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00:00From Hollywood, it's Jimmy Kimmel Live!
00:04Tonight, Miley Cyrus, Cameron Crowe,
00:08and music from the Wainwrights with the Klee Tones.
00:13And now, Jimmy Kimmel Live!
00:30I appreciate that. Welcome. Welcome.
00:34I'm Jimmy. I am the host of the show.
00:36Relax. Please, thanks for watching.
00:38Thank you for joining us in Hollywood.
00:40On a special night, I don't know,
00:42on the off chance you looked up from your phones tonight,
00:45you may have noticed a supermoon.
00:48A supermoon is something that occurs
00:50when the moon is at its closest to the Earth.
00:52The moon appears to be huge.
00:54This is the third supermoon in three months,
00:56which is unusual, right?
00:58It's not usually three months, three...
01:00I'm starting to get the feeling the moon's worried about us.
01:02Like...
01:03You guys okay down there?
01:05You know, I was at Dry Bar this morning,
01:07getting a blowout.
01:08We have a party after the show.
01:10And I learned that, according to Google,
01:13for the year 2025,
01:15I was the third most trending person in the world.
01:22Now, I'm not sure if it's an honor
01:25because number one was a singer named David
01:27who spells his name with a four instead of an A,
01:29who is a suspect in a murder,
01:31which I guess got him bumped up.
01:33Number two is Kendrick Lamar,
01:35who murdered Drake this year
01:36at halftime of the Super Bowl.
01:38And then it's me,
01:40even though I haven't been involved in any murders.
01:42And I just want to say...
01:46I just want to say I couldn't have done this.
01:48None of this would ever have happened
01:50without the support of loyal viewers
01:52like President Trump,
01:53who has done so much this year
01:55to raise awareness of our show.
01:57Thank you, Mr. President,
01:58for making me number three in the world.
02:02Somehow...
02:04Somehow I finished ahead of the Pope.
02:06Eat it, Leo!
02:08You know, I actually...
02:10My cousin Sal showed me one of these websites
02:12where you can bet on anything,
02:14and they had me at even money,
02:16like, two weeks ago
02:17to finish in the top five searched.
02:19And I was like,
02:20well, no way I'm gonna be in the top five.
02:21So I bet against myself.
02:24And I bet a sizable amount of money,
02:26and I lost.
02:27So...
02:28Now when my kids don't get a go-kart for Christmas,
02:30I can say,
02:31it's not Santa's fault,
02:32it's Google's fault.
02:33It's your fault, really.
02:35But let that be a lesson to young people.
02:36Never bet against yourself.
02:38That's right.
02:39I think...
02:41I think Diddy said that, right?
02:45Um, speaking of trends,
02:47there was...
02:48I beat Diddy!
02:49How did I beat Diddy this year?
02:50I don't know.
02:51It's crazy, Jimmy.
02:52It's crazy.
02:53Thank you, Guillermo.
02:54There's a big announcement today
02:55from Pantone headquarters
02:56in Karlstadt, New Jersey,
02:58where they revealed
02:59the color of the year for 2026.
03:02The color experts at Pantone
03:04have named 2026's
03:05official color of the year.
03:07It is called Cloud Dancer.
03:09Yeah!
03:11Yeah!
03:12Yeah!
03:13Yeah!
03:14Yeah!
03:15Cloud Dancer!
03:16Oh, yeah!
03:19Yeah!
03:20Yeah!
03:21Yeah!
03:22Yeah!
03:23Yeah!
03:24Yeah!
03:25Yeah!
03:26Yeah!
03:27Good job!
03:28Oh, my God!
03:29Oh, my God!
03:30Oh, my God!
03:31It's wonderful.
03:33Oh!
03:34Oh, wow!
03:35Oh, that's...
03:36Oh, wow!
03:37Oh, wow.
03:38Oh, that's...
03:45I know, it's exciting.
03:47Can we cancel the guests?
03:48I mean, I feel...
03:51Good acting, everybody. Really good.
03:53Love it.
03:54Cloud Dancer is the color of the earth, also known as white.
03:58White is the color.
04:00Trump was pulling for orange, of course.
04:02He is...
04:03You know, we're all aware of how hungry for praise he is constantly,
04:06but I'm always surprised by how eager his suck-ups are to feed it to him.
04:09There is a nonpartisan agency called the U.S. Institute for Peace.
04:14And earlier this year, the Trump administration slashed their funding.
04:17They threatened to take over their building.
04:19But I guess in an effort to appease him, a compromise has been reached.
04:24And this is the compromise.
04:25This is the building, the United States Institute of Peace.
04:28It is now the Donald J. Trump United States Institute of Peace and Casino.
04:34They put his name on the building and he let it remain.
04:38A White House spokesperson defended this renaming, kind of, claiming the organization was once a bloated, useless entity that blew $50 million per year while delivering no peace.
04:49So they named it after another bloated, useless entity that delivered no peace.
04:56Trump, of course, visited his new building this morning to take credit for his work bringing together the leaders of Rwanda and the Congo.
05:04I want to thank the two courageous leaders.
05:06They are courageous leaders.
05:08They really are courageous leaders.
05:10Great people.
