My body’s healing, but my heart is still broken
COMEDIAN Tracy Morgan tearfully vowed Monday to return to the stage and make fans laugh again.
Still recovering from a hellacious car crash that nearly claimed his life, Morgan paid a visit to the “Saturday Night Live” studios at Rockefeller Center for a sitdown with “Today” show host Matt Lauer.
He said that while he’s physically on the mend, his emotional scars may never heal.
“I love comedy and I wonder how I’m gonna be funny again,” the “SNL” alum said during part of the interview that aired Monday on “NBC Nightly News.”
“The fans let me know, ‘We can’t wait for you to come back,’” he said. “I can’t wait to make them happy again.”
Morgan, 46, said he hopes to one day host “SNL” again.
“I promise you,” he said through tears, “one day when I’m 100%, I’m gonna grab that mic and I’m never gonna let it go, never! I’m gonna be the funniest I can be because I ain’t never gonna take life for granted no more.”
But Morgan’s brain doctor told the Daily News the former “30 Rock” star has a long road to recovery, and will likely never fully be himself again.
“He still has a lot of great talent left and he’s gonna use that in a real prolific way,” said Dr. Brian Greenwald, medical director of the Center for Head Injuries at JFK Medical Center in Edison, N.J.
“Certainly Tracy still has a lot of goals to meet,” Greenwald said. “I don’t have an end date for (therapy).”
Greenwald said he and his team will “do everything we can” to get him to be the best Tracy Morgan he can be.
“He came in here on a stretcher and walked out,” Greenwald said.
In the “Today” interview, Morgan broke down as he spoke of his friend and mentor, comedian James (Uncle Jimmy Mack) McNair, who was killed in the New Jersey Turnpike crash June 7, 2014, that left Morgan in a coma.
“Bones heal. But the loss of my friend will never heal,” said Morgan, who revealed he was on his cellphone talking to his fiancée, Megan Wollover, when the crash occurred.
His first public appearance since a Walmart big rig plowed into his limousine came five days after he reached a settlement in his negligence suit against Walmart.
While details of the settlement were not disclosed, he said the retail giant “came through in the clutch” and that he was especially relieved the company did right by McNair’s family.
He said he has “good days and bad days,” suffering bouts with forgetfulness, headaches and nosebleeds. He doesn’t remember the accident, but has since watched news clips of it and of McNair’s funeral on YouTube.
Morgan gave a shoutout to Greenwald and nurse Jackie Chirichella, apologizing to her for his verbal abuse in the early days of his treatment.
“That wasn’t Tracy, it was his injury,” Chirichella told The News. “That’s what we deal with every day.”