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CNN Live Event/Special

New Year's Eve Live

Aired December 31, 2012 - 22:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, welcome, everyone. Another year and here we are again, Times Square, New York, wall-to-wall people, braving only the second really cold night all year. Of course, I'm here with Kathy Griffin.

KATHY GRIFFIN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to the countdown to the "Kathy Show, Kathy Season Two" on Bravo January 10th --

COOPER: You're plugging already.

GRIFFIN: Anything can happen.

COOPER: Anything can happen. I've heard that tag line, haven't I?

GRIFFIN: It's not "watch what can happen" and I still have my clothes on. If anyone was watching, I tweeted a topless photo of Anderson with a shower cap on.

COOPER: And I tweeted back.

GRIFFIN: I'll get you back for that.

COOPER: Thank you for joining us. We're going to be ringing in the New Year with you all the way through. We're actually two and a half hours. It's like a suppressed Kathy episode.

GRIFFIN: Ladies and gentlemen, our first guest, Rihanna.

COOPER: No, Rihanna is not one of our guest.

GRIFFIN: Rihanna is here tonight.

COOPER: You know who is one of our guests, Honey Boo Boo child. And I know you're not excited, but you're really excited.

GRIFFIN: OK, first of all, I was on the bandwagon so much before you or Ellen, I knew her when she was a toddler and before she had a tiara.

COOPER: How did you know her before that?

GRIFFIN: Because I'm a T & T fan from way back and I believe kiddie pageants are essential for self-esteem.

COOPER: We're following breaking news out of Washington where lawmakers have reached a deal on the fiscal budget and the tax deal --

GRIFFIN: Now, will I be able to have a part --

COOPER: No, you will not be allowed --

GRIFFIN: Who might come on?

COOPER: Vice President Biden might come on and speak and we'll bring that to you live and also bring back Wolf Blitzer in as well.

GRIFFIN: Who is on the show?

COOPER: He's not on the show.

GRIFFIN: Is he on the new Bravo show?

COOPER: No, he's not.

GRIFFIN: And Rihanna live here on CNN singing "Ode to Anderson," Calvin Harris and Swedish House Mafia.

COOPER: Who's Calvin Harris?

GRIFFIN: OK, let me take this part. Isha, help me.

COOPER: Isha Sesay is down at the street level along with hundreds of thousands of partiers. Some of them have been here since early this morning. Brooke Baldwin is in New Orleans for us tonight. We'll check in with her a little bit later.

GRIFFIN: I wonder if anybody will be drunk when Brooke Baldwin is in New Orleans. It will be like a roundtable, "Meet the Press" type of thing.

COOPER: David Gregory will be there. Susan Hendricks is in Music City Nashville, Tennessee and also --

GRIFFIN: Did you ever make out with David Gregory?

COOPER: No.

GRIFFIN: I have a little thing for him.

COOPER: You have a thing for everybody. You have a thing for David Gergen.

GRIFFIN: David Gergen, just Google me, trust me, ladies.

COOPER: Also what's now a tradition for us here, John Zarrella is in Key West, Florida, where giant shoe size 88, filled with a drag queen named Sushi. It's very hard to explain. It's very unique.

GRIFFIN: Sushi is kind of our Honey Boo Boo. We kind of put her on the map. Let's face it. And she loves you.

COOPER: I hope so. And Gary Tuchman is in Eastport, Maine where they're dropping a giant sardine.

GRIFFIN: I'm sorry. I don't think you read that correctly. "Kathy, January 10th, live countdown." I'm sorry, Gary Tuchman is --

COOPER: In Maine dropping a giant --

GRIFFIN: We have Rihanna and Justin Bieber singing together for the first time.

COOPER: No. It's not happening.

GRIFFIN: Singing "Wherever We Go" from Gypsy for the first time together.

COOPER: They're going to sing "Gypsy"?

GRIFFIN: Yes, they're going to sing show tunes.

COOPER: I've never seen "Gypsy."

GRIFFIN: First of all, how many times did you cry during Les Mis?

COOPER: I haven't seen it yet. I heard it's very good, though. Have you seen it?

GRIFFIN: I just went to a safe place.

COOPER: Have you seen it?

GRIFFIN: Of course, I saw it. I have blood cursing through my veins not ice like you.

COOPER: I don't know why they allowed it to be two and a half hours tonight --

GRIFFIN: Les Mis?

