1 00:00:07,674 --> 00:00:09,342 [Barkley] We gonna bet on this putt? 2 00:00:09,426 --> 00:00:11,970 What… what do you… In terms of wagering, what do you think? 3 00:00:12,053 --> 00:00:14,764 Make it light on yourself. You got plenty of money. 4 00:00:14,848 --> 00:00:17,600 I was thinking of something, um, other than money. 5 00:00:17,684 --> 00:00:18,643 Okay. 6 00:00:18,727 --> 00:00:22,230 If I make this putt, you walk through the clubhouse with your shirt off. 7 00:00:22,939 --> 00:00:25,150 No, no. I'm not John Cena. 8 00:00:25,233 --> 00:00:29,029 I can't take my shirt off in public anymore. Those days are over. 9 00:00:29,112 --> 00:00:30,739 Okay, I gotta sink this, 10 00:00:31,239 --> 00:00:33,158 or… what do we do if I miss this? 11 00:00:33,241 --> 00:00:35,785 You'll walk through the clubhouse with your shirt off. 12 00:00:35,869 --> 00:00:38,788 No, no. That would… that would sicken people. 13 00:00:38,872 --> 00:00:40,874 If you go through there with your shirt off, 14 00:00:40,957 --> 00:00:43,418 everybody says, "There's Chuck or Charles Barkley." 15 00:00:43,501 --> 00:00:45,170 -They'd be like… -He looks fantastic. 16 00:00:45,253 --> 00:00:48,673 No, they'd be like, "That guy played in the NBA?!" [chuckles] 17 00:00:48,757 --> 00:00:51,259 [theme music playing] 18 00:01:01,436 --> 00:01:03,021 [cheering] 19 00:01:05,732 --> 00:01:07,859 [Letterman chuckles] 20 00:01:09,319 --> 00:01:10,320 Thank you. 21 00:01:10,862 --> 00:01:12,280 [Letterman chuckles] 22 00:01:14,491 --> 00:01:15,867 Hello. Hello. Thank you. 23 00:01:17,368 --> 00:01:18,411 Oh, come on. 24 00:01:19,662 --> 00:01:23,583 I… I like that, a smattering of standing ovation. 25 00:01:24,417 --> 00:01:27,378 -Other people, not sure. -[laughter] 26 00:01:27,462 --> 00:01:32,842 Uh, this… this guy, 1993, was the NBA Most Valuable Player. 27 00:01:32,926 --> 00:01:36,012 He has won two Olympic gold medals, 28 00:01:36,096 --> 00:01:39,140 and he has been nominated to the All-Star team, 29 00:01:39,224 --> 00:01:41,893 I think 13 different times in his career, 30 00:01:41,976 --> 00:01:46,439 and he is now, and has been, a member of the NBA Basketball Hall of Fame. 31 00:01:46,523 --> 00:01:49,442 Ladies and gentlemen, here we go, Charles Barkley. 32 00:01:49,526 --> 00:01:50,693 Charles. 33 00:01:50,777 --> 00:01:52,779 [cheering and applause] 34 00:01:57,408 --> 00:01:58,827 -Hi, Charles! -How you doing? 35 00:01:58,910 --> 00:02:00,370 -Great to see you. -Good to see you. 36 00:02:00,453 --> 00:02:01,496 Look at this. 37 00:02:02,497 --> 00:02:03,581 Thank you. 38 00:02:03,665 --> 00:02:05,667 [raucous cheering and applause] 39 00:02:06,960 --> 00:02:07,836 All right. 40 00:02:09,963 --> 00:02:11,798 Charles, thank you so much for being here-- 41 00:02:11,881 --> 00:02:13,925 -It's an honor. -Well, no. The honor is mine. 42 00:02:14,008 --> 00:02:16,010 These people had nothin' else to do tonight. 43 00:02:16,094 --> 00:02:18,596 -[laughter] -In New York City. 44 00:02:18,680 --> 00:02:19,556 [light whooping] 45 00:02:19,639 --> 00:02:21,808 It's a pretty good ticket to have, though, my friend. 46 00:02:21,891 --> 00:02:24,978 You know, I appreciate it. Thank you for having me. It's an honor. 47 00:02:25,061 --> 00:02:27,105 Thanks again for your time. Uh… 48 00:02:27,188 --> 00:02:29,274 Could you play in today's NBA? 49 00:02:29,357 --> 00:02:32,235 -It's a lot easier to play today 'cause-- -Why is it easier? 50 00:02:32,318 --> 00:02:36,239 'Cause there's no physicality. You just run around and shoot threes. 51 00:02:36,739 --> 00:02:39,492 Well, now, what about Draymond Green clotheslining a guy, 52 00:02:39,576 --> 00:02:40,869 punching his own teammate? 53 00:02:40,952 --> 00:02:43,163 -There are exceptions to the rule. -[laughter] 54 00:02:43,246 --> 00:02:45,707 Uh, that's actually a perfect example. 55 00:02:45,790 --> 00:02:49,460 If you hit anybody, you gonna be gone for five or ten games. 56 00:02:49,544 --> 00:02:52,881 I looked at that documentary with Michael Jordan about the last dance. 57 00:02:52,964 --> 00:02:55,967 All those fouls that he was getting beat up by the Pistons, 58 00:02:56,050 --> 00:02:59,637 you'd get suspended for five, ten, 15 games today, 59 00:02:59,721 --> 00:03:01,681 but that was just the way the game was played. 60 00:03:01,764 --> 00:03:04,350 But you know what I… what haunts me is I remember as a kid, 61 00:03:04,434 --> 00:03:06,895 listening to Bill Russell talk about basketball, 62 00:03:06,978 --> 00:03:10,148 and… and in those days, I don't know what the game number was. 63 00:03:10,231 --> 00:03:13,401 -Yeah. -Maybe it was 60, 68, 65, not 82. 64 00:03:13,484 --> 00:03:16,279 And he talked about running up and down the court every night 65 00:03:16,362 --> 00:03:19,824 for the entire season was just physically very hard. 66 00:03:19,908 --> 00:03:21,534 So how… how are people… 67 00:03:21,618 --> 00:03:24,287 And you get Preseason games, you got Playoff games, 68 00:03:24,370 --> 00:03:28,583 you have the In-Season Tournament that the Pacers almost won. Thank you. 69 00:03:29,334 --> 00:03:31,044 [light laughter] 70 00:03:31,836 --> 00:03:36,174 So it's… it's gotta take its toll regardless of the physicality. 71 00:03:36,257 --> 00:03:37,675 Any sport… 72 00:03:37,759 --> 00:03:41,554 Your body's not meant to play that many games. 73 00:03:41,638 --> 00:03:43,681 -Right. -Uh, it's just not. 74 00:03:43,765 --> 00:03:47,435 But then they talk about resting teams, so… or players 75 00:03:47,518 --> 00:03:49,604 so they're able to play the rest of the season, 76 00:03:49,687 --> 00:03:51,314 so people don't get to see them… 77 00:03:51,397 --> 00:03:52,565 -Yeah. -But they fixed that. 78 00:03:52,649 --> 00:03:55,526 I hate that, that they're resting players. I mean… 79 00:03:55,610 --> 00:04:00,365 You know, we rested for $2 million. They're resting for 40, 50 million. 80 00:04:00,448 --> 00:04:02,909 -That's really good rest! -[laughter] 81 00:04:02,992 --> 00:04:05,453 -I was like, "Damn!" -Yeah. 82 00:04:05,536 --> 00:04:08,456 The way it works is you're only gonna go out west one time a year. 83 00:04:08,539 --> 00:04:11,209 Now, somebody in San Francisco or LA, 84 00:04:11,292 --> 00:04:14,212 they're only gonna get to play there one time a year, 85 00:04:14,295 --> 00:04:17,799 and, especially if you're a great player, I think you have an obligation 86 00:04:17,882 --> 00:04:19,717 to play every game that you're healthy. 87 00:04:19,801 --> 00:04:21,970 Now, if you're hurt, that's a totally different animal. 88 00:04:22,053 --> 00:04:24,681 -And tickets to an NBA game now are what? -Oh, ridiculous. 89 00:04:24,764 --> 00:04:26,808 I mean, well, it depends on what city. The… 90 00:04:26,891 --> 00:04:30,061 Listen, these people in New York, they paying $5,000 for it, 91 00:04:30,144 --> 00:04:31,854 and the Knicks ain't worth $5,000. 92 00:04:31,938 --> 00:04:33,564 -[laughter] -Let's get that out of the way. 93 00:04:33,648 --> 00:04:36,109 The Knicks are not worth $5,000. 94 00:04:36,192 --> 00:04:39,737 But, you know, the tickets are so expensive now, 95 00:04:39,821 --> 00:04:43,199 normal people can't go, and that's unfortunate. 96 00:04:43,283 --> 00:04:46,077 Sports are one of the most unique things in the world 97 00:04:46,160 --> 00:04:48,788 where you… everybody, like, love their team, 98 00:04:48,871 --> 00:04:50,540 they love their favorite player, 99 00:04:50,623 --> 00:04:52,875 but you should be able to go to an NBA game. 100 00:04:52,959 --> 00:04:55,420 You know, you factor in parking… 101 00:04:55,503 --> 00:04:58,923 Can you imagine taking your family and trying to grab a couple hot dogs, 102 00:04:59,007 --> 00:05:00,258 you know, a couple beers? 103 00:05:00,341 --> 00:05:02,176 You're talkin' hundreds and hundreds of dollars, 104 00:05:02,260 --> 00:05:04,762 and most people can't afford it, and that's really sad. 105 00:05:04,846 --> 00:05:09,434 You mentioned, um, the NBA as being a sport for everybody in the world. 106 00:05:09,517 --> 00:05:12,854 As members of the Olympic team, two gold-medal-winning teams. 107 00:05:12,937 --> 00:05:15,315 -Yes. -And then the first one, 108 00:05:15,398 --> 00:05:18,860 before they were professional teams, you were not on that team. 109 00:05:18,943 --> 00:05:21,362 Broke your heart a little bit. Am I right about that? 110 00:05:21,446 --> 00:05:22,572 It… it was… 111 00:05:22,655 --> 00:05:26,409 Yes, because… I should've made the team. 112 00:05:26,492 --> 00:05:28,619 Bobby Knight didn't like me. Rest in peace. 113 00:05:28,703 --> 00:05:30,705 -Um… -[laughter] 114 00:05:34,292 --> 00:05:36,878 -You… -Makes it sound like you had him killed. 115 00:05:37,754 --> 00:05:38,671 That's right. 116 00:05:39,255 --> 00:05:43,134 I've never said a bad word about Bobby Knight, and, uh… 117 00:05:43,217 --> 00:05:44,969 -Publicly. -[laughter] 118 00:05:45,053 --> 00:05:47,138 Uh… But it was so crazy. 119 00:05:47,221 --> 00:05:50,683 When he died, everybody was calling me. 120 00:05:50,767 --> 00:05:52,352 I said, "Yo, man. If you guys think 121 00:05:52,435 --> 00:05:55,355 that I'm gonna say somethin' bad about that man who just passed away, 122 00:05:55,438 --> 00:05:56,731 that's not gonna happen." 123 00:05:56,814 --> 00:06:00,735 Now, why do you think… Why weren't you part of his Olympic team? 124 00:06:00,818 --> 00:06:03,738 What was the issue? Was it… You certainly could play. 125 00:06:03,821 --> 00:06:07,992 I think he went into it with a perception of how I was as a player. 126 00:06:08,076 --> 00:06:09,494 -You were a kid then. -I was. 127 00:06:09,577 --> 00:06:11,996 -How old were you? 19? -I was 18, 19. 