05:11President Chisekite.
05:20Perfect.
05:21Could we hear that again?
05:23Chisekite.
05:24Now, the president's name is Chisekite, President Chisekite.
05:31From the Congo, they call it Congo.
05:34But don't interrupt Donald Trump when he's in the middle of a little stroke.
05:37This conflict between Rwanda and the Congo has been going on for decades.
05:42Millions of people have been killed.
05:43They're still fighting as of today.
05:45But that didn't stop Dr. R to the deal from acting like he mediated a dispute between neighbors over a broken sprinkler head.
05:52I think they liked each other a lot.
05:54I spent time with them.
05:56I think they liked each other.
05:57Some people may be surprised.
05:59I really do.
06:00I think they spent a lot of time killing each other.
06:06And now they're going to spend a lot of time hugging, holding hands, and taking advantage of the United States of America economically,
06:14like every other country does.
06:16Look at them.
06:17Look at the way they love each other.
06:23Well, that doesn't look like love to me.
06:28That looks like Melania's version of love to me.
06:31Which leader was that again?
06:34Chisekite.
06:35And then it was time for the nobelephant in the room to take a well-deserved victory nap.
06:42One of many victory naps this week.
06:45These two great Africans who are at the beginning, who started the Luanda and the Nairobi processes.
06:53And beyond them, I wish to thank also all of the African leaders who contributed.
07:01Look how sweet he is when he's sleeping, you know?
07:04Dozy Donald.
07:05Get that man on my pillow, will somebody?
07:08Meanwhile, we've got a big and not-so-welcome surprise coming next year.
07:12If Congress doesn't extend subsidies for the Affordable Care Act, Obamacare, millions of Americans will be shocked by how much more their health insurance costs.
07:20One in four of those covered by the Affordable Care Act say they may go without insurance altogether if their monthly premiums go up too much, which is the bad news.
07:29The good news is the Lincoln bathroom has a walk-in tub.
07:33So, this is interesting.
07:35These are the states that will be hit the hardest.
07:38The top ten, all red states.
07:40Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Georgia, West Virginia, Alabama, Kansas, Louisiana, and Montana.
07:46We're going from Obamacare to Trump doesn't.
07:50And people don't realize it.
07:52This is so crazy.
07:53Of all the things, I think this one might be the hardest to understand.
07:56How long has Trump been claiming to have a plan for health care?
08:00If you had an employee or, like, a contractor at your house who told you he was working on a project, something important, like your roof.
08:07And he told you during the interview, before you hired him, he's like, I have a plan for this roof.
08:11It's going to be a great plan.
08:13It's going to be an excellent roof.
08:14So, you hire him.
08:15And some time goes by, and you're like, hey, where's the plan for the roof?
08:18And he's like, it's almost ready.
08:20Then a year later, you still don't have a roof.
08:23You're like, hey, what's up with the roof?
08:25He's like, it's coming soon.
08:27And that went on for four years until eventually you fire him.
08:32You give someone else the job.
08:34And then four years later, he comes back.
08:37He's like, that roof you have is terrible.
08:39I could build you a much better roof.
08:41And again, you fall for it.
08:43You hire him again.
08:44And again, nothing happens.
08:46Where's the roof?
08:47Three weeks.
08:48I'll have it in three weeks.
08:50Two months later, anywhere on the roof.
08:51I think it's going to rain.
08:52Funny you ask.
08:53I was just about to show you my plan for the roof.
08:55Imagine that this went on and on for 10 years.
08:59Going on 11 now.
09:00You'd strangle that person, right?
09:03This is exactly what Trump has been doing with healthcare.
09:06We have no choice but to absolutely repeal, replace Obamacare.
09:12And we're going to come up with a much better plan.
09:14We're coming up with a healthcare plan that I think will be terrific.
09:17We're going to have a plan that is so much better than Obamacare.
09:21Secretary Alex Acosta just came up with a great healthcare plan.
09:26Secretary Azar coming out an additional plan in a very short period of time.
09:31Wait till you see the plans we have coming out literally over the next four weeks.
09:36We're signing a healthcare plan within two weeks.
09:39A full and complete healthcare plan.
09:42Just a yes or no, you still do not have a plan.
09:44I have concepts of a plan.
09:49First I have to grab my P.F. Changs out of the microwave and then I'll have the whole plan for you.
09:54He's been saying this since 2015.
09:57At what point are we the idiots?
09:59Speaking of idiots, Robert Kennedy Jr. and his anti-vax advisors at the CDC, a.k.a. Mumpsford & Sons, had a big meeting today.
10:11They're going to vote tomorrow on whether to change the recommendation for when to give babies the hepatitis B vaccine.
10:17The hepatitis B vaccination is recommended currently for children just after birth.
10:22Kennedy wants that delayed until after the baby's first brain worm.
10:26And the B vaccine is one of the safest and most effective vaccines we have.
10:32Right Guillermo?
10:33Right, Jimmy, yeah.
10:36It has reduced childhood hepatitis by 99%.
10:42It has an excellent safety record and it's cheap to make.
10:45Changing the recommendation, it's like telling kids to wash their hands before they poop.
10:49It makes no sense.
