- Whenever somebody asks me how you are in real life, I always say, you're the nicest person in comedy, which is a lie, of course.

I was just thinking about like your mentors and like, who you looked up to when you were a younger comic.

- My mentors, when I first started were men who would say, "Don't talk about stuff that's just a woman's experience, because the audience, they're on dates, and the women don't laugh unless the men laugh.

So really, your whole job is to make the men laugh."

And it took me a while to realize they're idiots.

- Right.

Do you remember any jokes from your very first set?

- When I started out, I was kind of like, "I talk like this.

I don't know why my goldfish died.

I put it in a tank."

Dot, dot, dot.

Top.

- I feel like that would've killed.

- I don't have my glasses on, but this might be a masterpiece.

- [Mo] Do you do any celebrity impressions?

- I do De Niro and I've been told that it's terrible and I just can't believe it because like inside my face, it feels dead on.

Okay, ready?

It's like this.

- I'm sorry, I just thought I was interviewing De Niro.

- Really?

- Yeah.

- Oh, and also I do Nev Campbell.

It's also no words, it's just this.

- I used to do an impression of Roseanne.

It was Roseanne, auditioning for Joe Pesci's part in "Goodfellas."

- Brilliant.

- She'd be like, "Funny how?

Funny like a clown?

Ha, ha, ha, ha."

- That's really good.

- You like that?

Does that turn you on?

- Oh my god.

Aw.

No, but I love it.

- Okay, I'm gonna name some artists.

First word that comes to mind.

- Okay.

- Frida Kahlo.

- Eyebrow.

Sorry.

- That is correct.

Banksy.

- Coward.

No, I love Banksy.

I just, 'cause he's hidden.

- I'm gonna show you a photo of someone.

What do you think this person did the night after getting this photo taken?

- That blazer was, whoever the photographer was, is a man's blazer.

He's like, "Well you're gonna need a business shot."

- What did this version of Sarah want out of life?

- [Sarah] That was like my headshot when I first passed at the comic strip.

I was 19.

I was sweet, too.

I was sweet and I just loved this new, adult thing I was a part of.

Where'd you find that?

Is that online?

- Yeah.

Everything's online.

- Please don't be offended by what this becomes.

- I won't.

I just know that you really see me in a way that other people don't.

- Yeah, this is exactly how I see you.

- My daughter, when she draws you, like when kids draw you, you are like, all of your flaws are brought to the surface where you're like, "I thought I covered that up.

I thought that part of me was no longer there."

And it's like, no, your child sees you for who you are.

We both made our late night debuts on Conan.

Is that your first late night appearance?

- Yes.

- [Mo] Yeah.

- And let's see, let's see how close they were.

We'll say the year on one, two, three.

Okay?

- Okay.

- One, two, three.

1993.

- 2017.

Did you ever do standup on a late night show?

- Letterman.

- A five minute?

How was that?

- It was a dream come true.

- [Mo] Yeah.

- It was funny though because I do my set and I'm so psyched with it, and I don't know Letterman, and he comes over and he shakes my hand and he whispers something to me, like you see them do.

And what he said was, "This crowd sucks."

And of course, I take it like, "Did I bomb?

I thought I did well."

But no, he did the monologue he wasn't happy with it and he was commiserated.

- Like, as a comic.

- But it was his experience.

It wasn't my experience.

And it's just interesting because now of course, I see he's a human being who, you know, was like, in his head about the crowd.

You know?

- I love the impressions that you do of your parents.

- It's so fun to do my dad because that's all I do when I would be around him is like, you just talk like him for the next few days 'cause it's so fun.

Like that Boston accent, you know?

- I love his accent.

I love, I love.

- Did you meet my dad?

- I don't think I ever met him.

- And now he's dead and it's too late.

Whatever.

- Well, I mean I can go visit him.

- He's at the Jewish cemetery.

It's funny, when we went to scope out the cemetery, they're all flat, which is very nice.

They're flat stones, and some of them have pictures and some of them have like, color pictures.

And when we went, I was like, those color pictures look so tacky.

They're like, color pictures on a tombstone.

And then when it was time, we were like, "Color picture!

Color picture."

And it's like this picture of them at my dad's favorite diner, the airport diner in Manchester, New Hampshire.

And they always give them a hat, like a diner, like a cook hat.

- [Mo] Yes.

- When did your parents get a divorce?

- Oh, my mom and my dad divorced when I was like, six and a half.

