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Triumph the Insult Comic Dog

The comedic creation of Robert Smigel, the puppet with a cigar and an acerbic wit appears on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. Triumph has also appeared on Hollywood Squares and on the MTV Video Music Awards, where one year he almost came to blows with Eminem. (Rebroadcast from Nov. 20, 2003.)

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Other segments from the episode on August 27, 2004

Fresh Air with Terry Gross, August 27, 2004: Interview with John Waters; Interview with David Rakoff; Interview with Robert Smigel.
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21:09

Trash Talking: Director John Waters

He was once crowned "The Pope of Trash" by William Burroughs. Waters started photographing video stills off his television screen that became the raw material for his artwork. Many of those are collected in his book John Waters: Change of Life. His 1988 film Hairspray was made into a Tony award-winning Broadway musical. Waters' new film, A Dirty Shame, opens next month. (Rebroadcast from Feb. 25, 2004)

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10:30

Writer David Rakoff, 'Comic Saint'

Rakoff is a regular contributor to Outside, the New York Times Magazine and public radio's This American Life. One of his peers, writer Paul Rudnick, calls him "a comic saint... an ideal mix of the crabby and the debonair." Rakoff has a collection of essays, Fraud, and he's appearing in an off-Broadway show by Amy and David Sedaris. (Rebroadcast from May 14, 2001.)

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Transcripts are created on a rush deadline, and accuracy and availability may vary. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Please be aware that the authoritative record of Fresh Air interviews and reviews are the audio recordings of each segment.

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Late-Night TV Returns to Action

The writers' strike knocked late-night television shows like the Late Show and The Tonight Show into reruns. Now these pillars of the talk-show genre are back on the air with fresh material.

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36:19

Triumph, The Insult Comic Dog

Triumph, a regular on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, is a puppet and the creation of Robert Smigel. Smigel also created the animated short TV Funhouse on Saturday Night Live. Triumph has a new CD, Come Poop With Me, featuring such tracks as "Underage Bichon" and "Lick Myself." He's appeared on Hollywood Squares and on the MTV Video Music Awards, where he almost came to blows with rapper Eminem.

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48:50

Late night talk show host Conan O'Brien

Late night talk show host Conan O'Brien celebrates ten years on the air Sunday September 14, 2003, with a primetime special on NBC. In 1993, he moved into the Late Night host slot when David Letterman went to CBS. Prior to Late Night, O'Brien was a writer for Saturday Night Live and writer and producer for The Simpsons.

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