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Late Show with David Letterman
Format	Talk show Variety show
Starring	David Letterman Paul Shaffer and the CBS Orchestra Bill Wendell (1993-1995) Alan Kalter (1995-Present)
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	2,841 (as of November 2, 2007)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Robert Morton (1993-1996) Rob Burnett (1996-Present) Barbara Gaines (2000-Present) Maria Pope (2000-Present) Jude Brennan (2003-Present)
Location(s)	Ed Sullivan Theater New York City, New York
Running time	01:02:30
Broadcast
Original channel	CBS
Picture format	NTSC (480i), 1080i (HDTV)
Original run	August 30, 1993 – present
External links
Official website
IMDb profile
TV.com summary

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The Late Show with David Letterman is an Emmy Award-winning American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS. The show debuted on August 30, 1993. It is hosted by David Letterman and is produced by Letterman's production company, Worldwide Pants Incorporated. The show's music director and bandleader of the house band, the CBS Orchestra, is Paul Shaffer. The head writers are brothers Justin Stangel and Eric Stangel. The announcer is Alan Kalter, who replaced Bill Wendell in 1995. Production of new episodes has currently been suspended due to the Writers Guild of America strike. Recent reruns are being aired in the regular time slot.

In most American markets the show airs at 11:35 pm Eastern/Pacific time, but is recorded Mondays at 4:30 PM and 7:00 PM, Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 5:30 PM, and Thursdays at 4:30 PM. The second Monday episode usually airs on Friday of that week (the show had previously recorded the Friday episodes on Thursdays). Each show is recapped in The Wahoo Gazette by production coordinator Mike McIntee on CBS.com's Late Show page.

Letterman was previously the host of Late Night with David Letterman on NBC from 1982 to 1993. The show was co-produced by Carson Productions, Worldwide Pants Incorporated, and NBC Productions. Shaffer, Wendell, and several members of the band were also with the NBC show.

Contents 1 Transition from NBC to CBS 2 Production 2.1 Episode structure 2.2 Regular sketches 2.3 Staff 2.4 High-definition broadcasts 3 Host 3.1 Physical comedy 3.2 One-liners 3.3 Self-deprecation 4 "Friends of the Late Show" 5 Yearly traditions 5.1 Halloween 5.2 Thanksgiving 5.3 Christmas 6 Notable guests 6.1 Bill Hicks 6.2 Madonna 6.3 Johnny Carson 6.4 Drew Barrymore 6.5 Anna Paquin 6.6 Farrah Fawcett 6.7 Warren Zevon 6.8 Courtney Love 6.9 Oprah Winfrey 6.10 Bill O'Reilly 6.11 Michael Richards 6.12 Adam Sandler 6.13 John McCain 6.14 Drew Carey 6.15 Paris Hilton 6.16 Charles Grodin 6.17 Richard Simmons 7 Notable episodes 7.1 February 21, 2000 7.2 September 17, 2001 7.3 January 31, 2005 8 International broadcasts 8.1 The Late Show with David Letterman in the UK 9 Awards 9.1 Primetime Emmy Awards 10 See also 11 References 12 External links

Letterman's decision to leave NBC was largely provoked by the network's decision in 1992 to have comedian Jay Leno succeed Johnny Carson as host of The Tonight Show. Letterman, Carson, and many others had long assumed that Letterman's years of service to NBC would be sufficient to result in him becoming the new host, but NBC ultimately chose Leno, likely due to Letterman's consistent public mockery of NBC executives in the past, as well as a belief that Leno would have more mainstream appeal.^{[citation needed]}

Many erroneously still refer to Letterman's current show as Late Night, often resulting in Letterman or fans pointing out that while Late Night still exists, it airs on NBC and is hosted in its current incarnation by Conan O'Brien, whom Letterman has often publicly supported as his successor (Late Night is now co-produced by Lorne Michaels' Broadway Video and O'Brien's Conaco).

When Letterman moved to CBS and began the Late Show, several of Late Night's long-running comedy bits made the move with him. Letterman renamed a few of his regular bits to avoid legal problems over trademark infringement (NBC cited that what he did on Late Night was "intellectual property" of the network). "Viewer Mail" on NBC became the "CBS Mailbag", and Larry "Bud" Melman began to use his real name, Calvert DeForest. Paul Shaffer's "World's Most Dangerous Band" became "The CBS Orchestra," a not-so-subtle jab at NBC regarding the show's new home, and a play on the NBC Orchestra of the long running The Tonight Show. Letterman's signature bit, the Top Ten List, was perfunctorily renamed the "Late Show Top Ten List" (over time it was simply referred to again by its original name).