10:50And we're already seeing people, vaccination levels are going way down because the government isn't making people do this.
10:57And if RFK has its way, we could see all the old diseases making a comeback.
11:01Measles, whooping cough, chicken pox, rubella, diphtheria, and maybe worst of all...
11:06Chiseki thing?
11:08And we don't want that.
11:10We do not want it.
11:12I know I don't want it.
11:14We're going to be seeing a lot of that in the months to come.
11:21One more thing before we forge ahead.
11:23It is Thursday night.
11:24That means it's time to bleep and blur the big TV moments of the week whether they need it or not.
11:28It is this week in unnecessary censorship.
11:34Governors don't get to just theoretically.
11:37We have to .
11:38And I will note, it's not just Somalis.
11:41I'm a pretty hard d***er.
11:42I'll d*** 100, 110 hours a week.
11:44He out d***s me.
11:45He's the first person I've ever known that d***s harder than I do.
11:48All right.
11:49Morgan Rill is at the San Antonio Zoo just in time for the big grand opening of Cock d*** Falls, which is now less than two weeks away.
11:54We now have hard d*** for Black Day and even for Saturday.
11:59So back in the day, the bigger the d***, the more money you have.
12:02The more money you have.
12:03So you get a little tiny d*** and you don't have that much money.
12:05Just for the record, Congressman, do you like c***ing?
12:09I love c***ing.
12:10I love Nashville.
12:11I have my wife on Broadway.
12:13Uh, Dusty, I think I gotta go.
12:14So?
12:15Yeah, you have a minute.
12:16I mean, you can go, though.
12:17You sure?
12:18Yeah, you can f*** me again or you can go.
12:19Well, I do f*** you all the time.
12:22When the f*** turns hard like that, it does a lot of damage to people's f***s.
12:28Care Bears, welcome.
12:29Name's Buddy.
12:30I f*** your f***, but well, I don't have any hands.
12:33Feel free to f*** my tongue, though.
12:35Go on.
12:36F*** it.
12:37No thanks, Buddy.
12:38We had a good show for tonight.
12:41Cameron Crowe is here.
12:42We have music from the Wainwrights, and we'll be back with Miley Cyrus.
12:46So stick around.
12:47Hi, and welcome back to the show.
12:58Tonight he is an Oscar-winning writer, director.
13:01His best-selling memoir is called The Uncool.
13:04Cameron Crowe is with us tonight.
13:06And then later, their Hooray for Holidays concert featuring Lucy Dacus, Beck, Annie Lennox, and more happens this Saturday at the Saban Theater here in L.A.
13:17You can get tickets at cancercanrock.org.
13:20Proceeds go to cancer research.
13:22Music from the Wainwrights tonight.
13:25That is Rufus, Loudon, Martha, and Lucy.
13:28Next week, we have got shows.
13:30New shows once again with a rock-solid lineup of guests, including Matthew McConaughey, Quinta Brunson, Jamie Lee Curtis, Rachel Sennett, Tiana Taylor, Regina Hall, Pete Buttigieg, and David Letterman will be here with music from Howard Jones, The Pretty Reckless, Tasha Cobbs Howard, and John Legend 2.
13:47So please join us for all that.
13:48Our first guest tonight is a multi-platinum-selling, multi-Grammy-winning, multi-faceted Miley with a new song called Dream As One.
13:57It is featured in the new movie Avatar Fire and Ash.
14:00Please welcome Miley Cyrus.
14:19How are you?
14:20Everyone is here.
14:21Look at you.
14:22You're all so lovely.
14:23Thank you for having me tonight, Jamie.
14:24You look great.
14:25You smell like leather.
14:26That's nice.
14:27Thank you very much.
14:28Yeah, it's perforated leather.
14:29Perforated leather.
14:30Yeah, I smell like perforated leather.
14:31The best kind of leather.
14:32Yeah.
14:33And congratulations on your engagement.
14:34Thank you very much.
14:35I see your ring there.
14:36Exciting.
14:37Your fiancé.
14:38I wonder if he realizes, Max, she's your fiancé, that if he'd waited like three weeks, he wouldn't
14:41have to come up with a Christmas gift.
14:42This was Black Friday deal, baby.
14:43Oh, I see.
14:44It wasn't.
14:45But he was smart that way.
14:46It might have been.
14:47I'm not sure.
14:48It better not have been.
14:49What does one get a Miley Cyrus?
14:50A Miley Cyrus?
14:51A Miley Cyrus?
14:52A Miley Cyrus?
14:53A Miley Cyrus?
14:54A Miley Cyrus?
14:55A Miley Cyrus?
14:56A Miley Cyrus?
14:57A Miley Cyrus?
14:58A Miley Cyrus?
14:59A Miley Cyrus?
15:00A Miley Cyrus?
15:01A Miley Cyrus?
15:02A Miley Cyrus?
15:03I'm not sure.
15:04It better not have been.
15:05What does one get a Miley Cyrus as if there are more than one of you for Christmas?
15:09That seems like an impossible task.
15:12Well, Christmas, I'm known as a little bit of a Grinch because I have a qualm with Christmas.
15:18What is it?
15:19I hate paper.
15:20Like, looking at that makes me want to vomit.
