LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, YOU KNOW
MY NEXT GUEST AS GEORGE COSTANZA
ON "SEINFELD."
HE NOW STARS IN THE UPCOMING
SHOW "HIT THE ROAD" ON THE
AUDIENCE NETWORK.
PLEASE WELCOME JASON ALEXANDER!
( CHEERS AND APPLAUSE )
( BAND PLAYING )
>> Stephen: HELLO.
HELLO.
CAN I SAY SOMETHING RIGHT OFF
THE TOP?
>> Stephen: UH-HUH.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR OPENING
TONIGHT.
THAT WAS BEAUTIFUL AND
NECESSARY.
( CHEERS AND APPLAUSE )
>> Stephen: YOU DON'T KNOW
WHAT TO SAY ON A SHOW LIKE THIS
TO SOMETHING LIKE THAT, BUT
THANK YOU.
>> I WAS THINKING ABOUT IT ALL
DAY.
I HAVE BEEN ON SOCIAL MEDIA ALL
DAY AND EVERYBODY IS TALKING
ABOUT HOW YOU CAN'T STOP A MAD
MAN, YEAH, YOU CAN'T, BUT YOU
CAN STOP THEM FROM GETTING THESE
WEAPONS AND WE'RE NOT DOING
ENOUGH.
( CHEERS AND APPLAUSE )
>> Stephen: HOPEFULLY.
YOU HAVE TO HAVE SOME HOPE FOR
THAT.
>> THANK YOU.
>> Stephen: IT'S NIECE TO SEE
YOU AGAIN.
I SAW YOU ONCE BEFORE.
>> WE HAD A LOVELY DINNERING TO
AND I SAT NEXT TO YOUR WIFE AND
I THINK SHE WAS MOVED.
>> Stephen: I BET SHE WAS.
DID YOU SEE WHO THAT WAS?!
EVERYONE KNOWS YOU AS GEORGE
COSTANZA BUT I THINK OF YOU AS A
SINGER --
( LAUGHTER )
I'M NOT JOKING.
ON THIS STAGE WHEN DAVE WAS THE
HOST OF "THE LATE SHOW," YOU DID
MAN OF LA MAN CHA.
( SINGING )
( WITHER OVER THEY BLOW ♪
♪ ONWASHED TO GLORY I GO ♪
( CHEERS AND APPLAUSE )
>> Stephen: YES.
HOW HAVE I NOT BEEN CAST IN
THAT ROLE OF THE THIN, STRING
BEAN OLD MAN --
>> Stephen: OR WINDMILL.
EXACTLY.
>> Stephen: YOU AND I HAVE ONE
THING IN COMMON.
I HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF
EXPERIENCE WITH STEVE SONDHEIM.
>> SURE YOU DO.
>> Stephen: YOU WERE IN THE
ORIGINAL CAST OF MERRILY WE ROLL
ALONG.
>> YES.
>> Stephen: I KNOW 2010
STEPHEN SONDHEIM.
WHAT WAS THE 1981 STEPHEN
SONDHEIM LIKE?
>> LOVELY, BRILLIANT, AMAZING.
>> Stephen: SURE.
A DIFFICULT SHOW.
THERE'S A WONDERFUL DOCUMENTARY
LONNIE PRICE MADE ABOUT SOME OF
OUR TIME TOGETHER.
BUT IT WAS ONE OF THOSE SHOWS
WHERE I WAS 20 YEARS OLDICS
SONDHEIM, PAL HAL PRINCE AND WOR
WITH THE GUYS.
IT WAS A MASS CATTLE CALL AND I
WAS RIGHT FOR THAT ROLE AND IT
WORKED OUT.
BUT THEY STRUGGLED.
I WAS NOT PART OF THE STRUGGLE.
I HAD A CHARACTER THAT WAS VERY
CLEAR IN A SHOW THAT WAS OFTEN
UNCLEAR.
SO I WAS COAST ALONG BEAUTY
BEAUTIFULLY, HAVING THE TIME OF
MY LIFE AND EVERY DAY THEY WOULD
REWRITE MASSIVE PARTS OF THE
SHOW AND PUT THEM IN BUT NEVER
ME, I WAS FINE.
