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Piers Morgan Live
Security at Sochi; Leno Leaves 'Tonight Show'; Interview with Deepak Chopra
Aired February 06, 2014 - 21:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PIERS MORGAN, CNN HOST: This is Piers Morgan Live, welcome to our viewers in the United States and around world.
Let the games begin. Looking live at the Olympic village where the countdown to the opening ceremony is on and it fears that a terrorist may already be inside Sochi planning attack, could be become the most- troubled Olympic games ever.
Plus, after tonight you're going to find someone else to fall asleep with.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAY LENO, THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO HOST: The president said that unemployment is dropping, but critics claim it doesn't include people who have left the workforce. Hey, how about people who were asked to leave the workforce like me? Are we included in that? I'm not sure.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MORGAN: It's the great Jay Leno's last ever "Tonight Show" and I for one feel very said about that.
I'll talk exclusively to the man who was there at the very beginning and the man whose been on this show a hundred times, Fred Willard, Jon Lovitz and Spike Feresten are all here.
Also, the Biggest Loser, she lost 155 pounds and won a quarter of a million dollars. It turns out, you can be too rich and too thin. I'll ask Deepak Chopra about healthy weight loss and finding fulfillment.
I want to begin with our Big Story, Olympic terror threats. Listen to what President Obama told NBC's Bob Costas tonight.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, 44TH AND CURRENT PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think the Russians have an enormous stake, obviously, in preventing any kind of terrorist act or violence at these venues and they have put a lot of resources into it. We're in constant communications with them, both at the law enforcement level, at the military level, at intelligence levels. (END VIDEO CLIP)
MORGAN: And more (ph), the U. S. has banned all liquids, gels, aerosols and powders in carry-on luggage on flights to Russia. But will that be enough to stop an attack?
CNN Senior International Correspondent Ivan Watson is in Sochi for us live tonight. Ivan, a lot of concern, mounting concern, about the security aspect of what is going on in Sochi, what are you hearing about this? How seriously should we be taking it?
IVAN WATSON CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I mean if you talk to Russian officials they insist that this is going to be the safest winter games ever. A deputy prime minister who when out and said, "Listen, Sochi is going to be just as safe. It is just as safe as Boston, or Washington, or New York, or London."
When you talk to ordinary Russians who've witnessed the massive construction behind me and the transformation of their city over the past seven years, you do hear anecdotal examples of people who are worried.
We have heard from one family and they sent their children, pull them out in school and they're sending them away during the span of the Olympics because they're scared that this place could be targeted.
Others are saying, "No." They're not worried at all that there are -- a massive deployment of tens of thousands of Russian security forces here.
As for the athletes themselves, will I met dozens of American athletes, team USA arriving at Sochi airport today and I put that question to them. Take a listen to some of their answers when I asked them about security fears.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WATSON: Welcome to Sochi. What do you think?
GRACIE GOLD, TEAM USA FIGURESKATER: So far so good. Just landed.
WATSON: Are you psyched?
GOLD: Yes. Of course. I'm feeling psyched.
WATSON: While you were flying there were some more security alerts about possible explosion of toothpaste. I mean did that get to you? Does that stress you out?
MAIA SHIBUTAN: Yesterday, we were doing processing and then we were traveling all morning. So, no, we hadn't heard about that. But I think that, really, our job here is to just focus on what we can control and what we can do and that's how we're going to perform at our first Olympics.
WATSON: Yeah? MAIA SHIBUTAN: Yeah.
WATSON: And any message you want to send back home?
ALEX SHIBUTAN: You know, hey everyone we're in Sochi. This has been 10 years in the making. We're so excited to be here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WATSON: And, Piers, I talked to a Team USA snowboarder Faye Gulini. She said, you know, she'd been nervous about wearing her Team USA colors because again of some of the advice and the warnings. And then upon arriving at Sochi airport she said, "You know, I'm going to probably put my team USA colors on from now on."
Clearly, I felt for the first time really that Olympic sprit at Sochi airport as Americans where coming in, as the Lithuanian, the Latin teams were coming in it was fun. Piers?
MORGAN: And tell me Ivan, does it on the ground when you're there and does it fell safe to you? I mean you've covered many events on your time, do you fell reasonably secure?
WATSON: I have to say yes. I mean these are my first Olympics. On the highways that your travel on around here, there are Russian police roughly every quarter mile. Check points and they're standing and they're watching the roads. You have to have special accreditation just to drive around here. You can't even bring cars in from other Russian cities. You little bit stop you'll be fined. Everybody has to carry passes as well. The Olympic venues are highly fortified.
So yes, I feel OK. I mean if somebody wanted to make a problem, it would be much easier to embarrass the Russian government, to raise the death toll, to hit other cities around Russia and you get as much bang for your buck. I do think it would be very difficult to make a problem here in this heavily fortified Black Sea port.
Piers?
MORGAN: Ivan Watson, thank you very much indeed.
I want to bring in now CNN National Security Analyst and Former CIA operative Robert Baer.
