Comics mark Oprah farewell with punch lines

NEW YORK — While many reacted to the final episode of "The Oprah Winfrey Show" with tears and emotion, comedians found punch lines.

On "Jimmy Kimmel Live," Kimmel sang goodbye by performing the song "End of the Road" with R&B group Boyz II Men. The tune was renamed "It's So Hard To Say Goodbye (to Oprah Winfrey)."

David Letterman, whose up-and-down relationship with Winfrey has long been chronicled, earlier lamented not being invited to the farewell gala in Chicago.

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"Honest to God," said Letterman, "Every day, I get out of bed and think: 'What can I do to suck up to Oprah?'"

Many turned to social media to contemplate a post-Oprah world.

Among the notable comments made on Twitter were these:

— "Apparently Oprah is responsible for life on our planet as we know it." — Kevin Nealon.

— "I miss both Oprah and Osama. Is there a way to pair them up for something?" — Michael Ian Black.

— "Oprah Winfrey is so powerful that she had the Rapture postponed until after her final show airs." — Joan Rivers.

— "It seems so unfair! Without Oprah, how are publishers going to continue their cross-fingers/hope-to-win-the-lottery business plan?" — John Hodgman.

— "Jesus will probably be the surprise guest. She got him started." — Paula Poundstone.

— "What can I say about Oprah that she hasn't already said about herself?" — Justin Stangel, co-executive producer of CBS' "Late Show."