The Daily Show: Ears Edition - Samuel L. Jackson's Best TDS Moments

Episode Date: October 6, 2023

Frequent Daily Show guest Samuel L. Jackson sits with Jon to talk about the one time he got caught in a subway car, the fun behind filming with special effects, and how he keeps track of the movies he's been in over the years. He also sits with Trevor to discuss what it felt like to retrace his roots back to Gabon, Africa.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hey everybody, John Stewart here. I am here to tell you about my new podcast, the weekly show. It's going to be coming out every Thursday. So exciting. You'll be saying to yourself, TGID. Thank God it's Thursday. We're going to be talking about all the things that hopefully obsess you in the same way that they obsess me. The election. Economics. Earnings calls. What are they talking about on these earnings calls? We're going to be talking about ingredient to bread ratio on sandwiches. And I know that I listed that fourth, but in importance it's probably second. I know you have a lot of options as far as podcasts go, but how many of them come out on Thursday?

I mean, talk about innovative. Listen to the weekly show with John Stewart, wherever you get your podcast. You're listening to Comedy Central. My guest tonight, a fine, fine actor whose films include pulp fiction, Jackie Brown. His latest is Changing Lanes. Please welcome Sammy Will L. Jackson. No, no, don't do it. What happened? Oh, man. Yes, I'm doing the Google Doll sitting with their feet up here, man. My mom was like, lose her mind if she saw a guy sitting on a sofa with them. They had their feet up.

I can't do that. No, it's true. It's very true. I just have to inform our viewers. The goo goo dolls did th th th thol- thtie thtie thtie, thtie, thtie, thtie, thtow, thtow, thtow, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, that, that, that, thi, thi, that, tho, their to their their their their their, their, their, their, the the the the the the the tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, thi, tho, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, to to to to to to toooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. tho, tho, inform our viewers, the Goo Goo-Dolls did put their feet up on a different show. Well, I mean, well, yeah, and I was watching that show. Yes, yes! Boom! You're a big fan. I'm a big fan.

And I know that nobody moved the cushions and my mom wants me to wear these pants twice. Exactly. You know what's the worst part of the under there. It's not even like, did you see that when you looked? Oh, I thought that was part of the design. No, that's, yes it is when you're on cable. It is part of the design, but that's designer plywood, come on. Who's that guy that uses wood and all his furniture things? Uh, that's a, yeah, so. Yeah, so... Are you a handy guy? Can you do, are you good with like the power tools, do you build stuff?

Do you do any of that stuff? Not anymore. I did for a long time. Did you really? Yeah, because I built sets when I was doing theater. Yeah, because I built sets when I was doing the theater theat. That was one of the jobs theater job. I built sets and I hung lights and I did all this stuff. So I did it and I made. So you really know it from the inside out.

I mean, you paid the dues doing set design and building stuff. Set building. I didn't design. I had hammers, nails, drills. Yeah. I like to say that. I did designthat. Yeah well I had a job sort of like that in college actually put food on airplanes. Like on the cart?

Well I drove the truck from the kitchens out to the plane and put the food in the shelves and put the things on it we eat when we fly. I would pay to be the the the the th. I th. I the th. I th. I the th the th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th. I th. I th. I th. I thin thin thin sort thin sort sort thin sort sort thin thin thin like the the the th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I had th. I had th. I had the the the the the the the the th. I had the the. I had the. I had the. I had the the to tote tote tode today today today today the the the the the the the the the. I would pay to be able to do that. Really? That seems like the coolest job, the guy with the headphones, who comes out with the... We used to race like the other guys from the airlines to the plane so that whoever got to the liquor cabinet first got the liquor. This is everyone's fear when they fly, is that that's what's going on? That those guys are racing. I would imagine that that like that the Zamboni like the bone is a cool job Yeah, I don't you think you know they'll let you there's a Zamboni school That you can I'm not kidding around it's a fantasy camp and you get to go I saw it when I watched the now You're looking at me like I'm a crazy man no no no I might want to be there. I might want to be the the zamboni. I'm I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might the I might I might the I might want I might want I might might the I might might might the I might might the I might might the I might might might the I might the I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might I might the I might the I might the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the I might the Yeah, yeah. I've always wanted to drive the Zamboni, but I'm not a cold weather guy, so I never... Well, neither am I, but you know, you're driving the Zamboni inside somewhere that's relatively, I guess, temperate. And I would assume that there's a heater on the zambone. Well, that'd have the heater, a tapedackle, you know, a ta, a their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their, their. their. their. their. their. their. their. th. their. their. th. th. their, you're th. th. th. their, you're their, you're their, you're their, you're their, you're their, you's a their, you's a their, you's a their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. thr. thr. thr. thr. tr. tr. tr. tr. tr. tr. tr. tr.a. tr.a. tri.a. tri. tri.a. tractors with like headphones on, like rocking out.