After Letterman was introduced on the Late Show's very first episode, NBC Nightly News anchor Tom Brokaw accompanied him on stage and wished him luck "within reason". As part of a pre-arranged act, Brokaw then proceeded to retrieve a pair of cue cards while stating that "These last two jokes are the intellectual property of NBC!" After he carried them off stage, Letterman then responded, "I never thought I'd hear the words 'intellectual' and 'NBC' in the same sentence!"

Ratings-wise, Letterman's Late Show would enjoy a consistent domination over Leno's Tonight Show in its first few years. Leno won the audience back during the summer of 1995 however, starting with the famous Hugh Grant interview, after Grant's arrest for picking up an LA hooker. ^[1]

At times Letterman would even come in third in the late night timeslot behind Ted Koppel's Nightline, prompting him at one point to arrange for a Manhattan billboard proudly declaring himself and his show to be "#3 in Late Night," aping an older, nearby billboard which promoted Leno and The Tonight Show as #1. Despite ratings, the Late Show remains one of CBS's most profitable programs.^{[citation needed]}

In recent years, Letterman and the Late Show have openly made jokes in reference to Leno, although it is often done in a self-deprecating manner.^{[citation needed]} Such jokes usually refer to The Tonight Show's consistent (and perhaps frustrating) lead in the ratings, a common example being where a guest presenter of the Top Ten List will use one of the entries to declare his or her preference for Leno, resulting in Letterman feigning humiliation or surprise. In a "What Things Cost" sketch in 2000, Letterman explained that it cost $10,000 to keep an open phone line with actor Leonard Nimoy. Upon thanking Nimoy for his help, Nimoy tersely admitted that he was unable to talk because "I'm watching Leno."

From November 11, 2002 to February 14, 2003, the show was simulcast on several CBS-owned radio stations.^[2]

This section does not cite any references or sources. Please improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (December 2007)

Act 1/Introduction

Early shows included a cold open, which featured Letterman in a baseball cap interacting with a celebrity. This practice was revived, albeit irregularly, in the summer of 2006. It often features Letterman in the green room, without a jacket on, talking to a Late Show staffer — usually former writer Gerard Mulligan or executive producer Jude Brennan — with Letterman being the butt of a joke.

The show's opening credits feature a series of shots of New York City (which have changed over the years) as the CBS Orchestra performs the Late Show theme (a livelier variation of the more jazzy Late Night theme). Announcer Alan Kalter proclaims "From New York: the greatest city in the world! It's the Late Show with David Letterman!" He announces the names of that night's guests, as well as Paul Shaffer and the CBS Orchestra. Kalter finally introduces Letterman with a humorous modification, such as "And now, the one-stop shop for all your bridal needs: David Letterman!"

Letterman then walks out on the show stage to perform his monologue, which often begins with an inside reference to something an audience member said to him during the pre-show Q&A; the scripted monologue jokes are usually based on pop culture, current events, and politics. The monologue is followed by Letterman's introduction of Shaffer and the CBS Orchestra, who then perform briefly. On most nights, Letterman will walk to his desk where he then chats with the audience and Shaffer, relating an unscripted personal story, discussing his anticipation of a particular upcoming guest, or continuing a running gag. He then explains who the scheduled guests are.

The show usually then transitions to a series of brief sketch comedy bits, which often consist of humorous commercials, disclaimers, video clips, or props. As of the 2007 Writers Guild of America strike hiatus, common skits include "Great Moments in Presidential Speeches" that display FDR and Kennedy making speeches, then George W. Bush making a mistake in his speech. They are then followed by a more elaborate live or pre-taped skit, although the skit (such as "Small Town News" and "Fun Facts") has been preceded by a commercial break.

Act 2

After returning from a commercial break, Letterman often reads the Top Ten List at this point before turning to guest interviews with a celebrity, politician, or public figure. On some nights Act 2 is instead dedicated to another comedy segment involving guest participants, such as Stupid Pet Tricks or Kid Scientists.

Act 3

On most nights, the first guest stays on through the commercial break and continues the interview, especially if he or she is a more well-known figure. In other instances, a second guest is brought out at this point.

Act 4

This segment is sometimes dedicated to a second scheduled guest. Occasionally, this guest is actually carried over from Act 3 and given two segments, with the first guest only being given one. On other nights, Act 4 will instead be dedicated to Letterman presenting either a Top Ten List or comedy bit involving a crew member.

Act 5

This segment often consists of an "audience sweep," where a camera pans across the applauding audience from side to side. A brief comedy bit or announcement, usually involving Kalter, is then superimposed over the sweep.

Act 6

The final guest of the show is usually featured here. In most instances, this consists of a live musical performance, although it may instead be dedicated to another interview, or a guest comedian performing a stand-up routine on the stage. The CBS Orchestra frequently assists musical guests in performing their songs.