COOPER: No, you and I. As awkward and painful as it can be, I know there's an end point.

GRIFFIN: I'm so excited. I got so many e-mails from you. You prep so much from the show. I believe one was I'm in Long Island, I'll talk to you later. The other one was I have the sniffles.

COOPER: Thanks for asking. I have a little bit of the sniffles.

GRIFFIN: You have the sniffles? Why don't you call your friend Joe Biden? What about half man? The half man from "Two and a Half Men," he left the show and now Angus T. Jones, the half man and now he lost it.

COOPER: How do you know his name?

GRIFFIN: I am a professional. I have a show called "Kathy" coming January 10th. COOPER: Back here in New York, Central Park, Sanjay Gupta is in running shoes for another New York's Eve tradition, the midnight run.

GRIFFIN: And my annual pap smear. Sanjay, there's trouble down there. I'm not going to live. Do you want me to show you?

COOPER: No, Sanjay is definitely not up to that. Let's check in with Isha.

ISHA SESAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, there, Anderson. Hi, there, Kathy. Guys, you're on CNN, make some noise!

Anderson, some folks have been here since noon today braving the frigid temperatures all to be here in this special place, Times Square, on New Year's Eve. I want you to introduce you to some people just get a sense what it means to be here. I've got a fellow Brit here. What's your name?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My name is Laura.

SESAY: Now explain to our viewers why you want to be here in Times Square?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, it's a once in a lifetime opportunity.

SESAY: And you are from the states?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

SESAY: Is this your first time?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's my second time to New York, but it's my first time here for New Year's Eve. So I'm very excited to be here.

SESAY: So I want you guys to sum up for our viewers at home what is the atmosphere like down here on the street level?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's so exciting. It's just amazing. It's a little bit discomfort being cold and standing in line for hours, but it's totally worth it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Unbelievable. It's like once-in-a-lifetime experience.

SESAY: Where are you from?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Canada. Ontario.

SESAY: And you're having a really good time?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I am.

SESAY: Everyone is having a great time, despite how cold it is. Make some noise, everyone! Anderson and Kathy, back to you. COOPER: It's like their vocal cords are frozen. It's not that bad.

GRIFFIN: One year you took your clothes off and that was really embarrassing.

COOPER: That was last year and that was you.

GRIFFIN: We have One Direction coming up in 6 minutes live. What's your favorite One Direction song?

COOPER: I can honestly say I don't know any One Direction songs. Can you name any of the members?

GRIFFIN: Yes, there's Hishick, -- Francine, Kendall, Kim and Kanye. They're all in One Direction.

COOPER: Hishick. It's when Schlowmo can't show up.

GRIFFIN: You act like you don't like to sing or dance or perform in any way when clearly you saw Les Mis three times.

COOPER: I did not.

GRIFFIN: This is a little game you play where you act like you don't know things that you know. I'm going to start. You ready -- wherever we go --

COOPER: Whatever we do --

GRIFFIN: We're going to get through it --

COOPER: Together? Through thick and through thin --

GRIFFIN: Tweet me @kathygriffin if you know the lyrics to anyway Broadway musical song. I really feel bad this is your last night.

COOPER: You're going for Blitzer here, aren't you?

GRIFFIN: He gets me in a way like even Rick Sanchez didn't get me. Who do you call less, me or Rick Sanchez in that's like a little inside CNN history? I'll go Bernie Shaw like that.

COOPER: It's only a matter of time before you bring up you know who?

GRIFFIN: Rachel Maddow?

COOPER: No. Poppy Harlow?

GRIFFIN: So one of your producers has the never to look at me because I made a joke about Poppy Harlow working at scores. Do you know there's a girl on MSNBC named Crystal Ball?

COOPER: There's nothing wrong with a Crystal Ball.

GRIFFIN: There's nothing wrong with strippers. I think it's great you're supporting that Poppy Harlow is a dancer.

COOPER: That's not true. She's a correspondent.

GRIFFIN: What was the story this year she broke?

COOPER: So the other thing I wanted to mention was that -- come on, Lord.

GRIFFIN: Ladies and gentlemen, Rihanna in 3 minutes live.

COOPER: Someone on Twitter was going to say there was going to be a drinking game every time I giggle nervously, at which point people would already be drunk, which now because I've started to sweat already.