Bob Baer, I want to pay you a clip. This is from Republican Representative Michael McCaul, the Chair of the House Homeland Security committee.
It's what he told Wolf Blitzer today about the origin of the suspected plot.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. MICHAEL MCCAUL, (R) HOMELAND SECURITY CHAIRMAN: Well, I can tell you, the plot itself originated from the leader of the Chechen rebel extremists, Umarov. That's where this plot actually hatched out of. There have been reports that he's been killed since then, but the issue is the plot has been hatched, it is out there.
So you have really two threats going on. One is the aviation sector, and one would be the suicide bombers within Russia, which I think there's a high probability that one of those will probably go off again.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MORGAN: Bob, if you were involved in the counterterrorist operation here, what would your biggest worry be now?
ROBERT BAER, NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Airplanes, absolutely. The Chechens have attacked airplanes in the past. They are capable of doing it. It's very difficult to protect all flights going into Moscow or leaving Moscow.
The Chechens have access to very sophisticated bombs including the ones using powder or liquids. They've got the detonators. I mean if I were the Russians, and as for Washington is I'd be scared of airplanes.
MORGAN: And in terms of the detail of what has happened today, banning all liquids, gels, aerosols and so on, obviously a pretty draconian step. Is that indicative to your mind that they are really expecting something to happen or that is being ultra cautious?
BAER: I think they are serious about this. I mean they don't do this unless they have very good information, very specific. I mean you always have threats against airplanes but to ban powders and liquids, there has to be something very serious going on. And I take this seriously too. I lost three colleagues to an airplane bomb in the 80s.
You can get these things on. It's very difficult for TSA to catch them all especially the sophisticated ones hidden in suitcases. So I think they're properly taking all precautions they can and this isn't a joke, this is a threat.
MORGAN: CNN today, commissioned a demonstration of the kind of damage to the six ounces of explosive material could do and the amount that could easily fit into a toothpaste tube. Obviously, they've been talking about the threat from a toothpaste tube bomb.
This is what happened. Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MORGAN: I mean that's a pretty big bang given the very small quantity you would need inside a small toothpaste tube.
So, you know, I saw earlier that Rachel Nichols, my CNN colleague, she took two of these tubes on her flight and nobody noticed. I mean this is clearly something they're going to be serious about it, isn't it? BAER: Absolutely. I mean these are military explosives. They will cut. They don't push like liquid bombs and they can cut the skin of an airplane if they're put right.
You know, we had the underwear bomber and the shoe bomber. Those weren't serious threats because they weren't against the skin of an airplane. But presumably if you had a suicide bomber on an airplane, they place this thing in the right part and it was confined explosive. It could do serious damage to an airplane and that's one consideration they're looking at right now.
MORGAN: Bob Baer, as always, thank you very much indeed.
Security fears or not, the games are officially underway. Qualification events in the men's and women's slope style, women's moguls and team figure skating all today. All of the athletes have arrived including some sentimental favorites, the Jamaican bobsled team for one. Remember them from the 1993 hit movie Cool Runnings.
(BEGIN MOVIE CLLIP)
JOHN CANDY, ACTOR: Winning a bobsled race is about one thing, the push start.
Now I know you dainty little track stars think you're fast. Well, let's see how fast you are when you push your 600-pound sled.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MORGAN: The pilot of this year's team is Winston Watts. I'm glad to say he joins me now by via Skype.
Winston, how are you?
WINSTON WATT, BOBSLED DRIVER: I'm doing great, Piers.
MORGAN: Now, the whole world loves watching the Jamaican bobsled team after that movie. What shape are you in? Do you have any chance of getting a medal, do you think?
WATT: Piers, I never like to tell the world what the Jamaican team go to do.
We're approaching this Olympics as the underdog and we are very hungry guys. And when you're hungry, you're angry.
So just like Usain Bolt, the fastest man in the world, that guy was so hungry to do his thing.
So that's why we're here. We're not here not here to just to show up in Russia just to be here. We're here for a reason.
MORGAN: I mean people do tend to slightly chuckle when they hear about the Jamaican bobsled team. Do you obviously take what you do very seriously and it's incredibly difficult and dangerous what you do. Do you slightly resent the fact that people don't perhaps give you the credit and the respect you guys deserve?
WATTS: Yes they do give us the respect of course because we're from a tropical country. People still have thoughts about -- you're from a tropical country you have no ice in Jamaica. All in the refrigerator, you know, we have to buy ice get cool down in Jamaica.
But, you know, we are different and we're very gifted here to be the chosen one to be here to compete for our country in winter sports.
MORGAN: They've had a few problems there. Your equipments didn't arrive when you did. Has it turned up? And if it doesn't turn up, what will you do?
WATTS: What we do, we have lots of people here who loved us, you know, everyone here in the village they have -- there were so, you know, the polite for us, want to lend us uniforms, stuff like that and I'm -- for our uniform our baggage was left back in New York because our flight was delayed and because they had bad weather in New York and we have to reroute it to -- well in JFK we should have landed and we have to rerouted to Philadelphia.
