Trump Wants to Put Nukes on the Moon | Lin-Manuel Miranda, Jordan Klepper | Tuesday, August 5

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon Episode: Trump Wants to Put Nukes on the Moon | Lin-Manuel Miranda, Jordan Klepper
Release Date: August 6, 2025

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1. Introduction and Opening Monologue

[00:05 - 07:15]
The episode kicks off with Jimmy Fallon welcoming the live audience and viewers at home. He dives straight into a humorous take on recent political happenings, particularly focusing on former President Trump's unusual activities and statements.

Notable Quotes:

• Jimmy Fallon [01:23]: "Your approval rating isn't that bad. We gotta do it."
  (Referring to Trump's decision to be on the White House roof.)

• Jimmy Fallon [01:27]: "If your grandpa was taking a little walk on the roof, you'd put him in a home, right? That's what you would do."

2. Political Satire: Trump's Moon Project and Economic Data

Fallon satirizes President Trump's administration by highlighting the absurdity of proposed projects and questionable handling of economic data.

Key Topics:

• Nuclear Reactor on the Moon:
  Jimmy humorously reports Trump's plan to build a nuclear reactor on the moon, mocking the administration's priorities.

• Redefining Numerical Data:
  The segment features a fictional White House spokesperson, Dean Blake, who introduces new, nonsensical terms like "boof" and "jiboingo" to replace existing numbers, ridiculing attempts to manipulate economic statistics.

Notable Quotes:

• Dean Blake [03:11]: "Boof is powerful, Jimmy. Instead of meaning nothing, it means the most everything you've ever seen, ever."

• Jimmy Fallon [03:55]: "But you can't just fake economic data. They did that in Greece."

3. Lighthearted Segments and Humor

Fallon transitions to lighter topics, blending current events with comedic sketches.

Key Topics:

• McDonald's Adult Happy Meal:
  A humorous mention of McDonald's unveiling a new adult-oriented Happy Meal, juxtaposed with celebrity news.

• Song of the Summer Debate:
  A playful discussion about the absence of a definitive "song of the summer," featuring an amusing self-performance by Dan the Cameraman, which leads to a comedic interruption by Lin-Manuel Miranda.

• Air Quality Scale Parody:
  Fallon presents a satirical air quality scale influenced by wildfire smoke, escalating from "moderate" to absurd levels like "exploded Tesla."

4. Interview with Lin-Manuel Miranda

[07:15 - 18:19]
The first guest, Lin-Manuel Miranda, joins Fallon to celebrate the 10th anniversary of his hit musical Hamilton on Broadway. Their conversation is heartfelt and filled with anecdotes about the show's journey and Miranda's personal life.

Key Topics:

• 10th Anniversary of Hamilton:
  Miranda reflects on the decade-long success of the musical, expressing pride and gratitude.

• Personal Life:
  He shares touching stories about his son, Sebastian, and how Hamilton intersected with their lives.

• Wax Figure at Madame Tussauds:
  A humorous discussion ensues about Miranda receiving his own wax figure, complete with amusing details about the creation process.

• Announcement of Hamilton in Theaters:
  Miranda announces that Hamilton will debut in movie theaters nationwide and in Puerto Rico on September 5th, offering fans a theatrical experience of the beloved musical.

Notable Quotes:

• Lin-Manuel Miranda [09:04]: "You know, it took me like seven years to write this thing. Six and a half years."

• Jimmy Fallon [11:10]: "I've never seen that play yet? Very nervous because these guys were going, and these guys are my heroes."

• Lin-Manuel Miranda [17:11]: "September 5th, you will be able to see Hamilton in movie theaters nationwide and in Puerto Rico."

5. Interview with Jordan Klepper

[18:41 - 25:49]
The second guest, Jordan Klepper, renowned for his work on The Daily Show, discusses his latest special, MAGA the Next Generation. The conversation delves into his experiences and the challenges of political satire.

Key Topics:

• Broken Foot During Filming:
  Klepper shares his perseverance in completing his special despite suffering a broken foot, highlighting his dedication.

