Chelsea Handler was named one of Barbara Walters’ 10 most fascinating people for 2014. While appearing on the Octogenarian’s ABC special Sunday night the comic talked about why she ended her long running late night talk show on E! after seven years and why she hates the Kardashians. She also discussed her drunk driving arrest.
In the introduction to the segment, Walters talked about how Handler made a breakthrough by becoming the first woman to succeed in late night.
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The 30 year old provocative comic said that she decided to end her show because she had become bored with herself and the news and had enough. Case and point, the Kardashians. “I felt that I had enough with the Kardashians before I ever met the Kardashians, ” Chandler told Walters.
On trying to switch from cable to network television she said, “No! I’m not a network kind of girl. Never been an option.” This was easy enough for her to say since she was already passed over for both of the spots that opened up this past year on CBS’ late night lineup.
Chandler said that while there may have been rumors that she was being considered to succeed David Letterman, no one from CBS ever spoke to her directly about it.
She apparently became a comic only after her experience being arrested for driving under the influence at the age of 21.
About her DUI Chandler said, “I had to go this class, like DUI class, where basically you had to speak publicly about your experience and your arrest. And at that time in my life, I had never had to speak publicly. And then I did it and I was higher than I’ve ever been. I mean, everyone was laughing at my story. And somebody said, ‘You should be a stand-up comedian!’ And I said, ‘Maybe I should!’”
On her family Chandler said, “My father is still up to his old tricks. He gets in trouble for sexually harassing nurses at his assisted living facility weekly.”
Chandler also opened up about her older brother’s death. He fell off a cliff when she was still just a kid. “It made us all [her family] really tight and bonded.”