So that's where our bags get down and our equipment being left out. But now we have gotten them so we are back on track.
MORGAN: Excellent news and have you had any good wishes from Usain Bolt. He's a good friend of mine. Has he been in touched to wish you guys luck?
WATTS: I've yet to hear from Usain. That would be a great, great thing for us. To hear from the star of Jamaica, you know, so I'm still here, still waiting for ...
MORGAN: I tweeted Usain earlier. I told him that I was interviewing you. I'm going to make sure that by the end of the play today he will be tweeting you good luck. Leave that one to me.
WATTS: All right, thank you very much, Piers. I am looking forward for his tweet. I won't turn off my phone. I will be on. I was looking on phone like all the time for his tweet.
MORGAN: I'll get him and Chris Gayle, he was another great Jamaican, a great cricket superstar, I'll get him to do it as well and the whole world we wishing you luck. Winston, I wish you luck. I've got a very big soft spot for Jamaica. It's a wonderful country. You got great attitude and I love the fact you're going there to win. And what a story that would be. So, good luck with your cool running.
WATTS: And thanks very much, Piers, and thanks to all of our fans out there who are behind us, who make this happen, you know, and we won't let you guys down. And as I said we are here for a reason and the reason is, we're here to take what is ours. And I leave it as that.
MORGAN: I love the way you're talking, Winston, and best of luck to you and the team.
WATTS: Thank you very much, Piers, and thanks for having me. MORGAN: My pleasure.
When we come back, Jay Leno's farewell, I talked to two funny men who set us (ph) with tonight show couch and the writer who was there at the very beginning, there they are looking hilarious.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LENO: The games haven't started yet and already there are people complaining about the horrible accommodations at the Sochi Olympic village. Toilets don't flush, the faucets spew discolored water. They say it's like being on a Royale Caribbean Cruise. It's like ...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LENO: Seriously, what are you going to do?
ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER, FORMER GOVERNOR, CALIFORNIA: I am going to run for governor for the state of California.
LENO: What's the thing with Trump and you? I don't -- it's like me and Letterman. What has he got against you here? I don't get it, you know.
I picked up a seashell out of the sand, I put it to my ear and I hear O.J. (ph) talking about the cake, he doesn't want ...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MORGAN: Jay Leno's had a great run but all good things must, I guess, come to an end. Leno's last Tonight Show is tonight. We hear that he choked up during the taping with his guest Billy Crystal.
Well, joining me now to talk about the end of an era, Actor, Comedian Fred Willard, who's made 100 appearances in the Tonight Show, but this is his very first on this show, which is obviously much more significant I'm sure to him. Also actor, comedian and owner of the Jon Lovitz Comedy Club, Jon Lovitz and comedian Spike Feresten, his first job in the industry was writing for (inaudible) and filled in for Johnny Carson about 22 years ago.
Gentlemen, a trifecta of comedic genius. Fred, wonderful to see you.
FRED WILLARD, ACTOR, COMEDIAN: Thank you, I hope this will be the first of many appearances on your show.
MORGAN: I would love -- I'd love this to be the first of the next 99. And talk about Jay Leno, here's my experience of Jay Leno is that I've gone to his show maybe eight, nine, ten times. He's always been unbelievably friendly.
WILLARD: Yes. MORGAN: Incredibly courteous.
WILLARD: Yes.
MORGAN: Respectful to me, my kids when they come ...
WILLARD: Yes.
MORGAN: ... always remembers them and so on. And yet, I hear from other comedians a constant yapping that he's a bad guy.
WILLARD: No, I think that's from -- I this one complain is that he doesn't have enough other comedians to come on.
Now, but that's what he chooses for his show, I found him to be a blue collar guy, exactly what you thing he was. Now I've done some of the Tonight Shows with Johnny Carson and the thing that there was, you could never talk to the host. Never talk, never see the host, with Jay he come out and knock in your door, come in ...
MORGAN: Right.
WILLARD: ... tell jokes and I would do little sketches and one time the show was on, there was a commercial break, he knocked on my door, he came in and the show was on.
"Hey, Fred that was great." and so I am going to miss him, you know, it was like having a funny uncle who would come over and make funny noises and find a quarter behind your ear and then when your parents are out of the room, he'd say, "Hey, you want to hear a joke? So I was, "Oh, Uncle Jay." we couldn't wait for him to come in. And I really am going to miss him, he was a ...
MORGAN: Yeah.
WILLARD: ... someone you'd -- I didn't watch every night but I would just look forward to Jay, it's someone you want to hear ...
MORGAN: Right.
WILLARD: ... his view on what was happening.
MORGAN: Right. Jon, what is it about Jay Leno that inspires such (inaudible)given that he appears to be such a nice, genuinely nice man. Is it simply jealousy that he's been number one for two decades?
JON LOVITZ, ACTOR, COMEDIAN: Yes, that's what it is. And I meet him when I was in college, he perform on my college and I got to interview him when I was 19 and he's -- and I've known since, he's been the same. He was like the comic's comic, he would help everybody, everybody looked up to him. He was like the top dog and, you know, everyone's trying to have a career and he played the game, you have to be smart and figure it out to get those jobs and he just did it better than anyone else and, you know, and deservedly so.
