Recently, CNN’s Larry King and his wife hosted a dinner party with some of the most powerful people in the world. The show was called Dinner With Kings. Their comments were amazing, shocking, and in some instances, very sad.
Larry’s guests were Russell Brand, Jack Dorsey, Seth MacFarlane, Quincy Jones, Conan O’Brien, Shaquille O’Neal, and Tyra Banks.
- “I hate everything I do.” – MacFarlane
- “You never get over your insecurity. If you’re ever any good, you’ll always be afraid.” - O’Brien
- “The definition of pressure is not knowing where your next meal is coming from.” -Â O’Neal
- “You have to be humble with your creativity and gracious with your success.” – Jones
- “I don’t like anything you can memorize that’s supposed to be funny.” – O’Brien
- “You don’t make friends. You discover them.” – Jones
- “My best friend is my mother.” – O”Neal
- “I like anything that’s the exact opposite of what I do for a living.” – O’Brien
- “I fear death. My biggest fear is death because I don’t think I’m going anywhere. I don’t have a belief…I want to be frozen.” – King
- “We just go down into the darkness and who knows.” – O’Brien on the afterlife.
- “I find my voice annoying.” – O’Brien
- “I’ve made hundreds and hundreds of mistakes and learned from them. And that’s what makes a successful company.” - Dorsey
- “My favorite movie is The Sound Of Music.” – MacFarlane
A few observations:
- Quincy Jones and Jack Dorsey were like two fish out of water with this group. Very quiet and reserved.
- Seth MacFarlane and Shaquille O’Neal seemed the most balanced.
- These are some of the most successful people in the world and they all seemed absolutely empty on the inside as they talked about their lives.
- These are the people who society is telling us to be emulate. They all seem like very nice people, people you would enjoy having a meal with, they just seem empty.
- Money cannot buy happiness or joy.
- When mentioning the most influential person in their lives, almost all said their mother. None said their father.
- Larry King’s comments on fearing death were the saddest comments I’ve heard in years. It was heartbreaking listening to him. I could not think of anything but how much Mr. King respects Billy Graham but continually has rejected the only true source of peace.Â
- Larry is such a great listener. He knows the truth but there is something inside of him that just will not yield to Jesus Christ. I pray that one day that changes and he will not be afraid anymore. To see his comments, go about 3.5 minutes into the clip above.
- Conan O’Brien seems absolutely tormented and he uses humor as a defense mechanism.
Your thoughts on their comments?
To get future posts on leadership sent directly to you, please take advantage of the many subscription options on this site.