Jordan Karlesson
Everyone knows Steve Martin and Martin Short are pals — and two of the funniest people alive. They became friends way back in 1986 while filming Three Amigos! and currently co-star in one of TV’s hottest shows, Only Murders in the Building.
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But their joint appearance Thursday night on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon was something else. They guested on the late-night program to hype their gig hosting Saturday Night Live tomorrow night. (They also co-hosted the variety program 36 years ago.)
Seemingly ad-libbing, Martin, 77, and Short, 72, playfully teased each other with rapid-fire roasts that belied their status as senior citizens.
It was an exhausting watch — in a good way. They must’ve set some kind of record with the number of jokes they packed into their appearance.
Below are some of our favorites from the Tonight Show segment. Fallon’s show posted a nine-minute extended version of the interview — well, non-interview, really — on YouTube today.
Steve Martin and Martin Short’s Rapid-Fire Roasts
Steve Martin took the first dig at his amigo.
“Jimmy, if Martin starts humping your leg, it’s best just to let him ‘finish,’” he deadpanned with a straight face, while everyone else broke into laughter. “Got me through a lot of flights and dinners, I’ll tell you that.”
When Fallon asked Martin if he plans to pull out his banjo and play it during SNL, he quickly said no.
“I’ll tell you why: because the cast voted,” he remarked.
Short jumped in: “Now listen, when he pulls out his banjo, people in China beg for lockdowns.”
Short stood up and took a bow for that one.
For good measure, Short also teased Fallon.
“James Kanye Fallon, we adore doing your show,” he cracked, as Martin laughed beside him. “Of all the late-night shows, this is the easiest one to fall asleep to.”
He lobbed one more gem at the Tonight Show host: “To me, your comedy is like crypto: I don’t understand it, but I admire it.”
He later joked: “You look great. You look like the offspring if Santa had sex with a MILF. Makes you look like a cool youth minister.”
Steve Martin took a potshot at Fallon too, saying his new beard looked like “a COVID mask that they cut a mouth hole in.”
Check out the full segment featuring Martin and Short right here:
