Charo Paid $5 For This Joke | Letterman

The talented performer talks about her speech lessons, tells a joke just for Dave and more.
(From "Late Night," air date: 9/26/85)
#Charo #Letterman
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Welcome to the Letterman KZbin Channel, home to all your favorite clips from Late Night and Late Show - as well as conversations with the writers, producers and performers who helped make it all happen. These highlights have been artisanly-produced, carefully-curated, and chosen completely at random by an old computer that used to pick numbers for the New York Lotto back in the 90’s.

[@maxthereof]

No one understands how difficult it is to be charming, quick, and funny in another language.

[@reynaldiobabym4129]

Enter Sofia Vergara.

[@maxthereof]

@@reynaldiobabym4129 you're missing the point. Talking about people that aren't like them. Non foreigners.

[@walkertongdee]

not hard for her to be charming...

[@davidwesley2525]

​@@reynaldiobabym4129Sofia 's Accent is Thicker Than Pea Soup. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@ronaldbarnes3327]

True, but Charo has been speaking English for many years. Her strong accent disguises her total fluency.

[@terrydrums]

I once played drums for her show on a cruise ship. It was hands down the loudest show I’ve ever played. Metal bands have nothing on Charo.

[@NoOne-kr4jc]

Pfffffft lol. Btw, did you ever play for the late Mr. Don Rickles? If so, that must have been hilarious.

[@Parissss222]

That is badass

[@chriskolb3105]

She’s a virtuoso level classical guitar player. Shes better than 99% of those metal players.

[@peztopher7297]

She is such a sport. People laugh at her accent and somewhat irregular English, but she thinks it's all fun. Of course, they're really laughing with delight, she's so bubbly and enthusiastic. Kind of like Dolly Parton and her figure.

[@RobinPochita]

Yess I adore Charo in a very similar way as I adore Dolly 💖

[@robatsea2009]

I grew up watching Charo as a regular fixture of 1970s and 1980s television, and was pleased to discover that when I met her years later she's a sincerely nice person. As others have noted she's also an amazing Flamenco guitarist - her concerts are fantastic.

[@OMGWTFLOLSMH]

She's hilarious, and charming.

[@babyfir77]

Charo participates on Facebook, shows current videos

[@Mathin3D]

Remove that flag pls

[@davidoldfield6114]

That was the funniest joke! Such great delivery! Love Charo!!!

[@TheMoisesmo]

La Charo: Pregúntame lo que quieras que te contestaré lo que me dé la gana. JAJAJAJA !!!

[@lisanidog8178]

Mom just adored her. She’s not only funny but a really great guitar player. Flamenco.

[@poetcomic1]

Two years in a row she was named best flamenco guitarist in the world. She was trained personally by the great Segovia. Her talent is highly respected in Spain but 'cuchi-cuchi' Charo has been a life long money machine for her.

[@badandy1203]

Ok but can we talk about how that $5 joke was actually funny? literally laughed out loud to myself in the kitchen 😂

[@windsorkid7069]

In private, Charo has only a slight Spanish accent. She does the thick accent as part of her act. I learned that years ago when I saw an interview she did in England. Her english is actually very eloquent, like her guitar playing.

[@xox6663]

Nice...... I freaking love her accent....

[@e.e.e]

REALLY??? OMG! I just wondered that 2 min ago, literally cos in this interview here, she once slipped and pronounced something perfectly! I went like this o 0 And then she reverted to her accent. Do you know the video title, please? Also I was gonna say she should have asked Ricardo M how to tone it down cos he did.

[@davidwesley2525]

@windsorkid7069 Where can I Find That Interview of Charo Speaking Eloquent English ? 😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁

[@thebupster]

I hear Bjork does the same thing 🫠

[@MissylovesTrouble]

I have always loved Charo. She is the reason why I love flamenco music. She is so positive, I love that. Her son Shel looks a lot like her.

[@sabrina-hu4ri]

Smart lady. Hysterical "brand" she established for herself.

[@ElmoUnk1953]

My mom worked at Beverly Hills city hall in the building permitting office. Charo’s English was perfect, with a slight Castilian accent. Funny and easy on the eyes. 🥰

[@lisanidog8178]

I don’t know why people have trouble understanding her. I understand her perfectly.

[@glenrosarian2352]

Yes I agree. She has a talent for fluently speaking English with a Spanish fluidity that's so beautiful.

[@lisanidog8178]

@@glenrosarian2352 yup! And she plays really good classical guitar too.

[@worldmikel]

Thank God stuff like this was not lost to the NBC tape dump.

[@dianewinters8628]

I remember her playing on Sullivan and all the variety shows. She was definitely multi-talented.

[@anikadiamond007]

Beautiful! I remember her from the Love Boat.

[@leerush6978]

This is a great interview....Dave making fun of Charo's accent got lame...but Charo handled herself with class, grace and humor.

[@christianoliver3572]

She was always that way. Carol Burnett had fun with her from the late 1960s to the early 1980s.

[@plaws0]

All part of the act.

[@joetrolo7076]

I find her accent very off-putting. After all that time, her English should have been far better. In five months in Germany, my accent was almost flawless. She probably knows more words then I did at the time, but at least I didn't abuse the language with my accent.

[@leerush6978]

@@joetrolo7076 we are all different Joe...