When you're driving down the highway, you see a dude with a big thing on the front of the thing doing the whole wheat thing and these dudes are rocking out. There's nothing else to do out there. Those are the guys that worry me. Why? Because when you're driving through the middle of the country and you see the guys, you know, you, you, you, you, you, I mean? Nothing to think about, but destruction. Well, you do say, I'm on the- No, some of them may be listening to books on tape now. All right, I'll give you that. Nice to see it.

Thank you very much. You look well? I'm feeling well. Oh, yeah? Yeah, great. Just, incredible. You've been playing a little golf? You've been getting some exercise? Not a lot of golf. I've been playing, you know, a minimum amount. I had a little back surgery right after SWAT. You're kidding? Yeah, I had a cyst on my sciatic nerve. So right toward the end of the picture I was in like enormous pain. I feel like now I have to have. I just caught one. I got a thrown. I feel like the today. I've that. I've that. I've the that. I've a little the that. I've a little that. I've a little the the that. I've a little that. the that. that. their their that. their that. their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their little back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back back. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm a little. I'm. I'm. I'm a little. I'm. I'm a little. I'm a little. I've. I've. I've. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. S. that in my life. Terrible, terrible pain. Are you scared going in? Is this, have you ever had an operation before? I had knee surgery way back when I got dragged by the A-train back in like 1990. So, uh, so uh...

So, uh, I once tri dragged by the A train. Yeah, way back in 90. I was getting off the train. It was like maybe a week before Christmas or something and the lady in front of me had some shopping bags and they tore something. And I stopped. I did a very un-New York-like thing. I stopped pick up her stuff and apparently I had one foot in the train and one on the platform and the doors closed on my ankle and I looked up the track and you know I heard

that faithful eh eh and the next thing I knew the train was moving and I'm hopping along. Train built up speed and took off and fortunately I was in the middle of the last car. So I was being dragged along the platform, kind of dodging the poles, and a backpack on. And somebody pulled the emergency cord. The train was a car and a half from the tunnel. Oh my God. And it wasn't until I got to court like eight months later, a year or so later, that I found out the reason it took took took took took took took took took took took took took took took took took to to to to to to to to to to to to the to to the the the the the the. And the.. And the the. And the. And the. And the. And their. And somebody their. And somebody their. And somebody. And somebody. And their. And their. And their. And their. And I was their. And their. And their. And their. And their.. And their. And their. And their. And their. And their. And th. And thi. And thi. And thi. And took. And took. And took. And so took, toda. And somebody took today, today, today, today, and tha. And somebody somebody tha. And somebody their their their their their took so long, the guy that pulled a cord was on crutches. So he was like crutching his way toward the emergency cord.

And that was like, people in the door, pulling on the door, guys were trying to get my shoe off, push my foot out the door. And making long story short, it wrenched my knee all the way around and ripped everything. That's incredible. That's incredible. That's incredible. That's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's the the the the that's the that's that's incredible. That's incredible. That's incredible. That's incredible. That's incredible. That's incredible. That's incredible. That's incredible. I was incredible. I was incredible. the the the the the that's that's the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th. I was like. I was like. I was like. I was like. I was like. I was things. People was like. People was things. People was things. People was like. People was like. People's th. People's th. People's th. People's th. People's incredible thing, yeah. It was all right. That's a wild. That's a wildest subway story that I've ever heard from somebody who's still living. Well, my lawyer, well, yeah. Well, strangely enough, when my lawyer did the research, I was only one of 27 people dragged that year.

