Byron Bowers: The Hardest Part Of Schizophrenia

Stand-up comedian Byron Bowers explains the hardest part about having a father with schizophrenia.
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The Late Show with Stephen Colbert is the premier late night talk show on CBS, airing at 11:35pm EST, streaming online via CBS All Access, and delivered to the International Space Station on a USB drive taped to a weather balloon. Every night, viewers can expect: Comedy, humor, funny moments, witty interviews, celebrities, famous people, movie stars, bits, humorous celebrities doing bits, funny celebs, big group photos of every star from Hollywood, even the reclusive ones, plus also jokes.

[@Only1Science]

He hit so many points of our reality. That's an art in itself.

[@aufrechtgehn1]

Thank you CBS for providing subtitles. As someone from outside the US, it made it much easier for me to get was he was saying, and that was damn funny.

[@mdudegamer]

Patriotism over racism... interesting idea.

[@ThePstjtt]

Wow, First time I've seen a good comic premier on the Late Show. 👍👍

[@sanderstar1000]

it's also pretty cool because glenn close, the guest for this episode, has a son with schizophrenia and has been a massive advocate in the mental health community. I bet she was stoked to hear this, if she did!

[@bestsatisfyingvideos8895]

😄😆😃😄😄😄

[@markbrownner6565]

enjoyed the reference of the titanic and climate change....as we are just re-arranging the deck chairs idea

[@adonaiorion]

Funny, informative, tasteful - genius. Agree.

[@jschnei3]

At least the Titanic had lifeboats. Earth is dying and we got nowhere else to go--- taking over might not help but what else is there to do?? I vote we take the fcker over

[@adonaiorion]

@@jschnei3 Take over an older titanic. Noise. How about before earth is a titanic of no return we put those efforts into skipping the catastrophy only to go to an older catastrophy - and, instead look towards smarter and brighter horizons? I like oxygen, water, nature, and peace. Non found on mars, non found on a nuclear holocaust.

[@JaceCavacini]

That was my favorite part

[@TheLunaLockhart]

As someone with schizophrenia, it's very weird hearing echoes of myself in my worst of times being displayed for a wider audience, but in a good way tbh. Thanks for sharing, Byron! I hope you can achieve being an advocate for us. We really do need it.

[@Shinku_no_sanbun]

As someone else with schizophrenia, I'm happy someone on TV even got the definition right instead of talking about dissociative disorder because they think it's the same. In fact, I clicked on this video to see if he would and was glad he didn't.

[@duroxkilo]

wish you all the best everyone!! *even when it's funny (and I have a feeling this was the case) it takes strength to not 'get offended'... and wisdom. not everyone can take jokes about oneself. and it takes patience to educate somebody, anybody... we can all learn from each-other; it's not just a saying.

[@TheLunaLockhart]

@@duroxkilo It's difficult not to take offense at ignorance when ignorance has hurt us so many times. Ignorance isn't malicious, and education is the answer rather than vicious attack campaigns et al lol

[@Matetesmile]

God bless you.

[@TheRepublicOfJohn]

As someone who does not have schizophrenia, I really appreciate and applaud the bravery of those who shared their struggles in this comment thread.

[@toobasaurus23]

I like his style. A comedian to watch.

[@Nomad_Skateboarding]

Agreed! Too bad the audience wasn't ready for his comedy, lol The looks on the faces after the phone smuggling joke was funnier than the joke :D

[@oninoyakamo]

I wonder how many people's eyes shot to the title of this video when Bowers said, "Spelling Schizophrenia". Mine did.

[@nicot9305]

I'm schitz. It's why I clicked. Glad I did! There's a ton of different types of schitzy folks, and I've had friends like his dad and worse, who claim they're normal, and refuse the services the evil government thankfully provides to me. This man speaks with kindness and brilliance.

[@deadfr0g]

Not mine! I was already way down here in these comments.

[@kristabellesumigcay6655]

you should rewatch the video with captions; i think whoever was writing them out had a brain aneurysm

[@igorschmidlapp6987]

It would've been funnier if they spelled it wrong... ;-P

[@Shtove]

I didn't realise I've been spelling it backwards all these years.

[@joesosick1675]

I would’ve like at least 10 minutes but great debut. Some jokes went over some heads obviously but I got the messages in his stand up.

