Billy Crystal told a funny story to Stephen Colbert on Monday about guest-hosting “The Tonight Show” back in the 1980s and having to deal with a “looped” and sobbing Howard Cosell. (Watch the video below.)
At the time, Crystal was an up-and-comer who had starred on “Soap” and briefly on “Saturday Night Live.” He also was known for his impressions of Cosell and Muhammad Ali.
Cosell was perhaps the most famous sportscaster in the country, building his career on bombast and his signature delivery for “Monday Night Football” and other events.
But Crystal’s guest-host chance on the “The Tonight Show” quickly turned into a nightmare. Cosell knocked on his door and entered crying and moaning that “everything” is wrong. He dropped into the much-smaller Crystal’s arms.
Despite his shaky state, Cosell assured the panicking Crystal that he’d pull it together once they were on the air and that they could discuss whatever the young host wanted.
Of course it didn’t go that way. Crystal said Cosell rejected topic after topic before Crystal played to his ego and asked about his favorite sports call. Cosell described the third fight between Ali and Joe Frazier in 1975 as if it were “like an aria from an opera,” Crystal recalled.
He was duly impressed.
“Go to commercial,” Crystal remembered. “I say, ‘Howard that was amazing.’ And he leans over, puts his hand over the microphone, he says to me: ‘Did you notice how I dominated you? I do the same thing to Letterman.’”
Fast-forward to 5:55 for the Cosell anecdote. (It’s way better when Crystal tells it by impersonating the late broadcasting giant.)