Legendary Comedian, 83, Makes 89th Appearance on ‘The Tonight Show’ originally appeared on Parade.
Robert Klein is on his way to breaking a record on The Tonight Show!
The 83-year-old comedian and actor just marked his 89th appearance on the late night talk show, making him one of the most frequent guests in the show’s history. Klein first appeared on the show back in 1968 when Johnny Carson was hosting the show.
“My first Tonight Show was in this studio, January 19, 1968,” Klein shared on the show, now hosted by Jimmy Fallon. “My 89th. I was retired! Just when I was out, they pull you back in.”
Klein, who most recently appeared on The Tonight Show in 2018, was then thanked by Fallon for agreeing to return to the show.
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Since his first appearance in 1968, Klein has returned 88 other times through the years to perform standup and sit down with the different hosts. He even sat in as a guest host on a number of occasions.
Klein is among the ranks of other iconic actors and comedians who have appeared on the show dozens of times, including the late Bob Barker and Joan Rivers, who each took to the stage over 100 times.
Elsewhere in the interview, Klein recalled other moments at 30 Rock, the building where The Tonight Show is taped, including his appearance on the first season of Saturday Night Live. Looking back, Klein says he remembers telling producer Lorne Michaels that the show couldn’t be done live.
“I could never have known it would last 50 years. In fact, I gave Lorne the worst advice of all…I said, ‘You got to tape. You can’t do it live.’ Whomp, whomp, whomp. And it turned out to be fantastic,” Klein said.
You can hear all that Robert Klein had to say below.
Legendary Comedian, 83, Makes 89th Appearance on ‘The Tonight Show’ first appeared on Parade on Jul 24, 2025
This story was originally reported by Parade on Jul 24, 2025, where it first appeared.