[@Wise__guy]

Good for you because you're so smart

[@brownkemosabe]

What a dead crowd. This guy was amazing.

[@mayaraghavan2007]

Karan Gera Totally Agree and with that crowd you can see how great he must be

[@SLFKimosabae]

I agree. I thought it was weird that they didn't seem into him. Didn't seem like a typical Colbert crowd.

[@dahalofreeek]

I probably shouldn't point this out on this channel but people should probably know. Just pay attention to the fact that we've never seen Stephen and a comedian in the same shot. Stephen introduces the comedian, it cuts to the comedian's set and then it cuts to Stephen afterwards. They shoot these separate from the show and just slot them in where the time makes sense. I think that's why some of these performances, both performer and crowd, don't have the same energy of the rest of the show. I get that Stephen and the people who make the show and pushed to the limits because of time but I like it on Conan when we hear Conan laughing in the background and he comes and personally congratulates each comedian after their performance. It feels a lot more dignified.

[@SLFKimosabae]

@@dahalofreeek Interesting theory that makes a lot of sense. I wonder if there's a means for verifying how the Colbert show films their standup acts in relation to Conan's

[@kbanghart]

@@dahalofreeek I guess you have a point there with the dignified comment, but I don't look down on Colbert any for it.

[@adamafrixal6638]

bringing awareness is so hard nowadays you have to turn it into comedy

[@Costa_Conn]

History says it has always been that way (well a few hundred years anyway).

[@morganwilliamcomedy2836]

I'm trying to do it for .I.B.S

[@DaltonEntendu]

This comment has not aged well.

[@khas88888]

He was pretty good. Tough gig since it also has to be sanitized for CBS - but I imagine comedy on mainstream networks - or any major platform - is a tightrope walking act where if you lean too far into sensitive subject matters you'll end up being negatively labeled as something and ruin your career, or play too safe and nobody will remember you at all.

[@xenos_n.]

That's extremely true, but he also pulled it off better than most people. I had a few belly laughs and I can't say many comedians can do that from 5 minutes on late night TV.

[@sableindian]

Clean and still hilarious. I remember when Eddie Murphy was like that.

[@Nobody-xb4zu]

A rare great stand-up featured

[@spodefollower]

This was really really good. One of the best comedians on this show so far. Don’t know why the crowd was so unresponsive

[@xenos_n.]

Because it's the Late Night with Stephen Colbert crowd.

[@joshuascholar3220]

@@xenos_n. sigh. Might have been different with his old show. But Stephen's been lazy lazy lazy on the comedy since getting The Late Show. I mean I understand that doing a show 5 nights a week is too much, but he used to be such a deadly comedian.

[@timothyamaraobrien]

I think it may have to do with the fact that people are afraid of even serious discussions about mental illness. They get really afraid of comedians who can talk about difficult subjects. He's not going to have a problem finding an audience. I certainly will be part of it.

[@melissasaint3283]

@@timothyamaraobrien I agree. Maybe 15% was being a bit too white to fully catch a couple of the jokes, lol, but most of it was being afraid to laugh at something they are concerned they should not laugh at (and maybe be spotted on national tv doing so.) Mental illness is SO stigmatized, and right now people are often not being forgiven for acts of real or percieved insensitivity on all kinds of topics. Its a powerful combination. I thought this was a great set, though. Very funny without being unkind or insensitive, and a really accurate description of life when someome you care about has schizophrenia.

[@zaroffhound]

natural talent. Vigorous & immediate, without being vulgar.

[@mayaraghavan2007]

Amazing...And With That Terrible Crowd! A deep bow to you sir

[@zislec]

Slick bits. Great timing. But this Colbert crowd... 😩

[@brendonryan2708]

At first his jokes kinda rubbed me the wrong way; thought he was mocking mentally disabled people. I change my mind, he's hilarious! 10/10 from someone who's schizoaffective.

[@timothyamaraobrien]

It's a big deal when a stand-up comedian talks about mental illness, especially when he's talking about his own father. Being a child of a mentally ill person, I think it's fantastic.

[@gb.510]

I think being the child of someone mentally ill and dealing with i t give him a little leeway with it

[@o0Theresa0o]

I did NOT think he was going to make having a schizophrenic parent funny... but he actually managed to do it. I am shocked. I like this dude.

