Randy Cohen (Late Night with David Letterman, The Ethicist)

Randy Cohen joins me to talk about the creation of the Top 10 List; growing up in Reading, Pennsylvania; going to Cal Arts to study music and having little talent for it; betting on Johnny Carson's monologues; being a Knicks fan; the solitary life of a writer; first article about Japanese game shows; Modest Proposals a book of satirical letters; meeting the Pope; his first two books; not working with Steve Martin; wanting to end being a freelancer; staying up to watch Letterman; submitting a packet to NBC; not liking Small Town News; having fun appearing on camera; Steve O'Donnell always making him play a doctor; Merrill Markoe's brand of humor; lack of diversity in the writing room; Merrill's structure of pieces lasted after she did; "Late Night in Tokyo"; "Monkey Cam Show"; Dr. Ruth objects to the monkey; "The English Dub Show"; Randy's attempt to do an episode recast; Bad Phone Calls segment; G.E. Handshake; the crew made your piece funnier; man who's; Chris Elliot; leaving in 1990; TV Nation; The Ethicist; most of his writing is under 1000 words; his play The Punishing Blow; being the head writer for the first year of The Rosie O'Donnell Show; his radio show Person Place or Thing