Act 7

The episode concludes with Letterman at his desk, who then will often comment to Shaffer on the final guest, or that night's episode in general. He will then thank all the guests who appeared before announcing the next night's guests. Letterman then ends the show, usually saying "Good night everybody!" As the CBS Orchestra is seen performing the Late Show theme, a truncated closing credit sequence consisting of only copyright and ticket information is presented. On rare occasions when time allows, a full credit sequence listing the show's entire crew is shown. After the closing, a Worldwide Pants production logo is displayed with an authoritative but non-sequitur voice-over, such as "Mmm... waffles."

Main article: Sketches on Letterman

The Late Show is well known^{[attribution needed]} for its repeated absurdist segments, often taking the form of competitions or audience participation.

Currently, the show's regularly scheduled segments consist of "Small Town News" on Mondays and "Fun Facts" on Fridays. Thursdays often feature a rotating set of three audience participation segments: "Know Your Current Events," "Stump the Band," and "Audience Show and Tell."

Letterman will also take a camera crew into the Hello Deli on a near-weekly basis.^{[citation needed]} There he will often conduct a game with Rupert Jee and a contestant selected from the crowd of gatherers outside (Jee, perhaps at the request of Letterman, almost always selects a young, attractive female). Such games are rarely repeated in subsequent episodes, but those that have been often repeated include "What's on the iPod?" and "Beat the Clock."

"Stupid Pet Tricks" and "Stupid Human Tricks," two of Letterman's trademark bits from Late Night, continue to be presented on the Late Show, albeit on a rare basis.

Another occasional feature consists of random items (such as paint and super balls) being thrown off of a roof several stories high by a team led by Late Show stagehand Pat Farmer.

On a random basis, Letterman will present one of several kinds of "desk comedy" sketches. Some will consist of a series of props, such as "Rejected FDA Items" and "Summer Reading." Others will consist of a series of visuals and captions, such as "Thanksgiving Parade Quiz" and "A Day in the Life of..."

With the exception of the Top Ten List, many segments that have been featured on a near-daily basis have come and gone over the years. Such regularly recurring segments currently include "Great Moments in Presidential Speeches", "The Reagan Diaries", and "Will It Float?"

Announcer Bill Wendell retired and left the show in 1995.^{[citation needed]} He was replaced by Alan Kalter on the show's next episode which came after a two-week hiatus.

In 1996, Letterman reluctantly fired long-time producer Robert Morton as the result^{[citation needed]} of various professional disputes, including an apparent botched attempt to move the show to ABC in place of Nightline. Head writer Rob Burnett was promoted to executive producer.

Director Hal Gurnee and producer Peter Lassally left the show soon after to pursue other interests.^{[citation needed]} Gurnee was replaced by Jerry Foley. Burnett was absent from the day-to-day operations from 2000 to 2004, and was replaced by Barbara Gaines and Maria Pope, both of whom continue to serve as executive producers, with Gaines currently acting as on-air producer. In 2003, producer Jude Brennan was added to the team of executive producers.^{[citation needed]}

Lassally, who had served as an executive producer for Johnny Carson on the Tonight Show, was invited back to the Late Show in January 2005 as a guest to discuss the recent death of Carson. Lassally currently serves as executive producer for Worldwide Pants' Late Late Show (dating back to its years under original host Tom Snyder) as well as the Tony Mendez Show, an online webcast featuring the Late Show's "cue card boy."

The show began broadcasting in HDTV on Monday August 29, 2005. About two weeks later, Tim Kennedy, the show's Technical Director, commented on the transition in the show's official newsletter:

The biggest challenge in the HD conversion was to renovate and upgrade our old control room, audio room, videotape room, and edit room while still doing five shows a week... This entailed pulling a remote production truck on 53rd Street running somewhere in the neighborhood of 50,000 feet of video and audio cable just to tie the truck to the existing technical plant...

The coolest piece of equipment is our new control room Virtual Wall. We have done away with the conventional monitor for every video source and replaced it with four 70-inch rear projection screens and within those screens we can "virtually" place as many video images as we want, anywhere we want them, and when we want it.

Kennedy and his crew won an Emmy Award for "Outstanding Technical Direction, Camerawork, Video for a Series" during the nearly-four-month-long transition to HDTV.

Main article: David Letterman

Letterman himself is known for his quirky physical comedy, which he has used in varied degrees throughout the years. Examples are throwing his blue note cards through the prop window behind him or throwing pencils at the camera (always followed with a sound effect of shattering glass), pausing to take a long drink of his coffee, exaggeratedly loud coughing and clearing his throat, showing the inside lining of his suit, showing his receding hairline, long awkward moments to organize his note cards on his desk, flipping pencils upward and trying to catch them one-handed (à la Johnny Carson), wiggling his tie, adjusting the height of his chair, stirring his guests' coffee with a pencil before they arrive, and pausing to clean his glasses.

