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Jimmy Kimmel returns after having his show suspended for several days.

Millions of people have watched Jimmy Kimmel's opening monologue upon his return to the airwaves, but before we get into that, let's briefly go over how we got here. On September 17, 2025, the late night talk show host had his show suspended over commentary he made in the wake of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s murder. In case you missed it, here’s what Kimmel said that led to his suspension:

“We had some new lows over the weekend, with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them, and doing everything they can to score political points from it. In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving. On Friday, the White House flew the flags at half-staff, which got some criticism. But on a human level, you can see how hard the president is taking this. [Plays clip of video of President Trump on the White House lawn being asked how he’s personally holding up after the death of his friend, to which Trump responds, “I think very good, and by the way, over there you see all the trucks. They’ve just started construction of the new ballroom…”] Yes. He's at the fourth stage of grief. Construction. Demolition. Construction. This is not how an adult grieves the murder of someone he called a friend.”

That comment resulted in an uproar, primarily from folks who interpreted it as Kimmel saying the shooter was part of the MAGA movement (which wasn’t actually what he said). The day Kimmel was suspended, FCC chairman Brendan Carr went on a podcast and made what Senator Ted Cruz characterized as a “mafia boss” style threat to ABC and Disney, which resulted in an outcry over government interference with free speech.

After consulting with Kimmel and receiving a wave of backlash from people across the political spectrum, Disney announced Kimmel's show would return on September 23. While we have no numbers for how many people tuned in live, Kimmel’s return opening monologue has garnered 12 million views on YouTube alone less than 24 hours after it aired. A person who was in the room (who asked not to be named) tells Upworthy that Kimmel's parents and in-laws were in the audience, and that, "the crowd was particularly charged. Everyone was moved and emotional."

It's worth watching the whole monologue, as there are multiple noteworthy moments in it, but one part in particular stands out as an example we can all learn from. While some people were looking for Kimmel to say he was sorry for his words, Kimmel took a more honest and nuanced approach, one that is actually more meaningful than a rote, forced apology. He put himself in his critics' shoes and saw what he said through their lens.

"I do want to make something clear because it’s important to me as a human. And that is you understand that it was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man. I don’t, I don’t think there’s anything funny about it.

"I posted a message on Instagram on the day he was killed sending love to his family and asking for compassion and I meant it and I still do. Nor was it my intention to blame any specific group for the actions of what … was obviously a deeply disturbed individual. That was really the opposite of the point I was trying to make.

“But I understand that to some that felt either ill-timed or unclear or maybe both. And for those who think I did point a finger, I get why you’re upset. If the situation was reversed, there’s a good chance I’d have felt the same way. I have many friends and family members on the other side who I love and remain close to even though we don’t agree on politics at all. I don’t think the murderer who shot Charlie Kirk represents anyone. This was a sick person who believed violence was a solution, and it isn’t it, ever.”

This part: "I get why you’re upset. If the situation was reversed, there’s a good chance I’d have felt the same way." That's is exactly what is missing from far too much of our public discourse.

It’s no secret that the U.S. is steeped in a seemingly intractable political divide, to the point where Americans—sometimes even those in power—refer to entire groups of Americans as “the enemy.” Both sides blame the other for divisive rhetoric, and those who try to bridge the divide are often derided by people on the extremes (who often have the loudest voices and get the most engagement).

But Kimmel’s example of understanding how people felt looking at his words through their perspective is something we desperately need more of. “I don’t agree with your stance, but I can see where you’re coming from and understand how you got there” is a powerful statement in polarized times.

In short, it’s empathy—a concept a lot of people seem to struggle with. Charlie Kirk said he didn’t believe in empathy, stating that it’s impossible to feel what someone feels if you haven’t experienced what they’ve experienced. But that’s simply not true. Humans have imaginations that give us the ability to put ourselves into other people’s shoes if we choose to. It requires detaching ourselves from our own perspective and purposefully taking on another temporarily, which can sometimes be hard, but not impossible. If we didn’t have that ability, fiction stories wouldn’t exist, we wouldn’t feel for characters in books we wouldn’t cry when we watch certain movies.

Kimmel’s emotional praise of Erika Kirk’s example of forgiveness also struck a chord. We can vehemently disagree with someone’s entire worldview and still acknowledge when they do or say something praiseworthy.

Even if people didn’t agree with everything Kimmel said, let’s celebrate that he didn’t capitulate to pressure and picked right back up being the comedian he’s always been. Late night comedy shows have long been outlets for political satire, and even if we don’t like it personally, the freedom to joke about government officials and political matters is a hallmark of a healthy democracy. Kimmel demonstrated in his monologue that we are capable of empathizing with those we disagree with and that freedom of speech is not negotiable.