GRIFFIN: I'm going to tickle your sack. You can say sack. That's not bad.

COOPER: I don't know what you're talking about. I have no sack -- I did not bring a sack of Christmas presents.

GRIFFIN: Do you call your private parts your Christmas presents?

COOPER: No. If you do want to join the conversation on Twitter, the hashtag is cnnnye and also send us photos of what you're doing tonight, where you're at, send them to us. Where are we taking those, on Instagram?

GRIFFIN: I'm not involved in the Instagram scandal -- you'd probably want to get a picture of Kim Kardashian's fetus. That's going to be all Lamas that there are not enough breaths for.

GRIFFIN: I really dedicated my Twitter to sort of torturing you today.

COOPER: You did.

GRIFFIN: You don't know I keep every picture we have ever taken.

COOPER: That's the thing about Kathy Griffin. She keeps everything and today she began to unleash a volley of old photographs that I did not know you had.

GRIFFIN: We have Elizabeth Taylor here live in 10 minutes. Elizabeth Taylor and David Petraeus.

COOPER: Really, David Petraeus?

GRIFFIN: They're singing "I dreamed a dream" from Les Mis. With Nicki Minaj singing that Nicki Minaj song.

COOPER: They brought pizza.

GRIFFIN: I'm sorry. Do you think at the Ryan Seacrest you know what fest they just get a box of pizza?

COOPER: Earlier before you joined us, Kathy Griffin was marauding around Times Square searching for Ryan Seacrest.

GRIFFIN: Searching? Searching? I am going to ruin him. It is over for him. I am going to ruin him. Do you see this determination?

COOPER: I see the determination. He's unruinable.

GRIFFIN: The promotion is me sending out a mailer in my neighborhood. Do people even know we're on? I drive here last night for our dinner. By the way, you were a little late.

COOPER: Ryan Seacrest last year invited all the hosts of these shows --

GRIFFIN: Bruno Mars live in 7 minutes singing with David Petraeus and

COOPER: We're going to take a quick break. We got a lot more from here across the entire country, around the world --

GRIFFIN: -- singing "God Bless America."

COOPER: Honey Boo Boo.

GRIFFIN: That's right up there with your Spiderman. I am so out of that one. Get yourself in the harness and go to Georgia and get some spaghetti --

COOPER: That was a mistake last year. I admit.

GRIFFIN: Look at you, big man you can admit your mistakes. You just called your private parts your Christmas present. Everyone, his Christmas presents.

COOPER: Nashville and more.

GRIFFIN: Did you say you really called baby taffy?

COOPER: What?

GRIFFIN: What did you just say?

COOPER: Baby Taffy?

GRIFFIN: I don't even know what that means.

COOPER: We'll be back as we count down 2013. Goodness.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: In London, these are the final few moments of 2012. Behind me over there, hundreds of thousands of people have gathered to count through the last seconds of this year, five, four, three, two, one!

There you have it, Anderson. Big Ben is ringing and the people of London swinging in 2013 in truly spectacular style. COOPER: That's Matthew Chance in London. They rang in 2013 a few hours ago.

GRIFFIN: Was he ever tested for drugs?

COOPER: No, no, I don't know what you're talking about. Have you ever played London?

GRIFFIN: I played the palace with Judy Friggin' Garland.

COOPER: Really?

GRIFFIN: Let's do that. I Kathy Griffin played the palace in London --

COOPER: You told jokes in Buckingham Palace?

GRIFFIN: First of all, I did go to Buckingham Palace with Joan Rivers. But I did play the theatre. But your face was so like ew.

COOPER: I always think of London people so fancy and I've never seen so many people throw up and --

GRIFFIN: At my show?

COOPER: No, not at your show.

GRIFFIN: How's your taffy?

COOPER: Kathy arrives about a half hour before we go on air and every year the first thing she says --

GRIFFIN: That's because you say don't come until a half hour before, I am doing a lot of hard news stories. And then I see you tweeting pictures of your house on Long Island and mini quiches.

COOPER: Mini what?

GRIFFIN: Mini Keeshes.

COOPER: Kathy arrives and the first thing she wants to do is look for Ryan Seacrest. For some reason you're obsessed and she believes that Ryan Seacrest is trying to kill her. Here us walking around looking for Ryan Seacrest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Every year you look for Ryan Seacrest.