• Experience on The Daily Show:
  He reminisces about his first day on the show, working alongside Jon Stewart, and the steep learning curve he faced when covering complex topics like the Crimea invasion.

• Impact of Political Satire:
  Klepper discusses the difficulty in changing people's minds through his interviews with Trump supporters, emphasizing that political beliefs are often tied to personal identity.

• Connecting with Younger Audiences:
  They humorously touch upon Klepper's attempts to relate to a younger generation, referencing the Boondock Saints posters.

Notable Quotes:

• Jordan Klepper [19:46]: "They are wrong."
  (In response to the saying "there are no heroes".)

• Jordan Klepper [22:51]: "Changing your mind means changing who you are as a person."

• Jordan Klepper [24:25]: "I'm 59."

6. Conclusion and Final Remarks

Fallon wraps up the episode by reiterating Miranda's announcement about Hamilton's theatrical release and promoting Klepper's special, encouraging listeners to watch and support their endeavors.

Notable Quotes:

• Jimmy Fallon [18:19]: "Catch his special MAGA the Next Generation on Paramount. Stick around time with the bomb like."

• Lin-Manuel Miranda [25:08]: "Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon weeknights on NBC and streaming on Peacock."

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Overall Highlights

• Political Satire: Fallon maintains his signature comedic approach to current events, particularly mocking political figures and policies.

• Celebrity Interviews: Engaging and personable conversations with high-profile guests, blending humor with meaningful discussions about their work and personal experiences.

• Humorous Segments: Creative and entertaining bits that keep the audience engaged, showcasing Fallon's versatility as a host.

Conclusion

This episode of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon masterfully blends sharp political humor with insightful celebrity interviews. Highlighting significant milestones like the 10th anniversary of Hamilton and providing an in-depth look into Jordan Klepper's satirical endeavors, Fallon ensures a rich and engaging experience for listeners. Notable quotes and timely humor make the episode both entertaining and memorable for those who tuned in.

Transcript

[Jimmy Fallon]

From City 06B in Rockefeller center in the heart of New York City, it's a Tonight show starring Jimmy Fallon. Tonight joins Jimmy and his guest with Manuel Miranda, Jordan Tupper, and featuring the legendary Ruth Screw. 2165. And now here he is, Jimmy Bellamy. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. I love you. Enjoy yourself. Welcome, everybody.

Welcome, welcome, welcome, welcome to the Tonight Show.

You all here. That's right. Thank you for watching at home.

Guys. This was strange. Earlier today, President Trump was spotted on the roof of the White House. This is real. Take a look at this. There he is. Everyone was like, don't do it, sir.

Your approval rating isn't that bad. We gotta do it.

And Trump said, I'll come down when you stop asking me about the Epstein files. Reporters asked Trump what he was doing and he had an interesting response. Watch this, sir.

Why are you on the roof, Mr. President? What are you doing up there? Taking a little walk.

If your grandpa was taking a little walk on the roof, you'd put him in a home, right? That's what you would do. Some more news from Washington. The Trump administration will soon announce plans to build a nuclear reactor on the moon. I love how you can read the news and tell exactly how much sleep Trump's getting. You know, you go, yep, Trump wants to build the first combination nuclear reactor slash Pizza Hut on the moon. Trump decided to go with nuclear reactor on the moon after let's Clone Dinosaurs and Build a Theme park got rejected. While Trump's still claiming that the poor jobs numbers released last week were rigged, he's already fired the person in charge of those numbers, and now he's promising to replace them with his own people. For more on this, please welcome White House spokesman Dean Blake. Dean. Yeah.

[Dean Blake]

Thanks for having me, Jimmy.

[Jimmy Fallon]

People are saying it's very dangerous for the President to mess with this data. For the economy to function, don't we all need to be able to trust these numbers?

[Dean Blake]

Absolutely, Jimmy. Which is why President Trump is introducing his very own brand new numbers.

[Jimmy Fallon]

What do you mean, new numbers?

[Dean Blake]

Well, for example, zero has got to go. I mean, it's literally another word for loser. So to replace zero, President Trump has created a new boof.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Boof?

