Early on, O’Brien admitted to Hot Ones host Sean Evans that, due to his background, eating spicy wings was going to be something of a challenge for him. “I grew up in an Irish house,” O’Brien said. “An Irish Catholic home in Boston. I never saw a spice till I was about 52 years old.” Given that, O’Brien brought to the taping an alleged “personal physician” named Dr. Arroyo—who, in a running bit, would periodically assist the comic and monitor his temperature during the episode.
And it’s a funny show.” Perhaps inspired by the spiciness of the wings, the veteran late-night host also revealed the worst thing that talk show guests routinely do: tell the audience the interview isn’t going well. “I would look out at the audience, maybe 200 people sitting there, and I’d see 200 souls leave 200 bodies and float up through the ceiling,” O’Brien said. “Because they were just told they were not getting a good show. No, that’s not show business.