GRIFFIN: Let's go, don't cover for him anymore. Where is he?

COOPER: I don't know.

GRIFFIN: I thought you knew!

COOPER: I thought he was in a sealed bubble somewhere. GRIFFIN: We're going to find him. Just say you're Wolf Blitzer and it's part of the fiscal cliff. By the way, the fiscal cliff is totally Ryan Seacrest's fault.

COOPER: Do you still think Ryan Seacrest is trying to kill you?

GRIFFIN: I know he's trying to kill both of us. You won't believe me. Ask Carly Ray Jepsen. First of all, all these people are plants. They're clearly Ryan Seacrest moles.

COOPER: You think so?

GRIFFIN: Yes.

COOPER: Why weren't we invited to his preshow party?

GRIFFIN: My God, it's so much fun there.

COOPER: He invited you?

GRIFFIN: Yes.

COOPER: Did he send you a gift? He sent me a gift, which I thought was a dominant move.

GRIFFIN: But he sent me a gift and he begged me not to tell you he sent me a gift.

COOPER: He sent me a gift and Carson Daly sent me a gift. I thought it was a dominant move.

GRIFFIN: Totally. He was trying to hump our leg.

COOPER: Do you want to ask a cop if they've seen Ryan?

GRIFFIN: Excuse me, where is Ryan Seacrest? They don't care. They can't be drunk this early.

COOPER: Look, there's Carson Daly! You cannot -- you can't go up there. He's on the air. You can't --

GRIFFIN: Come on. Where is Ryan?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I love you.

GRIFFIN: Where is he?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He doesn't work --

GRIFFIN: Is he a hologram?

COOPER: He's in a hermetically sealed bubble.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's in St. Barts where all of our friends are.

GRIFFIN: I heard Barbara Walters was in St. Barts. I think he knows, but he's afraid to tell us.

COOPER: Why weren't we invited to the party this year?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There wasn't one. I swear on my life. He sent me jamies. Did he send you jammies?

COOPER: Yes. But I thought that was a domination move.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's between you and Ryan. I sent you a glass. Did you get my glass?

COOPER: Yes. Happy New Year, though.

GRIFFIN: Happy New Year.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I miss our dinner, though. We don't need Ryan for that. I'll pay for it.

GRIFFIN: Dinner's on Daly. I'll see you tomorrow night.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right, happy New Year.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Carson Daly is such a good sport.

GRIFFIN: Why am I shouting the whole time? You and Carson are professional. I'm like a crazy --

COOPER: There's such noise, you can't hear yourself talk.

GRIFFIN: This is kind of like a mutiny -- I feel like we've got a person to come in and gets that Ryan is trying to kill us.

COOPER: He's been nothing but nice to me.

GRIFFIN: That's what they say about the devil.

COOPER: In New Orleans, you don't necessarily need a reason to party. Brooke, how is it there tonight?

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: What's up, you guys. I've been waiting my whole life to say I'm standing between shock of thunder and the boss. This is my friend Andrew, a.k.a. the boss. They're kind of legendary here in the big easy. As their shirt says, ordinary men, extraordinary moves, why are your moves extraordinary?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, Brooke, throughout most of human history people understood that men represent the passion and the love of dance.

BALDWIN: My goodness, show me some moves.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The 2013 is the year of the dance. We're going to do the karate kid sequence. So it guess wax on, wax off, sand the floor, paint the fence, paint the house and then the karate kick.

BALDWIN: I hope you guys are following.

COOPER: OK, Brooke. We're going to check in with you a little bit later on. Brooke is going to ring in the New Year in New Orleans, the 1:00 hour on the east coast time.

GRIFFIN: First of all, let's -- you know what I can't handle about you? When you act like something crazy didn't happen. That's the inner Vanderbilt, like let's get through this, it's a long trial.

COOPER: It's a waspy thing. I just pretend nothing -- I just pretend it didn't happen.

GRIFFIN: I'm here, I'm here, this is all happening. "Kathy" January 10th live. So I get in trouble for taking my top off, but those nut jobs who are like out of a lifetime movie, one of those guys might be married to a second family and then they're trying to kill her later but the second one comes inside the house. Why did you send Brooke down there?

COOPER: I don't know. I love New Orleans.

