Anthony Bourdain was mourned and celebrated at the premiere of Parts Unknown

"I've learned a long time ago that you have to tell people in your life who are important that they are important, because you never know when they will go away." W. Kamau Bell Saturday at the Tribeca TV Festival.

In this case, he spoke of the late Anthony Bourdain, with whom Bell appears in the first season of CNN Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown. The second half of the episode in Kenya, broadcast on September 23, shows Bourdain and Bell relaxing after a day safari in the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy. Bell expresses how much the journey has meant for him and how, by entering primarily in the category of fans, he can not really believe his luck. "Who is life?" He asks incredulously.

That's when Bourdain turns to the United Shades of America host and admits that he too sometimes pinches himself. "I can not believe I can do that or see that. Forty-four years old and fried potatoes, I knew with absolute certainty that I would never see Rome, let alone that.

"For me, this moment is probably all right," continued Bell on Tribeca TV Fest. "This moment with Tony [and] being able to bring him back to the guy I was, on the couch looking at him and being blown away – and now I'm sitting here? I did not know it happened on camera, so I really had the chance to do it. And I am really blessed that[director[director[réalisateur[directorMorgan Fallon]and the crew left him there, because especially now that he's gone, I think that's the kind of thing that a lot of people wanted to tell him.

Fallon was also present at the premiere of Saturday night. Before the screening and discussion with the executive producers Chris Collins and Lydia Tenaglia And showrunner Sandy Zweig, he said that he remembered well that conversation between Bell and Bourdain.

"It was a really powerful moment. The crew was somehow changing equipment and we reset our cameras; it was completely unusual. It was not necessarily something in the context of the scene, "he said. "I think it's important to show this and remind people that it's something Tony has always felt everyday: an overwhelming sense of gratitude to the world for embracing him, [and] to the people who supported it creatively. He never forgot that.

The capture of this moment has been all the more significant, added Fallon, because he considers Bell and his Emmy United Shades of America– a series that might not exist without the success and support of Bourdain Unknown parts"As heir to Tony's legacy at CNN".

"Unfortunately, the circumstances being what they are, there is a little bit of flambeau here, in my opinion. And that, I think, makes it very impactful, "said Fallon.

Ask Bell if he is ready for work, and he will be sure to exhale and roll his eyes before throwing a "yes!"

"I understand why we have to look for someone. Some people tweeted, "I hope you're the new Unknown parts"And I like work, I love my job," explained Bell. "Believe me, I take the lessons I've learned from Tony – especially the ones I've learned in Kenya – in my work, so I hope my show will take that into account. But I'm not trying to do Unknown parts. I am not a chef. I am not 61. I do not do jiujitsu. I am not him! I'm flattered that anyone who even thinks to say it because I just felt that I was cleaning up behind him by following his show.

The desire to find someone to carry the torch of Bourdain, said Bell, really means "that we should look for more storytellers who tell authentic stories like Tony did." And if I'm one of those authentic storytellers, great. But there are more people who can tell authentic stories from unique perspectives.