Conan O’Brien’s parents, Ruth and Thomas, die just days apart

Thomas O’Brien and Ruth Reardon O’Brien, the parents of comedian Conan O’Brien, who inspired many of his jokes, have died just three days apart.

The Bell O’Dea Funeral Home in Brookline, Massachusetts, announced that the former late-night star’s father, doctor and epidemiologist Thomas, died “peacefully” on Monday at the age of 95. He was also a longtime Brookline resident and former Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School.

Three days later, the funeral home announced that O’Brien’s mother, Ruth, had died peacefully on Thursday. She was 92 years old. No cause of death was given in the obituary. Ruth, a Massachusetts native, is a former state Supreme Court law clerk and real estate attorney.

Thomas and Ruth O’Brien were married for 66 years and had six children, including their Emmy-winning son. Conan O’Brien often referenced his upbringing and his relationship with his working parents for laughs. In a 2005 episode of his brief “Late Night” stint, O’Brien included a skit about following his conscience and checking on his mother.

“Who calls their mother after midnight? You almost scared me to death!” shouts a voice on the other end of the line. “My son is an idiot!”

“I hope you’re happy, conscience!” Conan says after the bitter call.

In a 2018 episode of his TBS series “Conan,” the comedian rented a fake family while visiting Japan. Joking about a lonely family life, O’Brien deadpans: “My dad and I get along pretty well, but I honestly think I can do better.”

He continues: “With a new father who would apologize for some things that happened between us in the 1970s.” Particularly when he lost his temper in the kitchen because I spilled a bowl of creamed corn and he “Didn’t allow me to watch Love Boat that night.”

In other skits throughout his career, O’Brien joked about his “daddy issues,” mocked his father’s tough love, and compared his father’s physique to the video game monster “Slender Man.”

This playfulness wasn’t just limited to Conan’s comedic endeavors. In a 2017 video interview with relaunch company IRelaunch, which honored Ruth O’Brien with the Pioneering Relauncher Award, Conan shared a childhood memory of joining his mother at the law firm Ropes & Gray and the “beautiful madness” of his home cultivation high. At the end of the clip, Conan jokes, “Am I getting paid for this?”

“Because very little of it is true. I want money,” he says. “What’s your name? Ruth?”

Conan O’Brien has not publicly addressed his parents’ deaths, and a representative for the comedian did not immediately respond to The Times’ request for comment.

In addition to Conan, Thomas O’Brien and Ruth O’Brien, he is survived by children Neal, Luke, Kate, Jane and Justin. They are also survived by nine grandchildren, nieces and nephews. The funeral home announced that a memorial service for the deceased couple will be held in Massachusetts on Wednesday.