[Dean Blake]

Boof is powerful, Jimmy. Instead of meaning nothing, it means the most everything you've ever seen, ever.

[Jimmy Fallon]

But don't we mean nothing?

[Dean Blake]

Something mean nothing? Jimmy, you're talking in riddles. Now, the President is also firing the numbers 1 through 5 and turning them into one beautiful new jiboingo.

[Jimmy Fallon]

And that means jiboingo.

[Dean Blake]

Means infinity boofs.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Okay, but didn't boof already mean the most everything ever?

[Dean Blake]

Jimmy, you're thinking like a zero. You gotta start thinking like a boof or a jiboingo.

[Jimmy Fallon]

But you can't just fake economic data. They did that in Greece.

[Dean Blake]

And in 2008, they filmed Mamma Mia There, and it was delightful.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes, but they also. They had a huge debt crisis.

[Dean Blake]

That's right. Their employment numbers went all the way down to shkwank.

[Jimmy Fallon]

So squank is a bad number? Yes.

[Dean Blake]

Yes. Which is why President Trump just made it illegal to mention squank. So, okay, can you post my bail?

[Jimmy Fallon]

All I need is boof. Boop.

Jaboingo$, the White House spokesman.

Everyone.

Boo. Boo. Jiboingo. Switching gears, McDonald's just unveiled their new adult Happy Meal. Between this and Sydney Sweeney, one guy's like, best week ever. Oh, did you hear this? A lot of people are saying that there is no song of the summer this year. Yeah, right. Oh, it's Dan, our cameraman. What do you mean, Dan? I mean.

[Dan the Cameraman]

Yeah, right. There's no song of the summer.

[Jimmy Fallon]

What do you think the song of the summer is, Dan?

[Dan the Cameraman]

My song. Avi. Dan the Cameraman's Summer Jam.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I didn't know you made music.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

I'd love to hit it.

[Dan the Cameraman]

June, July, August and most of September. Those are the months of the summer. Before spring, after fall, baby, why won't you answer my calls? Summer is my favorite season. Do I smell weird? Is that the reason? Love the summer nights the golden hour I told you I've been waiting for them to fix my shower. Feel the summer breeze Eat some summer squash I have never used body wash. You're my summer love, baby don't forget I use Tom's Natural Deodorant. Summer, summer, summer, summer, summer, summer.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Stop, stop, stop, stop.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Please.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That isn't. That's enough, Dan. It's more. No, no, Dan, that is. That is more than enough.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

There's only six minutes left, Jimmy.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, we don't have time, Dan. And I'm sorry, but I don't think that that is the song of the summer. Well, why don't we let the people decide? Hey, is my song the song of the summer?

Yes. No. No, it is. Moving on.

No, it's okay. Well, guys, a lot of the country is dealing with poor air quality because of wildfire smoke from Canada drifting down into the Midwest and East Coast. It's pretty bad. Check out the scale they use to measure it. First it starts with moderate, then it goes up to Snoop. Dogg's car. Then your stepdad's breath. Then the Duncan at Port Authority. Then middle schoolers vaping at freakier Friday. Then the bathroom on a spirit fl. Then the cockpit on a spirit flight. Then new pope elected. Then making bananas foster after watching one YouTube tutorial. Then teachers lounge on a first day of school. Then Staten island on a normal day. Then Trump tanning bed set to air fryer mode. And lastly exploded Tesla. So these are very important mornings. They do a good job.

Keep an eye on for that.

And finally, our guest tonight is the.

One and only Lin Manuel Murphy Miranda.

His Tony award winning musical Hamilton is celebrating 10 years on Broadway. The best.

Jordan Klepper is joining us. Stick around. We're talking to Lin Manuel Miranda. After the break, everybody. Our first guest is an Emmy, Grammy.

And Tony winner as well as an Oscar nominated songwriter. His award winning and highly acclaimed musical Hamilton is celebrating its 10th anniversary on Broadway. Everyone, please welcome Lin Manuel Miranda. Lin Manuel, welcome back to the show.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Thank you for playing big pun on my entrance. That made me insanely happy.

