Louis C.K. was on Conan last week, (and all over your Facebook newsfeed, so sorry in advance for writing this) and not to sound like the gushy piece of garbage that I am, I have to admit - I, as a 26-year-old man, felt the same exact joy and giddiness while watching him on there that I remembered feeling when I would watch him as a guest on Late Night when I was a 12-year-old kid.

Obviously, Louis is a huge star now, known for his numerous stand-up specials and his Emmy award-winning television show. But back then I just knew him as that absurd stand-up comedian who I looked up to because not only was he telling silly jokes in clubs all over the country, but he also got to write comedy for a living for some of my favorite late night talk and sketch shows over the last couple decades. He was a guy who was respected by some of the most reputable comedians in both the stand-up and sketch community. It was the exact path and career that I wanted back when I started, and continues to be what I strive for to this very day.

Why am I saying all of this?

Well, because at the tail end of the interview on Conan last Thursday, there was a very sincere moment where Louis thanked Conan for giving him a chance back in ’93. At the time he was really desperate and was seriously going to quit comedy the night before. In a past interview, he actually even said he was about to “empty his brains out into a bathtub” until Robert Smigel, the first head writer on Late Night, called to hire him, thus obviously preventing him from doing so. For me, watching him take that moment to thank Conan was so beautiful and it reminded me to be grateful for all the help and advice that I’ve received so far in my short and not nearly as successful career. It made me think of all of those who even just took a couple minutes to share their wisdom with me when I was just starting out. “Who were some of those people?”

I sat there, thought about it and then it struck me. Holy shit. An insane realization washed over me.

One of the first people to ever directly give me real advice in comedy was Louis C.K. himself. Quickly, I ran to my computer and with the magic of the Internet, I was able to track down those exact pieces of advice and realized it should be mandatory reading for anyone who is getting into comedy. 

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