As the person who was there for the live monologue tells Upworthy, "I hope that what I felt in that room actually reaches across party lines, and folks can hear his actual message to humankind, and to the American people, with empathy, compassion and an open dialogue, and the opportunity to listen to one another again. And to listen to the actual message, rather than the clickbait headline versions that people seem to base their entire opinion of the world on."

You can watch his entire opening monologue here:

- YouTube www.youtube.com

Williams was great at everything he did.

We all know and love the late, great Robin Williams for his work in movies, television shows, Saturday Night Live, and standup. But let’s not forget he also has a slew of commercials under his belt as well. The talented Williams delighted in everything he did because, honestly, what medium wouldn’t benefit from his signature charm and humor?

With such a long and illustrious career, fans may be happy to know that there's still new (to us!) William's content to find and enjoy. The evidence? Even the biggest Robin Williams fans might be surprised to find this recently unearthed commercial he did for the Illinois Bell phone company (later known as AT&T) back in 1977.

In the clip, where Williams unsurprisingly plays a mischievous husband making voices while his wife shops around for the perfect landline phone, we see a delightful foreshadowing of his alien character Mork from the sitcom Mork & Mindy—it certainly helps that the woman playing his wife resembles Pam Dawber, who played Mindy in the show. (Not to mention the fact that he says "people of Earth” with that perfect alien voice.)

Watch:

- YouTube youtu.be

Of course, it wasn’t just nostalgia for Williams that people felt while watching this video, but also wistfulness for a bygone era, a simpler time when something like a landline was even a thing. Here’s a small smattering of comments from YouTube:

“You bought a phone and it sat on a desk or hung on the wall for decades and did its job, no updates, no 'starting it up', it was always on and always worked.”

“Miss the days when you could slam the phone.”

“The most surprising thing is that they repaired the broken phones rather than simply throwing them out and giving you a new one.”

“Oh, the times when we could make ourselves unavailable.”

obin williams, commercial, 1970s, nostalgia, actor, legend Robin Williams says Wazzup? Giphy

“I remember having to go to the phone company. All the different color phones on display.”

“Our yellow kitchen wall phone had a cord like 12 ft long. It got knotted and tangled once and just stayed that way forever.”

“I remember being so excited about the new "pushbuttons" instead of the rotary dial.”

And last but not least, “I want to live in this time period.”

While we have two things to miss because of this video, it also, as one view put it, gave us “something to smile about,” and that’s never a bad thing.

If you're wanting more of Williams and his special brand of humor, you're in luck. Thanks to the Internet, we have a few more archived Robin William commercials at our disposal, arguably more chaotic than the one for Illinois Bell.

Here's one for the popular game, Legend of Zelda:

- YouTube youtu.be

And another for Snickers, because who portrays the unhinged quite like Williams?

The man just simply had a talent that hasn't been matched since.

- YouTube youtu.be

Especially this rather notorious one, in which Williams drives director Howard Storm insane with his shotgun style improv skills.

Still, you can't argue with the final product.

Williams’ comedic genius continues to be something we marvel at, and its inexplicable blend of zaniness, tragedy, and existentialism will always be a mystery we can never fully solve. That’s part of what made it so magical, and why we can watch even one of his most seemingly insignificant works and still be mesmerized. He was one of the greats, no doubt about it.

This article originally appeared in February. It has been updated.

Television

Watch Mary Tyler Moore sink a tricky pool shot, shocking everyone on set, including herself

How she and Dick Van Dyke managed to stay in character is remarkable.

This miraculous moment happened in Season 2, Episode 5 of The Dick Van Dyke Show.

Most of us have had moments where something completely unlikely happened that we wish had been caught on film. Have you ever dropped something in the bathroom, and when you tried to catch it, it bounced off your hand, onto the sink, into the wall, then right into the toilet? You couldn't replicate something like that even if you tried. All you can do is look around and ask, "Did anyone else see that?"

One of those seemingly impossible moments happened to Mary Tyler Moore while filming an episode of The Dick Van Dyke Show in 1962, but luckily, it was caught on film. The scene she and Dick Van Dyke were filming involved a tricky pool shot in which Mary Tyler Moore's character was supposed to hit three balls into three different pockets at once. The plan for the scene was to film Moore taking the shot, then cut to a shot of just the table where a professional pool player would actually make the shot, then cut back to Moore. But they didn't end up needing the pro player at all, much to everyone's surprise–including Moore herself.