[@StrangeThing22]

Trickius I can make it seem VERY funny. My mom once woke me in the very early morning... Mom: “We need to call your brother and make sure he’s okay.” Sleepy me: “Why, what’s wrong?” Mom: “Somebody’s goin’ around popping out buttholes. We have to tell him.”

[@o0Theresa0o]

@@StrangeThing22 I don't want to take away the humour you find in that experience, but I personally don't find delusions people have (of any kind) to be funny. When I read your story, I read a story of a woman who is in a great deal of distress because of a malfunctioning brain. That's upsetting to me. I would say it's akin to laughing at the silly faces someone made while experiencing a seizure - laughing at the symptoms of a terrible illness just doesn't strike me as humorous. The comedian in this case made jokes about how those around the ill person react and interpret the illness. The joke is about everyone else, not the sick person. I think that's why I find it funny. For the record, my mother also had severe paranoid schizophrenia. May she rest in peace.

[@StrangeThing22]

Trickius sometimes the only way to cope is to find some humor in tragic situations. My heart bleeds for my mother everyday. She did not deserve the cards she’s been dealt by any means. She’s the sweetest person and she’s loved beyond measure. I’m happy to say her paranoid auditory hallucinations have subsided quite a bit over the last few years. Thank you so much for your response. It’s nice to meet people who can relate on some level. Schizophrenia is a terrible disease. But, we work with what we’re given. And what I’ve been given is a lifetime of unconditional love. I’m the luckiest woman alive.

[@o0Theresa0o]

@@StrangeThing22 We all cope in different ways, and I don't wish to demean the way that works for you. If finding humor in it helps you, that's good. No person deserves to have such a terrible disease. Schizophrenia is truly an evil condition. That said, our medical advancements have come a very long way and a lot of people with the illness are able to lead decent lives if they are able to get through the tough trials of medication. I am glad your mother is one of those people :)

[@StrangeThing22]

Trickius so true. It’s a battle I hope many people don’t have to suffer through in the future.

[@SpyderDragonDude]

This man’s delivery was solid, smooth, and unwavering. He did what should be typical hack, topical shit but turned it into gold because these jokes actually have more than a bit of thought put into them. It’s possible to joke about these things and remain humane

[@xenos_n.]

Very funny, would love to see a Netflix special or something like that from him.

[@BlakieTT]

That audience and I cannot be friends -.-

[@mrlampcompressor1614]

Oh... he good!

[@nicot9305]

Wow! This guy is brilliant! So many relevant topics!

[@Kevtron9000]

Mom is skitzo, these jokes are much appreciated!!!

[@sharifulislam1172]

A glaring example of a "dead crowd"....

[@erinobrien8408]

Brilliant!!! Absolutely brilliant!

[@Tbehartoo]

thank you for talking about mental illness. Not too many people are willing to even do that.

[@RaulDukeKnife]

1:14 some of the most Caucasian crowd in existence, literally can not understand the jokes.

[@klarastern5597]

wow.. he is AMAZING! This was really great and I hope to see much more of him! Thank you Stephen for giving is this treat!

[@B2UGROUP]

Dammm, this dude is 🔥🔥🔥🔥 !!!!!!

[@IntricateUniverse25]

I knew he looked familiar, Donut Media! This guys still can’t find his dream car!

[@DmbyouYDgoBack2Europ]

This comedian is genuinely good. I really want to see him more on the entertainment systems. Really fun comedy that's not rude or fully disrespectful.😁

[@ViolinaRacheva]

I have Paranoid Schizophrenia. And people just don't know how to handle people with Schizophrenia. They don't understand it.

[@lazyperfectionist1]

Holy crap! 😆 This dude is hilarious!

[@moonnugget4598]

5:30 BRILLIANT! lmfbao

[@Smiley-Coyote]

Funny comic! This guy has promise 😁

[@kyaberryman7367]

True but he's been around for a minute! Been doing sets at the laugh factory for years!

[@NKA23]

He´s good.

[@kittypride6343]

i got diagnosed with schizophrenia a few days ago, it runs in my family, This guy be funny 🥳🥳🥳

[@saultube44]

Mental Health Clinics/Hospitals should be free and part of a Universal Health Care. You don't need to be crazy to go there, addicts (Depression), any kind, stressed/angry people, etc, it's for everybody

[@NewMessage]

I haven't laughed loud enough to wake the wife in a long time.. * tips an imaginary hat *

[@nephronpie8961]

Do you happen to be a married, liberal Canadian by any chance?