15:23Don't even do it.
15:24Should I move it away?
15:25That's worse.
15:26Moving it is worse?
15:27Okay.
15:28And then the real problem for me with paper is when people have dry hands and they touch
15:36paper and then it's Christmas and it's cold and everyone's hands are dry and they're all
15:40touching paper.
15:41Oh, I was going to moisturize.
15:42Oh, my God.
15:43Don't even start.
15:44I see stationary.
15:45I was just going to moisturize, but I don't have any.
15:47No, like when someone sends me like a lovely letter, I just don't even open it.
15:50Really?
15:51No.
15:52Wow.
15:53I just don't even worry.
15:54That's interesting.
15:55I love text message.
15:56No paper.
15:57No paper.
15:58It's the paper.
15:59I can't even talk about it.
16:01Can you read the newspaper?
16:03That?
16:04No.
16:05Wow.
16:06You're really just hearing about it.
16:07No, I can't.
16:08Yeah.
16:09It's a phobia.
16:10And I need help.
16:11What about rolling papers?
16:12I think you're probably okay with those, right?
16:14First of all, my hands aren't dry, okay?
16:20And neither are the papers because I know you know you have to lick the paper.
16:25Yeah.
16:26That was a very professional.
16:27Yeah, it was.
16:28It was a good lick.
16:29I've done that before.
16:30Big paper also.
16:31Yeah.
16:32Yeah.
16:33Your imaginary joints are huge.
16:34Yeah.
16:35Is it been your whole life have you suffered with this?
16:38It's getting worse.
16:39Oh.
16:40And so there does need to be some sort of intervention.
16:42And I am going to look into some sort of maybe EMDR being hypnotized about it because it is affecting my everyday life.
16:49It is.
16:50It is affecting my life.
16:51You can't get away from it.
16:52Like, okay, like someone gets an Amazon box.
16:54I'm sick.
16:55Because the cardboard is the worst of it all.
16:57Oh, really?
16:58Yeah, it's extra dry.
17:00And there's packaging within it.
17:02So I go outside.
17:03That's the best part.
17:04That's really why I got engaged is because I just make my fiance open all the packages outside.
17:08Yeah, I think like the first year anniversary is paper or something.
17:11Uh-uh.
17:12Not here.
17:13Yeah, you're not going to go traditional with that.
17:14Absolutely not.
17:15Will you even sign the marriage certificate or will somebody have to do that for you?
17:19That would be, okay, here's my one, this is the thing, is waxed paper.
17:23Yeah.
17:24Like anything that's got like a smooth surface, that's better.
17:27And from the last marriage, I think I remember that the paper is waxed.
17:31It's not waxed.
17:32But I had smoked one of those imaginary joints.
17:35So I can't really remember.
17:37You think you signed waxed paper?
17:39I'm pretty sure.
17:40I think you may have been making cookies is what happened.
17:46Since you were, how old did you have this?
17:48My brothers used to traumatize me.
17:51And yeah, I'm looking at them because they used to.
17:53We used to, okay, so my mom at one point wanted to be a flight attendant.
17:56But then she got another phobia, kind of like this.
17:58She hates to fly.
17:59That's a more typical phobia.
18:01So then she made us drive everywhere.
18:04And my dad worked in Canada.
18:05So every weekend from Nashville, Tennessee, we would drive to Toronto, Canada.
18:10Like 14 hours and there's five kids all in the car and a German Shepherd.
18:13So my brothers, like, you know, my mom would be driving and it would be complete chaos
18:17because all of us would fight for the entire 14 hours.
18:19Right.
18:20And then to really torture me, they would rub paper together while I was in the backseat.
18:24Oh, what happened if you get lost and you have to unfold that map?
18:27There was a map.
18:28There was a time, like, my mother was driving across country with these children with a map.
18:32I always think about that when I can just go anywhere on my phone now.
18:35Yeah.
18:36Yes, that's how it was.
18:37We had an actual map from Tennessee to Canada.
18:40Yeah, I know.
18:41I'm old.
18:42I know.
18:43Yeah.
18:44I mean, I had those maps.
18:45Yeah.
18:46Yeah.
18:47And there was a book called the Thomas Guide, which was our books.
18:49Can you read books?
18:50Okay.
18:51So books, again, I was so happy when they had a Kindle when the Kindle was invented
18:57because that solved a lot of problems for me.
18:59Wow.
19:00The iPad solved a lot of problems for me.
19:02But again, as long as they're not dry, which when I write my book, wax paper.
19:06And you can take one page out and then I won't be offended.
19:11A book you can read.
19:13Yeah.
19:14I write it on rolling paper.
19:16Can I make a suggestion?
19:17I would suggest that it's possible that technology is actually making this phobia worse
19:22because you are now creating a world in which you have less exposure to this product that
19:27you don't care for.
19:28I agree with that.
19:29And now it's becoming even scarier to you.
19:32Uh-huh.
19:33Like, that book is, like, giving me hell right now.
19:35Yeah, the book.
19:36Cameron.
19:37Yeah, it's like in Jaws where you just barely ever see the shark.
19:40That's it.
19:41I've been kind of like...
19:42With the paper.