[Jimmy Fallon]

How much love you have right there in the audience, everyone. Come on. That was a standing.

Standing O.

I can't believe it. It's been. Tomorrow is the 10th anniversary of Hamilton on Broadway.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Yes.

[Jimmy Fallon]

10 years.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

10 years.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Wow. That flew.

Flew.

It went fast.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

That means we've been friends for 10 years.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That is correct. Yeah. Yeah. What is? When you're on Broadway for the first time, you're making your debut. What's going through your brain when you're walking off the stage and it's done? The first show is over.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

I just. I just was so relieved. It was out of my head and on a stage.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

You know, it took me like seven years to write this thing. Six and a half years. Seven years. Incredible company who are all now movie stars and all your favorite people.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

And I'm just incredibly proud. Incredibly proud.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You also had your first son, Sebastian, shout out hi, Sebastian.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

And the same year, Hamilton. Yes.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

He's a little older than Hamilton. He was born two weeks before we started rehearsals off Broadway at the Public.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Is he. You said that he wasn't into Hamilton, right at first.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

He was not into Hamilton. No, he was a baby.

[Jimmy Fallon]

He was.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

But you know what came to the rescue? Fifth grade American history.

[Jimmy Fallon]

The best.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Suddenly I'm being called into class to judge federalist versus Anti Federalist debates.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

For the class. I don't know if. Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, my daughter's so.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Same age.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Same age. My friend is so into it. I mean, obviously knows you and Loves you, but so into Hamilton because of you. In American the Revolution and want to Know. We went all around New York City. Went to Francis Tavern.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

That's next level.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes. We went nerdy. We went really into it. It's amazing stuff. In fact, I wrote down we had a walking tour. Bruce Recond was a walking tour of Hamilton around New York City.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

I haven't done that.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, and him and Franny were going toe to toe talking about it was amazing.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Well, no, the way it comes to me is Sebastian learned something new at school and he comes home and is like, so why isn't Ben Franklin in the musical? What about Von Steuben? He was integral to the success of the Von Steuben. And I'm like, it's a musical. I only had two and a half hours.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I got the chance to see Hamilton in 2015 at public before it hit Broadway. That's where we first.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Very nervous because these guys were going, and these guys are my heroes. And that was a very big deal that you were all there.

[Jimmy Fallon]

They told me to go. Changed my life. It was the most unbelievable show I've ever seen. Still. It's my favorite show. And I came the next night on our show and I raved about it. And I haven't looked back at the.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Clip, but the clip is amazing.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It is.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Yes, it is amazing.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Here's the clip of me. Roll the clip here. Roll the clip. Man. I saw an amazing play over the weekend. Hamilton. Have you anyone seen this play yet? Yeah, exactly. That's how new it is. It's called Hamilton. It's about Alexander Hamilton. Yeah. And it was at the Public Theater. Tariq, you saw it too, right? Quest. You saw it? Yeah. How amazing is this play?

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

It's life changing.

[Jimmy Fallon]

What? This guy's a genius.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Yeah, that guy.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Lynn Miranda. Yeah, Lyn. He's amazing.

I should have been more excited.

I should have been more excited. I was like, you guys gotta really listen to this, man. It's great. I love when you were like, I.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Saw this new play, Hamilton. You hear? No one's seen it yet.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Two people of class. It was just.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

They were both my dad, who was.

[Jimmy Fallon]

But since then, everyone has seen Hamilton. It's the greatest thing ever. The biggest names that you could think of has seen Hamilton. Prince saw Hamilton and tweeted out the best history class ever.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Yes. Well, you know, this is my villain origins. Amazing hero. Hero of life.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, I know this story.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

I didn't perform that night.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I totally.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

My friend Arthur Lewis was getting married and I had agreed to dj, his wedding reception. And I was that night bragging like, bro, I'm skipping out on performing for Prince to dj. That's how good a friend I am.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Right there. That is.