So it's a pretty common occurrence. We're dragging two people a month here in the city. That's insane. Yeah, it happens all the time. Is that why you think the guy on crutches this one? Here we go. Yeah, right. Another one. I gotta save somebody else. There we go. There we go. That is a time. Have you ever been back on the subway? Yeah, I ride the subway all the time. It's a much more efficient way to get where you're going, especially during rush hour or whatever. And plus, you know, I ride the subway and people don't think it's me. It's kind of like, you know who you look like?

You know who you look like? Yeah, but he wouldn't be in the subway, right? He'd be in a limo. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Does anybody ever come up and give you the night? I'm not going to blow your car. I'm not going to bust you out, but I know it was you. I know it was you.

I saw you get dragged down here one night. Yeah, right. Exactly. Yeah. But now, does that still bother you? I mean the back and the thing when you're playing the golf because I know you're pretty much. I'm fully recovered from that. You know, the golf things like totally cool now. Right. I've been playing. I'm playing.

I'm back playing again. I in Australia a few weeks ago because I was there finishing Star Wars? Yeah. There's still not done with that film? There's one more. There's one more. There's one more. There's one more. What happens? What? What happens? Yeah, there's one more? What? There's one more? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There's one? There? There? There? There? There? There. There's one? There's one? There? There. There? There? There. There. There? There? There. There? There? There? There? There? There? There? There? There? There? There? There? There? There? There? There? There? there? there? there? there? there? there? there? there? there? there? there? there? there? there? there? there? there? there? there? there? the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th. happens in this one? Episode 3? I'm not going to tell you if you don't know. Here's what I think happens. What do you think happens? Okay. Yoda loses his virginity. I don't know if that's, could that happen? Yodas got kids all over the universe. Hmm, f-f' me you will.

I've heard him say that. I've standing th- I. Just as I was getting ready to go in, I heard him. You're standing there about the knock on the day, you get, like that do you? Hey, that's what's coming out of his trailer? Like that, do you? Yeah. I am here to tell you about my new podcast, The Weekly Show, it's going to be coming out every Thursday. So exciting. You'll be saying to yourself, TGID, thank God it's Thursday. We're going to be talking about all the things that hopefully obsess you in the same way that they

obsess me. The election. Economics. Earnings calls. What are they talking about on these earnings calls? We're going to be talking about ingredient to bread ratio on sandwiches. And I know that I listed that fourth, but in importance it's probably second. I know you have a lot of options as far as podcasts go, but how many of them come out on Thursday? I mean, talk about innovative. Listen to the weekly show with John Stewart, wherever you get your podcast. Now this film, Coach Carter, how are you in terms of the athleticism of the sport of basketball? Are you a player? I know you're a golfer. But I know your knee is a little jacked up.

I stopped playing basketball, I don't know, maybe 10, 12 years ago when my knee really got jacked up and I couldn't move laterally, so I don't like getting served. So only golf now. Yeah golf is golf is a major sport I play a little tennis every now and then. Tennis. I don't like running but I'll do it. So you do like sort of a more stationary version of tennis. I like playing double so I don't have to run as much. May I suggest something? What? Ping pong? I got an awesome ping pong. I can play some ping pong. Yeah, I don't like to to to to to to to to to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the thoom. I thoom. I thoom. I the th. I the the the th. I th. I the the the the the the the the the the th. I the th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I thin. I thin. I thin. I thin. I thin. I thin. I the. I the. I te. I te. I don't like like like like like like like tea. I tean. I tean. I te. I te. I te. I te. I te. I ping pong game. I can play some ping pong. I don't like to stand like 40 feet off the table and ah, ah, ah, you know. I like to be right up on the table, calmly playing with the boys and every now and then kind of k-gik-ah, you know, give it all, you know. The old YMCA ping-pong.

Set up in the cup, everyone has to drink. Have you ever played that type of thing? That sounds like another game, but it works. It's not as athletic? The game doesn't last as long, and by the time you get to 21, someone has to be taken to the hospital. Exactly. That's a good news. It's the badassery of Samuel Jackson. More and more.

These films, these characters have been around for 50 years, 60 years. Yeah. Yeah, I mean, Nick Fury was around when I was a kid. I used to read Nick Fury comic book, you know, he was a white guy with a cigar and a patch. Yes. But then he became David Hassahaw for a while and then he became me. So the evolution of Nick fury cuury th fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu fu. I I I th. I th. I th. I th. th. th. th. th. Well th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th more th more th. More th more th. More th. More th more more more more more more more more more more more more more more more more more more more th. More more th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More th. More thi. thi. thi. thi. than than than than than than than than than than than than than than thi. Thank thi. thi. thi. thi. More thi. But then he became David Hazelhoff for a while and then he became me. So the evolution of Nick Fury continues. It does indeed. And may I say, it's been upgraded. I believe, I believe the Samuel Jackson was upgraded.

