This behind-the-scenes picture of Robert Smigel reminds me of my old intern days at Late Night, where I was privileged enough to watch the man work. Though he wasn’t a regular staff writer at the time, Smigel was usually in the studio on a “clutch night”, the term they used to refer to one of the show’s oldest and most popular bits, Clutch Cargo - where Conan talks to a still image of someone famous that lowers down on a TV. For more information on where that odd name came about, consult this and this.
What I didn’t know at the time was that Robert Smigel was the voice talent behind nearly all of the famous “lips” that have berated Conan though the years. Clutch nights were always completely crazy because the script was constantly re-written, often right up until showtime. And even then, half of what Smigel said would be off-the-cuff. That improvisation and spontaneity are a large part of why the Clutch Cargo bits have lasted so long.
Anyway, my favorite part about the “clutch nights”, and much like the picture above, this is a little detail that only comes from being behind-the-scenes: he would only wear make-up on the bottom half of his face. It was around his mouth, in roughly the same proximity that one would draw a Homer Simpson beard. Watching him run around backstage, yelling and rewriting, with this hilarious makeup on, it was almost too much. I have this great memory of him hanging out one night after his bit, just eating snacks and bullshitting with his makeup still on. It was definitely an odd site… shame I don’t have a picture.
Seeing wrtier Robert Smigel in-character as his notorious puppet alter-ego Triumph the Insult Comic Dog is like seeing the bottom half of Wilson from Home Improvement’s face. You’re fascinated, but deep down you want the illusion to remain. Still, this somewhat-rare snapshot of Smigel manipulating Triumph at July’s Comic-Con 2008 in San Diego tells us two things: (1) puppeteering CAN be cool, and (2) even though he was born in New York and lived in Chicago, Smigel is apparently a Nets fan.
Check out Triumph’s finished Late Night Comic-Con report here.