Yeah.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

What I didn't know was, and I'm sure Amir knows this, Prince had a party for the entire cast. The entire cast was up all night partying with Prince. And the next day, I was like, oh, my gosh. It's the FOMO of my life.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah. It's so perfect, though. You're a good friend. That's the sound now you're a good friend. But so many people, you. I remember you said Busta Rhymes came.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

To see you front row at the Public Theater. He was the first emcee hero of mine to see the show. He sat. And the Public theater, it was 300 seats. It's a really small space. And he was here. Like, he was at knee level because he's really tall. So even when he's sitting, he was, like, there. And I remember thinking, if he doesn't like this, we close the show. Like, we just pack it up and we're out of here.

[Jimmy Fallon]

We gotta leave.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

And then I realized we had him when we were doing the Cabinet battles, you know, the rap battles between Hamilton and Jefferson. And I could hear him reacting. Cause he was there, and I hear. I'm, like, doing my bit. And he goes, wow.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Whoa.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

At one point, he goes, get him, King.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Get him, King.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

And I was just like, wow. It was vibrating.

[Jimmy Fallon]

So cool.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Things came full circle because Busta Rhymes actually rapped on the Hamilton mix.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

He was my inspiration for the character of Hercules Mulligan. I was just doing my best busta writing impression, pen game impression. And then you were on the Hamilton mix.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You were nice enough to include me.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

And the roots are incredible on the mixtape.

[Jimmy Fallon]

They produced that mixtape.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Indeed.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That was. I was such a special.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

And I have a present for you because. Where is it? Because no one makes cassettes anymore. I have cassettes of the Hamilton mixtape. I have them for all of y'.

[Jimmy Fallon]

All. What?

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

These are cassettes.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, my God.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Parents, explain to your kids what cassettes are.

[Jimmy Fallon]

A cassette. No way. You actually made a cassette tape?

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Yeah, yeah, we made the cassettes, dude.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I'm honored.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

This all makes tape. This is fantastic.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I'm so excited. I'm so happy for all your success. Everything you've done from Hamilton and everything after Hamilton as well. But you have a. Now you have a wax figure of yourself at Madame Tussaudsau's as of this morning.

[Jordan Klepper]

Yes.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Of this Morning. And I was lucky enough to present it to you. This is us at the Richard Rogers Theater with you and you.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

It's crazy.

[Jimmy Fallon]

What does it talk to me about it? Because I actually.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

It's weird. I mean, they.

[Jimmy Fallon]

They're brilliant.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

They take a day. They say it's going to take all day to pose. And they scan you. There is a lady. It's like being in a Tim Burton movie. A lady comes with a drawer full of eyeballs.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That's correct.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

And she pulls out fake eyeballs and she holds them up to your eyeball and goes, not that one.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, it's this one.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

No, no, no, not that one.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

I mean, it was very surreal. But what I'm not ready for, that you are now ready for, is that the continued life of the wax doll. So Jimmy was back there today to introduce this thing, and it's the 10th anniversary of your wax figurine. Congratulations.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

I have a wax.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Now they can be friends.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Yeah. But they were scanning his head backstage like they did, and I was like, why are you scanning Jimmy's head? And they go. So many people kiss Jimmy's wax.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

His face is starting to melt.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Isn't that cool?

Cool, yeah.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

So he needs a touch up, like wax. Jimmy is, like, suffering from too much love.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes. I got a lot of love, which I appreciate the love. It's a crazy thing, the amount of detail that goes into all this stuff, because I looked at it up close, and I'm looking at you and the wax figure, and I'm like, dude, that freckle over here.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Yeah. And it was funny because they sent me. They sent me, like, a rough. They send you a rough draft before you see it. I hadn't seen the final version until this morning. But they send you, like, what it's. They think it's gonna look like. And I sent it to my team and was like, the ears are too big. Right? And everyone responded, no, no.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Pretty much nailed it.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

I've just never seen your ears before.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Pretty much nailed it. Everything's perfect. That's how you look like.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

That's what you look like.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It was phenomenal. Congratulations, bud. And before you go, you have something very big that you'd like to announce.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