128 00:06:12,080 --> 00:06:15,041 Maybe even 20 because I think I was a sophomore in college. 129 00:06:15,124 --> 00:06:17,502 But the way it worked out was 130 00:06:17,585 --> 00:06:19,962 I wasn't sure how good I was as a basketball player, 131 00:06:20,046 --> 00:06:24,008 but what they did was they invited the top 120 players in the country, 132 00:06:24,092 --> 00:06:28,596 they cut it to 100, 80, 60, 40, 20, 133 00:06:29,097 --> 00:06:31,015 and then they cut it down to 16, 134 00:06:31,099 --> 00:06:35,436 but it really helped my confidence to play against those guys. 135 00:06:35,520 --> 00:06:38,231 So, even though I didn't make it, I was disappointed, 136 00:06:38,314 --> 00:06:41,442 it was a really good thing for me from a confidence standpoint. 137 00:06:41,526 --> 00:06:45,196 It seems to me now, and maybe it happened and I wasn't paying attention, 138 00:06:45,279 --> 00:06:48,908 players can almost build their own team. 139 00:06:48,991 --> 00:06:51,077 Is that a legitimate perspective? 140 00:06:51,160 --> 00:06:52,703 I hate that perspective. 141 00:06:52,787 --> 00:06:54,539 -It's… But it's authentic. -It's true. 142 00:06:54,622 --> 00:06:57,041 They have so much money and so much power now. 143 00:06:57,125 --> 00:06:58,876 I really hate that perspective. 144 00:06:58,960 --> 00:07:03,131 You wanna win because of hard work, not because you stacked your team. 145 00:07:03,214 --> 00:07:06,426 That started during the LeBron era, 146 00:07:06,509 --> 00:07:10,054 and it's really disappointing because if I had've known that, 147 00:07:10,138 --> 00:07:12,348 I would've built my own super team. 148 00:07:13,182 --> 00:07:16,436 [commentator] Whoops! The sucker play by Barkley. Does it work? 149 00:07:16,519 --> 00:07:17,687 Yes! 150 00:07:17,770 --> 00:07:20,690 Charles Barkley! He's not human! 151 00:07:20,773 --> 00:07:23,192 You played for three teams. Philadelphia… 152 00:07:23,276 --> 00:07:25,236 -Phoenix and Houston. -Phoenix and Houston. 153 00:07:25,319 --> 00:07:27,697 I was talking to Reggie Miller not long ago. 154 00:07:27,780 --> 00:07:31,159 Eighteen years, he played for the Indiana Pacers. 155 00:07:31,242 --> 00:07:34,287 -Yeah. -Yeah. That just is unheard of now. 156 00:07:34,370 --> 00:07:37,707 It's amazing, and he's one of the greatest players ever, 157 00:07:37,790 --> 00:07:39,459 one of the good dudes ever, 158 00:07:39,542 --> 00:07:42,670 and he had his chances, and that's all you want. 159 00:07:42,753 --> 00:07:46,340 I had my chances. We lost to the Bulls in the championship. 160 00:07:46,424 --> 00:07:49,385 We lost to the Rockets back-to-back years in seven games 161 00:07:49,469 --> 00:07:51,137 when they won the championship. 162 00:07:51,220 --> 00:07:52,597 -I'm… I'm good. -Right. 163 00:07:52,680 --> 00:07:55,308 But you know, Adam Silver said something smart. 164 00:07:55,391 --> 00:07:58,269 Yes, it may not be the way things have been, 165 00:07:58,352 --> 00:08:01,147 but it's really beneficial for fans. 166 00:08:01,230 --> 00:08:04,525 They like the idea of people movin' themselves around 167 00:08:04,609 --> 00:08:07,195 and placing different teams in different competitions-- 168 00:08:07,278 --> 00:08:08,946 -He's wrong. -Okay. 169 00:08:09,030 --> 00:08:10,406 [laughter] 170 00:08:10,490 --> 00:08:12,700 It's great for where they go. 171 00:08:12,783 --> 00:08:16,621 It's shitty for where they left. That's what people don't understand. 172 00:08:16,704 --> 00:08:19,457 If you go back and look at the collateral damage, 173 00:08:19,540 --> 00:08:23,419 every superstar who forced his way off a team, 174 00:08:23,503 --> 00:08:26,214 that team was in ruins for many, many years. 175 00:08:26,297 --> 00:08:29,008 So, as much as I like Adam, I disagree with him. 176 00:08:29,091 --> 00:08:30,092 I keep thinkin', 177 00:08:30,176 --> 00:08:34,180 when you talk about teams struggling and rebuilding for years and years, 178 00:08:34,263 --> 00:08:36,390 just… in all honesty, 179 00:08:36,474 --> 00:08:38,976 the Knicks are still in the league, right? 180 00:08:40,228 --> 00:08:43,481 The Knicks… Believe it or not, the Knicks are relevant this year. 181 00:08:43,564 --> 00:08:46,400 -[man] Yeah! Go Knicks! -[cheering and applause] 182 00:08:47,026 --> 00:08:50,363 I wanna, uh, find out here, uh… who's gonna win the NBA? 183 00:08:50,446 --> 00:08:52,782 -The Pacers this year, right? -[light laughter] 184 00:08:52,865 --> 00:08:54,200 The Pacers have a chance, 185 00:08:54,283 --> 00:08:56,619 but the Boston Celtics are gonna win the championship. 186 00:08:56,702 --> 00:08:59,247 -You think so? -I do. I think they got the best team. 187 00:08:59,330 --> 00:09:00,915 Now, would you bet on that game? 188 00:09:00,998 --> 00:09:04,335 If somebody gave me the chance right now, I would take the Celtics. 189 00:09:04,418 --> 00:09:07,713 You… What I know about you vaguely is you don't mind betting. 190 00:09:07,797 --> 00:09:10,800 Well, you can't die with all this money. Uh… 191 00:09:10,883 --> 00:09:12,093 [laughter] 192 00:09:12,176 --> 00:09:14,220 But, you know, that's… that's the other thing. 193 00:09:14,303 --> 00:09:18,266 The other thing I know about you is your goal, and maybe it's changed, 194 00:09:18,349 --> 00:09:23,521 each year, you wanna give to causes, worthy causes, a million bucks. 195 00:09:23,604 --> 00:09:25,690 Is that… Am I accurate about that? 196 00:09:25,773 --> 00:09:28,985 I've done it for, like, the last 20 years. That's my goal. 197 00:09:29,068 --> 00:09:31,487 I've been so lucky. Not trying to be humble. 198 00:09:31,571 --> 00:09:33,197 I've been so lucky and blessed. 199 00:09:33,281 --> 00:09:35,658 So I started out at my high school, 200 00:09:35,741 --> 00:09:39,036 a couple schools around my neighborhood who needed money, 201 00:09:39,120 --> 00:09:42,081 and then I did Wounded Warriors. 202 00:09:42,164 --> 00:09:45,960 The last eight years, I did HBCUs. 203 00:09:46,043 --> 00:09:48,963 You know, we're the luckiest people in the world. 204 00:09:49,046 --> 00:09:52,133 It's kinda like my TV job now. I says, "Wait a minute." 205 00:09:52,216 --> 00:09:54,552 "Y'all are gonna pay me to watch basketball?" 206 00:09:55,052 --> 00:09:57,263 I was like, "I'mma watch anyway!" 207 00:09:57,346 --> 00:09:59,557 -[laughter] -Like… 208 00:09:59,640 --> 00:10:02,018 [soft jazz playing] 209 00:10:02,101 --> 00:10:04,103 [indistinct chatter] 210 00:10:05,521 --> 00:10:08,441 -[Letterman] You get tired of watchin'? -Yes. Yes. 211 00:10:08,524 --> 00:10:11,777 -Yes. Hard yes. -Well, he doesn't watch the games. 212 00:10:11,861 --> 00:10:14,280 -[Letterman] Does anybody doze off here? -[Barkley] Oh yeah. 213 00:10:14,363 --> 00:10:16,866 -Oh, we definitely doze off. -[Smith] Those are his four TVs 214 00:10:16,949 --> 00:10:20,244 -[Barkley] I'm watching… Yeah. -There's no basketball really on those. 215 00:10:20,328 --> 00:10:22,747 I'm watching Law & Order tonight. I'm not watching these games. 216 00:10:22,830 --> 00:10:25,207 -Yeah. Can I sit over here? -[Smith] Yes. 217 00:10:25,291 --> 00:10:27,835 [Letterman] Excuse me. Don't let me get in the way. 218 00:10:28,336 --> 00:10:31,005 Is there pressure to what you guys are doing out there? 219 00:10:31,505 --> 00:10:32,673 -No. -[Barkley] Out there? 220 00:10:32,757 --> 00:10:33,674 -Yeah. -[Barkley] Oh no. 221 00:10:33,758 --> 00:10:35,676 There's nothing gonna happen in a game 222 00:10:35,760 --> 00:10:38,512 that Charles, myself, or Shaq didn't do, see, or heard. 223 00:10:38,596 --> 00:10:40,681 When you're doing a show, you gotta learn a lot of shit 224 00:10:40,765 --> 00:10:41,891 about other people. 225 00:10:42,475 --> 00:10:44,935 Like, it's just basketball. It's… Yeah. 226 00:10:45,019 --> 00:10:48,689 Are you surprised that sports seems to have dominated, 227 00:10:48,773 --> 00:10:52,234 or, if not that, subsumed American culture? 228 00:10:52,318 --> 00:10:55,321 Well, it makes a certain group of people happy. 229 00:10:55,905 --> 00:11:00,326 Like, when your team is doing well, you don't have any problems at home. 230 00:11:00,409 --> 00:11:02,620 It's amped up during the Playoffs. 231 00:11:02,703 --> 00:11:05,122 You're down to the final three or four teams. 232 00:11:05,206 --> 00:11:06,707 It gets really exciting. 233 00:11:06,791 --> 00:11:09,377 But the whole city is on fire. 234 00:11:09,460 --> 00:11:10,795 That's the difference. 235 00:11:10,878 --> 00:11:11,879 When I was… 236 00:11:11,962 --> 00:11:16,258 The Pacers let me sit right there at one end of the court. 237 00:11:16,342 --> 00:11:19,887 -Right. -And everything goes on nonstop. 238 00:11:19,970 --> 00:11:23,974 It's like Cirque du Soleil in timeouts and everything. 239 00:11:24,058 --> 00:11:28,145 And at one point, the mascot comes over, and he's got this giant head. 240 00:11:28,229 --> 00:11:31,273 What's the mascot's name? Thumper, Thump, Humper? 241 00:11:31,357 --> 00:11:33,693 -What's his name? -From Indiana? I have no idea. 242 00:11:33,776 --> 00:11:35,236 Anyway, that's him. 243 00:11:35,319 --> 00:11:39,240 And he comes over, and so now he leans right over to talk to me, 244 00:11:39,323 --> 00:11:42,785 like I would lean in and talk to your ear, except he's got the big head. 245 00:11:42,868 --> 00:11:46,288 So we're still this far apart, and he says to me, 246 00:11:46,372 --> 00:11:49,041 "About 20 years ago, I used to work with your mother." 