GRIFFIN: That is your town, I get it. You love your gumbo, those are your people. Let's talk about her bill boards. What's going to change when you leave the network or am I not supposed to --

COOPER: I'm not leaving the network as far as I know. Have you heard something?

GRIFFIN: I hear a lot of Sanchez chatter.

COOPER: Let's check in with Susan Hendricks, who is down in Nashville. Susan, how are they ringing in the New Year there?

SUSAN HENDRICKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, of course we're in star city and the star here is the music. "Six Pence None The Richer" is playing behind me. They are expecting 50,000 people, the rain stopped for now, though. I did talk to a lot of people here in Nashville. They hadn't been here before.

They saw the hit show "Nashville" and they said we want to check it out and they are not disappointed. They are loving it here and so are we outside the hard rock. We don't have Rihanna, here but we do have amazing groups.

COOPER: You probably play Nashville a lot.

GRIFFIN: Are you like even trying to do a broadcast here this exciting? This is like Skippy love public access. Is this a webisode? What did that poor blond girl ever do to you? Did I just hear the big New Year's Eve show where a blond girl gives us a weather report?

COOPER: What do you want?

GRIFFIN: I'd like Poppy Harlow and Crystal Ball to be on the show. We have Rihanna live in 7 minutes. Are you ready for a quiz?

COOPER: Sure.

GRIFFIN: This is the part where I expose Anderson for the Charlton he is. What is Portugal's fifth largest city?

COOPER: I don't know. I don't know.

GRIFFIN: That's not even fair. One of his producers just said Braga.

COOPER: I didn't know.

GRIFFIN: Name Mitt Romney's sons.

COOPER: Schlep, there's Tag, Josh, Ben, Matt, Craig?

GRIFFIN: Yes!

COOPER: Thank you, thank you!

GRIFFIN: You did it. You did it.

COOPER: Bring it on, Kathy Griffin.

GRIFFIN: That hurt knowing when Candy Crowley did the debate. She did such a better job. That was like the debate and I think you did one like Congress people out of Wyoming.

COOPER: I did one in Vegas during the primary season. Now, what were you telling me, Michele Bachmann said during the break?

COOPER: I said nothing to you during the break.

GRIFFIN: I believe you were telling me things about Sarah Palin --

COOPER: I said nothing about Sarah Palin.

GRIFFIN: I'm going to read a text that Anderson sent me privately and begged me not to read.

COOPER: Kathy Griffin sends me texts all hours of the day, nude photos. There's a photo that Kathy sent me on election night, I'm standing next to David Gergen. It's not a tongue sticking out, your top was --

GRIFFIN: I'm an American. I'm not going to apologize for being a proud American.

COOPER: That's the picture Kathy sent me and told me to show it to David Gergen in the midst of our election coverage.

GRIFFIN: That could have been a really inappropriate joke about your taffy that went down to the sands.

COOPER: There's a guy picking it up. It's hers, it's hers.

GRIFFIN: If it's a joke about Justin Bieber, I'll need that.

COOPER: You live in California. Name one of your U.S. senators.

GRIFFIN: Feinstein and Boxer.

COOPER: Very good. The most popular book of 2012.

GRIFFIN: It's "50 shades."

GRIFFIN: Wolf Blitzer appeared as himself in what blockbuster film? You say you're a fan of Blitzer.

GRIFFIN: "Les Mis."

COOPER: No, he was in "Sky Fall." It was a good movie. We're about half an hour away from --

GRIFFIN: Name --

COOPER: Are you talking about the president of Pakistan?

GRIFFIN: First of all, Tebow.

COOPER: Name his kids? I don't know his kids names.

GRIFFIN: Bilalwal, Bakitar and --

COOPER: OK, next time know the name of the president.

GRIFFIN: I barely know Joe Biden, the guy you say is going to cut into my air time.

COOPER: Well, it was signed but that was last year. I don't think there were any last year.

GRIFFIN: No one's here but telemundo so stop acting like, whoo --

COOPER: Let's go to Gary Tuchman, he's in Eastport, Maine. Gary, what's going on?

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's 9 degrees, they got 12 inches of snow last night, but it's a small town family. We're in Eastport, Maine, the eastern most city in the United States, we're half a mile from new Brunswick, a province in Canada.

This is an international celebration. Not only are we between two country, but we're between two time zones. Canada celebrates the new year 11:00 Eastern Time, which is midnight Atlantic time. That maple leaf, May, the Times Square ball has nothing on this maple leaf.