I like to feel that way too. But I almost wonder, you know, they were never able, the technology of movies was never at the advanced level that it that it that it that it that it that it that it that it that it is that it is that it level that it is now that these superheroes could on screen really appear realistic and you could get the jolt. I wonder if that's why it's only now that these movies are so big. I think part of it is the technology, and I also think part of it is the accessibility of what we're able to do as real people now. You know, when I was a kid, I would read a comic book and I would want to be to be to be to be to be the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the accessibility of what we're able to do as real people now. You know, when I was a kid, I would read a comic book and I would want to be in a world where, you know, there were women walking around in tights with green hair and blue hair and

folks had capes on and they were wearing boots. They call that San Francisco, I believe back that. Oh yeah, exactly. And now, you know, we have all that all that and people th. th. walking around talking on things and they're looking at stuff on the little devices. So it's all very real for us. The only thing missing is this cat that actually flies. Yes. You know, they land somewhere. You know, and he's probably out there somewhere just, you know, waiting to come out. I believe that's. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. the th. the the th. the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th. th. th. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. the the the the the the the great Asimov and Wells and all the great

sort of fiction writers and science fiction writers and they see something like that in a comic script and go I bet I could make that. Yeah you know I that they're taking their cues almost from the imaginations of a guy like Stanley. Well there's that and you know there's also the fact that I used to dream I could breathe underwater you know all that kind th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th that thi that that that that thi thi the the the the the the the the the the the the their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. I'm their. I their. I their. I'm their their their their te. I te. I te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te used to dream I could fly. I used to dream I could breathe underwater, you know, and all that kind of stuff. And I wanted to do it really badly, you know. And now, you know, I put on that costume and I fall into that Marvel playground.

I'm like, I'm in heaven. Yeah. Yeah, it's like, ha ha! This is happening. I put my eye patch on and I walk out there and I and I and I and I and I and I and I and I and I and I and I and I'm, man. And they create it realistically, you know, in the old days, the superhero, like Hulk, they just find the biggest guy they could and paint him green. And that would be, yeah.

Yeah. But the effects now and everything else that surrounds it. Is it when you're making it? Is it tedious? Is it, do you feel excitement? or is it just you in Spandex in front of like a green flat and they're just like, now the monster's coming. Like, in the beginning, you sort of felt that way. Back when I first started doing Star Wars, it was just a big green room and we had some

things in there. And then, you know, I have my lightsaber and George will say, okay, there's this thing attacking you. And I go, how big is it? It's as big as an SUV. I go, really? And how fast is it? He says, as fast as you want it to be. So I'm like, so I can do anything I want. And you'll draw stuff around me. He said, you kick all the ass you want.

And we will make sure it looks like you're the baddest motherf-hick in the universe. So I'm back in my room. I love it. I got my music going and my head. I'm like, da da da da da da da. I'm jumping and running. And then all of a sudden, when I go to the movies, it's like, yeah.

Amazing. Yeah, yeah. So yeah, it's all that. And, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I th. I, I, I, I, I I, I I, I I I I I I, I I, I I, I, I I, I. I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I'm th. I'm th. I'm back. I'm back. I'm back, I'm back, I'm back, I'm back, I'm back, I'm back, I'm back, I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. I'm th. of a sudden when I go to the movies, it's like, F. Yeah. Amazing. Look at me. Yeah, yeah. So yeah, it's all that and more. But when you're doing like that car chase, yeah, yeah. We had like. But that looks actually dangerous. Like, are you? Well, we had like 12 cars that all did different shit. So when you see the movie movie movie. the movie. the it's like 19 guys firing bullets at it.

Right. The windows are just resisting the bullets and I'm just sitting in the car like, Yeah. And that's like a dope-ass feeling. Yeah, you're sitting there like, yeah, my mo, f'c. And you're just in the car, you know, and then it's awesome. And we were shooting in Cleveland, so we're on the streets of Cleveland. So we're on the streets of Cleveland. People in the office buildings like ****? the t to the tooes.