@didyoucatchthis

The Unscripted Magic of Mary Tyler Moore on The Dick Van Dyke Show In a memorable 1962 episode of The Dick Van Dyke Show, a seemingly routine scene turned into an unforgettable moment of unscripted brilliance. In the episode, Laura Petrie, played by the iconic Mary Tyler Moore, wants to quit a game of pool to watch her favorite movie on TV. Her husband, Rob Petrie, played by Dick Van Dyke, convinces her to finish the game. Laura agrees, setting up for what was intended to be a clever camera trick. The plan was simple: the scene would cut away to a professional pool player making a difficult shot, then cut back to Laura as if she had made it herself. But then something incredible happened. Instead of relying on the professional, Mary Tyler Moore nailed the shot herself, completely unplanned. The genuine surprise and delight in her reaction—and Dick Van Dyke’s—made the moment feel all the more authentic and endearing. This unscripted success is a perfect example of the magic that made The Dick Van Dyke Show so special, blending impeccable acting, humor, and spontaneous brilliance into TV history.

The look on Moore's face says it all, but the fact that the two actors otherwise stayed in character is even more remarkable. Van Dyke didn't even flinch. Absolute legend. And shout out to the camera crew as well. The professionalism all around in that moment is a testament to everyone on set.

According to Slash Film, the show's editor, Bud Molin, explained in Vince Waldron's The Official Dick Van Dyke Show Book how the shot came to be. The shot was set up ahead of time, of course, but she was just supposed to make the balls go the right way. No one expected her to actually sink any of them, much less all three.

"We had it rigged so that she just had to hit the balls in the right general direction," Molin said. "It was just luck. She hit it, and she dropped every ball!"

Everyone was wowed, including Moore herself. She quickly picked her jaw up off the table, though, saving the scene so that the footage would be usable. And indeed, that take ended up being the one that made it into the "Hustling the Hustler" episode.

Watch the full scene from the beginning here (and note Van Dyke's unflappable reaction):

- YouTube youtu.be

The irony of the way the scene panned out is that Moore's character was supposed to surprise her husband and the audience with her pool prowess—just a little ol' housewife besting a man at a man's sport. The fact that she actually did it makes it all the better.

The Dick Van Dyke Show still ranks among the best sitcoms of all time, even seven decades after it aired.

More fun facts about The Dick Van Dyke Show

- The show aired for five seasons, from 1961 to 1966, and won a whopping 15 Emmy Awards.

- It was considered a pioneer in the sitcom genre, incorporating complexities of real life like parenting, sex, and societal issues in ways that previous sitcoms had not explored.

- Johnny Carson was among those in the running for the lead role that ultimately went to Dick Van Dyke due to his better name recognition at the time. Carson would become The Tonight Show host in 1962, a year after The Dick Van Dyke Show premiered.

johnny carson, the tonight show, dick van dyke show, talk show, television Johnny Carson was one of two finalists for Dick Van Dyke's role. Giphy

- Mary Tyler Moore had to fight to wear capri pants as the wardrobe choice made the network and advertisers nervous. However, she insisted that her character wear them and succeeded in shifting norms and expectations around women's clothing.

- Part of the show's success after it's second season (which almost didn't happen due to low ratings in the beginning) was the revolutionary idea to play reruns of the show during the summer. "That was one of the most creative things I ever did," said Carl Reiner, the show's director, according to John Kiesewetter. "Repeats back then were not a big thing. But I said, 'The people who have seen Perry Como will have a chance to sample us.' And it worked!"

- The catchy Dick Van Dyke Show theme song was an instrumental, but it actually had lyrics written by co-star of the show Morey Amsterdam. Watch Dick Van Dyke sing it in a 2011 interview onThe Rachael Ray Show :

- YouTube www.youtube.com

Reruns of The Dick Van Dyke Show can be found on various streaming services, and some full episodes that are in the public domain can be found on YouTube.

partnerships

5 ways people are going “All In” this week

From the silliest to the most sentimental, there are so many ways people are going “all in” on the internet this week. Here are our five favorites.

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There’s something magical about watching someone go "all in" on something. Whether it’s an elaborately themed birthday party or a home chef turning dinner into a culinary spectacle, going "all in" means total commitment—no holding back, no second guessing, just full-throttle enthusiasm. It’s not just about doing something well; it’s about diving in headfirst—often with a bit of flair and creativity (or a lot of it). To go "all in" means to be fully present in the moment and create something truly special as a result.

In this roundup, we’ve scoured the internet for the best examples of people going all in—those moments where passion, creativity, and total commitment take center stage. Some are silly, some are sentimental, but all of them are a reminder that giving 100% is the only way to truly leave a mark on this world. Buckle up—these folks didn’t just show up, they went all in.

1. These new Hamilton re-enactments 

@actressbecc

a trend i can get behind

♬ Best of Wives and Best of Women - Phillipa Soo & Lin-Manuel Miranda

If you’ve been on TikTok at all in the past week, chances are you’ve come across the content creator Ashby, who’s famous for going live dressed (and in character) as the Lorax. Recently, Ashby’s been going viral for a different reason: Her hilarious reenactments of the scene in Hamilton where Alexander Hamilton sneaks out the window to prepare for his duel with Aaron Burr. In these reenactments, Ashby takes what used to be a sentimental song (“Best of Wives and Best of Women”) and hilariously reimagines it as Alexander being completely annoyed with his wife’s insistence to come back to bed.