You can see right here this is the real Canadian mounty, who is here for the celebration with his little girl. And you participated in the lowering of the maple leaf?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: First time this year, yes.

TUCHMAN: And you're going to sing "O' Canada," right? Isn't that beautiful?

That's what's going to happen at 11:00. Then at 12:00 midnight, get this, into the maple leaf. It's the New Years here on the Eastern Time zone. They lower a sardine because this used to be the sardine capital of the United States.

So you can see, Anderson and Kathy, this is not Times Square, there are not millions of people here, but this lab very warm and fun international celebration. Back to you.

COOPER: I like that, Gary. We'll check in with you a little bit later. Gary normally does the fun run, which I know you're a huge fan of.

GRIFFIN: Let's break it down. This isn't my first barbecue with Tuchman. I love Gary Tuchman. Obviously you are angry with him, to send him ground hog day style to some sort of town in Maine where he drops a minnow in a bucket, is that some kind of ratings grabbing?

COOPER: It's Americana.

GRIFFIN: I love when you act like you know Americana because I think some -- just fell out of your taffy. You referred to your private parts, which you referred to as your presents.

COOPER: The crowd is getting excited.

GRIFFIN: Why wouldn't they be getting excited? We have the Back Street Boys, New Kids On The Block and 98 Degrees reunion.

COOPER: No. No, they don't have reunion. We're going to be back shortly with New Year's tradition, where they drop a drag queen named Sushi. We'll take to you Key West after the break. Later --

GRIFFIN: We have one direction singing "What Makes You Beautiful," their number one song of the year.

COOPER: Is that the number one song of the year, really?

GRIFFIN: Yes.

COOPER: How could I have not heard that song?

GRIFFIN: There's the song for you.

COOPER: Do people listen to One Direction? I know little kids do. Do adults?

GRIFFIN: People love that song because it's sensitive. The lyrics are "You're insecure, don't know what for, you're turning heads when you walk through the door, don't need the make-up, being the way you are is enough."

COOPER: You know what's sad? You were pretending to read the card but you know that.

GRIFFIN: That was my journal entry from last night.

COOPER: They let Honey Boo Boo stay up late.

GRIFFIN: How did you get that one? You scored Honey Boo Boo? She fell asleep on Dr. Drew. I begged for Jane Velez-Mitchell. First of all, she's a former addict. I don't know if she mentioned it in five minutes. She used to have a mullet. Now she has something more fancy free. And she's been through a lot. She's been dumpster diving. She's a freegan. You know what that is?

COOPER: Yes, sort of. No, I don't.

GRIFFIN: It's a movement where people want free food. It's for people going green. It's one of the issues that Jane Velez-Mitchell covers that frankly you don't have the taffy to cover, stretchy taffy, Christmas presents.

COOPER: By the way, it's not just Honey Boo Boo, but also her mom and chubs and pumpkin.

GRIFFIN: What about chick a de? One of the kids. When your mom used to call you chubs, was that hard? I know that was your nickname throughout your first 40 years. Have I said the part yet no matter what you'll never live up to your mother?

COOPER: No. She's watching tonight.

GRIFFIN: My God, high, Chloe! Your mom blew me off this week. The quote was, darling, I'm tired, I was up dancing all night with the fabulous Michael Feinstein. And you know she wasn't lying.

COOPER: We're going to take a quick break. We'll be right back. More with Kathy Griffin and the hundreds of thousands of people in Times Square.

GRIFFIN: Rihanna live.

COOPER: Not live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: We're here in Times Square. The South Korean guy, what's his name, Psy?

GRIFFIN: Is this the part where I'm supposed to pretend this isn't happening?

COOPER: No. It's being performed for everyone in Times Square.

GRIFFIN: That guy hates America. That's why you should keep watching us. We're going to have him up here with General Petraeus singing Gangnam Style. I can't throw stone without running into Psy. He's the MC Hammer of South Korea.

COOPER: Really?

GRIFFIN: Yeah. You heard it here. I want to say your new besty, the Boo Boo, mama tweeted me and said she's excited to call in and talk to Anderson Cooper and Kathy Lee. No, no, be on my side. Be on my side.

COOPER: I'm on your side. That can't be the first time that happened.

GRIFFIN: You're acting like you're listening to me, but you're dancing the Gangnam Style.