247 00:11:49,125 --> 00:11:50,710 [laughs heartily] 248 00:11:50,793 --> 00:11:52,920 And I said to him, "Yeah, a lot of guys did." 249 00:11:53,003 --> 00:11:55,339 Now, I don't even… That means nothing, 250 00:11:55,423 --> 00:11:58,426 but I didn't know what to say to the guy with the big head. 251 00:11:59,260 --> 00:12:02,138 She was a lovely woman, really. Yeah. 252 00:12:03,389 --> 00:12:06,267 Shaq! Some of the crew, we all go out and have a drink 253 00:12:06,350 --> 00:12:08,269 'cause you're kind of wired after the show. 254 00:12:08,352 --> 00:12:12,231 There's a dive bar up the street we go to, and Shaq doesn't drink. 255 00:12:12,314 --> 00:12:17,111 He's like, "You guys are assholes. I got nothin' to do after the show." 256 00:12:17,194 --> 00:12:20,906 Then he comes in, like, two weeks later, "I solved my problem." 257 00:12:20,990 --> 00:12:23,367 We're like, "What you do?" He says, "I bought a hookah bar." 258 00:12:23,451 --> 00:12:25,077 You bought a bar? A hookah bar? 259 00:12:25,161 --> 00:12:28,873 -[Shaq] So it'll always be open at 2 a.m. -That lets you know he got too much money. 260 00:12:28,956 --> 00:12:30,583 [chuckles] But… do you do a lotta… 261 00:12:30,666 --> 00:12:32,710 Is there a brisk business in the hookah bar? 262 00:12:32,793 --> 00:12:34,587 -Yes. -Really? 263 00:12:34,670 --> 00:12:36,130 -Would it make me dizzy? -No. 264 00:12:36,213 --> 00:12:37,173 What would happen? 265 00:12:38,132 --> 00:12:41,969 It has no effect on anything. It's a waste of time! 266 00:12:42,052 --> 00:12:43,971 -[Letterman] So you are addicted? -Yes. 267 00:12:44,513 --> 00:12:46,307 If you do somethin' every day, you're addicted. 268 00:12:46,390 --> 00:12:48,517 -I guess. -I can stop anytime I want. 269 00:12:48,601 --> 00:12:52,938 Yo! I want some of that. I want some of that. 270 00:12:53,022 --> 00:12:55,649 -"I could stop anytime I want." -I want some o' that. 271 00:12:55,733 --> 00:12:58,110 -Anytime I want, I can stop. -I got the under. 272 00:12:58,194 --> 00:13:01,655 I will say this is a conversation I never thought I'd have. 273 00:13:01,739 --> 00:13:04,158 Um, so I could go in there and grab a hose too? 274 00:13:04,241 --> 00:13:05,618 -Yes. -And what do you charge? 275 00:13:05,701 --> 00:13:08,537 If I go in there, I say, "Give me the Shaq Special?" 276 00:13:09,413 --> 00:13:11,123 -You? Free. -Yeah, if I went in there. 277 00:13:11,207 --> 00:13:12,082 -Free! -Free for you. 278 00:13:12,166 --> 00:13:15,586 Thank God! Finally, this is beginning to pay off. 279 00:13:15,669 --> 00:13:18,339 What about your buddy Shaquille O'Neal? 280 00:13:18,422 --> 00:13:20,424 [laughter] 281 00:13:21,842 --> 00:13:24,470 You know, he's a really good dude. 282 00:13:24,553 --> 00:13:27,932 When did you guys… Did you overlap in careers? 283 00:13:28,015 --> 00:13:31,393 We did, but what's really crazy, our moms were best friends. 284 00:13:31,477 --> 00:13:35,856 They always get these moms together, the NBA moms, and for some reason, 285 00:13:35,940 --> 00:13:39,193 his mom and my mom connected, 286 00:13:39,276 --> 00:13:42,071 and I used to scream at my mom all the time. 287 00:13:42,822 --> 00:13:44,073 'Cause I was retired. 288 00:13:44,865 --> 00:13:47,493 And my mom would take three or four vacations a year 289 00:13:47,576 --> 00:13:48,536 with Shaq's mom. 290 00:13:48,619 --> 00:13:50,329 [laughter] 291 00:13:50,412 --> 00:13:53,040 And I said, "Mom, I just got your damn bills." 292 00:13:54,124 --> 00:13:56,418 She said, "Well, baby, I gotta pay my share." 293 00:13:56,502 --> 00:13:58,420 I said, "Mom, I don't make money like Shaq." 294 00:13:58,504 --> 00:14:00,422 [laughter] 295 00:14:01,006 --> 00:14:03,300 Shaq's mom, Miss Lucille, is amazing. 296 00:14:03,384 --> 00:14:06,011 So me and Shaq, so we got to fightin' in a game. 297 00:14:06,095 --> 00:14:08,889 [commentator] Uh-oh. Oh! There's a swing by O'Neal! 298 00:14:09,473 --> 00:14:11,851 [Barkley] And, before we got to the locker room, 299 00:14:11,934 --> 00:14:14,645 his mom had called him, and my mom called me and said, 300 00:14:14,728 --> 00:14:16,897 "What the hell is wrong with y'all?" 301 00:14:16,981 --> 00:14:19,650 "Walk over there and apologize right now." 302 00:14:19,733 --> 00:14:23,946 So we bump into each other in the hallway, like, "Where you goin'?" 303 00:14:24,029 --> 00:14:25,489 "Where you goin'?" 304 00:14:26,115 --> 00:14:29,201 "Well, my mama told me to come apologize to you," 305 00:14:29,285 --> 00:14:32,162 and we laugh about that to this day. 306 00:14:32,246 --> 00:14:35,040 Let's talk a little bit about your family. 307 00:14:35,124 --> 00:14:37,543 Your, uh… your mom and your grandmother. 308 00:14:37,626 --> 00:14:38,627 -Yes. -Yes. 309 00:14:38,711 --> 00:14:42,840 My grandmother's the greatest person ever, and my mom was a close second. 310 00:14:42,923 --> 00:14:45,718 You know, I'm from a small town of a couple thousand people. 311 00:14:45,801 --> 00:14:47,344 -Leeds. -Yes. Leeds, Alabama. 312 00:14:47,428 --> 00:14:49,346 About a half an hour outside of Birmingham. 313 00:14:49,930 --> 00:14:54,101 My mom was a maid, and my grandmother worked in a meat factory. 314 00:14:54,727 --> 00:14:56,186 Uh, they worked so hard. 315 00:14:56,270 --> 00:14:58,606 One of my brothers died at a young age, 316 00:14:58,689 --> 00:15:02,776 and so raising three boys in the projects in a small town in Alabama, they worked… 317 00:15:02,860 --> 00:15:05,446 Your father was there and then not there? 318 00:15:05,529 --> 00:15:07,197 -He was never there. -Never there. 319 00:15:07,281 --> 00:15:11,785 He left when I was a little kid, and he might've came to see me… 320 00:15:13,537 --> 00:15:15,915 five to seven times my entire life. 321 00:15:15,998 --> 00:15:19,043 -Did your dad ever see you play? -Never in high school. 322 00:15:19,126 --> 00:15:22,212 The only time he saw me play was in LA 'cause he moved to California. 323 00:15:22,296 --> 00:15:26,091 He didn't just move in the neighborhood. He moved from Alabama to California. 324 00:15:26,175 --> 00:15:30,512 I was such an asshole early in my career 325 00:15:30,596 --> 00:15:32,681 'cause I was angry at the world. 326 00:15:32,765 --> 00:15:35,225 I used to say to myself before the game, 327 00:15:36,143 --> 00:15:39,396 "Kick everybody's ass to stick it to 'em." 328 00:15:40,147 --> 00:15:42,107 I tell all young guys this. 329 00:15:42,191 --> 00:15:45,986 If you play on the edge, it's just a matter of time before you go over. 330 00:15:46,570 --> 00:15:49,365 I crossed the line several times. 331 00:15:50,240 --> 00:15:53,827 And I remember sitting there cryin', thinkin', like, "Yo, man." 332 00:15:53,911 --> 00:15:55,913 "What the fuck is wrong with you?" 333 00:15:56,455 --> 00:15:59,667 "Why are you so angry? You're great at basketball." 334 00:15:59,750 --> 00:16:00,960 "What are you mad at?" 335 00:16:01,543 --> 00:16:03,796 And I was just talking to myself. That's how stupid I am. 336 00:16:03,879 --> 00:16:05,089 I'm talking to myself. 337 00:16:05,172 --> 00:16:06,966 And I made up my mind that night. 338 00:16:07,049 --> 00:16:09,843 Said, "Hey, you got to let that thing go with your dad." 339 00:16:09,927 --> 00:16:11,512 That's a lot to let go. 340 00:16:11,595 --> 00:16:15,057 It… It… But you know, David, it changed my entire life, 341 00:16:15,140 --> 00:16:18,852 as far as, like, you can't play angry. 342 00:16:18,936 --> 00:16:23,315 I don't know what's going on with Draymond or Dennis Rodman, 343 00:16:23,399 --> 00:16:25,985 Mike Tyson, I consider somebody… a casual friend. 344 00:16:26,068 --> 00:16:28,320 If you on that line all the time, 345 00:16:28,404 --> 00:16:31,073 you gonna cross it many, many times, 346 00:16:31,156 --> 00:16:33,450 so that was the turning point for me. 347 00:16:33,534 --> 00:16:36,704 But, like you said, it… it was a lot to get over too, 348 00:16:36,787 --> 00:16:40,040 because especially when my dad tried to come back 'cause now I'm a star. 349 00:16:40,124 --> 00:16:43,919 And then, when we'd go to LA, he's like, "I want you to come and meet my friends." 350 00:16:44,003 --> 00:16:46,338 And he would show me off like I was a show pony. 351 00:16:46,422 --> 00:16:48,674 -Sure. -And I was like, "Okay." 352 00:16:49,174 --> 00:16:51,552 "Chill. You said you're gonna let it go. Let it go." 353 00:16:51,635 --> 00:16:53,595 And then he got sick, 354 00:16:54,555 --> 00:16:57,933 and one of my friends said to me, "Hey, man. I need a favor." 355 00:16:58,017 --> 00:17:00,978 I said, "What you need?" He says, "I need you to make amends with your dad 356 00:17:01,061 --> 00:17:04,773 'cause once your dad's gone, you never gonna have a dad again." 357 00:17:04,857 --> 00:17:08,485 And then I sat my dad down. I said, "I'm too old for you to be my dad." 358 00:17:08,569 --> 00:17:10,070 "We're gonna be friends." 359 00:17:10,571 --> 00:17:13,657 "I forgive you for all the bullshit that you put me through," 360 00:17:13,741 --> 00:17:16,243 because, you know, the main reason I was angry, David, 361 00:17:16,326 --> 00:17:19,705 to be honest with you, was we were really, really poor. 362 00:17:20,622 --> 00:17:24,752 And my dad would call me, and say, "Hey, I'm sending y'all some money." 363 00:17:25,961 --> 00:17:29,006 You know, I'm a little kid, like, I'm waiting by the mailbox, 364 00:17:29,089 --> 00:17:31,467 like, "It's gonna be there, like, here, here, or here." 365 00:17:31,550 --> 00:17:34,261 And I'm waiting by the mailbox, like, every day, 366 00:17:34,928 --> 00:17:36,472 and the shit never came. 367 00:17:36,972 --> 00:17:39,641 But I'm a little kid. You know, you can keep it moving. 368 00:17:39,725 --> 00:17:42,352 I said, "My mom out there scrubbing these people floors." 