I have an announcement. So Tomorrow is the 10th anniversary of Hamilton, and we've been celebrating, but we have one more way to celebrate, which is that, you know, when we filmed most of the original cast performing in Hamilton in 2016, and we always wanted to release it theatrically, but then the Pandemic hit, and so we decided to release it on streaming so that everyone could see it at home whenever they wanted. But September 5th, you will be able to see Hamilton in movie theaters nationwide and in Puerto Rico.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Come on now. Hamilton. Dude, I'm already going. I'm going with Freddie. I'm going. Every Hamilton fan.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Tickets are on sale tomorrow.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, tickets go on sale.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Tickets are on sale tomorrow.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Tickets to go. You can get tickets right now. Tomorrow.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Yes. Yes. If you are in Wednesday, you can get tickets right now.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes. If you're in Wednesday, yes.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

And yeah. Tickets are on sale September 5th. Turn up. Sing along. We're all going to watch Hamilton.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, this is the best.

Lin Manuel Miranda, everybody. Hamilton comes to movie theaters beginning September 5th. Stick around, everybody. Come on back.

Our next guest is one of the very funny hosts of the Daily show, which airs weeknights at 11pm on Comedy Central. And you can watch his latest special, Jordan Klepper fingers the Pulse the Next Generation now on Paramount. Please welcome Jordan Klepper.

Jordan Klepper. Absolutely. Wow.

Jordan, welcome to the Tonight Show. I'm happy you're here. I'm a big fan. It's the first time getting a chance to talk to you.

[Jordan Klepper]

I love this. Jimmy, thank you for having me.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Thanks for being here.

[Jordan Klepper]

It's a Tonight Show.

[Jimmy Fallon]

How about that? Come on, bud. You look fantastic.

[Jordan Klepper]

Thank you very much.

[Jimmy Fallon]

For you. You were telling me backstage that you re broke your foot, but I. Because I just watched your special maga the Next generation on Paramount plus.

[Jordan Klepper]

Thank you very much.

[Jimmy Fallon]

And you have a. You're wearing like a.

[Jordan Klepper]

A boot. Yes, I, I, I broke. I did the entire special with a broken foot. They say. They say there are no heroes. And they are wrong.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Wow.

That's really. You really are unbelievable for doing that.

[Jordan Klepper]

They are wrong.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

[Jordan Klepper]

It was the third time I broke my foot. I broke my foot once doing Crossfit. I broke my foot six months later when I couldn't get a seat at a bar. So I stood for two hours and re broke my foot by just standing by standing. This is what happens when you don't have enough swag to get a seat at a bar. You stand for too long and your bones break.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Wow.

[Jordan Klepper]

And then this third break, I don't even have a story. It just happened. And that's what happens. You get old enough where you don't have a story for your ailments and nobody cares enough to go figure out how it happened.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You don't even look that old, though. You're so young.

[Jordan Klepper]

I'm 59.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, my gosh. Wow. I can't believe it.

[Jordan Klepper]

Yes.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes. You've been on The Daily Show 11 years now.

[Jordan Klepper]

Yeah, just about. I got hired on and then I went away for a little while, had to find myself in the woods, and I came back.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, you really did.

[Jordan Klepper]

Yeah, yeah. It was about 11 years ago.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Do you remember your first day on the Daily Show? Were you nervous?

[Jordan Klepper]

I mean, it was a dream job. And I basically auditioned and four days later was on the show. And I remember showing up, you know, full of confidence and energy. And I get in there like, we want to get Jordan on the show today. And what just happened in the news was Crimea was invaded by Russia. We're like, great, we'll have Jordan cover this and do a bit on Crimea. And immediately I'm like, what is Crimea? Is it a thing? Is it a place?

[Jimmy Fallon]

Where is it?

[Jordan Klepper]

I go into the office with Jon Stewart, who knows where Crimea is. Yes. He's read editorials based on what's happening in Crimea. He has opinions about it. And I realize I'm in way over my head. And we have to figure out a way to make this work. And luckily, the people at the Daily show are some of the smartest folks there. Crafted a bit around me. Being overwhelmed, being put in a place for their first time, like Crimea and their first day on their job. And I remember brainstorming with John, like, the process as you're writing this up until the last moment in a rewrite and nervously throwing out ideas. And in my nervousness, I called John dad because I think I wanted at that point to make dad happy.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, okay.

