Futurama's Co-Creator Got A Hilarious Simpsons Welcome From Conan O'Brien

In the "Futurama" episode "Xmas Story" (December 19, 1999), the Planet Express crew take a holiday jaunt to the Catskills for skiing and old-world comedy. The headliner at the Catskills Lodge (no pun intended) is the living, preserved severed head of Conan O'Brien (voiced by himself). In the world of "Futurama," severed heads could be kept alive indefinitely in jars of mysterious, life-giving liquid, allowing 21st-century celebrities to organically appear in the show's 31st-century setting. It's been revealed that animating Conan's massive noggin proved technically difficult. 

Conan's severed head attempts a few jokes, but he is heckled by Bender (John DiMaggio) the alcoholic robot. Conan attempts to silence Bender by claiming to have a soul, a fact that doesn't impress the robot. When Conan also points out that he has freckles, Bender is reduced to tears, knowing he, as a machine, will never have freckles of his own. 

O'Brien was no mere "get" for "Futurama," however. O'Brien, as many of the comedian's fans know, spent several years writing and producing "The Simpsons," which was created by "Futurama" co-creator Matt Groening. O'Brien famously penned "Marge vs. the Monorail" and several other classic episodes before quitting to start his own talk show, and he remained close with his old "Simpsons" colleagues. 

As it so happens, the other co-creator of "Futurama," David X. Cohen, also worked on "The Simpsons" as a writer, but was brought on as one of O'Brien's replacements. Cohen and O'Brien never professionally crossed paths, and wouldn't meet face-to-face until years later. By wild coincidence, however, Cohen was assigned to the very same office where O'Brien worked while at "The Simpsons," writing episodes on the very same desk. 

Indeed, on the DVD commentary track for "Xmas Story," Cohen recalls finding a wonderfully strange welcome note that O'Brien left behind.

O'Brien has said that he quit his job at "The Simpsons" because it wasn't active enough for him. He was in a writers room nine hours a day, trying to be funny with other brilliant writers and comedians, but he was rarely allowed an avenue to perform and tell jokes himself. It wasn't until he was able to join "Late Night" that his preferred career path opened up. As such, O'Brien can be a little sardonic about his time at Fox, writing for one of the most popular TV shows of all time. He loved it and was grateful for it, but also glad to move on. 

As such, when he left, he decided to leave a note of welcome, as well as a few humorous words of advice for his eventual successor. Cohen was O'Brien's successor and remembers the note well, including its advice as where to pee. Cohen said: 

"[Conan] left a little note for me when I left the office, it was a 'To Whom It May Concern,' he didn't know who would be coming in. It was 'To whom it may concern, The window is a little sticky, and the garbage is in the corner,' and he pointed out there was a certain corner in which you were supposed to urinate, according to him. There was a lot of useful advice like that in there, very funny." 

Yes, O'Brien was joking about peeing in the corner. O'Brien, as far as anyone knows, did not pee in the corner of his office. He peed out the window like a civilized human being. Cohen, meanwhile, is (presumably) peeing copiously in the corner of his "Futurama" offices, currently working on the newest portion of his series, set to debut on July 29, 2024.