369 00:17:42,936 --> 00:17:46,774 I'm… I'm starting to be a teenager now, and I'm really not happy, you know, 370 00:17:47,649 --> 00:17:50,194 but, you know, I had to get over all that. 371 00:17:50,277 --> 00:17:52,154 [gentle music playing] 372 00:17:52,237 --> 00:17:55,074 [Letterman] I have been told this is all last minute. 373 00:17:55,157 --> 00:17:56,992 -[Johnson] For them, yes. -[Letterman] For them. 374 00:17:57,076 --> 00:17:59,369 [Johnson] I've been here since 11 o'clock this morning, 375 00:17:59,453 --> 00:18:02,831 so all this prep and all this stuff is what I did. 376 00:18:02,915 --> 00:18:04,708 -Oh my God. Look at this! -So… 377 00:18:04,792 --> 00:18:07,628 What is that? Is that every game in the league? 378 00:18:07,711 --> 00:18:09,838 Every game that we have that night, yeah. 379 00:18:09,922 --> 00:18:14,676 I've been told by broadcasting experts that the show is, uh… 380 00:18:14,760 --> 00:18:18,055 Like, you are both the icing and the cake, 381 00:18:18,639 --> 00:18:22,017 and these guys are candles that you have trouble lighting. 382 00:18:22,101 --> 00:18:24,478 That's what I've been told. I would never say that. 383 00:18:24,561 --> 00:18:26,522 The best description I've heard 384 00:18:26,605 --> 00:18:30,609 is I'm the dad driving cross country with these three guys in the backseat, 385 00:18:30,692 --> 00:18:33,028 saying, "If I hear one more peep outta you, 386 00:18:33,112 --> 00:18:34,363 I'm turning this thing around!" 387 00:18:34,446 --> 00:18:35,823 But now, why isn't that a show? 388 00:18:35,906 --> 00:18:39,576 -You must've pitched it somewhere. -No, I'm sorry I even brought that up. 389 00:18:39,660 --> 00:18:43,163 I've spent now the better part of close to two days with Chuck. 390 00:18:43,247 --> 00:18:44,581 -And… -I'm sorry. 391 00:18:44,665 --> 00:18:48,293 [chuckles] There's something magnetic about him. 392 00:18:48,377 --> 00:18:50,838 -Am I making that up? -No, he's a people guy. 393 00:18:50,921 --> 00:18:53,423 And if you ever see him out, 394 00:18:53,507 --> 00:18:57,719 everyone congregates around him, and he takes time with everybody. 395 00:18:57,803 --> 00:19:00,848 Examples of strength and weaknesses of Charles. 396 00:19:00,931 --> 00:19:04,977 Speaks his mind. Never holds back, just like when he was a player, 397 00:19:05,060 --> 00:19:08,897 most quotable guy in the league, and he's that way now. 398 00:19:08,981 --> 00:19:12,192 You see a lot of athletes morph into the sportscaster guy, 399 00:19:12,276 --> 00:19:14,194 and then, all of a sudden, when the light goes on, 400 00:19:14,278 --> 00:19:16,280 they scale it back, and he doesn't. 401 00:19:16,363 --> 00:19:19,867 So he's forthcoming with everything he needs. 402 00:19:19,950 --> 00:19:23,495 In fact, there are things that you probably don't wanna know 403 00:19:23,579 --> 00:19:26,039 that he volunteers, like… 404 00:19:26,832 --> 00:19:27,666 Like? 405 00:19:28,417 --> 00:19:31,670 Well… doesn't wear underwear. 406 00:19:31,753 --> 00:19:34,840 -He doesn't wear underwear? -He said he burned 'em all at one time. 407 00:19:34,923 --> 00:19:37,009 He's never used an ATM. 408 00:19:37,759 --> 00:19:41,263 Okay, let's go back to the underwear because I've never used an ATM. 409 00:19:41,346 --> 00:19:44,391 -But I'm wearing underwear. -Yeah. As am I. 410 00:19:45,058 --> 00:19:47,603 Anybody? Underwear? Show of hands. 411 00:19:48,145 --> 00:19:50,772 Uh… He shares too much. Is that maybe a weakness? 412 00:19:50,856 --> 00:19:52,399 -No, we enjoy it when he shares. -I see. 413 00:19:52,482 --> 00:19:55,569 So the man, actually, for your purposes, has no weakness. 414 00:19:56,528 --> 00:19:59,573 -None I've seen in 20-something years. -That's remarkable. 415 00:19:59,656 --> 00:20:03,118 Well, I mean, unless you consider Krispy Kremes a weakness of his. 416 00:20:03,202 --> 00:20:06,496 I wanna go to the point when you are in a hotel room 417 00:20:06,580 --> 00:20:07,915 feeling bad about yourself. 418 00:20:07,998 --> 00:20:11,126 I don't know whether that was college, high school, 419 00:20:11,210 --> 00:20:13,921 or your first time playin' for Philadelphia, 420 00:20:14,004 --> 00:20:20,093 but Moses Malone, uh… was an important person for you. 421 00:20:20,177 --> 00:20:23,347 [Barkley] He's the most important person in my basketball life. 422 00:20:23,430 --> 00:20:25,933 I was the number-five pick in the Draft, 423 00:20:27,059 --> 00:20:29,603 and I wasn't getting to play. 424 00:20:30,938 --> 00:20:33,941 And Moses just happened to live in the same building as me. 425 00:20:34,024 --> 00:20:36,818 And I said, "Moses, can I come up and see you tonight?" 426 00:20:36,902 --> 00:20:39,905 He says, "Sure, young fella." So I go upstairs. 427 00:20:39,988 --> 00:20:42,032 I say, "Moses, why am I not getting to play?" 428 00:20:42,115 --> 00:20:45,577 He says, "Well, young fella, you fat and you lazy." 429 00:20:45,661 --> 00:20:47,663 [laughter] 430 00:20:48,413 --> 00:20:50,457 I'm like, "What do you mean?" 431 00:20:50,540 --> 00:20:53,085 He said, "Which part didn't you understand?" 432 00:20:53,168 --> 00:20:54,419 [laughter] 433 00:20:54,503 --> 00:20:59,216 He says, "Son, you got a lotta talent, but you outta shape." 434 00:20:59,299 --> 00:21:02,135 "You weigh 295 pounds." 435 00:21:02,219 --> 00:21:05,305 So you played at close to 300 pounds? 436 00:21:05,389 --> 00:21:07,766 -Yes, in the beginning. -Yeah. 437 00:21:07,849 --> 00:21:10,018 And, see, the problem, David, is 438 00:21:11,436 --> 00:21:13,397 I could get away with it in college, 439 00:21:13,480 --> 00:21:16,483 but when you get to the NBA, you playin' against the best of the best. 440 00:21:16,566 --> 00:21:19,236 He says, "If you want me to help you lose weight, I will." 441 00:21:19,319 --> 00:21:20,737 And I said, "Okay." 442 00:21:21,238 --> 00:21:24,574 He met me before, met me after. I get to 290. 443 00:21:25,784 --> 00:21:28,453 He says, "Lose ten more pounds." I get to 280. 444 00:21:28,537 --> 00:21:30,497 And I'm starting to get to play. 445 00:21:30,998 --> 00:21:32,499 He says, "Let's get to 270." 446 00:21:32,582 --> 00:21:33,959 260. 447 00:21:34,543 --> 00:21:36,670 I got to 250, which is what I played at. 448 00:21:36,753 --> 00:21:40,716 I got to 240, but I had no strength, and I felt drained, 449 00:21:40,799 --> 00:21:43,176 and he says, "250 is your playing weight." 450 00:21:43,927 --> 00:21:45,345 And the rest is history. 451 00:21:45,429 --> 00:21:49,141 I'm so thankful for him, Dr. J, 452 00:21:49,224 --> 00:21:51,518 uh, Andrew Toney, Maurice Cheeks, and Bobby Jones. 453 00:21:51,601 --> 00:21:55,105 They talked to me about dressing. They taught me how to save my money. 454 00:21:55,814 --> 00:21:59,192 So I always tell people, but the most important person is Moses. 455 00:21:59,276 --> 00:22:01,194 If he hadn't told me I was fat and lazy… 456 00:22:01,278 --> 00:22:02,904 You know, hey! 457 00:22:02,988 --> 00:22:05,490 I told people. They said, "What'd you do after he told you that?" 458 00:22:05,574 --> 00:22:09,119 I says, "I did like any man would do. I went downstairs and cried." 459 00:22:09,202 --> 00:22:10,495 -Uh… -[laughter] 460 00:22:11,455 --> 00:22:15,334 Are there more superstars in the NBA now than when you played, 461 00:22:15,417 --> 00:22:17,002 or is it still about the same? 462 00:22:17,085 --> 00:22:18,670 It's… it's probably less. 463 00:22:18,754 --> 00:22:21,131 There's less great players. 464 00:22:21,214 --> 00:22:24,343 They don't get to develop in college like they should, 465 00:22:24,426 --> 00:22:26,803 so you can leave college after one year now. 466 00:22:27,387 --> 00:22:29,848 We all had to stay in college for three or four years, 467 00:22:29,931 --> 00:22:32,601 and there's not a person in here, like… 468 00:22:33,185 --> 00:22:35,187 I don't even know what any of these people do, 469 00:22:35,270 --> 00:22:36,730 but if you asked them, like… 470 00:22:36,813 --> 00:22:40,192 If they'd have gave me my job right now after six months of college, 471 00:22:40,901 --> 00:22:44,029 I'm probably gonna fail or not be as effective. 472 00:22:44,112 --> 00:22:47,949 Goin' to college for three or four years is a huge advantage. 473 00:22:48,033 --> 00:22:51,078 -Yeah. It's maturation on many points. -Yes. 474 00:22:51,161 --> 00:22:53,163 -Mentally and physically. -Yeah. 475 00:22:53,246 --> 00:22:57,376 And I don't know if we can ever put the toothpaste back in the tube. 476 00:22:57,459 --> 00:23:00,420 Guys are only gonna go to college for one year now, 477 00:23:00,504 --> 00:23:03,131 and it's not… I don't think that's the best system. 478 00:23:03,215 --> 00:23:06,510 Not the best system, but I… I was growing weary of seeing 479 00:23:06,593 --> 00:23:09,471 NCAA athletes in all sports 480 00:23:09,554 --> 00:23:11,848 uh, gettin' knocked around and beat up 481 00:23:11,932 --> 00:23:15,936 and not being able to afford a life after college. 482 00:23:16,019 --> 00:23:19,773 Meanwhile, it was a multibillion-dollar industry for somebody. 483 00:23:19,856 --> 00:23:23,443 Yeah, it's… that is the great debate goin' on now, 484 00:23:23,527 --> 00:23:27,030 and I love the players gettin' some money. 485 00:23:27,114 --> 00:23:30,951 I'm not sure that the system we have in place right now is the best thing. 486 00:23:31,785 --> 00:23:36,415 Paying a couple guys on the team 3, 4, 5 million dollars… 487 00:23:36,498 --> 00:23:38,959 'Cause most of these schools can't afford that. 488 00:23:39,042 --> 00:23:40,335 The big powerhouses, 489 00:23:40,419 --> 00:23:43,672 they always gonna be able to raise a lotta money. 