Jon Stewart stopped by Wednesday at Comedy Central's "The Daily Show Podcast Without Jon Stewart" for an amusing "exit interview" and "talked about the prolific 17-year run he had on the show, but through one particular lens: a culinary one," according to Entertainment Weekly (EW).
Stewart shared the limelight with his co-executive producer Adam Lowitt and his executive producers Steve Bodow and Jen Flanz. During his "exit interview," he took pains to point out one very important "executive decision" he had made during his run on the show.
"I don't know if that was when we won our first Emmy, but it changed the dynamic. It was the biggest change in the atmosphere of the building," he said. He was of course talking about his decision to switch from kaiser rolls to English muffins for their Wednesday's egg sandwich breakfast for the "Daily Show" staff.
Continuing, Stewart said another important "innovation" he was proud of having introduced during his run was "restaurant Thursday." Said he: "I remember after 9/11, everything has changed. We should have Thursday lunch from restaurants just to boost the spirits. Because, if not - and I remember this clearly in a meeting, Jen (Flanz) stood up and said, 'The terrorists win.'"
Asked what advice he'd like to give Trevor Noah, his successor as host to "The Daily Show," he answered: "You've gotta make it your own. And this show, to be frank, has been designed around the way I eat: breakfast, lunch and a snack...
But the suggestion I would make to him is one that says 'Get what you need, nourishment-wise; give yourself a treat, decadent-wise; but respect that your metabolism is not necessarily the metabolism of the room and that other people may want to make a protein shake without you standing behind them, going, 'Ooh, look at f**kin' Richard Simmons over here!'"
However, he warns, "This better not be about bringing back the kaiser roll, because I will stay here. That's the one thing I've told Trevor you cannot change."
As for his legacy, he told his audience, "I can honestly say I leave this building fuller than it was when I got here."
Stewart, 52, officially signs off from "The Daily Show" on Thursday, Aug. 6. The desk he used, the set's globe, a guest chair, along with assorted props including the display mugs that were seen during his 17-year run will go to Newseum, the news-oriented museum in Washington D.C. where it has been donated by the studio.
In her statement, via CNN Money, Cathy Trost, Newseum's senior vice president of exhibits and programs, said: "We are thrilled to accept the donation of these artifacts to the Newseum collection [as] part of America's cultural and media history [since they tell] an important story about how political satire and news as humor made 'The Daily Show' a trusted news source for a generation."