Not only is Asbhy’s commitment to her character impressive (and laugh-out-loud funny), it’s also helped spark tons of other reenactments of the same scene across TikTok. Open the app and you’ll see dozens of other women who are also completely committed to the part—the facial expressions, the costumes, the scenery, even casting their significant others as Eliza. We have Ashby to thank for it.

2. BOGO (Buy One, Get One) bars for everyone

Another thing we like to go “all in” on? Saving money. And right now our friends at All In are giving us a fantastic deal on some seriously tasty snacks. To get a free (!!!) box of their organic snack bars, sign up with your phone number on Aisle, grab two boxes of All In bars at Sprouts, snap a pic of your receipt, and text it through Aisle. They’ll Venmo or PayPal you back for the cost of one box, and then all you have left to do is enjoy your new favorite treat. Easy peasy.

3. Conrad vs. Jeremiah 

@adelaidesdetours Replying to @user2411812280930 @hannah.1.2 and I came in hot to convince @Kennedy Bilse to join the Team Conrad train. @the summer i turned pretty ♬ original sound - adelaidesdetours

First, some background: Unless you’ve been living under a rock this summer, you probably know that the show everyone’s been watching is The Summer I Turned Pretty, a series based on the best-selling books written by Jenny Han. Essentially, it’s a story about a love triangle between Isabella “Belly” Conklin and her two lifelong best friends Jeremiah and Conrad Fisher. Now on its third season, we find Belly engaged to Jeremiah despite possibly (most definitely) harboring feelings for her ex (and Jeremiah’s brother!!!), Conrad. Jeremiah’s busy at work, so Conrad takes it upon himself to help Belly with planning her and Jeremiah’s wedding.

While the jury’s still out on who Belly will end up with, fans of the show have taken to social media to make elaborate arguments on which of the boys she should pick (and, sorry Jeremiah, but everyone is mostly #TeamConrad). In our favorite video, the creator adelaidesdetours creates a multi-part, in-depth slide deck that serves not only as a deep dive into Conrad Fisher’s character (he’s guarded! He’s grieving his mom!) but also as a treatise into why Conrad is the superior choice. If that weren’t extra enough, there’s also a third part to the powerpoint about why Jeremiah is wrong for Belly. Her argument is airtight, and her commitment to the bit is impressive (she even presents this slideshow to a Jeremiah supporter at work). All we can say is: nicely done. Team Conrad all the way.

4. These nursery rhyme-inspired raps 

@kaylonpatecia Part 2 #nurseryrhyme #babyshower ♬ original sound - KaylonPatecia

Let’s be honest: We don’t usually associate baby showers with loud music and party vibes. This one, though? Seems like the greatest baby shower of all time. These videos, posted to TikTok by content creator KaylonPatecia, show how friends and family transformed her baby shower into a vocal showdown worthy of the movie Pitch Perfect. Instead of singing a capella, though, these partygoers layered G-rated nursery rhymes like “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” and “Humpty Dumpty” over tracks like Juvenile’s “Back That Azz Up” and “Get Low” by Lil John and the East Side Boyz. The creativity, the planning, and the talent that went into making these almost defies belief, and this is undoubtedly a memory the entire family will be able to treasure for years.

5. This scavenger hunt marriage proposal 

@taylorarenz In honor of my brothers wedding week❤️I dare you to not cry at the best proposal ever! A scavenger hunt all through the city of Houston to her favorite places and most meaningful spots with her friends surprising her at each spot! #wedding #proposal #couples#proposalstory #marriage #viral #bestvideo #weddingtiktok #proposalvideo #surprise #fy #fyp @Pubity @Proposals Video ♬ Beautiful Girls - Sean Kingston

Finally, we have one of the most unforgettable examples of going all in that we’ve ever seen—a marriage proposal. In a TikTok posted by content creator Taylor Arenz, she shows how her brother planned an elaborate scavenger hunt across Houston to propose to his girlfriend. At each stop—all locations that were meaningful to their relationship—she was greeted by a friend or family member who would present her with a pre-recorded video message guiding her to the next destination. The entire thing was filmed, photographed, and capped off with an in-person, heartfelt proposal infant of a huge “MARRY ME” sign in the pouring rain. Talk about show-stopping. Hats off to this guy, who just set the bar sky-high for everyone else planning a proposal. He definitely went all in—and since they’re married now, clearly so did she.

Snag your free (!!) snack bars here while this deal lasts.