[@o0Theresa0o]

@@nephronpie8961 Woah... that's spooky. Either that or us Canadians are easy to spot with all our niceness. :)

[@briarrose3155]

I have a Schizophrenic parent too. He's on point and he was funny. Great job!!

[@Justsomerandomguy951]

I saw this man perform at the Comedy Store in LA a few times. When he's without filter, he's even funnier! One of my comics right now

[@backwoodsmodified]

This guy is hilarious!

[@neutralfellow9736]

superb set dead crowd

[@LJdaentertainer]

🦆 that crowd

[@ConspiredPictures]

My brother has schizophrenia and thought George Bush was trying to kill him, and I was like, "yeah he's trying to kill us all man."

[@justonlyjohn6596]

Amazing short set... Dude's an independent thinker, without all the aingst. ART (I'd be jelous, but I appreciated that set too much to have room to harbour petty feelings) Seriously, hauntingly meaningful material...

[@cbglassiii9362]

It seemed as if the audience was graciously giving the cat their golf-claps, but I thought he was really funny. He chose a very edgy topic and seemed to treat it with dignity and not derision. I wish him the best of luck.

[@davidames1746]

This dude is the real deal.

[@zoyten8279]

Didn't know this guy but hes funny af

[@Kryptospotted]

Surprising that the CBS censors didnt really make them chop this up. For 2019 on network TV, this is pretty edgy. You can tell because the audience seems to be waiting for permission to laugh or applaud. Listen carefully with headphones during the schizophrenia/AIDS part.

[@enx2083]

So true.

[@urtisk4288]

I was dying the whole time. This guy's funny, I hope this 6 minute set wasn't his best material

[@undisclosedsteve6361]

I noticed that too

[@forthesakeofsanityandsuch9331]

Lol everybody is delusional in some way or another. But if you wana learn how to deal with folks with mental illnesses, do ur research. Only rely on sites w/ .org .edu and .gov. , and each illness has its own ways in which you can help those with it, just like how treating colds differs from how u treat cancer. Good show!

[@melvoid01]

Spot on with the one about the brothers basically sayin " take over? take over what ? them white dudes done screwed it up so bad your dog wont play with it now". This guys good I laughed IRL.

[@qkranarchist3015]

Byron Bowers is hilarious. (Watch this with closed caps on; schizophrenia comes any which way plus more)

[@gregfeneis609]

Racy woke and hilarious

[@melissasaint3283]

This was really excellent material. AND kudos to him or whoever helped him select his outfit, he is making casual look so sharp

[@GladysDark]

What the hell he got on. Lol :) a women's sweater with a men's too small leather/suede jacket

[@juliaconnell]

much as I LOVE the Late Show their comedy acts are usually a miss for me... this was BRILLIANT - love this guy - on point! want to see more from him

[@Ludical]

If you turn on the captions, you'll see that it's apparently REALLY hard to spell schizophrenia!

[@juliaconnell]

I MISS my flip phone! (would still have it if it was still working)

[@jasonmelendezcastro1511]

Season 3 of miracle wips?

[@thomasthompson5613]

The swish MJ bit is golden.

[@microchrist6122]

Donut media ! Miracle whips !

[@JamesHenryAnd]

Roy Wood brought me here via Twitter.

[@123tube456]

Brilliant. Now excuse me whe I spend the next 2hrs watching everything of his...brb

[@michellelandreth89]

Genius

[@ryanfaith]

Very talented ! I had a great laugh.

[@curtbarnes4294]

All his YT clips are funny! Why did it take so long to learn about this guy?

[@hazard1371]

He's one of the funniest persons Stephen has brought.

[@marshwetland3808]

The hardest part about schizophrenia is being married to it.

[@dragonfly4484]

Damn, that's a half dead crowd

[@KingInTheSoutha]

It's spelt schizophrenia there you go!! Thank me later

[@goodmessengerjennifer2.0ma49]

Colbert is close to 2,169 years old....but not quite. Those who mock Jesus Christ....JUST WAIT. Vengeance is mine, says the Lord God.

[@Regailion]

Miracle whip anyone?

