Adam Sandler Bombed His Opening Set for Seinfeld While His Parents Watched

"And then Seinfeld went on and it was fuckin' two hours of destruction"

Photo courtesy of Netflix

BY Alex HudsonPublished Feb 28, 2024

These days, Adam Sandler's comedy is 100% Fresh — but back in the day, he wasn't quite so consistent. The actor and comedian has reminisced about a time when he bombed miserably while opening for Jerry Seinfeld — and, to add insult to injury, it was a rare time when his parents were there watching.

Sandler's mom Judy has rarely watched her son perform because he curses too much during performances, but Sandler invited his parents to watch him open for Seinfeld in Boston because it was a clean set.

"They were so excited," Sandler said on the latest episode of Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend. "I said, 'I'm doing 15 minutes before he goes on, if you guys want to come, 'cause I'm not allowed to curse.'"

Unfortunately, it didn't go well. Sandler recalled, "They both came, and because it was a clean set, I wasn't used to it, and I fuckin' ate it for 15 minutes. My poor parents were watching me just fail miserably, and then Seinfeld went on and it was fuckin' two hours of destruction. The whole car ride home it was like, 'And how about when he said...' And I was like, 'Yes, that was very good!' And my mother's like, 'You'll get there, you'll get there.'"

It's unclear exactly when this incident happened, but it seemed to be early in Sandler's career. Stanley died in 2003, so it was before then.

Hear Sandler on Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend below. He also spoke about being too nervous to speak to Paul McCartney because Ringo Starr was there.

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