[@plaws0]

@@joetrolo7076 Well, you thought your accent was almost flawless, and your friends humored you by agreeing, but regular German folk probably rolled their eyes. As for Ms ... Charo ... she doesn't care what you think because she made a lot of money with that accent. The WP article on her cites _Latinas in the United States: A Historical Encyclopedia_ as the source for this quote: "Around the world I am known as a great musician. But in America I am known as the cuchi-cuchi girl. That’s okay, because cuchi-cuchi has taken me all the way to the bank."

[@Novaheart1998]

She’s hilarious and charming.

[@fdrstan]

Gorgeous woman.

[@KarinaTheDreama]

Dave, THERE IS NO ONE LINE HER! ❤🎉❤

[@davidwesley2525]

CHARO is an International Treasure. 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍

[@jamesten]

Great Flamenco guitarist

[@TheListOf]

Love Charo!!! Cootchie cootchie cootchie

[@supachaloopa3611]

Hope she writes a book about her life.

[@e.e.e]

YES! I was just looking for her biography, I was sure she'd written one. Gosh the title be Cuchi Cuchi something 😄It has to be!

[@lowe-quay-shush]

She's consistently sweet to Dave who turn on and off from being an A Hole like a switch.

[@lylytorrence4890]

My mother enjoyed charo and thought she was a riot. Lol. Oh we understand miss charo perfectly. We are from the island of hawaii in hawaii.

[@RobbieR-x6c]

I loved Charo when I was a boy, even before I reached puberty!!!❤

[@miriamgreen3973]

She is SO cute!!

[@sarcasmo57]

I'm going to sell this joke for $5 too.

[@MultiSkyman1]

Charming Charo!

[@watchuwatching1286]

She was awesome... Dave not being his most gracious self, unfortunately.

[@foxpaw342]

But she is dealing with him pretty damn good! I think She turns the conversation around when he tries to humiliate her.

[@davidwesley2525]

​@@foxpaw342Fun Fact Both Cher & Shirley MacLaine Think David Letterman is an ASS - H _ _ _ . 🤪🤪🤪🤪🤪🤪🤪🤪🤪🤪🤪🤪🤪🤪

[@KarinaTheDreama]

The restaurant in Kuwaiti is Fabulous! I’ve NEVER has cuisine of the like anywhere in my life in the industry. The very best frozen mango margarita in the universe!. A must for anyone traveling to the island worthy of the plane hop.

[@graymars1097]

Now I see! Sofia V. Is not a new act then. Thanks for the upload

[@orvgg]

Hard to believe she was only 34 at the time.

[@joanb259]

She was not. She's thought to be born in 1941 or 1945, so at least she was in her 40s by the time.

[@davidwesley2525]

​@@joanb259I Hope Somebody Finds Charo's Birth Certificate. 😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁

[@tuberhubris4154]

Ah, Charo, paved the way for Sofia Vergara.

[@RipperFromYT]

I'm a bit embarrassed. I thought she passed away years ago. She's only 71 in 2022!

[@DA90027]

She was born in 1946

[@davidwesley2525]

​@@DA90027 Charo is HOT 🔥 for 78 Years of Age. 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩

[@movingforwardopportunity667]

I need the recipe ❤❤❤ love her 24

[@dmblum1]

At least she speaks two languages! I'd like to see Dave try Spanish (Spanish - she really sounds Barcelonan).

[@OMGWTFLOLSMH]

She apparently speaks multiple languages.

[@calvinsaxon5822]

He's not making fun of her English. He's smart enough to see that she hams it up intentionally.

[@cactaceous]

@@calvinsaxon5822 She did not ham it up. The Spanish, from Spain not Latin Americans, always have a hard time with English pronunciation due to how the tongue and mouth react to words in both languages. Also, in Spain nobody learned English due to the dictatorship of Franco forbidding anything not Nationalistic. I should know since my mother is from Alcalá and came to New York for university where she met my father. She’s been in the States my entire life, 43 years and she still has a thick accent.

[@davidwesley2525]

​@@cactaceousCharo 's Thick Accent is Part of Her Personna. 😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅

[@jackiereamy4871]

YAY!!!

[@blackbird5634]

Goddess!!🤩😍🥰

[@jackiereamy4871]

Paella????😀👍

[@e.e.e]

Shakira stole her act.

[@AcmeRacing]

I find Charo interviews painful. I'd much rather hear her playing guitar than speaking.

[@leerush6978]

😎

[@chefrustdog]

Omg,this chic stole Sofia Vergara's act!

[@michaelblanchette2787]

This is 1985

[@chiefscheider]

Michael and rgrndu: pretty sure chef was being funny...

[@michaelblanchette2787]

@@chiefscheider then he needs to try harder

[@edwhitson9873]

Sofia Vergara was a kid when this was recorded

[@blakem9109]

@chefrustdog Haha, despite the other comments, I laughed at your joke.

[@simonriddick]

:p I see.

[@davidfisher12865]

Shame, Wish she played guitar.

[@jorgeamaya654]

Ass:ole

[@MikeChimeri]

The hurricane Dave referenced was Gloria, which according to Wikipedia, was moments from landfall in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. It made landfall around my neck of Long Island (Freeport, two blocks from Baldwin Bay) at noon, by then riding along a cold front that I assume was the cause of rain that led to Charo's frizzy hair the day before. I was almost 4 years old (November 17) and don't remember much outside of flooding at ground level of our house. I'm told that power was only out for a few days, owing to Freeport's own utilities. LILCO customers were without power for up to two weeks. Had I lived in Wantagh, where I moved in 1993 (inland, this time), I would have been one of those customers (or the son of one, anyway). I would go through extended outages from Irene in 2011 (five days) and Sandy in '12 (nine days). en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Gloria