490 00:23:43,755 --> 00:23:44,589 Well… 491 00:23:44,673 --> 00:23:47,384 Ball State is not gonna be paying a lotta players. 492 00:23:47,467 --> 00:23:49,719 [laughter] 493 00:23:51,513 --> 00:23:53,515 -We'll be right back. -[laughter] 494 00:23:53,598 --> 00:23:57,894 Uh, but one other thing here, and I keep sidetracking myself. 495 00:23:57,978 --> 00:23:59,229 You mentioned the WNBA. 496 00:23:59,312 --> 00:24:03,316 The highest-paid female athlete in the WNBA is, like, 230… 497 00:24:03,400 --> 00:24:05,819 -$230,000, $240,000 a year. -Yes. 498 00:24:05,902 --> 00:24:10,449 And… and I… I think Steph Curry, Golden State, 499 00:24:10,532 --> 00:24:13,034 is making $50 million plus a year. 500 00:24:13,118 --> 00:24:14,119 -Yeah. -I mean… 501 00:24:15,370 --> 00:24:18,248 Anyway, we're not gonna get that solved, I don't think, now. 502 00:24:18,331 --> 00:24:20,417 Well, I don't think you're gonna get it solved because, 503 00:24:20,500 --> 00:24:24,296 number one, uh… we need to pay the WNBA players more. 504 00:24:25,046 --> 00:24:27,466 What's goin' be very interesting… You asked that question. 505 00:24:27,549 --> 00:24:29,384 -[applause] -Yeah. 506 00:24:29,468 --> 00:24:32,554 Well, yeah, but what's gonna be very interesting… 507 00:24:32,637 --> 00:24:37,017 The best female player in the country right now is Caitlin Clark. 508 00:24:37,601 --> 00:24:40,770 She's phenomenal. She's gonna be the number one pick. 509 00:24:40,854 --> 00:24:44,316 It's actually held by your team in Indiana. 510 00:24:44,399 --> 00:24:45,859 -The Fever? -The Fever. 511 00:24:45,942 --> 00:24:48,987 Yeah, because if you've ever spent time in Indiana… 512 00:24:49,070 --> 00:24:50,530 [laughter] 513 00:24:50,614 --> 00:24:52,782 …sure as hell you're goin' home with a fever. 514 00:24:52,866 --> 00:24:54,743 [laughter] 515 00:24:54,826 --> 00:24:57,454 But what's gonna be very interesting for her, 516 00:24:57,537 --> 00:24:59,247 the Fever had a number one pick in the draft, 517 00:24:59,331 --> 00:25:02,250 and obviously they're gonna take her 'cause she's the best player. 518 00:25:02,834 --> 00:25:07,923 But you just said the highest-paid WNBA player's $200,000. 519 00:25:08,006 --> 00:25:11,510 She's probably making three to five million in college. 520 00:25:11,593 --> 00:25:12,677 [Letterman] Mm. 521 00:25:13,178 --> 00:25:14,054 I… 522 00:25:14,763 --> 00:25:16,932 It's… I… You gotta stay in college. 523 00:25:17,015 --> 00:25:19,017 -[light laughter] -No, I mean that. 524 00:25:19,100 --> 00:25:22,312 She's gonna have to make that decision, and she's gonna be like, 525 00:25:22,395 --> 00:25:25,398 "I don't wanna disrespect the people of Indiana, 526 00:25:25,482 --> 00:25:29,486 but I can't leave college while I'm making three to five million dollars 527 00:25:29,569 --> 00:25:32,239 for $200,000." Those numbers don't add up. 528 00:25:32,322 --> 00:25:34,366 [whimsical classical music playing] 529 00:25:35,325 --> 00:25:37,744 [Letterman] Don't you get tired playin' 18 holes? 530 00:25:37,827 --> 00:25:39,704 You play before you gotta go to work? 531 00:25:39,788 --> 00:25:43,833 [Barkley] No, not normally, but I play pretty much on every off day. 532 00:25:45,585 --> 00:25:47,963 -Is this gonna be all right here, Chuck? -Yeah, this is fine. 533 00:25:48,046 --> 00:25:49,047 All right. Okay. 534 00:25:49,130 --> 00:25:51,967 -Is there a putter in here I can use? -There's one in there. 535 00:25:52,050 --> 00:25:54,386 You got two putters! That's how good you are. 536 00:25:54,469 --> 00:25:58,640 Yeah, because I never quite figured out whether I was left or right handed. 537 00:25:58,723 --> 00:26:01,059 [chuckles] You probably should know that. 538 00:26:01,142 --> 00:26:04,604 Well, yeah, but, in baseball, I can hit from either side of the plate. 539 00:26:04,688 --> 00:26:07,357 -[Barkley] Oh, you that good? -[Letterman] Am I ever? 540 00:26:08,692 --> 00:26:12,445 -Oh, that's a terrific shot. Look at that! -That might go in. 541 00:26:12,529 --> 00:26:13,613 That might go in. 542 00:26:14,239 --> 00:26:16,616 -Oh, Chucky! -That was pretty good right there. 543 00:26:16,700 --> 00:26:17,826 Nice. Nice. 544 00:26:21,329 --> 00:26:22,664 Now, that might go in. 545 00:26:24,207 --> 00:26:26,209 [Barkley] Ugh! [Letterman] Oh, it woulda gone in. 546 00:26:26,293 --> 00:26:27,586 -I think it woulda. -Yeah. 547 00:26:27,669 --> 00:26:29,671 We're like we're playing boccie, Chuck. 548 00:26:30,338 --> 00:26:31,881 I hear a lot of people saying, 549 00:26:31,965 --> 00:26:34,593 "Oh, if you see Charles, ask him about his golf swing." 550 00:26:34,676 --> 00:26:36,886 I had a nervous twitch. 551 00:26:36,970 --> 00:26:38,054 -What… -I was chok… 552 00:26:38,138 --> 00:26:40,640 -Akin to the yips? -Oh, I had the yips badly. 553 00:26:40,724 --> 00:26:42,892 And I met a new teacher who changed my life. 554 00:26:42,976 --> 00:26:46,688 All over the country now, people are investing in yips clinics. 555 00:26:46,771 --> 00:26:48,815 [Barkley] Golf is gonna give me the yips. 556 00:26:48,898 --> 00:26:51,401 -All right, now please be quiet. -[chuckling] Okay. 557 00:26:52,110 --> 00:26:55,280 -I'm tired of you running your mouth. -[both chuckle] 558 00:26:58,241 --> 00:27:00,452 Break! Break, you bastard! 559 00:27:00,535 --> 00:27:02,120 -[chuckles] -Oh, Jesus. 560 00:27:03,413 --> 00:27:06,207 Oh-ho, dang. All right, now finish it up here. 561 00:27:07,125 --> 00:27:08,251 Okay, here we go. 562 00:27:08,335 --> 00:27:11,254 -[Barkley] Oh, this is a… -[Letterman] So far, we're even. 563 00:27:11,755 --> 00:27:13,798 -All right. -Okay. Well, we were. 564 00:27:13,882 --> 00:27:17,010 NBA's given me every single thing in my life. 565 00:27:17,093 --> 00:27:19,095 I love basketball for that single fact. 566 00:27:19,179 --> 00:27:24,559 I have a feeling that the same little kid born in Leeds, Alabama 567 00:27:24,643 --> 00:27:28,647 would've found his way to success, whatever pursuit. 568 00:27:28,730 --> 00:27:30,440 Yeah, but it wouldn't have been the same. 569 00:27:30,523 --> 00:27:32,817 -You don't know that, do you? -No. Well, because… 570 00:27:32,901 --> 00:27:34,444 Uh, trust me. I saw my grades. 571 00:27:34,527 --> 00:27:38,073 Yeah, but irrespective of your grades. Look at me. I was a C student. 572 00:27:38,156 --> 00:27:39,616 Yeah, but you got a talent. 573 00:27:39,699 --> 00:27:42,827 Like, there's no talk-show host 574 00:27:42,911 --> 00:27:45,872 that's been around as long as you unless you're great at your job. 575 00:27:45,955 --> 00:27:49,876 I believe that your light would've shined regardless. 576 00:27:49,959 --> 00:27:52,379 I'mma just say this. If you were David Letterman the plumber, 577 00:27:52,462 --> 00:27:54,381 we probably wouldn't be on this green talking. 578 00:27:54,464 --> 00:27:57,676 I'd be the best… Hey! Holy shit! What is that? 579 00:27:57,759 --> 00:28:00,970 That fucker is haunted! Hey! Run! 580 00:28:01,054 --> 00:28:05,392 Now, when you were a kid, you didn't seem like a natural athlete, did you? 581 00:28:05,475 --> 00:28:08,061 You know, it is so interesting. 582 00:28:08,978 --> 00:28:10,980 My mom used to give me a lot of crap. 583 00:28:11,064 --> 00:28:13,817 So I almost died as a baby. I was anemic. 584 00:28:13,900 --> 00:28:16,903 I had to get a blood infusion. I forget what they call it. 585 00:28:16,986 --> 00:28:18,571 -Transfusion? -Yeah, something like that. 586 00:28:18,655 --> 00:28:21,032 -That's a drink too. Um… -[laughter] 587 00:28:21,116 --> 00:28:23,368 'Cause I'm the only tall person in my family. 588 00:28:24,160 --> 00:28:25,370 And my mom used to joke, 589 00:28:25,453 --> 00:28:27,747 "I don't know what kind of blood they gave you, 590 00:28:28,248 --> 00:28:30,834 but thank God they did because you're the only tall person." 591 00:28:30,917 --> 00:28:32,919 "You're makin' a good living with that." 592 00:28:33,002 --> 00:28:36,631 You were the first Black baby in that hospital? 593 00:28:36,715 --> 00:28:39,384 -Yes. -Is that a piece of this puzzle or… 594 00:28:39,467 --> 00:28:41,720 What do we make of that then? What do we make of it now? 595 00:28:41,803 --> 00:28:42,679 Anything, nothing? 596 00:28:42,762 --> 00:28:46,141 One of the reasons I'm so passionate about race, 597 00:28:46,766 --> 00:28:49,060 to make sure I always fight racism… 598 00:28:49,936 --> 00:28:53,148 I love talking about it. I love, like… 599 00:28:53,231 --> 00:28:55,400 And I hold everybody accountable. 600 00:28:55,483 --> 00:28:57,110 I was upset 601 00:28:57,986 --> 00:29:02,991 when you made the reference that you didn't think America had racism. 602 00:29:03,074 --> 00:29:05,118 It's like the other day on me and Gayle's show, 603 00:29:05,201 --> 00:29:07,203 we were talking about Nikki Haley. 604 00:29:07,287 --> 00:29:10,457 She said that racism has never existed in America. 605 00:29:10,540 --> 00:29:13,126 And I says, "Well, she's got a great point." 606 00:29:13,209 --> 00:29:15,462 I mean, if you take away the slavery. 607 00:29:15,545 --> 00:29:17,756 -[laughter] -Uh, segregation. 608 00:29:18,465 --> 00:29:20,759 -Jim Crow. -Jim Crow. Yeah. 609 00:29:20,842 --> 00:29:23,762 She's got a point. It's been, like, great for Black folks. 610 00:29:23,845 --> 00:29:25,430 -[chuckles] Wow. -And obviously… 611 00:29:25,513 --> 00:29:27,348 And it really bothered me for a… 612 00:29:27,432 --> 00:29:30,852 'Cause, you know, right now, we've got a lot anti-Semitism going on. 613 00:29:30,935 --> 00:29:33,772 You know, last couple of years, we had a lot of Asian hate going on. 614 00:29:33,855 --> 00:29:35,899 And I say, "Words matter." 