf game. [ laughter ] so when are you desperate for a great quote in the mid-2000s. you pick up the phone and you call real-estate developer donald trump, and he answers immediately.

and he got on and talked to me about michael bloomberg's golf game, and it was easy and kind of wonderful to talk to him back then, and that continued on until the beginning of the campaign. i remember going to his office. i wanted to talk to him about twitter. he's a master of twitter. so, i went to his office. he really wanted to talk about twitter. that was another thing. can i talk to the candidate donald trump about twitter? literally an hour later, i'm in trump tower, in his office. we were talking about twitter. he takes out his phone and he begins to show me with enormous excitement what happens when he sends a tweet, and as each and every retweet goes on, the ping, the ping, the ping, the dopamine is going up. he's so excited. [ laughter ] and, by the way, if you get a lot of retweets, it is exciting. >> seth: yeah, it is. yeah, i have been there, i have been there. >> you have a lot of followers, you've been there. >> seth: yeah, but still, you know, you always want more. [ laughter ] >> so that was another wonderful interview. then the campaign goes on and on, and i was involved in a lot of more complicated investigative stories about the

way he treated women as a business person and a human being and he then took that wonderful twitter feed that he loves so much and he called on me to resign. >> seth: yep. >> on twitter. so that's -- that relationship evolved. [ laughter ] >> seth: when you -- >> oh, by the way, just to sort of circle back. then he came to the "new york times" editorial board at the end of the campaign. he was elected. >> seth: i remember, yeah. >> he shook my hands and he called "new york times" a national jewel. so it's just a little disorienting sometimes. >> seth: yeah. >> to kind of place him in his kind of ping pong journey between loving the press and unloving the press. >> seth: the fact that that ping pong game is being played with everything, not just the press. there's pong balls everywhere. [ light laughter ] when you saw the tweet that he asked you to resign, did you have a momet of -- was it terror or was it joy? because -- >> it wasn't joy. >> seth: it wasn't joy. see i think, when you think of it, the class you were in when he attacks you, you are now in meryl streep territory. [ laughter ] [ cheers and applause ] and i think you should enjoy it because i think you've earned

it. >> oh, thank you seth. >> seth: and keep up the good work. i really am so glad i found your podcast. >> thank you. [ cheers and applause ] >> seth: michael barbaro everybody, new episodes of "the daily" are available weekday mornings. we'll be right back. [ cheers and applause ] ♪ ♪ you might not ever just stand there, looking at it. you may never even sit in the back seat. yeah, but maybe you should. ♪ (laughter) ♪ 100% beef burgers melty goa certain amount of classiness is to be expected. woah, okay. not that much. the all new bacon gouda burger from denny's. it's classy.

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♪ >> announcer: next week on "late night with seth meyers." kyle chandler. senator john mccain. ellie kemper. and a performance from broadway's "come from away." head over to itunes and subscribe to the "late night with seth meyers" podcast and you'll get "a closer look" and more downloaded right to your phone everyday. ♪

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except for the old guy with the binoculars. huh... we got ourselves a reader. don't be fooled by at&t. xfinity delivers the fastest speeds to the most homes. [ cheers and applause ] >> seth: my thanks to jeffrey tambor, debra messing! michael barbaro, everybody! mark giuliana! thank you mark! 8g band! stay tuned for carson daly, we'll see you tomorrow. [ cheers and applause ] ♪ ♪ ♪ >> carson: well, hello there. it is time for "last call" with me, carson daly. thanks so much for being here. a good one tonight. tennis system is gonna be the