Conan O’Brien pays heartfelt tribute to his parents after their deaths three days apart
BROOKLINE, MASSACHUSETTS: Conan O’Brien is mourning the death of his parents, Dr Thomas O’Brien and Ruth Reardon O’Brien, who died within days of each other earlier this month.
Reflecting on their extraordinary lives, the comedian shared heartfelt tributes to his father, a visionary in medicine, and his mother, a trailblazer in law.
Conan O'Brien describes his parents as complementary opposites
Dr Thomas O’Brien, 95, died on December 9 following declining health.
Just three days later, on December 12, his wife, Ruth, died peacefully at the age of 92.
The couple had been married for 66 years. In an obituary for The Boston Globe, Conan, 61, described his parents as complementary opposites, Thomas, "the dreamer," and Ruth, "the realist."
"My dad was the one who was saying, ‘I’m off to Peru with a change of clothes in my briefcase to try and launch this website for a hospital there high in the mountains'," Conan wrote.
Conan O’Brien remembers his seventh-grade trip to South America with dad
Dr Thomas O’Brien was a pioneer in antimicrobial drug resistance research and served as the first director of the infectious diseases division at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
His work took him around the globe, and his adventurous spirit often extended to his family.
Conan recalled a transformative seventh-grade trip to South America with his father.
"He thought, ‘You’re going to learn more traveling through these various neighborhoods and cities in South America for a week and a half than you will in public school in Brookline,’" Conan said.
"I think he put the travel bug in me,” he shared.
Conan O'Brien describes mom Ruth Reardon O’Brien as 'iconic'
Ruth O’Brien balanced her demanding career with her role as a dedicated mother to six children.
She became the second woman partner at the prestigious law firm Ropes & Gray, all while managing the daily tasks of family life.
“As my dad was rushing around doing this incredible work, my mom was the one who really saw to it when we were little kids that we were fed and our clothes were laid out, and that we got to our dental appointments and medical appointments," Conan shared.
Describing his mother as “iconic,” Conan credited her with instilling discipline and balance in their family, noting that she and Thomas were “kindred spirits” who complemented each other perfectly.
Inside Conan O'Brien's family legacy
Dr Thomas O’Brien and Ruth O’Brien’s enduring partnership began in 1958 and produced six children, Justin, Neal, Luke, Kate, Jane, and Conan, along with nine grandchildren. Conan and his wife, Liza Powel O’Brien, share two of those grandchildren.
The O’Briens’ commitment to their family was celebrated at a joint funeral held on December 18 in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, where loved ones gathered to honor their lives.
Conan expressed his deep admiration for his parents’ lives, which were marked by dedication to their fields, their family, and each other.
"They were incredibly hard-working and disciplined. What my mother and father saw in each other was that they were kindred spirits," he shared, according to People.