615 00:29:35,982 --> 00:29:37,400 Growing up in Alabama, 616 00:29:37,484 --> 00:29:41,738 the year I was born was the year they bombed the church in Birmingham, 617 00:29:41,821 --> 00:29:43,531 then you had the Selma Massacre. 618 00:29:43,615 --> 00:29:46,034 I was also one of the first three Black students 619 00:29:46,117 --> 00:29:48,453 to integrate another school, 620 00:29:48,536 --> 00:29:50,038 and my grandma said, 621 00:29:50,121 --> 00:29:52,707 "Hey, when you're old enough to understand this stuff, 622 00:29:52,791 --> 00:29:56,377 you need to learn about it, don't forget, talk about it all the time." 623 00:29:56,461 --> 00:29:59,339 I mean, she says, like, "Hey, I need you to read about this dude." 624 00:29:59,422 --> 00:30:01,424 I said, "What's his name?" "Dr. Martin Luther King." 625 00:30:01,508 --> 00:30:04,469 I was like, "Okay. Who is he?" She said, "See? That's why you need to read?" 626 00:30:04,552 --> 00:30:06,888 She said, "You need to know all this stuff." 627 00:30:06,971 --> 00:30:10,183 "Your life's gonna be totally different than ours one day, 628 00:30:10,266 --> 00:30:12,685 but I don't want you to forget where you came from." 629 00:30:12,769 --> 00:30:14,354 "It's important. It's significant." 630 00:30:14,437 --> 00:30:17,106 When you're from Alabama, you need to know all this stuff. 631 00:30:17,190 --> 00:30:21,194 Are things different now for you as an adult man 632 00:30:21,277 --> 00:30:25,156 than what you described as a young fellow in Alabama? 633 00:30:25,240 --> 00:30:27,951 Black celebrities, rich Black people, 634 00:30:28,034 --> 00:30:31,412 don't get treated like common Black folks. 635 00:30:31,496 --> 00:30:34,290 Now, I don't mean "common" like unimportant now. 636 00:30:34,958 --> 00:30:37,836 'Cause, you know, I don't want y'all to be on TV sayin', 637 00:30:37,919 --> 00:30:39,921 "Well, he said this. This is what he meant." 638 00:30:40,004 --> 00:30:43,132 I'm like, "I know what I fucking meant, and I know what I said." 639 00:30:43,216 --> 00:30:44,968 That shit drives me crazy. 640 00:30:45,051 --> 00:30:50,139 Uh, so… I think it's really important to talk about… 641 00:30:50,807 --> 00:30:53,726 You know, I don't get treated like regular Black people. 642 00:30:53,810 --> 00:30:56,020 No rich person or famous person does. 643 00:30:56,604 --> 00:31:00,984 America… has always had a race problem. 644 00:31:01,484 --> 00:31:03,695 Has it gotten better? 100%. 645 00:31:03,778 --> 00:31:06,739 But what I like to talk about is economic racism. 646 00:31:07,323 --> 00:31:08,700 If you're white and poor 647 00:31:09,284 --> 00:31:12,453 and Black and poor, you're really in the same boat. 648 00:31:12,537 --> 00:31:15,373 You're going to be born into a shit neighborhood. 649 00:31:15,456 --> 00:31:17,625 You're going to go to an inferior school. 650 00:31:18,376 --> 00:31:20,503 You already… I use the baseball analogy. 651 00:31:20,587 --> 00:31:22,547 Like, yeah, there's gonna be some exceptions, 652 00:31:22,630 --> 00:31:26,009 but if you put people up to bat in baseball, 653 00:31:26,968 --> 00:31:29,012 and they got two strikes against them, 654 00:31:29,095 --> 00:31:31,222 most people are gonna strike out. 655 00:31:31,306 --> 00:31:33,099 Black people and poor white people, 656 00:31:33,182 --> 00:31:35,894 they deserve an opportunity to be successful, 657 00:31:35,977 --> 00:31:38,021 and until we address that, 658 00:31:38,104 --> 00:31:42,150 we are never gonna be the complete country we deserve to be. 659 00:31:42,233 --> 00:31:44,277 Uh… Are you… 660 00:31:44,360 --> 00:31:47,614 For example, the election coming up, and people are saying, 661 00:31:47,697 --> 00:31:48,990 "Well, this is very important 662 00:31:49,073 --> 00:31:51,409 because it could be the end of democracy in this country." 663 00:31:51,492 --> 00:31:53,578 And I suppose it could. 664 00:31:53,661 --> 00:31:58,124 On the other hand, democracy is what got us to what may end the democracy. 665 00:31:58,207 --> 00:32:01,044 -Yeah. -So are you… are you full of anxiety? 666 00:32:01,127 --> 00:32:04,005 You don't seem like a guy who is anxious about much, 667 00:32:04,088 --> 00:32:07,258 but… but having this ahead of us… 668 00:32:07,842 --> 00:32:11,220 Yeah, you know, I'm deeply concerned 669 00:32:11,304 --> 00:32:13,348 about the political climate. 670 00:32:13,431 --> 00:32:16,059 -I'm gonna need names. -[laughter] 671 00:32:18,686 --> 00:32:21,105 -All politicians. -Uh-huh. Okay. 672 00:32:21,189 --> 00:32:25,193 You know, see, I can pick anybody outta this audience right now. 673 00:32:25,276 --> 00:32:29,072 If we had an intelligent conversation, we wouldn't disagree on every subject. 674 00:32:29,155 --> 00:32:31,658 And both parties suck. Let's get that out of the way. 675 00:32:31,741 --> 00:32:33,701 -Both parties suck. -Both parties suck. 676 00:32:33,785 --> 00:32:34,702 Fair enough, sure. 677 00:32:34,786 --> 00:32:37,330 And they just fight like little kids. "Well, you want something." 678 00:32:37,413 --> 00:32:39,624 "I'm just gonna disagree with you just to disagree." 679 00:32:39,707 --> 00:32:42,126 I'm like, "That's not the way the world should be." 680 00:32:42,210 --> 00:32:44,712 I'm always gonna be hopeful 681 00:32:44,796 --> 00:32:47,298 because if you're not hopeful, you're pessimistic. 682 00:32:47,382 --> 00:32:51,928 Are you hopeful now, knowing we have an election in less than a year? 683 00:32:52,011 --> 00:32:55,181 Two guys in their eighties, uh… and… and… 684 00:32:55,264 --> 00:32:56,891 -Well… -I'm pretty close to that. 685 00:32:56,975 --> 00:33:00,186 So I can say it, but does that make you hopeful? 686 00:33:00,812 --> 00:33:02,855 No. I don't like either guy. 687 00:33:02,939 --> 00:33:06,734 Wouldn't you rather we had a younger person? 688 00:33:06,818 --> 00:33:08,236 -On either side of the ticket. -100%. 689 00:33:08,319 --> 00:33:11,781 And I think that President Biden has always been a good man. 690 00:33:13,199 --> 00:33:15,660 He served his country. I just think he's too old. 691 00:33:15,743 --> 00:33:17,203 Now, President Trump… 692 00:33:18,538 --> 00:33:20,623 I don't think the president should act like that. 693 00:33:20,707 --> 00:33:24,127 -[chortles] I'm sorry, but… yeah! -Yeah. 694 00:33:24,210 --> 00:33:26,671 -Hello! [laughs] -Like… 695 00:33:26,754 --> 00:33:30,800 And I was like, "You're the President of the United States." 696 00:33:30,883 --> 00:33:31,718 Yeah. 697 00:33:31,801 --> 00:33:36,014 "Whether I agree with your policies or not, you represent the United…" 698 00:33:36,097 --> 00:33:37,557 "You should act a certain way." 699 00:33:37,640 --> 00:33:41,644 But just… let's just say he wins, does that trouble you? 700 00:33:41,728 --> 00:33:43,438 It troubles me but for the simple fact 701 00:33:43,521 --> 00:33:46,232 I think he gonna spend the next four years just goin' after enemies. 702 00:33:46,315 --> 00:33:48,276 That doesn't pay anybody's bills. 703 00:33:48,359 --> 00:33:50,987 Are you worried about the end of a democracy? 704 00:33:51,070 --> 00:33:53,698 No, I never… No, I don't… I don't… I… 705 00:33:53,781 --> 00:33:57,076 No. Democracy is vote for who you want to. 706 00:33:57,160 --> 00:33:58,828 -[Letterman] Right. -That's democracy. 707 00:33:58,911 --> 00:34:02,999 Millions of people voted for him, so that's the beauty-- 708 00:34:03,082 --> 00:34:05,501 That's right. That's democracy in action. 709 00:34:05,585 --> 00:34:10,506 But if the man is talking about putting an end to that freedom of voting, then-- 710 00:34:10,590 --> 00:34:12,967 That's… I don't like scare tactics. 711 00:34:13,051 --> 00:34:16,304 -Yeah, but see, I'm frightened, but… -Well, I'm fright… 712 00:34:16,387 --> 00:34:18,514 -Yeah. I'm concerned. -Yeah. 713 00:34:18,598 --> 00:34:21,768 Because I think we have way more good people than bad people. 714 00:34:21,851 --> 00:34:23,186 I couldn't agree more. 715 00:34:23,269 --> 00:34:26,272 Just, it's… whatever kind of person you are, 716 00:34:26,355 --> 00:34:28,733 just try to be true to yourself 717 00:34:28,816 --> 00:34:33,362 and go ahead and politely follow that motivation, 718 00:34:33,446 --> 00:34:36,157 and, if you're a jerk on either side, 719 00:34:36,240 --> 00:34:38,701 well, do a little work and clean that up. 720 00:34:38,785 --> 00:34:39,786 -Yeah. -You know? 721 00:34:39,869 --> 00:34:43,831 I agree. Us sitting around talkin' about who's a bad person and things like that, 722 00:34:43,915 --> 00:34:46,167 I get sick of that BS, to be honest with you. 723 00:34:46,250 --> 00:34:49,253 And you know, man, let's make sure these people got a good job, 724 00:34:49,337 --> 00:34:51,756 their kids are safe, they go to a good school. 725 00:34:51,839 --> 00:34:53,674 I think that's all most people want. 726 00:34:53,758 --> 00:34:57,303 Now, when you use the initials BS, what exactly are you talkin' about? 727 00:34:57,386 --> 00:34:59,305 [laughter] 728 00:34:59,388 --> 00:35:01,140 -You know, it's interesting. -Say it, Charles! 729 00:35:01,224 --> 00:35:04,352 But, you know, I love being on a show where I can actually curse. 730 00:35:04,852 --> 00:35:06,604 I love when I can stay "bullshit." 731 00:35:06,687 --> 00:35:07,814 -There you go! -I do. 732 00:35:07,897 --> 00:35:09,440 [cheering and applause] 733 00:35:10,441 --> 00:35:13,861 Earlier, you mentioned racism, you mentioned anti-Semitism, 734 00:35:13,945 --> 00:35:16,823 and you mentioned a bias toward Asians. 