COOPER: I've never danced the Gangnam Style.

GRIFFIN: What is the Gangnam Style?

COOPER: I have no idea.

GRIFFIN: Are we in a Gangnam? Miley Cyrus loves to throw Gangnam signs. What do you think about her hair cut?

COOPER: I love the new hair cut.

GRIFFIN: Is that why you went out and got it the same day. You, Miley Cyrus and Susan Pouter all have the same hair cut.

COOPER: Susan Pouter?

GRIFFIN: I'm bringing her back. Who is the current president pro of the U.S. Senate?

COOPER: Patrick Leahy?

GRIFFIN: Yes.

COOPER: Thank you. Good night, everybody.

GRIFFIN: Not good night. Rihanna making out with Chris Brown in 7 minutes. Rihanna is going to have sex with Chris Brown here in 7 minutes.

COOPER: Let's check in with Sanjay. I know you were concerned the fun run wasn't going to get covered this year.

GRIFFIN: I'm sorry, my pelvic exam.

COOPER: Sanjay, it's a midnight race. Are you ready for this? I know did you a triathlon this year. You're in good shape. Are you ready for this midnight run?

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: I think so, Anderson. I mean, you know, the things I do for this company I can't even begin to tell you. But this is the midnight run. About 5,000 people here. This race, as you may know, has been going on every year since 1979.

At midnight there's going to be a bunch of fireworks up here in the sky. People from all over the world come in for this run. It's my first year doing this particular run. It's about 30 degrees outside. We're about 30 blocks north of where you are.

I'm actually looking forward to this. We have a lot of people from Time Warner, the fit nation program actually starting as well. A few hundred people joining us from them as well. People have costumes on. I don't know if she's running or not but a lot of people here are, Anderson. Kathy.

GRIFFIN: Ryan! Ryan, screw you! We did a better broadcast because we improvise and we're real!

COOPER: You're on TV.

GRIFFIN: Hello. That was Ryan Seacrest behind us.

COOPER: I love that you were just screaming obscenities at Psy and he can't even hear you.

GRIFFIN: I love that ear piece fell out and you don't even care. You don't want me to hear the booth.

COOPER: I don't know where your hair stops and --

GRIFFIN: Neither do I. Well, put it in.

COOPER: I don't know where it is. I'll bring in John Zarrella -- would know exactly what to do. John, how are the crowds there? It looks like they're quite ready.

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The crowd is absolutely spectacular here in Key West. Thousands of people waiting for what has become a huge tradition here, the annual drop of sushi, the drag queen. Sushi is going to drop from that red stiletto there right at midnight.

Everybody is so happen to be on the show with you and Kathy. And you've got to look at this, you'll have to explain this later, if you guys want to, but they made this sign up for you and Kathy. "No nudity." So just be forewarned, that was for you guys and you can explain it if you feel like you want to.

COOPER: Every year we usually put a sign under the camera just to remind Kathy no nudity --

GRIFFIN: This is great because there is some Psy confetti is covering the letter on your teleprompter so you're free styling.

COOPER: I can -- I unplugged myself.

GRIFFIN: I have a small baseball bat. I'm going to be honest. I got a tour of the White House.

COOPER: How did you --

GRIFFIN: I can't say. It's a friendship bender if I say. I'm going to admit that I did something that I think anyone would do, which is I think when I was there, I took a picture of myself in the bathroom at the White House.

COOPER: Really?

GRIFFIN: That's who I am.

COOPER: Wow. Was this like the tour that anyone could get?

GRIFFIN: No, this is super secret. I wasn't supposed to.

COOPER: Did you steal something? You took something, didn't you?

GRIFFIN: Yes. I took so. As I was going in, I run into Ed -- he's over at Fox. He's a nut bag.

COOPER: You used to make fun of Ed Henry, every year he would be in Hawaii for new years and he would do a lovely live shot in shorts and he would have a hula thing going on and you would mock him mercilessly.

GRIFFIN: I did get an e-mail. He did invite me to the correspondent's dinner.

COOPER: By the way, that is the worst evening you could ever have in your entire life. I never go to that. I refuse to go to that.