[@harlemdeni]

He good.

[@SomeSurvive]

I hate how they make it seem like Colbert introduced him when he didn't. Comedians warm up the crowd. They record the introduction after the show

[@Hermes_Agoraeus]

I hadn't heard this. Is there a supporting link?

[@SomeSurvive]

@@Hermes_Agoraeus not really. I just know from listening to a lot of comedian talk and having lived in new York. Back in the day it was a big deal to perform on a late show. Anymore it doesn't really mean much. You wouldn't recognize this guy like you would someone performing for Carson. They record everything in segments. They have warm-up people who work every day and they have little side shows that they bring in as guest. The show itself is the headliner. Every show works about the same way.

[@scottjohnson388]

Dude brought the funny.

[@skepticalpickle5258]

Comedy is hard

[@urtisk4288]

Yeah, but he's harder

[@fatima-zahrakajji4821]

Patriotism over racism! Oh say can you see that I'm innocent as can be, Ooh please officer don't kill me because just like you, I love this country!🤗🇨🇦🇺🇸🇲🇽🦁

[@blupunk01]

"That's a flip phone hole." Hahahaha!

[@JohnChampagne]

I was called 'delusional' when I insisted that bringing ideas to the public discourse that could provide a basis for a sustainable and just society (natural wealth belongs to all; industries should pay fees when they put pollution or deplete resources) are more important than a single person's life. I started eating again after being threatened with torture and destruction of my conscience (forced-feeding and Electro-Convulsive Treatment) and a court confirmed that the medical establishment would be allowed to do that to me. Later, I read the medical record and saw the claim that I had refused to consider alternative ways of solving the problem. That is a false assertion. I was begging to be shown evidence that these ideas would be brought to the public discourse (e.g., a prominent person willing to SAY natural wealth should be shared, or ten less-prominent people willing to say it, persistently, in public forums)… OR someone offer a rebuttal to the claim that charging fees to industries proportional to pollution put or natural resources taken, with fee proceeds shared to all, would achieve the goals that I claim... OR maybe I am wrong that the goals are important and there are many people willing to say that ending poverty and promoting sustainability aren't worth the trouble of sharing ideas... (?) I don't think the psychiatric establishment should be permitted to lie about someone's mental state (they falsely stated that I refused to be reasonable) for expediency. But when I asked that the medical record be corrected, or that I be told what alternative means was supposedly offered for bringing these ideas to a larger audience, I was essentially ignored/dismissed. It is well past time to resume my most emphatic symbolic protest, but I feel that I must first sue to have the record changed, lest I simply be taken back to that psychiatric 'dungeon' with that prior label of 'delusional' as license. (But there isn't time for that. A shift in the political-economic paradigm is WAY overdue.) Biological model for politics and economics: gaiabrain.blogspot.com/2010/01/respect-public-property-rights.html longer: From cancer cells of Earth to brain cells of Earth: gaiabrain.blogspot.com/2007/09/gaia-brain-integration-of-human-society.html

[@Ypmtv_]

🤣🤣

[@johnsnow1749]

Pretty impressive to joke about mental illness, STDs and police brutality in a non-offensive way but still funny. He's sneakily clever about his bits.

[@otmanehanine6848]

hi Donut gang

[@Khodorchan]

Was a bit funny.

[@ananyanarayandhanabalan]

Tough crowd he was fucking lit!! 😂😂😂😂🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@bernardogabrielpliego-garc5861]

As someone with schizophrenia its hard to listen to a man not speak absolute gibberish

[@WorldChampInfinity]

A comedian that can go 6 minutes without mentioning Trump gets a like from me.

[@lesterb2257]

That was nice

[@Allie-bk1il]

Best living comedian, hands down!

[@carolynsmith9172]

He makes sense about Mental Illness. Also, Addiction.

[@donnamariedemaio]

Byron is hilarious...and gorgeous! Just sayin'!

[@scrappycatz]

Stephen’s audience in not getting him. But he’s awesome.

[@jalipenorunner]

super original and authentic. I love this!

[@Games_and_Music]

Hey, Razr's are still the coolest phone ever made!!

[@jefflbarnes4444]

Never met a comedian like you. Nice de ment ia. CU Later.

[@Phoniv]

That was brilliant!

[@mikaelcummings9422]

Am i the only one that knows him from donut media?