735 00:35:16,906 --> 00:35:18,991 It… it seems like… 736 00:35:20,118 --> 00:35:22,995 Let's just say that these things collectively had been worked on 737 00:35:23,079 --> 00:35:25,373 to help equality across the board, 738 00:35:25,456 --> 00:35:27,667 and I wonder if that goes away. 739 00:35:27,750 --> 00:35:30,169 Well, first of all, we shoulda addressed them sooner. 740 00:35:30,253 --> 00:35:34,757 -Oh. Yeah, exactly. -But, you see, the house is on fire now. 741 00:35:35,341 --> 00:35:37,802 We should've addressed these situations way back 742 00:35:37,885 --> 00:35:42,807 and say, "Hey, any hate crime, we're gonna make your ass pay for it." 743 00:35:42,890 --> 00:35:48,104 But now, people are feeling comfortable being racist. 744 00:35:48,729 --> 00:35:51,732 And I'm gonna say this, and I say this all the time, 745 00:35:51,816 --> 00:35:55,903 anybody… anybody who's racist, 746 00:35:56,821 --> 00:35:57,905 is an asshole. 747 00:35:57,989 --> 00:35:59,949 [applause] 748 00:36:01,075 --> 00:36:02,493 [crash] 749 00:36:02,577 --> 00:36:04,120 I am not a role model. 750 00:36:04,745 --> 00:36:06,789 Just because I dunk a basketball… 751 00:36:10,334 --> 00:36:12,295 doesn't mean I should raise your kids. 752 00:36:12,879 --> 00:36:14,338 [Letterman] Years and years ago, 753 00:36:14,422 --> 00:36:17,341 you went to Nike for an ad campaign about "I'm not a role model." 754 00:36:17,425 --> 00:36:18,676 Mm-hmm. 755 00:36:18,759 --> 00:36:21,929 And the idea was, "Yeah, I'm playing basketball, 756 00:36:22,013 --> 00:36:25,057 and yeah, I'm making a lotta money, but I'm not a role model." 757 00:36:25,141 --> 00:36:29,604 And it was effective because it opened a conversation. 758 00:36:30,188 --> 00:36:34,108 But the truth of it is, because of who you are, 759 00:36:34,192 --> 00:36:37,612 whether you accept that responsibility or not, it's gonna happen. 760 00:36:37,695 --> 00:36:39,947 Now, do you feel differently about it these days? 761 00:36:40,031 --> 00:36:44,827 No, because you got the point. It opened up a conversation. 762 00:36:45,536 --> 00:36:48,539 So, you know, a lot of NBA players and all jocks 763 00:36:48,623 --> 00:36:50,166 go speak at different schools. 764 00:36:50,249 --> 00:36:53,211 And then, obviously, we have too many way segregated schools 765 00:36:53,294 --> 00:36:55,421 in this country, but I noticed something. 766 00:36:55,504 --> 00:36:58,382 When I would go to a predominantly white school, 767 00:36:58,466 --> 00:37:01,844 I always ask this question, "How many of y'all wanna play pro sports?" 768 00:37:01,928 --> 00:37:04,055 Only like 5% raised their hand. 769 00:37:04,138 --> 00:37:06,557 I said, "What do you wanna do?" "I wanna be a doctor." 770 00:37:06,641 --> 00:37:08,768 "I wanna be a lawyer." "I wanna be an engineer." 771 00:37:08,851 --> 00:37:11,020 Teacher, fire and policeman, something like that. 772 00:37:11,103 --> 00:37:14,440 But the problem, Dave, was when I would go to the predominantly Black school, 773 00:37:14,523 --> 00:37:16,734 I'd say, "How many of y'all wanna play sports?" 774 00:37:16,817 --> 00:37:18,402 95% raised their hand. 775 00:37:19,403 --> 00:37:21,405 Finally, after I'd been to 30 or 40 schools, 776 00:37:21,489 --> 00:37:24,575 I said, "Hey, man. These Black kids are brainwashed." 777 00:37:24,659 --> 00:37:27,328 "They think they can only play sports to be successful." 778 00:37:27,411 --> 00:37:30,748 And I said, "I wanna make this commercial. I'm gonna start a debate." 779 00:37:30,831 --> 00:37:34,043 'Cause I want these Black kids to know y'all can be doctors. 780 00:37:34,126 --> 00:37:36,420 Y'all can be lawyers. Y'all can be engineers. 781 00:37:36,504 --> 00:37:38,339 Y'all can be teachers. Y'all can be firemen. 782 00:37:38,422 --> 00:37:41,008 How old were you when you did that? Just a kid, right? 783 00:37:41,092 --> 00:37:42,718 -26, 27. -Yeah. 784 00:37:42,802 --> 00:37:45,304 But I will tell you this. Give Nike credit. 785 00:37:45,388 --> 00:37:49,934 Nike called me back, like, a year later. They says, "We were wrong." 786 00:37:50,685 --> 00:37:54,897 95% of the letters we got were positive. 787 00:37:55,523 --> 00:37:58,651 Parents came up to me all over the country, 788 00:37:58,734 --> 00:38:01,821 sayin', "Hey, thank you for making that commercial," you know. 789 00:38:01,904 --> 00:38:04,824 And… and to this day, I'm really proud of that. 790 00:38:05,616 --> 00:38:07,952 You know, you talk a lot about defense. 791 00:38:08,035 --> 00:38:09,328 Oh, Chuck! 792 00:38:09,412 --> 00:38:12,081 I talk a lot about it. I didn't play a lot. [chuckles] 793 00:38:12,164 --> 00:38:16,127 Uh, but what golf needs is somebody playing defense. 794 00:38:16,210 --> 00:38:17,044 No. 795 00:38:17,128 --> 00:38:20,089 It'd be a completely different game if they had a guy on ya. 796 00:38:20,172 --> 00:38:22,842 Golf is hard enough when you play by yourself. 797 00:38:22,925 --> 00:38:25,136 Yeah, but think in terms of extreme sports. 798 00:38:25,219 --> 00:38:27,805 You're teein' off, you got a guy on ya. 799 00:38:27,888 --> 00:38:31,642 I'm not sure, if I'm swinging a golf club, you wanna be standing right there. 800 00:38:31,726 --> 00:38:34,395 He's got the proper padding. Don't worry about that. 801 00:38:34,478 --> 00:38:37,481 -Have you ever played up at Pebble Beach? -I have. 802 00:38:37,565 --> 00:38:41,027 Two days ago, before we came down here, I knew we were gonna do this. 803 00:38:41,110 --> 00:38:42,153 -The Spyglass? -Yeah. 804 00:38:42,236 --> 00:38:43,404 I shot a 64. 805 00:38:43,487 --> 00:38:45,656 -No, you didn't. -You callin' me a liar? 806 00:38:45,740 --> 00:38:47,491 Let's use the term fibber. 807 00:38:47,992 --> 00:38:50,453 -64, you-- -You know Gary, the starter? Call him. 808 00:38:52,121 --> 00:38:54,290 Uh, did you just pull Gary out your ass? 809 00:38:54,373 --> 00:38:56,500 -[both chuckle] -[Letterman] How are the grandkids? 810 00:38:56,584 --> 00:38:59,253 Outta all the stuff that's happening in my life, 811 00:38:59,337 --> 00:39:02,173 little Henry and little Charlie, being a grandpa is the greatest thing. 812 00:39:02,256 --> 00:39:04,759 Well, we're also talking about three months ago. 813 00:39:05,343 --> 00:39:09,430 Then he learned how to walk… and all hell broke loose. 814 00:39:10,473 --> 00:39:13,017 He was so cute in the beginning. He'd just lay on my arm. 815 00:39:13,100 --> 00:39:15,394 I'd have a beer in this hand and him in this hand, 816 00:39:15,478 --> 00:39:18,647 and I'd kiss him, like, every 15 seconds. 817 00:39:18,731 --> 00:39:22,401 And then, like six months ago, he learned how to walk and run, 818 00:39:22,485 --> 00:39:25,321 and he won't stay still for anything in the damn world! 819 00:39:25,905 --> 00:39:28,741 Uh, but I have to build my whole day around the nap 820 00:39:29,742 --> 00:39:33,287 'cause, you know, there's two things you do when you get old. 821 00:39:33,371 --> 00:39:35,539 Anytime you eat, you have to have a nap after you eat. 822 00:39:35,623 --> 00:39:36,916 [laughter] 823 00:39:36,999 --> 00:39:40,461 And then, any time you play for an extended period time, 824 00:39:40,544 --> 00:39:42,296 you have to have another nap. 825 00:39:43,255 --> 00:39:46,675 -How old are you, Chuck? -I'll be 61 on February 20th. 826 00:39:46,759 --> 00:39:49,220 -Oh, Jesus. -Yeah. It's… It's… It's, uh… 827 00:39:49,303 --> 00:39:51,305 [applause] 828 00:39:52,348 --> 00:39:54,308 It's… it's interesting, gettin' old. 829 00:39:54,392 --> 00:39:56,519 Yeah. Well, thank you. 830 00:39:56,602 --> 00:39:58,062 [laughter] 831 00:39:58,145 --> 00:40:00,356 No, it's just so funny. I just saw Dr. J. 832 00:40:00,439 --> 00:40:02,566 We had a drink, and he says, 833 00:40:02,650 --> 00:40:05,236 "Remember giving me shit when I was 35?" 834 00:40:05,319 --> 00:40:07,571 'Cause, you know, when you get to the NBA, you're 19, 20. 835 00:40:07,655 --> 00:40:10,241 -We'd call him "Uncle," "Grandpa." -Mm-hmm. 836 00:40:10,324 --> 00:40:12,034 And he says, "And now you're 60." 837 00:40:12,993 --> 00:40:15,287 I said, "Yeah, it's not as fun as it used to be back then." 838 00:40:15,371 --> 00:40:17,665 [whimsical classical music playing] 839 00:40:20,584 --> 00:40:23,421 -[Letterman] Wow, that's on the highway. -That was not good. 840 00:40:23,504 --> 00:40:24,797 That wasn't good. 841 00:40:24,880 --> 00:40:28,008 [Letterman chuckles] Whoa, the high heat. 842 00:40:28,092 --> 00:40:29,301 That wasn't good. 843 00:40:31,345 --> 00:40:34,432 -That's still not good. -Wow! 844 00:40:34,515 --> 00:40:38,477 Talk about the Pacers goin' all the way, and they're gonna win. 845 00:40:38,561 --> 00:40:41,730 -I didn't say they're going all the way. -I'm saying it. They're goin' all the way. 846 00:40:41,814 --> 00:40:45,317 -I wouldn't… -No. The kid's back, playin' great ball. 847 00:40:45,401 --> 00:40:46,402 They lost a tough one. 848 00:40:46,485 --> 00:40:49,989 You were telling me that you thought LeBron was way too old. 849 00:40:51,157 --> 00:40:52,283 He is old. 850 00:40:52,366 --> 00:40:56,620 -No, you said, "He's way, way too old." -No, LeBron is way old. 851 00:40:56,704 --> 00:40:58,372 Yes, he is. I agree with that. 852 00:40:58,956 --> 00:41:00,082 Okay, here we go. 853 00:41:01,459 --> 00:41:03,627 -[Barkley] Oh! -[chuckles] Jesus! 854 00:41:04,420 --> 00:41:06,005 Sorry! Sorry, sir! 855 00:41:06,088 --> 00:41:08,549 -That was good, though, wasn't it, Chuck? -No, that wasn't good. 856 00:41:08,632 --> 00:41:10,426 No, no, but how about the shot itself? 857 00:41:10,509 --> 00:41:11,760 -No, that was… -Sorry! 