Dana Carvey on The Late Show

Dave Letterman: Ladies and gentlemen, our first guest could be seen for many, many years on the very popoular Saturday Night Live TV program. Recently, however, he's turned his attention to making big-time motion pictures, the latest of which, Wayne's World 2,opens December 10. Please join me in welcoming--a national treasure--Dana Carvey. Dana![Dana walks out] Mr. Carvey!
Dana: Wow!
DL: Dana Carvey.
DC: What a show!
DL: Great show! Crazy! [Dana stands up. Applause.] How you doing?
DC: I stood up! That's what--
DL: You look terriffic.
DC: Thank you.
DL: You always look great. Very casual, very relaxed.
DC: Yeah, I--
DL: Travelling with the Beach Boys or something.
DC: Well, I'm 38 years of age.
DL: Is that right? I didn't realize that.
DC: But I read at a 40 year level. [rim shot from the band] Does it work for the guests, too?
DL: Yeah, thanks to that "Hooked on Phonics."
DC: Let's talk Perot. 'Cause he's my man.
DL: Ross Perot. You know, yeah.
DC: He's my man.
DL: Yeah.
DC: He calls me at home, Dave.
DL: Is that right?
DC: "This is Ross Perot, how you doing?"[cheering] Your audience is so good!
DL: Very good audience. Yeah.
DC: Anyway, now that he's called me at home I feel a little bit weird talking about him in public. We're friends. NAFTA. Bummer. I'm like, "Ross, bummer." You know, he lost it because of the debate with Gore, right?
DL: You think so?
DC: Yeah, because he was the grumpy old Ross Perot, wasn't he?
DL: Yeah, I guess.
DC: I mean, [impression]"You're not listening. Can I finish?" He said that about 200 times, didn't he? He would talk for 3 minutes straight, and then go, "Are you gonna interrupt me, or can I finish?" No one was saying a word! "Are you gonna interrupt me, or can I finish? Are you gonna interrupt me? Is that it? Gonna interrupt me? Is that it? Is that it?" [cheering] Kept going till I got the applause.
DL: That's all right.
DC: So, you know, I mean, we're lucky he didn't do the duet album like Sinatra did.
DL: That would be odd. What would that be like?
DC: [singing]"You don't bring me flowers--now, can I sing the rest, or are you gonna interrupt me? Is that it? You're not listening!" My favorite thing to do with Ross Perot-- can I get this in?--is Ross Perot as a hippie. This is what I do for my friends at home late at night. Ross Perot as a hippie, ladies and gentlemen. This is the impression that took my father's life. Thank you. [fakes heart attack]
DL: Oh, god.
DC: Joke. Total joke. He's alive and healthy. Ross Perot as a hippie. "Now, everytime I get the bong, there's no marijuina in it, just water and air. See, now, Hendrix is about to hit the stage and I'm not high and that's just sad."
DL: Brilliant. [cheering] [Dana stands up again] Sure, why not, go ahead!
DC: This is like the greatest audience in the world!
DL: They love you! [more cheering] I'm sorry, what I clumsily tried to ask you was one, do you hear from George Bush at all, and two, do you do a Clinton impression?
DC: Well, um, I don't do a Clinton, and I never was very honest about that. The reason I don't do a Clinton is that when I went and visited George Bush last year, I was in the White House about 3 AM, kinda wandering around, and I heard a "psst, psst." [im.] "Dana, c'mere." And I saw the little ember of a burning cigarette, and I couldn't make out the shadowy figure. "Dna, just gonna be me, isn't it? Just gonna do that impression of old George. Not gonna do a Clinton." "Well, if it's that important to ya." "Well, it could be our special thing. Remember, this meeting never took place."
DL: Yeah.
DC: So that really is the real reason.
DL: I remember a long time ago, you explained--
DC: "You're not listening!" Sorry. You knew that had to come back. [Dave acts like he's going to punch him] Dave, I'm sorry! No! Please!
DL: I think a long time ago you explained to use the origin of the George Bush impression. It was a hybrid of other impressions. Am I remembering this correctly?
DC: Yes!
DL: Well, why don't you tell us.
DC: Well, it was Mr. Rogers and John Wayne.
DL: All right. Do a little Mr. Rogers here.
DC: [laughs] It's like putting me throught the paces. 10 push-ups? OK. Mr. Rogers. "It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood." John Wayne. "Well, let's go over that ridge, uh- huh." Put 'em together you get [im.] "George Herbert walker Bush." [hand motions] [cheering] Well?
DL: Absolutely! Dana Carvey!
DC: "Can I finish?" [more cheering] This is, like, unbelievable. The world's greatest audience.
DL: It's like this every night.
DC: It's like this every night?
DL: We get the best audiences in TV, right here in the old Ed Sullivan Theatre. [cheering] [both stand up] Except for maybe that guy right down there in the sweater.
DC: [both wave] Hey, Tony! He's from SNL.
