"Everyone was curious about him," he says.
One day, Reiss called the Lampoon for some information, and O'Brien happened to pick up the phone.
While joking about O'Brien's odd first name (he is named for Gaelic priests, not barbarians), Reiss says he was taken aback by the new president's quick wit.
"Jeez, this guy is really sharp," Reiss remembers thinking.
Another former Lampoon editor, Al Jean '81, who now writes for "The Simpsons," says he and Reiss made a point to fly back to Boston in order to meet the new prodigy.
Not only was O'Brien a talented writer and artist, but he worked hard. According to Flender, O'Brien had an unusually large amount of quality material.
O'Brien's own memories of his college days at the Lampoon are a bit fuzzier.
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