[Jordan Klepper]

Yeah, put that in the bit. And it's the first joke I got on the show. And I remember right before I go out, like, so nervous backstage before going on the Daily show and John comes over and he gave me advice that I cherish to this day. He says, don't up.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Wow, that's amazing.

[Jordan Klepper]

And he's a legend.

[Jimmy Fallon]

He's one of the nicest guys. He really is, in the business. Yeah. And super helpful, too.

[Jordan Klepper]

I'm assuming he's smart as a whip, short as one as well. Very tiny man. Tiny man. But, yeah, I mean, honestly, the late night world is full of such thoughtful, smart people. And I feel like, I will say in seeing everybody get together, even a couple weeks ago on Steven's show, to see everybody there, I think it's a. A good team to be a part of.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, we're very lucky. Yeah, I'm lucky to be doing this with you.

[Jordan Klepper]

It's so many Smart, insightful people.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You do great stuff. You're known for a lot of your viral man on the street stuff where you interview Trump supporters at his numerous rallies. Do you ever feel like you've ever changed anyone's mind?

[Jordan Klepper]

No.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Okay. No, no.

[Jordan Klepper]

I mean, it's a rarity to find that out there. It is, I will say, like, that's not our intention when we go out there. Our intention is to find some comedy and some hypocrisy to find the funny. Yep. I will say a few months back, I went out there and somebody was. At January 6th, she was arrested, spent time in prison, and she changed her mind about the MAGA sphere, and she was seeking out news outlets, and people were so excited to talk to her about that. But it shows you how rare it is to find somebody who is so open about changing their mind so much so that, like, anybody will talk to her, and she wants to talk to anybody about that experience. I think so often the people I talk to, and it happens on both sides, like, this becomes beyond the things they believe, it becomes their identity. And the idea of changing your mind means changing who you are as a person. And I think that's. That's part of the drama that we're in is these. We can't debate politics out on the road because we've made this basically a calling card for our own personality. And I think if you get away from the cameras, you talk to people about who they are, what they actually believe, some of their own uncertainties come out, and you actually find a little bit of that space where somebody can change their mind, but it rarely happens in front of the camera.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It's well written and well performed. You're very quick. And gosh, it's so funny when you. I just watched the special maga, the Next Generation, and man, oh, man, you're trying to relate to these college kids, and you're like, hey, I think I'm too old to really. I mean, what, do you have, Boondock Saints posters in your dorm?

[Jordan Klepper]

And they didn't. They don't even know what that is, dude.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Boondocks. That's such a funny reference. That's such a funny reference. And then you call back later, you go, what do you have? Boondock Saints, two posters.

[Jordan Klepper]

How am I supposed to connect with these kids?

[Jimmy Fallon]

Made me laugh. It's so funny, dude. The kids looking at you like, what are you talking about? I'd never heard of that movie.

[Jordan Klepper]

There's a decent chance I am not the voice of that generation.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Ah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I should be feeling that Jordan clap for everybody.

You're so good.

Catch his special maga the Next Generation on Paramount. Stick around time with the bomb like.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

A person rehearsing a verse in a chapter of a plate and I rapped enough just make money you might find it funny she groomed me out of Tracy Azusa. Classier than Cassie, Tamika Bernard, Katie, you.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Know, my thanks to Lin Manuel Miranda, Jordan Klepper and the Roots right there from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Good night, everybody. Thank you. Get involved better get involved get, get, get involved get into it Got it Get involved gotcha and he said yesterday just let you know all the best that's why I started so hard working Mr. Dynamite.

Thanks for listening to the Tonight show starring Jimmy Fallon. Don't forget to subscribe to get the latest episodes weekday mornings. Wherever you get your podcasts, watch the.

[Lin Manuel Miranda]

Tonight show starring Jimmy Fallon weeknights on.

[Jimmy Fallon]

NBC and streaming on Peacock.