19:43Uh-huh.
19:44Yeah, you got to do something about that.
19:45I know.
19:46I'm working on it.
19:47Yeah.
19:48Okay, good.
19:49All right, good.
19:50I'm glad you're working on it.
19:51All right.
19:52We've started now.
19:53What?
19:54We've just started.
19:55Even talking about it.
19:56Well, you know what?
19:57Let's take a break now and I will keep...
19:58What a fulfilling segment we've done.
20:00Listen...
20:01James Cameron is going to be so happy with this interview.
20:03I'll tell you something.
20:04We just learned a lot about you.
20:05Yeah.
20:06We really did.
20:07We need to go to Pandora and skip the paper.
20:08We're going to go to Pandora when we come back.
20:10Miley Cyrus is here.
20:12We're back with Miley Cyrus, which rhymes with papyrus.
20:27Yeah.
20:28You've written a song for this huge motion picture.
20:33We know it's going to be huge.
20:34Yeah.
20:35We know before it even comes out.
20:37This Avatar, Fire and Ash.
20:39You've written a song called Dream as One, right?
20:42Dream as One, yeah.
20:43Dream as One.
20:44And I'm curious about that process because when you write, you have a director like Jim Cameron,
20:50who's obviously very hands-on.
20:52It takes him like 30 years to make a movie.
20:54Yeah.
20:55How does he call you and say, would you write a song?
20:58So, like the qualm with Christmas, I have one with James Cameron.
21:01Oh.
21:02Because he's been working on this movie for 20 years.
21:04Right.
21:05And he just remembered two months before it came out that there was no song for the credits.
21:10Really?
21:11Like, just a last minute, like, oopsie.
21:12Like, a 20 year in the making, oopsie.
21:15And so I, to rub it in, if you remember, I'm a Disney legend.
21:19Yeah, you are a Disney legend.
21:20Yeah.
21:21I know, I am not a Disney legend.
21:24So, and this is going to make you even more sick because last year, I believe I came here
21:30and I was, had just done the song with Jamie Lee Curtis for Pamela Anderson's movie, which
21:34I met her at the Disney Legends event because I said, if you ever need anything, let me know.
21:38And then I got a Golden Globe nomination.
21:40And then this time, James Cameron was there and I said, well, you know, let me know what
21:45you're working on.
21:46I knew what he was working on, but I was just trying to kind of wiggle myself into the Avatar
21:50universe.
21:51Right.
21:52And so I said, if you ever need a song, let me know.
21:53And then he needed a song.
21:54And he calls us legends in law.
21:57One day, you'll join the family.
21:59I don't know.
22:00I don't know.
22:01I don't think I will.
22:02I think I'm permanent.
22:03I will never be a Disney legend.
22:04I figured it out.
22:05No one has cost this company more money in the history.
22:08Yeah, you might have bought shit.
22:09Yeah, yeah.
22:10You were on your way.
22:11But you know what?
22:12You might be right, because speaking of the rolling papers, I smoked a joint when I had a
22:16Walmart deal and I thought they would come crawling back and they never did.
22:18I never worked with them again.
22:19They do.
22:20They don't like that.
22:21But Disney did pretty good.
22:22You're back.
22:23Yeah.
22:24So you get this call.
22:25We're happy he's back.
22:26And he says, I need this song.
22:28Yeah.
22:29I've got two months.
22:30I need this song.
22:31Yeah.
22:32Does he say, does he tell you what kind of song he wants?
22:35Well, Dream is One is a very kind of massive and very global title.
22:40And Avatar is loved all around the world.
22:43And when I think of we, I think of all of us.
22:46I think of, you know, that's me kind of talking to the world and creating us, you know, to all unify.
22:51And he also wanted the song to feel intimate and personal and emotional, which a title like We Dream is One to me felt so massive that it was really kind of a challenge to songwrite in something that I could make feel small.
23:05Because the instinct is to kind of go toe to toe with Avatar.
23:09But what I chose to do, which is I like to contradict everything and do the opposite of what you're supposed to do, was actually surrender to the scale of the film and make it something small.
23:19Because at the heart of James Cameron movies, it's really about relationships.
23:22And then when you are finished with the song, you have to do you go and play it for him?
23:27Do you send it to him?
23:28And are you nervous at that point?
23:30You know what?
23:31I wasn't nervous because I felt confident in what I had created.
23:35And I felt that with Avatar, Fire, and Ash, I've had my own experience with fire, losing my home, rebuilding again, starting over.
23:42I felt like I could, you know, really kind of use this song as a journal entry, but also be inspired by the movie, which I had seen and was very cool because I got the film actually projected into the studio.
23:56So I was recording in Pandora.
23:59I had all of the world actually immersed so I could really see all the colors and the creatures and be inspired by that.
24:06Are you sure it was projected or maybe you were rolling?
24:08Oh, I was sure.
24:09Yeah.
24:10Yeah.
24:11Or I ripped a page out of my memoir.
24:14Have you ever thought about recording a Christmas album?
24:18So, funny you should ask, I've never done an album.
24:21I did write a song one time and it was very niche.
24:24It was called a sad Christmas song.