But -- plus, he was, you know, a superb stand up. And standups are just they're very, very competitive with each other.
And I didn't -- I do stand up for the last 10 years, but before I was just acting. And acting in theaters, everyone supports each other. But stand ups an individual thing and they get very competitive with each other and unnecessarily so.
MORGAN: Spike, in terms of his style, and many say that he's great genius in staying at number one was his ability to be funny for everybody. You know, to your grandmother, to your son too, he was all things to all people. Many comedians said, well, that was the problem. Yeah, he tried to be funny for everyone, he lost that edge deliberately, where is the truth?
SPIKE FERESTEN, COMEDIAN: Jay, you know, this shows they're difficult, you know, you run a show. They're difficult to keep on the air. And he's -- you like him or you don't like him, his one of the best I've ever seen in keeping a show on the air. And he does it in very smart political ways almost. He visits the different states and different cities where his ratings might be sagging and he'll do stand up that weekend again and suddenly the ratings are propped up. You know, and -- you know, this is guy who filled some very big shoes 22 years ago, Johnny Carson, and he's now -- he's delivering a number one show back to NBC.
And you know, say what you want about him. There have been some unpopular moments and controversial moments with Conan O'Brien and even with Johnny. You know, he's done just an amazing job, you know, as the guy has hosted one of his shows and amazing job of bringing the show towards that and going out as number one.
MORGAN: Fred, the weird thing, isn't it? That the guy is still number one in the ratings?
WILLARD: Yes.
MORGAN: But he's in the same position he was over the Conan thing ...
WILLARD: Yes.
MORGAN: You know, he doesn't really want to go. It's not his decision to go.
WILLARD: No, and ...
MORGAN: He's been forced out again.
WILLARD: And again, he became more popular since the word came out that he was going to be sent away.
MORGAN: Right.
WILLARD: I wish there could be two tonight shows. Let Jay stay -- I love Jimmy Fallon, but let him have his show. I think and I've heard -- and I've seen Jay in person. He's funnier and has a sharper edge in person.
MORGAN: Right.
WILLARD: But, to appeal to a whole country what you want to do, you want big ratings. And so ...
MORGAN: And it's not easy, isn't it? From a comedic point of view, to be funny to a smart crowed in L.A. or New York, where lots of comedy clubs and so on who want that slight edge, and then to be just as funny or as warm as engaging when he get on to Dallas or wherever it maybe was a different humor not somebody of those kind of edgy comedy clubs. It's quite enough cause.
WILLARD: Yes, yes. And you could be very edgy and not have that many fans. So, you got to choose what you want to do. And almost every top comic today, well, say that they were inspired by Jay. They look up to Jay. And nobody ever -- I didn't -- I never heard anyone say Jay isn't funny. Jerry Seinfeld, everyone they were influenced by Jay. They love Jay.
And he's -- with the way he crafts a joke, it should be a -- he could do a lecture. It could be comedy course and how he takes a joke just the way he ...
MORGAN: And he's the -- I would say he is the ultimate boom, boom like gag merchant.
WILLARD: Yes. Right, Exactly.
MORGAN: And let's watch how Sandra Bullock reacted last night. She got quite tearful last night. Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SANDRA BULLOCK, ACTRESS: OK. I'm going to start crying, but, you've always been so kind and I'm not just saying a lot in this business because we like to be mean. There's not been one time that you haven't treated me like I had something to offer. Even when the film is horrible and you knew it, you never let me see it in your eyes."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MORGAN: You see, and I love Jimmy Fallon. He's one of the most talented people I've ever interviewed, you know, in terms of comedy, in music, and anything. He could do everything and I think he's a wonderful talent.
But I'm really sad about Jay Leno going. And I sort of feel for him, it's like he isn't really want to go in his early 60s. You know, life sort of move on from 60, happen to be the age of -- to get turfed out, I mean, you're living evidence of it.
WILLARD: Yes. It's like he's an institution. You wanted to be there.
MORGAN: Right. Like, you know, institution or when you're going anywhere.
LOVITZ: Any way, he's living evidence of getting turfed out.
MORGAN: No, no. I mean, of longevity.
LOVITZ: Yeah, right.
MORGAN: But the game has changed.
LOVITZ: Well, think, I mean, he is the nicest guy. He is always -- personally, he's always been great to me when I just started doing standup, "Jay, can you help me?" "Yeah." "Is this funny?" "Hey, that was funny," that, you know, I did some show. But, you know, and then and you're like, "Hey, the guys been working nonstop, you had the Tonight Show for 22 years. I mean, that's amazing. And he saved all of his money for Tonight's Show. So, it's hard to feel sorry ...
MORGAN: I mean, someone (inaudible) the greatest (inaudible) of...
LOVITZ: Arguably...
MORGAN: OK. Why don't we (inaudible) and start over again?
LOVITZ: Let me -- arguably, the most -- one of the most successful stand ups in the history of ...