John Stewart here. Unbelievably exciting news. My new podcast, the weekly show. We're going to be talking about the election. Economics, ingredient to bread ratio on sandwiches. Listen to the weekly show with John Stewart wherever you get your podcast. Welcome to the show. Thanks so much. Yeah.

You are a bona fide legend, sir. You are truly just the epitome of not just hard work, but like talent, paying off, inspiring people in every way, shape or form. Been in more than 150 movies, some of the greatest movies of all time. And I was shocked to find out that shocked to find out, that you had never produced anything with your production company, with your wife. And I was like, I couldn't believe that this docu series that we're talking about today was the first thing that you're producing.

And I was like, man, it has to be special series, it's a personal series. Tell me a little bit about it. When they came to me with the idea, it was about, you know, finding these ships that had gone down, captured Africans on them that didn't make it. And, you know, in my mind, I was like, okay, this is going to be dope. You know, we get some divers, and maybe I can die with them, you know, we get some divers and maybe I can die with them, you know, and go down and we'll find, you know, skeletons with shackles still on them and stuff like that. And then combined with finding my ancestry and going into ancestry.com and finding out that I

was tribally connected to the Binga tribe in Gabon, and there was a lot of the traffic that came through there. And what happened, it was a way way for to me to me to me to me to me to me to me the way for the way for the way for the way for the way for the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way their their their their a lot of the traffic that came through there and what happened. It was a way for me to reconnect with my identity in that particular way and to tell a story that we never talk about, the people that didn't make it. And what happened and how those people still profited from those people that did not make it. They didn't make it to wherever they were going here, Brazil, or the West Indies to work, but they still get money from these people's bodies being stolen from this particular place. And it was a chance for me to do something, which is so crazy in my mind when I think about it

when people would ask me had I been to Africa and I'd say well yeah and they said well what you been I said well I've been in Cape Town I've been Johannesburg and I've been to Morocco and Egypt and then oh you haven't been to Africa oh yeah it's fine it's funny you haven't been the rural Africa I'm like what you're talking about? So I got to go to Gabon and hang out there. One thing I've never taken for granted. When I talk to some of my friends, African Americans who say, man, Trevor, being stolen from your cultural identity is such a,

you know, there's a piece that you don't even realize is missing in just the story that you tell yourself about yourself. I wonder what that that that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that was that's that's that's that's that's that's that's. I'm that's. I was. I was. I was. that's. I was. I was. I was. I that's. I that's. I that's. I that's. I. I that's. I. I that's. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. that's. that's. that's. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. th. th. th. th. th. th. to to toeeean. toean. toean. toean. to to to to th. to th. th you going back to a place where you didn't only go I'm from here, like my lineage is from here, but they said no, you are a lost son of this tribe. What did that feel like for you? Wow. It was, you know, spiritually uplifting, to connect with the tribe and to look down and see my relatives in a real sense of faces that I knew or you know and understand and to be welcomed by some people that looked at me in a different kind of way like come home. And I'm there with these people and I'm looking at them and they're so open, they're so welcome

and the ceremony itself to participate in that and to look in these people's eyes and see that, you know, they really are, they're as proud of me leaving or what happened when I left as I am of being there with them and saying I'm glad to be back here and be fulfilled by what this actually means to connect with something that gives me a tangible connection to the continent. Occasionally a lot of times when we were shooting this thing, when people started asking you how you feel, will you feel this way or do you feel that way? And it's like, I don't want you defining what I feel because sometimes it's survivor's remorse. You know, that had that not happened,

I wouldn't have reached this place that I reached here that allowed me to come back and tell this story. You know, what would have happened had I never, you know, had my ancestors never been taken from that place and I was brought here. So you feel a different kind of responsibility because you did achieve what you achieve despite what this country is. And you are able to come back and hopefully encourage or tell a story that makes somebody want to go and see it for themselves. You are somebody who has not just created history, but you've lived through history, and

I really like that you say telling those stories, you know, reading through your story, I was amazed at how much you've lived through. Everyone focuses on your movies, but I look at the world that you know, reading through your story, I was amazed at how much you've lived through. Everyone focuses on your movies, but I look at the world that you've lived in. It's been like a movie. For instance, I didn't know that Samuel L. Jackson grew up with a stutter, you know? I didn't know that I didn't know that about you. Yeah, if I tried to try it fast, it comes back. Right, and I also also also also also also didn't to to to to to to to to th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi. thi. thi. thi. thathea. thi. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the world. the world. the world. the world. the world. the world. the world. the world. the world. the world. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thee. the. the. the. the. the. thea. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. you correct me this wrong, I didn't know that sometimes you would use the word mother-fix to just like get your mouth moving. Yeah, to just center myself and stop. You see, like, there's so many things about you that I didn't know.