24:26It was about being very sad on Christmas, which I think people lean more into the merry, joyful, bright, and gay.
24:34You think so?
24:35I don't know.
24:36Well, the fact you've asked me if I have a Christmas song, I know, like, it's niche.
24:39Like, no one knows I have a Christmas song.
24:40Okay.
24:41And, yeah, it didn't go, it didn't, it wasn't that hot.
24:45I think I got to do another round.
24:47You recorded it and you're like, I'm not gonna, no, I'm not gonna release it.
24:49Well, I put it out and the fact that no one here was like, yay, we love that song.
24:53Oh, I see.
24:54That shows.
24:55I see, I see.
24:56It was very niche.
24:57I think it has like 909 listens on YouTube.
25:00Well, maybe we'll have a, you know, resurgence.
25:03This is it.
25:04Yeah, hopefully.
25:05As a result of this, what, you know, you never know.
25:07The flop.
25:08The Christmas flop.
25:09But you would, you want to do a more upbeat Christmas song.
25:11I think that's more what people are looking for at the holiday time.
25:14Okay.
25:15All right.
25:16What would Jim Cameron want from you, Christmas song?
25:18Would he?
25:19Well, we'll know in 20 years when we're finished making it because I'm sure he'll go down to
25:23the bottom of the ocean, find some inspiration and come back with hopefully some nice waxed Christmas
25:28paper.
25:29One more question.
25:30What is the greatest original song ever written for a film?
25:34This one.
25:35For a film.
25:36Okay, yours aside.
25:37Okay, but this one doesn't count because the one I'm going to pick, I don't believe,
25:40well, I know it's not written for a film, but it's so iconic in a film, which is I Will
25:43Always Love You.
25:44Oh, yeah.
25:45Which is Whitney Houston.
25:46Dolly Parton.
25:47She wrote that song.
25:48And I thought of that song so much as I was writing this, because I love when a film
25:53and a song can be embedded in that way.
25:55You can't have one without the other.
25:56Right.
25:57That's a great answer.
25:58The correct answer is Power of Love by Huey Lewis and the News.
26:01But yours was really good, top three for sure.
26:04Definitely.
26:05Great to see you.
26:06Thank you, Jimmy.
26:07Good to see you.
26:08And listen to the song.
26:09It's called Dream As One.
26:10You can download it.
26:11You can buy it.
26:12You can listen to it.
26:13And Avatar, Fire and Ash comes out in the theaters on December 19th.
26:16Miley Cyrus, everybody, will be back with Cameron Crowe.
26:20Welcome back to Cameron Crowe and the Wainwrights are coming.
26:21But first, the holidays are on the way, and that means another season of boring office parties.
26:33Thankfully, Guillermo and our friends at Bailey's have a big idea to save you from small talk.
26:39This party's mid.
26:42Major mid.
26:43It does not slay the house down boots.
26:46I don't know what that means, but I agree.
26:49Cheer up, party people!
26:52It's me, Guillermo!
26:54The Bailey's bovine.
26:56Who invited a cow?
26:58Luther, he's my brother for another otter.
27:01Otter?
27:02I'm going to turn this lame office party around with a moon holiday tradition.
27:08Good luck.
27:09We don't need luck.
27:10We got cookies and cream.
27:14A Bailey's hot chocolate.
27:16A Bailey's chocolate martini.
27:18And this cookie is a slam dunk.
27:23Ooh.
27:24That's delicious.
27:25Thanks, Guillermo.
27:26Dunking is way more fun than talking.
27:29I'm Susan from HR.
27:30Oh, HR.
27:31I need to speak with you right now.
27:34About?
27:35About getting more Bailey's and cookies so this could be our yearly tradition.
27:39You saved this party for being a cow-tastrophe.
27:44Dunk your way into the holidays with Bailey's.
27:53Hi, welcome back to the show.
27:54We have music from the Wainwrights on the way.
27:56Our next guest was interviewing rock stars for Rolling Stone
27:59to the show.
28:00While his mom was still packing his lunch, he has given us many gifts since,
28:03including Show Me the Money, Almost Famous, and Jeff Spicoli.
28:07This is his memoir.
28:08It's called The Uncool.
28:09Please welcome Cameron Crowe.
28:11I'm really happy to have you here.
28:27I'm, like, I'm about halfway through the book so far, and I love it.
28:30It's so much fun to read.
28:32You write so well.
28:33And what a life you've had.
28:34Thanks, Jimmy.
28:35It's really remarkable.
28:36Tell everyone how old you were when you started as a published music writer.
28:4116.
28:4216 years old.
28:44It was a joyful journey that started early because I loved music.
28:51You loved music, and you happen to be a terrific writer, really, a child prodigy.
28:57I mean, I think I was, like, putting quarters into a Donkey Kong machine at that time.
29:03And you are traveling all over the world with these famous musicians,
29:07people you admire, people you don't admire as much.
29:11You are with your mom, who sounds like she was an amazing person, really.
29:16Like, your mom was incredible.
29:18Like a big character.
29:19Yeah.
29:20You know, in the family.
29:21And she was a very strict, passionate school teacher.
29:25And she just felt very simply that rock music was going to be the end of civilization.