- So there was a time where your mom and dad were gonna be buried next to each other and then.

- Oh my god.

- Yeah, I know.

- I have no memory while they were married of them even like, smiling at each other.

Just fighting, fighting, fighting.

And I remember playing on my best friend, Julie Blinkensop's, driveway and she was like, "I'm gonna get married and I'm gonna have kids and when I'm married."

And I remember thinking and saying like, "Why would wanna get married?

Like, why would you wanna hate someone that much?"

I just thought that's what it was.

- That was like your idea of marriage.

- Yeah, and then they both fell in love with like, their soulmates.

And then I got to see what marriage could be.

- Oh, I love that.

- But I still don't wanna get married.

- Okay, you say something really profound in your special that has made many of us cry, which is, there's like never a time where you don't need your parents.

When I'm sick, it's like, I want my mom.

- It's all I say.

When I'm sick or anytime I'm sad, I go, "I want my mom."

And the funny thing is, she was good in emergencies, but besides that, not the best.

- My wife always wants her mom when she's sick, which is funny 'cause I'm right there, and I actually think I'm pretty nurturing.

- Well I'm trying to teach Rory, and he's really learning like, it's so cool that like when something's wrong or I'm sad or anything, there's nothing to fix.

He just has to say, "Oh baby, I'm sorry.

Is there anything I can do?"

And honestly, that's it.

I go, "No, that made me feel better," you know?

He goes, "But that's so easy."

I go, "Yeah, but it's everything."

Oh, I just made a mistake.

- There are no mistakes in art.

- I didn't mean to do it!

- Did you draw as a child?

- I doodled.

- What about art class in school?

Where were you ranked?

- Low.

Low.

- Did your parents do art?

- My mother.

My mother is an incredible artist.

She could do anything, any medium, every medium.

Our house is just filled with her art.

One is just a black and white photograph like of my father's face.

And I looked on the back and it said, "Happy 11th birthday, Sarah."

I was like, that's what she gave me for my 11th birthday.

- So I watched your special and I think it's a masterclass of making you feel something and laughing the entire time.

I have such a clear vision of who they are and what they sound like.

I also, not to bring it back to me, but I also did a special called "Dad Jokes."

- "Dad Jokes."

Brilliant.

- When I was doing dad jokes, there was a part of me that I had to fight that was like, "Am I going too personal?

Am I lik, talking about this person that's not me for too long?"

- No way.

- [Mo] And like, also with, when you're dealing with heavy subjects, how much time do you think has to go by before you can make it funny?

- 40 years.

- That is correct.

- Laughing, my whole family's funny and my sister's real funny.

- [Mo] Right.

It was a necessity.

You know, it was survival.

But I mean, it got so dark and I didn't include this, but dad died on my sister Susie's 60th birthday and before he died, you're literally hearing his like, those breaths, you know, she videotaped herself sitting next to his bed and he's just like, .

And she just goes, "Happy birthday to me."

I mean, it was just for us.

- Did you try that on stage?

- No.

- Obviously you're, for some reason, very nice to young comics, and do they come up to you and ask for advice?

Like do you have any advice for younger comics that might be watching PBS at this hour?

- Get your 10,000 hours in.

Like, just have a blast.

And just for me, I didn't have to think about focusing on comedy, 'cause it's all I thought about all the time ever.

I was at comedy clubs every night, seeing if I can get on.

That was my joy.

It's all I wanted to do.

It's always a mistake, I think when comics go, "I've gotta get like an agent out to see me," 'cause things can happen too soon.

They really can't happen too late.

Just focus on getting funny, getting closer to who you are, figuring out, I mean, there's some soul searching there, if you let it.

Underneath it all, what must transcend is that you have this under control to let the audience know that they are in a professional's hands because then they can relax and it's better for everyone.

- Okay, now it's time for the big reveal.

You get to see how I see you and I get to see how you see me.

- Wow!

I love it.

I like my mouth and my eyes.

It's very signature Mo.

- I don't know how to do real bodies.

- I think that looks exactly like my real body.

I went literal, and just did the best I could.

As you know, I'm not a professional painter.

- Yes.

Wait, I love this!

I was expecting something completely different.

This is amazing.

I love this.

Sarah, I feel like this is really artistic.

When you said no art, I was expecting what my daughter would make.

This is so good.

- Your daughter couldn't do this in a hundred years.

- Yeah.

She wishes!

Thank you so much.

- Thank you.

- Look at that.

That's an original.