MORGAN: Yeah. And we'll continue that ...
(CROSSTALK)
LOVITZ: Yes. So I ...
MORGAN: Let's take a short break ...
LOVITZ: ... great...
MORGAN: Let's come back and talk more about what Jay will do next. What are the rumors about what he might do. I've read once that he might come and do this job. I'm feeling quite so ...
LOVITZ: I want that.
MORGAN: ... so benevolent getting Jay back
WILLARD: I'd like you back
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAY LENO: And it's a pretty easy read because at each chapter, it's just like a page in here to see that you could kind of like when you threw in the john, you put it down and...
MORGAN: I like the idea that you're reading it in the john.
LENO: That's why I didn't read it.
MORGAN: Did you stay in the john. Do you take it out ...
LENO: I was constipated. So I finish the whole book. No, it should ...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LENO: Now, Mr. Grady (ph), for fun getaways, where can you get the best bang for your buck?
WILLARD: Beats me. I've never been bang for a buck.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MORGAN: Fred Willard there with Jay Leno. And we're getting more details about the taping of the Tonight's Show finale tonight. All the reporter says that Jack Black, Kim Kardashian, Chris Paul, Sheryl Crow, Jim Parsons, Carol Burnett and Oprah Winfrey, all took the stage to pay tribute to Jay tonight.
Well, back with me now is Fred Willard, of course John Lovitz, and Spike Feresten. We're talking about his work ethic, just tell me a little bit more about it because he's legendary, isn't he? How hard he works.
LOVITZ: Yeah. I said, how do you that all, because he would do is, you know, he gets up at 8:30 in the morning, works in the show, you know, does this show tapes of 5:30 to 6:30 then I guess he would have dinner, and then he leave all the comics to his house or like -- or may at 8:30 and watch the East Coast Feed. And then they'd work on to my log till like...
MORGAN: Which was always his most important thing?
LOVITZ: Yeah. Talk 3:30 in the morning and I said, how -- so he goes to bed at 3:30, get up at 8:30. Like he only sleep five hours at night. You know, "How do you that?" He said, "It's a brain surgery." And he always does two jobs, you know, but he is a very -- his work ethic is a huge reason why he's been so successful. He's not letting (inaudible) his kids.
MORGAN: Right. I mean.
LOVITZ: If you have kids, you cannot do...
MORGAN: ... no kidding, he told me he had a very patient wife.
LOVITZ: Yeah.
FERESTEN: So that's your excuse?
MORGAN: Let's talk quickly about the Conan O'Brien Debacle (inaudible). He turns to be a great guy, very funny guy, but we only see the whole thing became a disaster. Many comedians blamed Jay Leno, I must say "I never did." Because that's all wasn't his fault. He was toddler, he got to live in five years, Dominic came he was still by far the most popular guy in the country. Am I wrong was he blamed?
FERESTEN: Yes. He's blamed. There are a lot of people in the comedy community blame him.
MORGAN: Why?
FERESTEN: I mean, well that maybe he should step aside and just let Conan take the show, maybe it wasn't right to go back. I'm not sure. I feel that way, I mean, I think about -- I was wrong when Letterman was in NBC, and suddenly it wasn't working out on the Tonight Show and he made a decision to just, you know, just cut and run and then he went to CBS and it all worked out, it worked out nicely. I think it's easy to look back eye sight is 20/20 and go, well, maybe he should had done the same thing at Fox or somewhere else but, you know, this -- as you know, this business is difficult. It's hard and...
MORGAN: Well, I sort of board into his argument which is an oldest stuff. I don't really want to leave NBC...
FERESTEN: That's life.
MORGAN: ... my next life.
FERESTEN: Yeah.
MORGAN: And they've offered me 10:00. OK. Must have keep their jobs, I keep mine.
FERESTEN: Of course.
MORGAN: Everyone's happy. I want to play a clip. This is my interview with Bill Morrissey about Jay Leno.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MORGAN: What do you make of Jay Leno?
BILL MORRISSEY, SINGER: I like Jay Leno. I'm unabashedly a Jay Leno fan
MORGAN: Why does he get such a hard wrap from other comedians? Is it jealousy?
MORRISSEY: Well, of course, a lot of it is that.
MORGAN: Because I've always find him incredibly nice, charming.
MORRISSEY: Yes. Believe me. Everyone could do a lot better in their personal life by saying, "What would Jay do." And make it a lot better in their professional life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MORGAN: Fred, let's talk about Jay, the man, because he is kind of a private guy, you know, I didn't get to really read too many interviews, and I don't read much about him. He's in a couple recently but it got unusual. It doesn't normally show you the private side, he love Johnny Carson.
WILLARD: Yes. He just wears a denim shirt around and he's just a regular guy, very hard worker.
FERESTEN: I don't see many other regular guys in denim shirts. Like we always say that about it but we're all the other denim shirt guys walking around.
WILLARD: Everyday, yeah. And he had a private plane which I don't think he wanted people to know. And he make jokes about airlines, "oh, the airlines..." but, it was one -- but he would turned about his work and then he would fly to a job and then get in after the show, fly back, and maybe do a show in the Bahamas.