29:30Now, did she, I'm curious, because did you think, did she feel like it was going to be the end of civilization?
29:35Or was she just worried about her son getting involved in it and getting involved in sex, drugs, and all that kind of stuff?
29:41Definitely that.
29:42Yeah.
29:43But brain cells, this was her issue, because rock music, drugs, promiscuous lifestyle stuff is, like, ultimately it's going to destroy brain cells,
29:52which is an attack against learning and intelligence, you know?
29:56So I was supposed to be a lawyer.
29:58My great-grandfather was, like, one of the oldest practicing lawyers in the country.
30:02And I was supposed to be part of that tradition.
30:04But I started wandering backstage and interviewing musicians, and this was, like, my passion, because it was such a joyful thing.
30:12And ultimately, your mother surrendered to that.
30:15In fact, one of the things she said that I thought was just unbelievable is after you'd gone to a bunch of concerts with her, because you were just a kid, you had to go with your mom.
30:23Yeah.
30:24She said something to the effect of you, that your music is better than ours.
30:30Yeah, it was an incredible victory, Jimmy, because I had won tickets to a couple of concerts that were in town.
30:38Calling a radio station.
30:39Calling a radio station.
30:40Yeah.
30:41Making, you know, like, calls that I made sure would get through on the right, you know, number of callers in.
30:45And I would, like, set it up so that the calls would happen in time and I would win these contests.
30:50So I could not buy tickets to go to the concerts because that was, you know, that was too dramatic for our family.
30:56So I would win tickets.
30:57I won tickets to go see Elvis and also Eric Clapton, Derek and the Dominos, the same week.
31:04And your mom loved Eric Clapton, as I recall.
31:09We went to see Elvis, who was kind of, like, crazily out of his mind in San Diego at this concert.
31:16He was doing...
31:17Your description of that concert is just...
31:19How old were you at that time?
31:2013.
31:21The amount of detail that you describe, it's really...
31:27How did you remember the set list, what he was wearing, the things he said?
31:32How do you remember all that stuff?
31:34Well, I just kept everything and made notes always as I was growing up.
31:38About everything.
31:39And Elvis' concert was wild because he was...
31:43He was barely singing, you know?
31:45He would be like, catch Obama.
31:47And then he would, like, sell scarves, kind of, you know?
31:50And then at one point, though, he did Bridge Over Troubled Water.
31:55And it was, like, a moment where you saw the genius of Elvis.
31:59And it was kind of, like, there for a moment, glimmering, and then gone.
32:03Later that week, we went to see Eric Clapton, and my mom was with me.
32:07My date.
32:08Oh.
32:09And a guy in the audience actually offered her cocaine.
32:12And she kind of pleasantly turned it down.
32:15But it was this kind of really powerful, passionate concert.
32:19There were people rioting outside.
32:21And when it was over, we were walking in the parking lot, and she said,
32:25I like your music better.
32:26Your music is better than ours.
32:27Are you sure she didn't take the cocaine?
32:29She might have.
32:30Yeah.
32:31She might have when I turned away.
32:32You mentioned Bridge Over Troubled Water.
32:35But your parents did not...
32:37You saw Simon Garfield go on television with your parents, and they didn't like it.
32:41Which is hard to believe for me, because they seem like a very parent-friendly band.
32:46Well, they were doing Mrs. Robinson.
32:50And Paul Simon was singing the lyrics, you know, Jesus loves you more than you will know.
32:56And my mom got it in her head that this was sacrilegious.
32:59And so she wrote a letter to the head of CBS and said, this is really out of line.
33:05This shouldn't be happening.
33:06This kind of music should not be on TV.
33:09And they wrote a letter back saying, we got your feedback.
33:12And for a while, my sister Cindy and I realized that there was no rock on TV.
33:16No rock on CBS and no rock on the Smothers Brothers show.
33:19And we were convinced that, like, my mother had stopped rock throughout the country as well.
33:24So this was something we had to...
33:27I like the idea of an executive reading a piece of paper.
33:29Someone's complaining that the artist sang, Jesus loves you more than you will know.
33:34I mean, that seems pretty positive to me, I guess.
33:37True.
33:38Were the artists that you interviewed tickled by the idea that you were a kid?
33:43Do you feel like that's part of why they agreed to talk to you?
33:46A little bit.
33:47You know, I was so interested in their music, you know, so they could tell that at a time
33:52when a lot of the older journalists didn't really know the music, I did.
33:56So they would talk to me and just spill their hearts out, you know?
34:00How long did you spend with David Bowie?
34:02David Bowie was really kind to me.
34:05And I was a young writer.
34:06And he said, look, I want you to learn how to be an artist as a writer.
34:12So hang around with me.
34:13Ask me whatever you want.
34:15Be with me in the studio and going to Soul Train and all that stuff.
34:19And at some point, you're going to hold up a mirror to me with your article that you write.
34:24And you're going to show me what you saw.
34:26And we spent a lot of time together.
34:28It was a wild time for him.
34:29He was kind of loose in L.A. and exploring different versions of satanic worship and things like that,
34:38which was a wild thing to see up close.
34:40But he also was a guy who would give me a ride home or to where I was staying because I didn't have a driver's license.
