Late Night Last Week: Larry David on Parenthood, John Oliver on Medicare Advantage, and More

Late Night Last Week highlights some of the best late-night TV from the previous week. Today, we cover Larry David’s recent chat with Seth Meyers, The Daily Show’s Michael Kosta on the NBA betting scandal, John Oliver on Medicare, and a funny moment on The Tonight Show with Allen Iverson. 

“How can they live? I feel so sorry for them.”

Such were the words of Larry David last week, describing on Late Night with Seth Meyers what he thinks every time he sees one of his children. The thought of his two daughters walking around with his genes was too much for the man to bear. Ever the perceptive interviewer, Seth Meyers then pivoted to asking Larry (referring to him as “David” somehow feels disrespectful, no?) about his own parents.

“My mother had nothing to brag about,” Larry said, referring to himself. “The poor woman.” 

He went on to share that he never lived up to her high hopes—in other interviews, Larry has discussed how his parents hoped he would join up with one of our nation’s most honorable professions: the US Postal Service. Instead, as he explained here to Meyers, she was stuck with a then-failing comic. 

But Larry had a backup plan. His mother, he told Meyers, was like much of America, a massive fan of Johnny Carson. “She couldn’t stop talking about Johnny,” Larry said. “Oh, Johnny. You should have heard Johnny last night. Oh, Johnny was so funny.” 

That’s when he came up with a deathbed plan. 

“I wanted her to die happy,” he said. “So I came up with this plan that I would go into the hospital and I would say, ‘Ma, Ma, Johnny saw me perform last night. Johnny wants me on his show, Ma. Johnny likes me.’” 

Meyers, however, saw a flaw in this never-realized plan: “Do you think there was a chance that you’d tell her that and instead of her having one last happy moment, she would’ve died sad, being disappointed in Johnny Carson’s taste?”

Always the honest man, Larry considered the thought before responding, “Quite possibly.” 

Sometimes, the rotating cast of hosts over on The Daily Show just works out too perfectly. Such are the beautiful ebbs and flows of the news cycle. And last week was one of those times, as former pro-athlete Michael Kosta was behind the desk to discuss the news that shocked the sports world: a betting scandal involving NBA players and the mob. 

Kosta had the take that went through the heads of NBA and Sopranos fans everywhere. “The mafia must really be hurting if the biggest NBA name they can get is Chauncey Billups,” Kosta said. “They couldn’t get Shaq? He’ll take money for anything.” Somewhere, Charles Barkley smiled. 

The other major star allegedly part of the deal is Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier. With the perspective of a former struggling athlete, Kosta had a unique take on Rozier’s involvement. 

“Jesus Christ, Terry. You’ve made over $160 million in your career. You shouldn’t be doing gambling schemes,” Kosta said. “Leave the schemes for the guys on the bench. They’re the ones who need the money.” 

But as always, Kosta turned back to being the moral compass of a confused and disappointed nation. “The NBA understands this scandal has really tarnished their integrity,” Kosta said. “That’s why the league is making it up to fans by offering them a $50 freeplay on FanDuel using the promo code JailBlazer.” 

“I’m gonna make it baby, come on, come on!” 

Over on Last Week Tonight, John Oliver addressed a topic of some importance: Medicare. Or, rather, something called Medicare Advantage, a supplement to the government program administered by private insurers. “They’re just not the same,” Oliver said. “It’s like the difference between a flashlight and a fleshlight.” 

Oliver begins by pointing out the slew of misleading advertisements targeting seniors during Medicare’s open enrollment period, which use the catch-all “Medicare” when they are actually referring to Medicare Advantage. He hilariously dissects these ads, which often feature celebrities, but are also sometimes long-form advertisements that play with “amateur porn level acting,” to borrow his phrase, with one spouse pleading with another to sign up for Medicare Advantage. You know, the kind of ad you would see on TV at 3 a.m. when you were up sick all night in the pre-streaming days. Oliver wonderfully plays one of these ad for far too long, only to reveal that it was only halfway over.

“I also love the disclaimer saying ‘paid actor portrayal,'” Oliver said, enlarging the screen. “As if we’d be so sucked in by the natural delivery of concussed Rob Reiner and over-caffeinated Amy Sedaris here that we’d need to be reminded.” 

But, as always, Oliver goes on to discuss the serious ramifications of these ads and the truth behind Medicare Advantage, which actually inflates, you’ll be shocked to learn, the cost of Medicare by bringing in private insurers. The upshot: among other flaws, insurers(yes, insurers) are able to add diagnoses to patients’ charts through a process called “upcoding,” essentially billing the government for treatments not actually given, for diagnoses unknown to patients and doctors. 

“The whole point of a doctor is for them to diagnose you,” Oliver said. “Or, in my case, for them to look at me, down at the chart, look at me again, back at the chart, and then say, ‘48 years old? Are we sure about that?’” 

And finally, a clip from The Tonight Show. Allen Iverson has been on the press circuit lately, promoting the docuseries about his life, Allen Iv3rson. Well, he and Jimmy Fallon couldn’t resist taking a trip down memory lane, reliving Iverson’s most memorable moment with the sports media, and indeed, perhaps the most famous press conference in sports history. Have a look. 

 Will DiGravio is a Brooklyn-based critic, researcher, and late night comedy columnist, who first contributed to Paste in 2022. He is an assistant editor at Cineaste, a GALECA member, and since 2019 has hosted The Video Essay Podcast. You can follow and/or unfollow him on Twitter and learn more about him via his website.

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