MORGAN: Yeah.
WILLARD: At midnight, get on his plane to fly back. He once said to me, I rode a sketch or I came up with a sketch from -- as about being in Hawaii and he's "You don't like Hawaii, do you Fred? It's the worst night of my life I spend in Hawaii." I always get sick. But he pull in for some went wrong in Hawaii. He did not like Hawaii. He just want to get...
MORGAN: And he will spend at least in the Saturday Night (ph) like it was all day, spend tinkering with his cars (ph) . He's eight-year old 0:02:49. John, he had a great line he gave you about the mechanics of comedy and how to make money (ph).
LOVITZ: Yeah. Well, you know, like I said, met him in college then Saturday Night Live. He hosted it and I met him like in '85, '86 again and I said, "I was that guy in the interview." And everyone was like, "Oh that was you. I can't believe it." Anyway it's a lot of comedians, Dana Carvey, Danny Miller (ph) then you should be a stand up and all this and I said, "Jay, for you, do you think I could be stand up?" "Yeah, do it." He goes, "John, right joke, tell joke, get check." That's it.
And he has that ability -- and he's right, you know, to boil it down the simplicity. He's not neurotic. And he works hard. And, you know, he really enjoys it.
MORGAN: Spike, Spike, I want to -- I wanted Spike quick. This is a clip from Seinfield that you -- I think help write this one. Let's watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We didn't get any bread.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just forget it, buddy go.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Excuse me. I think you forgot my bread.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bread 2 dollars extra.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 2 dollars? But everyone in front of me got free bread.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You want bread?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes please.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 3 dollars.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No soup for you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MORGAN: That was very famous of "The Soup Nazi" sketch and you wrote that. The reason I -- I've played it was that this whole thing Jerry Seinfeld coming out saying, "Look, I don't want to -- be forced to have a certain type of comedy with a certain type of diversity or any of that kind of thing." Listen to what he said about this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JERRY SEINFIELD, COMEDIAN: People think it's the senses or something. I mean, this is a representing the actual pipe chart of America, who cares. It's just funny, you know, funny is the world that I live in, you're funny, I'm interested, you're not funny, I'm not interested...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.
SEINFELD: And I have no interest in gender or race or anything like that but everyone else is kind of, with their little calculating, is this the exact right mix, you know, I think that's -- to me, it's anti-comedy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MORGAN: But certainly not lot of had all this as a big issue that have to deal with or felt I have to do with it, you both worked on that. Do you think Spike about that?
FERESTEN: About what Jerry said?
MORGAN: Yeah.
FERESTEN: I think there's -- it's an anti-controversy here. He's saying that someone's gender, race, a man or woman really doesn't matter as long as they're funny to him. He's saying the opposite of what people think that he's saying. It doesn't seem...
MORGAN: Should Saturday Night Live, John, of being almost forced into having a more diverse star than the way that they were by pressure from the media?
LOVITZ: Well, I think they, you know, when I was in the show, we had -- in my first year, it was Danitra Vance and Damon Wayans who are, you know, African-American, whatever. But, you know, when you're a comedian, used like it's someone (ph) are they funny or not... MORGAN: Right.
LOVITZ: ... just like Bobby (ph), and it's more on that and then, you know, but...
MORGAN: And if you ever to say...
LOVITZ: But, yes. If you have people of different -- on Saturday Night Live, you're spoofing society, you're satirizing it. So, I would think it would help to have different...
MORGAN: Right.
LOVITZ: ... you know, race. But, at the same time, you know, they look at whose the best and they pick who they think is the best.
MORGAN: Well, it should be the (inaudible) to comedian. Let's just end with what Jay will do next. What would you think about this?
WILLARD: Well, I think the day after the show goes off, he's flying to Florida with this little one nighters (ph). So that's great. I'm not going to lay awake tonight worrying about Jay. Although, he did sent out an e-mail saying, "Can you contribute a few bucks, five bucks," to (inaudible) his retirement plan. I said, "Jay, (inaudible)."
But, one thing about Jay, you know, I know a lot of people who have sicknesses in their family, Jay will get on the phone and call them. I know a writer, Keyshawn Shannon (ph) whose parents were not well. Jay were on their birthday would call them in Texas and say, "Hi. How are you doing?" He's a real guy and I wish him the best. I just -- I feel bad that he's not going to be out...
MORGAN: Yeah.
WILLARD: It's a loss to me.
MORGAN: He's not part of the family, isn't he?
WILLARD: Exactly.
MORGAN: So what do you think he'll do quickly?
LOVITZ: I think he'll do another show somewhere else. He likes to work too much.
MORGAN: Here in CNN, not at all.
LOVITZ: No you're -- no I don't think he would (inaudible).
MORGAN: Jay, you are late night guy.
WILLARD: I think (inaudible).
MORGAN: On this evening.
(Crosstalk)
MORGAN: Yeah.
WILLARD: Oh Jay please.
LOVITZ: I can't see him relaxing and just gone.
FERESTEN: He's not the guy. He's 63. You know, Larry King went to what? Larry was 115 before they replaced him. He is 63 and we're going to see him turn up, maybe not right away but I wouldn't be surprised if he turned up on Fox.
MORGAN: I mean, I think that any guy that could pull those ratings (inaudible).
WILLARD: Yeah, of course.
MORGAN: Gentlemen, we had talked a lot about Jay Leno. It's a very sad point in days (ph). He has already taped the last one ever after 22 years, a especial night and a especial guy. Thank you for joining me in patron.
WILLARD: Thanks for having us.
LOVITZ: Thanks.
FERESTREN: Thanks.
MORGAN: And you got 99 more appearances on my show Fred, so.
WILLARD: Great. Minus three.
MORGAN: I'll start booking them.
Coming up, imagine if you able to feel younger while also growing stronger like Fred. Deepak Chopra has the secret, next.
Who we should keep, Fred, to ...
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MORGAN: Deepak Chopra is the author of more than 75 books particular numerous New York Times Best Sellers. Time Magazine calls him one of the top 100 heroes and icons of the century.
His new venture is an online series called Timeless You: The Biology of Youth & The Wisdom of Experience on grandparents.com.
And Deepak Chopra is with me In The Chair.
Deepak, before we get going, I just want to read out a twit. This is from Usain Bolt.
As I promised to the Jamaican bobsled pilot, Winston Watts, he has just twitted all the best big boss, represent Jamaica proud and blaze up ice with more fire. We could get a bigger rally thrive than that from the greatest ever sprinter in history. So Winston, that's one for you from me.
Deepak, let's talk about this book. Could you broke it down into the six courses? Tell me a little bit about the six courses and how they relate to our lives.
DEEPAK CHOPRA, CO-CREATOR OF TIMELESS YOU WITH GRANDPARENTS.COM: Well, our perceptions about the aging process, our perceptions about our mental and physical capacity, and our experience of time even determine the activity of our biological thoughts.
So if you are the kind of person who is saying, "I'm running out of time" all the time, then your biological thought speeds up. Your blood pressure goes up. Your heart rate speeds up. Your platelets get jittery with high levels of adrenaline. And if you have a heart attack, then you run out of time. So your internal dialog about the aging process should be really that you can increase your physical and mental capacity as you grow older.
And there are...
MORGAN: So what do you do, what do you do, Deepak? If you are Jay Leno and you're 63 and you've had this incredible full time job for the last 22 years and suddenly you don't have it, a lot of people find that period in their lives really difficult to deal with?
CHOPRA: In fact, yes.
MORGAN: What is the best way to navigate being out of a job like that?
CHORA: Well, he has to continue. If he now retires and goes to Florida, he'll ultimately end up languishing in the nursing home.
So Jay Leno has to take it to the next step and he has the opportunity. He has built his career and he should go on the road and continue what he's doing. And even go to a higher level of expression.
I think that's the only way because if you have in your mind that at 65 or whatever, you're going to retire, and your mental and physical capacities will go down.
MORGAN: I've read very bad statistics about the number of people who die within five years of retirement if they have to do...
CHOPRA: Absolutely.
MORGAN: ... nothing.
CHOPRA: Yes.
MORGAN: It's a real thing, isn't it? Your body almost reacts to doing nothing by closing down. MORGAN: Absolutely, absolutely. But you know now, the fastest growing segment of the American population is over the age of 90 and getting over the age of hundred, the rate of growth of that segment, that demographic.
So unless these people are going to be healthy and productive to society, it's going to be a huge burden on our healthcare and actually disrupt the economy and could be devastating for our country.
So as we grow older, my generation, and I'm a baby boomer. I'm 67 by the way. I don't take any medication.
MORGAN: Are you really?
CHOPRA: Yes.
MORGAN: You look about 10 years younger. You're a living proof of your own gusset (ph).
CHOPRA: I have never been hospitalized. I don't take any medications and I do have a very rigorous body. And I compete with people who are half my age.
MORGAN: You've never been hospitalized in your life?
CHOPRA: Yes.
MORGAN: That's incredible.
CHOPRA: Never. I don't take any medication, either. I have never done so.
MORGAN: Do you get colds, flu, stuff like that or not?
CHOPRA: Very rarely. I can't remember the last time I did.
MORGAN: What's the secret because I'm always getting colds? I'm always getting the flu. I'm always breaking bones and stuff. Why can't I be like you, Deepak?
CHOPRA: You should come and spend a week with me at the Chopra Center for Wellbeing.
There's a science now. It's called -- Piers, there's a science. It's called genetic plasticity or epigenetic that means that the way you think, the way you feel, your personal relationships, your social interactions, and of course the quality of your sleep and how you manage stress. And if you have laughter and love in your life, that will actually change the expression of your genes.
So there are about 500 genes that we have that called for things like inflammation. And inflammation seems to be the background in many diseases including autoimmune diseases, chronic illnesses like heart disease, arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, bronchial asthma.