34:49And would be driving through the streets of L.A. in a yellow VW bug early in the morning after a session.
34:55And, you know, I'd look around and I'd see mothers bringing their kids to school and stuff.
35:00And I'd be like, look, it's David Bowie in this VW.
35:04But he was so wonderful.
35:06And I even met someone, a nurse, who I told him, like, I'm going to go out on a date with this person.
35:13And he said, bring her here.
35:15Let's spend some time with her.
35:16And he was very charming.
35:18And he had some strange symbols on the curtains.
35:21And, you know, the house was a little bit forbidding in a way.
35:26And he was very charming and really talked me up to this, to this, my date.
35:32But I never heard from her again.
35:34Really?
35:35Yeah.
35:36Wow, she was not impressed by David Bowie.
35:38It was not her world.
35:40It was not her world.
35:41You were offered drugs.
35:43I mean, I'm, you know, I'm in the book.
35:46And you've already been offered drugs by various rock stars, like, 25 times.
35:50You never got into any of that stuff.
35:52Why?
35:53What was it that...?
35:54I went with the brain cells thing.
35:56And also, it's like, if you're trying to, like, party with the bands and the people that you're interviewing,
36:01you don't get any work done.
36:03So I would collect these interviews and go back and just transcribe them and stuff.
36:08And I didn't take...
36:10I didn't...
36:11There are offers of drugs I didn't go for.
36:13Because also, it's just...
36:15You're crossing the line and you're not really doing your job.
36:18Yeah, right.
36:19And they like you for not taking their drugs, too.
36:21Yeah, right.
36:22I guess that would make sense, wouldn't it?
36:24You've become very popular.
36:25You wrote and directed many, many films, but among them, Almost Famous, which is one of the all-time greats, Jerry Maguire.
36:32And you wrote one of the best comedies of all, Fast Times at Ridgemont High.
36:42How old were you when you actually wrote that?
36:4522.
36:4622 years old.
36:47You put that together, which is mind-boggling.
36:50Your pal Sean Penn.
36:51Yeah, and Sean Penn, was he what you imagined Spicoli would be?
36:58That and more.
36:59He really just got deeply into portraying a guy that he knew from the beaches of Malibu.
37:06I thought when I wrote it, there weren't any kind of stoners that you'd really seen in culture.
37:11You'd seen them in life.
37:12Yeah.
37:13But writing it, I thought, well, you know, maybe you just get somebody that doesn't get the joke.
37:20But then Sean came along, who was this brilliant young actor who knew what to do.
37:24And he stayed in character the whole movie, asked us to call him Jeff.
37:28And then on the last day, he showed up in this corduroy jacket and said, I'm Sean.
37:33It was nice to meet you and great to work with you.
37:35And he had left this performance, Jimmy, that was just hilarious.
37:39It's one of the all-time great performances.
37:41And you brought something along, which I can't even believe this.
37:45Just tell us what this is, right?
37:47I know exactly what it is, but explain to the audience what this is.
37:50Well, because I keep everything, I wanted to show you that I also kept the cue card
37:56from the fake interview in Fast Times at Ridgemont High that he does where...
38:00With Stu Nahan.
38:01With Stu Nahan, that's right.
38:02Yeah, right.
38:03And, you know.
38:04And he used cue cards, huh?
38:06He did.
38:07They were right there by the camera, and he did it, but it was completely in Spicoli mode.
38:11And, you know.
38:12Danger is his business.
38:14Danger is his business.
38:15Yeah.
38:16Wow, that's unbelievable.
38:17Well, the book is unbelievable.
38:18There's so many great stories.
38:19Thanks, man.
38:20I mean, I...
38:21What a life.
38:22That's it.
38:23The Uncool by Cameron Crowe.
38:25It is out now.
38:26Thank you so much for being here, pal.
38:28We'll be back with the Wainwrights.
38:30The Wainwrights.
38:37I want to thank Miley Cyrus and Cameron Crowe.
38:40I want to apologize that Matt Damon ran out of time for him.
38:43Nightline is set for first.
38:44Tickets for their Hooray for Holidays benefit concert are on sale now.
38:48It is Saturday night.
38:49Here with the song, If We Make It Through December, The Wainwrights.
38:55If we make it through December, everything's gonna be alright, I know.
39:08It's the coldest time of winter, and I shiver when I see the falling snow.
39:20If we make it through December, got plans to be in a warmer town come summertime.
39:35Maybe even California.
39:40If we make it through December, we'll be fine.
39:48I've got laid off down at the factory.
39:54And their timing's not the greatest in the world.
40:01Heaven knows I've been working hard.
40:07Wanted Christmas to be right for daddy's girl.
40:14I don't mean to hate December.
40:20It's meant to be the happy time of year.
40:26And my little girl don't understand.
40:31Why daddy can't afford to have no Christmas here.
40:39If we make it through December, everything's gonna be alright, I know.
40:51It's the coldest time of winter.
40:57And I shiver when I see the falling snow.
41:03If we make it through December, got plans to be in a warmer town come summertime.
41:17Baby, even California.
41:23If we make it through December, we'll be fine.
41:31.
41:32.
41:37.
41:51.
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