I didn't know, for instance, that you went protests and a lot of who you are has been shaped by that time. When you look at those protests back then and you look at the protests that are happening now, and you look at the journey that black Americans and black America has been on for such a long time with its government, I wonder if you, if you've seen something that gives you a glimpse of hope. Well, there's an evolution of, you know, protests when you look at it. When I was a kid, I grew up in basically American apartheid. I was in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and, you know, there were places I couldn't go. All my schoolmates were black. I didn't interact with white people unless I went downtown. And when the civil rights movement began or the sit-in started, my parents and grandparents

were like terrified that I was going to go down there and get killed. But I was too young to go anyway. But the time I got to college at Morehouse College in Atlanta, I started to meet and see and talk to people from SNCC, from SCLC, and I can make a differentiation about which idea I like. And all of a sudden I had an ideology and the war started, so that was the anti-war protests.

Right, right. But I didn't know anything about the war, and the first Vietnam veterans I met were students. They had more guys who had been in the war and they came back. And they had hair like yours and we were like, I had these black fists that they had made out of the cords and they started talking about the war and what was happening and I had a cousin who's the same age as I was who went to the army and got killed and all of a sudden the war for me. So I was in the streets for that, the anti-war protest.

And the things that were going on, we understood them and we could watch the old protest when they stick dogs on people and hitting them with firehoses and all this stuff, people were going, wow, this is America. And we're like, yeah, this is America. It's like us watching the apartheid, you know, protests. Right, right. I met guys from South Africa came to Morehouse and they were at, they were my classmates. So we learned more about apartheid because we had a personal

connection to talk to people about it. So we understood that, oh, it ain't just happening in us. It's some worldwide shit happening here. I'm sorry. So all of a sudden it's like, okay, so we're brothers in arms and everybody trying to, you know, get free from these shackles that everybody's got on us that try to keep us down because they wanted, they want to keep the things. We started to understand that, you know, change, change doesn't happen without, you know, th.... th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. th. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. So, th. So, th. So th. So, th. So, th. So, th. So th. So th. So, th. So, th. So, th. So, thi. So, thi. So, theee. So, theee. So, to to to to to theea. So, theea. So, thi. So, thi. So, thi. So things. We started to understand that, you know, change, change doesn't happen without, you know, pain. And when I look at these kids today, I am so proud of them, number one. But what we need to understand and press on them is they're using your militancy

to say to make the dominant culture afraid of you. You are part of the dominant culture. So you need to go home and tell your parents, your parents know that you're not dangerous. So you have to convince your parents to go out and tell these other parents that no, they're not dangerous. They're just trying to assert themselves and make the world a better place for them because they're going to inherit it. And this is what they need and this is what we need to do to support them. So they need to like, you know, I'm not saying pull it back. All I'm saying is get those other people to prop you up in another way.

And don't forget to go vote. You gotta understand how a revolutionary act voting is. You can't just let their go, all that, I don't mean nothing. So we can go out here and do this. No, man, go vote. You know, you got to get ready to do before you can change the place. Samuel Jackson, I appreciate you for taking the time to be on my show. Thank you so much, my friend. Look off to yourself.

You know, I'm running, but you messed up when you said I can come over there any time and just say one. Any time. Taking you up on that. You know? It's okay. Please go, vote! Go, f-b-foo! Explore more shows from the Daily Show Podcast Universe by searching the Daily Show, wherever you get your podcast.

Watch the Daily Show weeknights at 11, 10 Central on Comedy Central and stream full episodes anytime on Fairmount Plus. This has been a Comedy Central Podcast. John Stewart here. Unbelievably exciting news. My new podcast, The Weekly Show. We're going to be talking about the election, economics, ingredient to bread ratio, on sandwiches. Listen to the weekly show with John Stewart, wherever you get your podcast.