You can change the activity of 500 genes within three months if you change your lifestyle. So you can turn on, dial up the good genes and dial down the bad genes.
It's not -- only percent of disease related gene mutations are fully penetrant, which means if you have them, you can't do anything about them. But the others are influenced by how we live.
MORGAN: That's right.
CHOPRA: Yes.
MORGAN: OK, let's take a short break. I want to come back and talk about two particular stories in the news where it's become unhealthy.
One obviously is a very sad story, Philip Seymour Hoffman and the general issue of addiction and the affects on people's lives.
And also, the appalling situation involving Mia Farrow and her family and Woody Allen and what kind of destructive family scenario can also do to your general well being.
So let's talk about those two news-related issues in pertaining to your book after the break.
CHOPRA: OK.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MORGAN: I'm back with Deepak Chopra In The Chair. He's the co- creator of "Timeless You" on grandparents.com.
Deepak, let's talk about Philip Seymour Hoffman, a brilliant actor, as life cut brutally short in his mid 40s due to his addiction to heroine.
Many people suffer from all types of addictions and obviously, he has, sometimes, a catastrophic effect on this on their health and even take their life. What advice do you give to people, particularly like him, who've been addicts and then being clean for long time, but still wrestled with those demons?
CHOPRA: Piers, first of all, addiction is the number one disease of our civilization and directly or indirectly, it's connected to all the other major epidemics of our time, whether it is cardiovascular illness or sudden death or suicide or overdose. And actually, heroine is not the biggest problem, even though it is increasing as a problem.
The number one cause of drug addiction today is medical prescriptions legally prescribed by doctors. That's why we should address the problem first. It is a fact.
Now having said that, you know, people who are addicted, they have a stigma. They live in isolation. They have guilt. They have shame. They have fear. I think one of the things we are to do is passively legalize all drugs and first of all, it will cut down the under, what do you call it, the economy that goes with it will have tax money to treat these people but more importantly, they should experience some empathy from us. This is a disease. And unless there is compassion and empathy for those who are addicted, unless they feel comfortable in being with others, if they feel isolated like this, it is what causes the tragedy that happened.
I knew Michael Jackson. I knew Heath Ledger and they also come from addictive diseases and ultimately died of overdose. I think he didn't even intent to die. He was just, you know, drinking and taking prescription drugs at the same time. He probably didn't even realize that he had taken so much that he would die.
So, this is a big problem. In Hollywood also there's a cabal of doctors who perpetuate addictions, who initiate addictions for two reasons. It's a big economy for them. It's a lot of income for them. And also, it's their identity to be with these physicians.
It's a very complex problem with no easy solution. The Chopra Center, by the way, has an addiction center all side of Vancouver in Canada. And we use treatments that substitute a different kind of pleasure because, you know, addiction is the memory of pleasure.
MORGAN: Right.
CHOPRA: And even after you -- ultimately, you can't have enough of what you don't want anymore.
So, in order -- and you can't get rid of the memory, either. So, what you have to do is you have to create a new experience of joy in the body and we do that through meditation, through yoga...
MORGAN: That makes perfect sense.
CHOPRA: ... through breathing techniques. And through ...
MORGAN: Deepak, I'm going to cut for a break. Let's carry this under after break. We'll have a bit sum up after break just talking about the end of battle so get in to this Woody Allen...
CHOPRA: OK.
MORGAN: ... scandal. And I mean it's kind of like kind of risk it has on family, generally.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MORGAN: Back with Deepak Chopra. Deepak, we can talk about this stuff all night along. It's always fascinating to talk to you. I love to catch up with you again soon.
But just very quickly about the Woody Allen scandal. Many families suffer, not quite this kind of catastrophic fall out, but tensions and stresses within the family. You got about 90 seconds to get all family ills to right. Off you go.
CHOPRA: Well, in Woody Allen's case, 50 allegations are true. He's obviously, a very tortured soul, and I think if he wants to begin the healing process, he should admit to what happened. He should apologize to the victims. And he should ask for forgiveness and he should seek therapy.
I believe he was, actually, beaten up when he was at childhood and most people who are abusive have a history of abuse. So that should be looked into.
And again, demons exist in everyone. And the surface when there is anonymity and permission to do harm which is exactly what happen. And those shadows will lurk in everyone.
MORGAN: Well, fascinating. I always have to say we talk about this. Woody Allen was never actually in charged of any crime and he's always, obviously, strongly denied it.
Deepak, great to talk to you and best of luck with the book. It's called the "Timeless You"...
CHOPRA: Yeah, it's a program.
MORGAN: ... six-part online course -- it's a program, right? So six- part online course designed to inspire the 45 plus audience and my age group only just so to redefine age, eliminate stress, maximize energy, and find fulfillment in everyday. More information is at "Timeless You" on grandparents.com.
I will be logging in later Deepak because I want to look like you when I'm 57. Never mind 67. So, you're an inspiration just by being who you are. Thank you for joining me.
CHOPRA: Thank you Piers. Thank you.
MORGAN: That's all for us tonight.