ONE DAY I REMEMBER SITTING IN
THE THEATER AND THERE WAS A LOT
OF STRESS.
THEY WERE ALL KIDS AND COULDN'T
HAVE BEEN KINDER AND THEY TOOK
CARE OF US BUT THERE WAS A LOT
OF STRESS.
SONDHEIM CAME OUT ON STAGE AND
HE WAS LOOKING AROUND LIKE HE
WAS UPSET AND HE LOOKS INTO THE
HOUSE OF THE THEATER AND I SAID,
OH, SOMEBODY'S IN TROUBLE,
SOMETHING'S UP, AND HE LOOKS IN
THE AREA WHERE I'M SITTING AND
STARTS HEADING DOWN.
I WENT, OH, IT MUST BE SOMEBODY
NEAR ME.
WHO COULD IT BE?
AND HE COMES UP TO ME AND REALLY
UPSET, GOES, NEVER MESS AROUND
WITH MY SCORE!
AND TURNS ON HIS HEEL AND OFF HE
GOES.
I'M LIKE A PUPPY FOLLOWING MY
MOTHER GOING, I DON'T KNOW WHAT
I DID!
I DON'T KNOW WHAT I DID!
DON'T WALK AWAY!
DON'T WALK AWAY!
WITHOUT EVEN KNOWING IT, I HAD
GOTTEN SO COMFORTABLE THAT HE
WROTE A LINE OF MUSIC THAT
WENT,.
♪ THERE'S NOT A TUNE YOU CAN
HUM ♪
AND I GOT COCKY AND SAID,.
♪ THERE IS NOT A TUNE YOU CAN
HU-UM ♪
I APOLOGIZED PROFUSELY AND HE
WAS AS SWEET AS IT COULD BE AND
WE COLLABORATED EVER SINCE.
BUT THE GOD OF THEATER ALMOST
ENDED MY LIFE THAT DAY.
( LAUGHTER )
>> Stephen: YOU ALSO HAVE A
NEW SHOW CALLED "HIT THE ROAD "
COMING OUT OPEN AUDIENCE
NETWORK.
FOR A FEW PEOPLE IN THE AUDIENCE
WHO MAY NOT KNOW WHAT THE
AUDIENCE NETWORK IS --
>> LIKE MYSELF.
>> Stephen: WHAT IS AUDIENCE
NETWORK AND WHAT IS "HIT THE
ROAD"?
>> THE AUDIENCE NETWORK IS THE
CHANNEL OF DIRECT TV.
IF YOUR TELEVISION COMES TO YOU
VIA DIRECT TV, YOU HAVE THE
AUDIENCE CHANNEL.
I WAS NOT FULLY AWARE OF THEM.
THEY'RE DOING A LOT OF ORIGINAL
PROGRAMMING.
"MR. MERCEDES" WAS A BIG ONE FOR
THEM THIS SUMMER.
"HIT THE ROAD" IS THE PARTRIDGE
FAMILY ON ACID.
>> Stephen: I'D WATCH THAT.
INDEED.
IT'S A FAMILY BAND WITH A
MOTHER, FATHER, FOUR KIDS, ONE
ADOPTED AFRICAN-AMERICAN KID,
TRYING TO BE ONE OF AMERICA'S
WHOLESOME BANDS.
>> Stephen: FOUR KIDS, ONE
AFRICAN-AMERICAN.
>> YES.
>> Stephen: SO IT'S ALSO "THIS
IS US" ON ACID.
>> IT IS, INDEED.
>> Stephen: I WOULD LIKE TO
SEE "SEINFELD" ON ACID.
>> I UNDERSTAND YOU DID
RECENTLY, SO, YOU KNOW, WHO
KNOWS.
( LAUGHTER )
NO!
( PIANO RIFF )
COME ON!
>> Stephen: WELL, YOU HAVE A
SHOW HERE IN NEW YORK.
>> YEAH.
>> Stephen: "THE PORTUGUESE
KID," IT OPENS OCTOBER 24 AT THE
MANHATTAN THEATER CLUB.
THE SHOW IS "HIT THE ROAD" ON
THE AUDIENCE NETWORK, THE MAN IS
JASON ALEXANDER, EVERYBODY.
WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK WITH
TA-NEHISI COATES!