GRIFFIN: And I also have a picture of -- I have a video -- I will do anything to promote "Kathy" coming back to Bravo January 10th live. So when I was in Mexico -- this is a video. It's only 17 seconds. You're not going to see this on any other network, I promise you.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: A lot of people find me attractive. Some of them have four legs. "Kathy" Thursdays on Bravo.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: I like how you didn't even blurt out the "Jimmy Kimmel Live" t-shirt I'm wearing.

COOPER: I was once doing a live shot with Paula Zahn and I was in Sri Lanka and a dog humped my leg all the way through the live shot. I started giggling and I was like, Paula, I have to say I have a dog humping my leg.

GRIFFIN: Is that how you lost your cherry? Did she find it amusing? Did you know Barbara Walters is in St. Barts? Are you going on record as saying you think St. Barts is a third world country and you would not be caught dead there?

COOPER: No, I've been there but on New Year's Eve and all those people are there.

GRIFFIN: That is so your crowd. He is so up in the Jolie-Pitt crowd. Let's talk about heroes. Number one, not only was I not invited.

COOPER: What do you mean?

GRIFFIN: They told me they didn't trust me. They said it came directly from you and that I was going to present something to a hero, but they said if I wanted to mop up at a soup kitchen, they would send a crew. I am not making that up.

COOPER: That is not true.

GRIFFIN: I feel I should have won hero of the year.

COOPER: For what?

GRIFFIN: I should be more humble but this, but I actually flew commercial to Mexico and it was really hard because there were other people on the plane, I didn't even know.

COOPER: I'm told that Vice President Biden is shortly going to be coming out --

GRIFFIN: There's really breaking news during my show?

COOPER: I'm told Vice President Biden is going to be coming up. Apparently they have reached a deal on the fiscal cliff. We anticipate vice president bide will be making comments. He just got done briefing Senate Democrats about the plan they've been negotiating. As soon as he comes out to speak, we're going to bring it --

GRIFFIN: First of all, it's called the Fiston cliff. And there's some sort of a car filled with -- look, I blame the Tea Party. I blame Rand Paul, who by the way, you have him on your show way too much.

COOPER: We have --

GRIFFIN: He's a nut bag. Go ahead, send me your hate tweets, tea party. I know you want to hang me up like a Colombian neck tie. I've heard them all. The Tea Party, they can be hurtful.

COOPER: Rand Paul, he's --

GRIFFIN: Let's talk about the people turned down doing this show.

COOPER: We have to take a quick break and we'll have Vice President Biden's comments.

GRIFFIN: Rihanna coming up live in a moment.

COOPER: A look at pictures from around the country and around the world. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm coming to you from Dubai. I'm in the city that was built in the shape of a palm tree. This city is known for its extravagance. All the people are gearing up to ring in 2013. It won a world record four years ago for the world's largest fireworks display. Here we are ready to bring the new year with a big bang!

And there you go, the spectacular happy New Year from Dubai -- Anderson.

COOPER: Thanks very much. That was New Year's in Dubai.

GRIFFIN: What state was that?

COOPER: Dubai is a country. It's the multi-million dollar fireworks they have there.

GRIFFIN: Did you get that from Mama Boo Boo? Did she write that copy? I can't even believe you're doing Honey Boo Boo. She's been on everything.

COOPER: You do 20 minutes on Lindsay Lohan at the giggle shack.

GRIFFIN: Did you not watch "Liz and Dick"? And the giggle shack pays well, they meet my quotes.

COOPER: I can't remember where I was but I was reading your tweets and watching you --

GRIFFIN: Bravo carries me. They're saying I'm promoting something other than Bravo.

COOPER: I feel like I didn't need to watch it, I could read it through your tweets.

GRIFFIN: That's why I'm not tweeting. There is a picture of Anderson shirtless with a shower cap.

COOPER: Where did you find that?

GRIFFIN: The Kathy Griffin research and development department never sleeps. Never sleeps. When is our next guest Taylor Lautner coming up?

COOPER: No, that's not true.

GRIFFIN: He's here with David Cameron. Taylor Lautner--

COOPER: Who is David Cameron?

GRIFFIN: Who is David Cameron? COOPER: You mean like the prime minister of England?

(CROSSTALK)

GRIFFIN: Yes, I knew one! Screw you, Seacrest!

COOPER: We're going to take a quick break -- what? We're going to take another quick break --

GRIFFIN: Don't go on to Christian mingle, whatever you do?

COOPER: When we come back, we're going to have a -- we'll be right back. Bye-bye. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)