DL: We gotta do a commercial here. We'll continue chatting with our good friend Dana Carvey, so come on back, kids. Nice to have you here, Dana.
[commercials]
DL: Let's talk about the big Wayne's World 2. Wayne's World One, or Wayne's World, made all the money.
DC: Yeah.
DL: They had to shut down Hollywood for a few years so they could get more money, because that film made all the money.
DC: Yeah. Made a lot of cash. Paid very handsomely.
DL: So this is the sequel. How does this follow the first one?
DC: Well, in this one, Garth...He's no longer a stranger to the ways of the woman, so to say. And Kim Basinger--well, naturally, you think "Who should be Garth's love interest? Kim Basinger." So fortunately Kim Basinger agreed to do it.
DL: Oh, man, that's great. I was gonna say--How did that happen, exactly?
DC: Well, she just had heard through the middle that the part existed and she called us and I talked to her...
DL: She's wonderful.
DC: She's absolutely gorgeous and wonderful.
DL: You know, she was here a couple of months ago, and good heavens, as nice and appealing as she looks on the big screen, in person it's just even more.
DC: Well, I kind of had to talk her through it a little bit, because the character's name is Honey Horne.
DL: Eeee.[Dana pumps fist][late rim shot sound] You guys aren't on a break, are you? C'mon, keep up here!
DC: It's just French, you know, Honey Horne, and...Why don't we show the clip here?
DL: We got a little clip here, a little bit of Wayne's World 2 with Dana Carvey and Kim Basinger.
DC: He meets Honey Horne in a laundromat.
DL: The first meeting.
DC: the first metting. They've met in this laundromat and are talking.
DL: Love at first sight. Roll it!
[clip from movie]
Garth: Would you like some red rope licorice?
Honey: Why sure. [starts licking on and sucking licorice]What's your name?
G: Garth. Garth Algar.
H: I'm Honey Horne.
G: Nice to meet you, Miss Horny.
H: That's Horne. It's French.
G: Okay. Miss Hor-ne.
H: So, Garth. Would you like to have dinner some night?
G: Oh, I like to have dinner every night.
[end clip]
DL: What a hip guy.
DC: Hey, man, that was me in high school. That's about how afraid I was.
DL: When you look at yourself in that wig, it couldn't be more ridiculous. What is the reaction of your family to that--your wife, your kids?
DC: Well, my my son Dex is 2 1/2. He came on the set, and he pointed at my wig and said, "Daddy, no funny hair, no." [still of Garth shown] Right. And he was so cute. He's 2 1/2 and he's so cute, it's psycho. "Daddy, no funny hair. Love you, Daddy, no funny hair." You really think your kid is putting you on. Like he's acting. He turns around and goes, [mimics holding a cigar] "He bought it. I got toys in my future." But, uh, he looks young for his age. I'm 38 and I'm playing a guy who just got pubes. That's in the movie. And, um...I hate that word. I'm sorry. Pubes and penis. Two words you hate in life. [Dave sighs] I know! Um...What happened, Dave?
DL: I,I...
DC: My son is 2 1/2, but he looks 2, I swear. One night he didn't get much sleep and he looked 3. It was really sad. [pumps fist]
DL: [to band] Hey, come on now!
DC: I'm sorry.
DL: And you have a baby brother for him.
DC: We have baby Thomas. And Dex. It's great having kids, but it changes your life. I play Lego like 40 hours a week now. I can make a car with a little boat trailing behind it.
DL: That's very advanced.
DC: [laughs] Thank you, Dave. Now, Dave, if you go out to dinner with friends and they say, "Let's have dinner at 10:00," that's cool, right?
DL: Well, no, not really.
DC: You're kind of an early bird? Well, my single friends go, "Let's meet for dinner at the resteraunt at 10."
DL: That's no good.
DC: 10? I'm asleep 5 hours at that point, you know? I mean, I go to bed during Oprah. One night I stayed up for about half of Wheel of Fortune.
DL: That's a big one.
DC: I was crazy!
DL: Now, where do you all live? Are you in New York now?
DC: I live in LA, unfortunately, you know. Fires were very heavy.
DL: It was an ugly sight. Really very ugly.
DC: I was near that. I know, it was horrendous. I drove around Malibu that day. A lot of celebrities were evacuating their homes. They didn't know what to take, you know. Like, I saw Johhny Carson out in his driveway going, [im.] "I don't know whether to save Aunt Flabby's wig or Art Fern's blazer." I said, "Johhny, the fire's coming." "I did not know that."
DL: Yes sir. Let's see here. Dana, you've done so well here tonight, come back anytime.
DC: I'd love to. It's my new favorite show.
DL: The film comes out December 10 and it's gonna be another blockbuster for Dana Carvey. Good to see you, Dana. Thank you very much.
DC: Thanks, Dave.
DL: We'll be right back, folks! Go back to my Dana page