858 00:41:13,721 --> 00:41:15,473 Chuck, he hit it! 859 00:41:16,307 --> 00:41:19,685 -[golfer] Good one, Chuck! -Yeah. Here comes another one! 860 00:41:19,768 --> 00:41:22,605 -Open the face up. -You open your face up. 861 00:41:23,814 --> 00:41:25,983 -Open the face up. -The face is open. 862 00:41:26,567 --> 00:41:30,529 So, the way you've got it, this is what you're gonna get, 863 00:41:30,613 --> 00:41:31,822 but this is what you want. 864 00:41:31,906 --> 00:41:33,199 [Letterman] Mm. 865 00:41:33,282 --> 00:41:35,409 -Okay. -Like that. So just open the face up. 866 00:41:35,493 --> 00:41:37,703 Okay, it's wide open now. 867 00:41:38,621 --> 00:41:39,497 Oh yeah. 868 00:41:40,706 --> 00:41:41,707 Whoa, Jesus! 869 00:41:45,544 --> 00:41:48,631 Whoo! Did you sign the waiver? 870 00:41:49,340 --> 00:41:52,218 You were not on a championship-winning team? 871 00:41:52,301 --> 00:41:54,595 Are… Are… How… Are you okay with that? 872 00:41:54,678 --> 00:41:56,722 I mean, I know that's a stupid question. 873 00:41:56,805 --> 00:42:01,560 At the time… No, you're heartbroken. Even an MVP, which to me is the equal… 874 00:42:01,644 --> 00:42:03,938 It's interesting when I'm asked that question. 875 00:42:04,021 --> 00:42:07,191 I'm like, "Yeah, I'm disappointed that I didn't win a championship," 876 00:42:07,274 --> 00:42:10,653 but, like… number one, it's a team game. 877 00:42:11,153 --> 00:42:12,404 But I'm not sure, like… 878 00:42:12,488 --> 00:42:16,158 If you want me to be upset, that's not gonna happen. 879 00:42:16,242 --> 00:42:19,036 -I'm pretty damn sure my life is good. -[chuckles] 880 00:42:19,620 --> 00:42:21,747 I say, "I've had a good run." 881 00:42:22,456 --> 00:42:25,376 Give me a couple seconds right before I keel over 882 00:42:25,459 --> 00:42:26,835 and say, "Hey, man." 883 00:42:26,919 --> 00:42:29,129 "What a journey. What a ride." 884 00:42:29,672 --> 00:42:30,881 You know 'cause I… 885 00:42:30,965 --> 00:42:34,552 You know, when you're in that little town of 2,000 people, you're like, 886 00:42:34,635 --> 00:42:36,637 "Where is this thing gonna go?" 887 00:42:37,221 --> 00:42:39,598 'Cause, you know, 'cause it's so many cycles, 888 00:42:39,682 --> 00:42:43,602 you're like, "Okay, I got lucky. I got a scholarship to go to college." 889 00:42:43,686 --> 00:42:45,521 Then I go to the NBA, and I'm like, 890 00:42:45,604 --> 00:42:49,733 "Oof! This is… I have no idea how this thing is gonna work out." 891 00:42:49,817 --> 00:42:52,111 -Then you turn into a great player. -Hall of Fame. 892 00:42:52,194 --> 00:42:56,031 Yes, I did that for 16 years, and you're like, "What's next?" 893 00:42:56,115 --> 00:42:59,326 And then I go to being a crook stealing money on television. 894 00:42:59,410 --> 00:43:00,744 [laughter] 895 00:43:00,828 --> 00:43:02,121 [Inside the NBA theme playing] 896 00:43:02,204 --> 00:43:03,247 [Letterman] Any place here? 897 00:43:03,330 --> 00:43:05,082 [Barkley] Ladies and gentlemen, legend. 898 00:43:05,165 --> 00:43:06,792 -[whooping] -[Letterman] Hi, kids. 899 00:43:06,875 --> 00:43:07,960 [applause] 900 00:43:08,043 --> 00:43:08,961 How are ya? 901 00:43:10,045 --> 00:43:12,256 -Am I able to sit here? -[Johnson] Yep, that's you. 902 00:43:12,339 --> 00:43:13,716 Wow, this is cool. 903 00:43:13,799 --> 00:43:17,678 I need to be a little closer because when I go to a restaurant, 904 00:43:17,761 --> 00:43:20,097 they usually put me in a special chair. 905 00:43:21,557 --> 00:43:23,767 Okay, now. Ow! I'm good, I'm fine. 906 00:43:23,851 --> 00:43:27,563 -Ow! I'm not fine. Don't worry. [chuckles] -Five, four, three, two… 907 00:43:28,105 --> 00:43:30,816 And what an honor it is for us here on Inside 908 00:43:30,899 --> 00:43:32,067 to have David Letterman. 909 00:43:32,151 --> 00:43:34,361 Thank you very much. It's great fun to be here. 910 00:43:34,445 --> 00:43:37,781 -As an Indianapolis-born kid… -Mm-hmm. 911 00:43:37,865 --> 00:43:39,533 …were you the prototype, like, 912 00:43:39,617 --> 00:43:42,202 everybody in Indiana grows up with a hoop in the backyard? 913 00:43:42,286 --> 00:43:44,538 -Always playing? -Well, yes. That's exactly right. 914 00:43:44,622 --> 00:43:46,874 And I'm concerned that, over the years, 915 00:43:46,957 --> 00:43:50,210 that legend, the myth of that, has been usurped, 916 00:43:50,294 --> 00:43:54,048 uh… and I'm pointing the finger at my good friends, the Indiana Pacers, 917 00:43:54,131 --> 00:43:57,468 who, by the way, Chuck has now picked to go all the way. 918 00:43:57,551 --> 00:44:01,013 Mr. Letterman, is this what retirement is like for you? 919 00:44:01,096 --> 00:44:02,848 -'Cause you're… -This is… Are you kidding me? 920 00:44:02,931 --> 00:44:05,851 First of all, I'm out of the house. That's great. 921 00:44:05,934 --> 00:44:08,646 -And I just love bein' on TV. -[laughter] 922 00:44:08,729 --> 00:44:12,858 So this is… this is the… the jewel in the crown, my friend. 923 00:44:12,941 --> 00:44:14,985 You know, one of our traditions here on the show 924 00:44:15,069 --> 00:44:16,945 is when Chuck makes a guarantee. 925 00:44:17,029 --> 00:44:18,989 I heard about this. This is so exciting. 926 00:44:19,073 --> 00:44:21,283 We can just drop things out of the ceiling on him. 927 00:44:21,367 --> 00:44:23,077 Tonight, could be hammers. 928 00:44:23,160 --> 00:44:24,828 Wait, you gotta make a guarantee! 929 00:44:24,912 --> 00:44:27,164 -Oh! -[laughter] 930 00:44:27,247 --> 00:44:29,750 You're such an easy communicator. 931 00:44:29,833 --> 00:44:32,920 It… It's… That really is a gift, so you've been blessed twice. 932 00:44:33,003 --> 00:44:38,425 Um, and you talk about you don't think you'll be doing television when you're 70. 933 00:44:38,509 --> 00:44:42,221 I disagree. I think it comes so easy to you, 934 00:44:42,304 --> 00:44:45,307 so naturally to you, not just in the realm of basketball, 935 00:44:45,391 --> 00:44:47,017 not just in the world of sports, 936 00:44:47,101 --> 00:44:50,354 but from what I've seen you in other venues and other topics, 937 00:44:50,437 --> 00:44:53,857 so you tell me, when you're 70, you're not gonna be working. 938 00:44:53,941 --> 00:44:56,527 -W… Well, I damn sure hope not. -[laughter] 939 00:44:56,610 --> 00:44:57,903 Now, why do you say that? 940 00:44:57,986 --> 00:44:59,988 Because you… you… you'd be goin'… 941 00:45:00,072 --> 00:45:01,949 where would you go to talk to people? 942 00:45:02,032 --> 00:45:03,200 -Well… -I guess anywhere. 943 00:45:03,283 --> 00:45:05,202 No, no. You know… 944 00:45:05,285 --> 00:45:08,372 Like, when people come up to me, I've had people say, 945 00:45:08,455 --> 00:45:11,417 "You're the most accessible star ever." 946 00:45:11,500 --> 00:45:12,793 I says, "Yo, man." 947 00:45:13,544 --> 00:45:16,213 "If somebody take the time to come up to say hello to me, 948 00:45:16,296 --> 00:45:17,464 I'm gonna say hello." 949 00:45:18,048 --> 00:45:20,008 I'm not gonna say, "Hey, I'm too important." 950 00:45:20,092 --> 00:45:23,220 I says, "You know why? 'Cause I played basketball." 951 00:45:23,804 --> 00:45:26,432 I'm not a teacher. I'm not a fireman. 952 00:45:27,182 --> 00:45:30,561 I'm not a policeman. I'm not somebody in the armed services. 953 00:45:30,644 --> 00:45:33,272 Those are really important, significant jobs. 954 00:45:33,355 --> 00:45:35,107 We ain't got no real job! 955 00:45:36,608 --> 00:45:41,280 -We are overpaid, underworked. -[light laughter] 956 00:45:41,363 --> 00:45:43,866 And we're the luckiest sons of bitches in the world. 957 00:45:43,949 --> 00:45:46,285 -I said, "Think about that." I says… -[applause] 958 00:45:46,368 --> 00:45:49,037 "Even when we lose, our life don't suck." 959 00:45:49,747 --> 00:45:51,957 Like, we still get paid, 960 00:45:52,040 --> 00:45:54,585 we still get to go back to the big houses. 961 00:45:54,668 --> 00:45:59,173 I says, "We kinda in a win-win-win situation." 962 00:46:00,466 --> 00:46:03,385 It's great to lift a city up and make somebody's day. 963 00:46:03,469 --> 00:46:04,762 Right. 964 00:46:04,845 --> 00:46:09,683 But when you start taking it too serious, you need to take a look at yourself. 965 00:46:09,767 --> 00:46:13,145 Uh, I just wanna say thanks for everything. 966 00:46:13,228 --> 00:46:15,397 You've been friendly. You've been generous. 967 00:46:15,481 --> 00:46:18,358 You've been enjoyable to talk with. I appreciate everything. 968 00:46:18,442 --> 00:46:21,737 Thank you. You gonna work on your game? I might see you in six months. 969 00:46:23,322 --> 00:46:25,157 -I'll call you tomorrow. -[chuckles] 970 00:46:25,240 --> 00:46:27,326 We'll do this for money, my friend. 971 00:46:29,703 --> 00:46:32,331 By the way, I want my deposit back on the cart. 972 00:46:32,414 --> 00:46:33,248 I got you. 973 00:46:33,832 --> 00:46:34,666 Bye-bye. 974 00:46:34,750 --> 00:46:36,585 -Bye-bye. Thank you. -Thank you. 975 00:46:37,211 --> 00:46:39,213 [theme music playing] 976 00:46:39,922 --> 00:46:42,841 Oh, you know what I wanted to point out to the youngsters 977 00:46:42,925 --> 00:46:44,968 thinking about takin' the game of golf up? 978 00:46:45,052 --> 00:46:46,845 And Chuck will back me up on this. 979 00:46:46,929 --> 00:46:50,307 In the game of golf, you drive for show… 980 00:46:50,390 --> 00:46:52,976 -And you putt for dough? -And you putt for dough. 981 00:46:53,060 --> 00:46:55,729 What'd you do in the bunker? You just avoid it? 982 00:46:55,813 --> 00:46:57,564 Well, what rhymes with bunker? 983 00:46:58,148 --> 00:46:59,399 Stop it, Chuck! 984 00:46:59,483 --> 00:47:01,485 [music continues] 985 00:47:13,372 --> 00:47:14,373 [music fades]