Though Letterman is typically well-attired and neat, a common 'Dave gag' is pretending to eat or drink excessive amounts of both edible and non-edible items, for instance, eating mayonnaise straight from the jar, allowing it to slop onto his face and onto the front of his suit.^{[citation needed]} During a cooking segment with Martha Stewart there was a table set up with ingredients to demonstrate how to prepare some sort of meal. Letterman feigned clumsy disinterest, measuring the wrong amounts, throwing raw eggs at the band, gulping down bottles of wine, eating half a stick of butter, and generally wreaking havoc in an attempt to fluster his guest. Stewart tried to nonchalantly continue her cooking presentation, until finally, in an apparent "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" moment, succumbed to the fun, taking a big bite of butter herself. A similar situation occurred during a cooking segment featuring British chef Jamie Oliver, beginning with Letterman eating raw onions and resulting in he, Oliver and the episode's first guest Tom Cruise, and later Paul Shaffer all drinking from a bottle of olive oil.

This article or section may contain poor or irrelevant examples. Articles should only contain pertinent examples. Please improve the article or discuss proposed changes on the talk page. You can edit the article to add more encyclopaedic text. See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articles for further suggestions.

Another Letterman trademark is his penchant for odd, non-sequitur one-liners. Often they come from obscure sources with little to no explanation and appear to be mostly used for Letterman's own amusement.^{[citation needed]} Some of the one-liners seem to derive from experiences in Letterman's personal life, random lines he heard on TV, or favorite lines used by his comedian friends. Others are exaggerations of typical talk-show patter, in keeping with Letterman's ironic take on his own television genre. Shaffer will often laugh at the jokes, although this is usually due to the repetition and familiarity of them, rather than the nature of the jokes themselves.^{[citation needed]}

Some of the many one-liners during the Late Show years include:^{[citation needed]}

• "And down the stretch they come!!" Mimicking the signature call of horse racing announcer Dave Johnson.
• "...And free balloons for the kids!" (Originating from a sketch involving Hooters in which the restaurant advertised itself as a family friendly restaurant complete with "balloons for the kids.")
• "Are you cookin' beans?"/"Is Zorro on?"/"What time is it?" Said in a Southern accent, Letterman has attributed this to a Jim Varney routine.
• "Hi, Bob. Hi, Stan. How's the go going?" Bob and Stan were Letterman's beloved German Shepards.
• "Hold on to your wigs and keys!"
• "I am nothing if not contemplative and introspective." Often preceding an observational monologue joke of a simple-minded nature.
• "I hope they're not neglecting their studies." Used in reference to a group of youths, often rock bands.
• "I'll handle the jokes!" Often used when a contestant gets in a funny line during one of the audience participation segments.
• "I'm being told he's all right."
• "I'm high on coffee, cheap speed and donuts!"
• "...In my pants!"
• "It opens in selected cities... And I pray to God that your city has been selected."
• "It's more fun than humans should be allowed to have."
• "Ladies and gentlemen, please check yourself for ticks."
• "My doctor... Dr. Vinnie Boom-batz!" From a Rodney Dangerfield routine.
• "Not a match, the board goes back." From Concentration, usually after a joke fails.
• "Please do not attempt to approach the desk." When going into a "trance" to predict what kind of pies his mother has made for Thanksgiving.
• "Something from the meat case, Linda?"
• "There is no off position on the genius switch."
• "There's not a man, woman, or child alive today who doesn't enjoy a lovely beverage."
• "They don't give these shows to chimps."
• "This is only an exhibition, this is not a competition. Please... no wagering." From Stupid Pet/Human Tricks.
• "This is the only thing on CBS right now."
• "Turn out the lights and call the cops!"
• "Wake the kids and call the neighbors!"
• "Wash it; Gas it; Give me the keys."
• "Will you be there when the big door swings open?"
• "We like to keep our comedy fresh." A standard reply when a guest comments on the cold temperature of the Ed Sullivan Theater.
• "What is this, Vassar?"
• "I wouldn't give that guy's problems to a monkey on a rock!"
• "May a bizarre holy man tape your sister shut!" Now more often used by Shaffer, particularly during audience segments
• "Well guess again, Chester!"

Letterman will often poke fun at himself in a wide variety of ways, ranging from the content of his show (such as admitting when a joke is not particularly funny), his personal life (portraying himself as a reclusive loner), his physical appearance (his hair or "advanced age"), and his staff's supposed frustration with him (being forced to work on holidays). Such jokes will be made through impromptu remarks made by Letterman, or even in scripted material presented by Letterman or various staff members. In one episode, foreigners would appear on stage one by one, hurling a flurry of insults at Letterman in their native languages. Another more common gag consists of audience members finding ways to leave the show to Letterman's embarrassment.^{[citation needed]}

Many frequently invited guests have gone on to become favorites of the show, displaying an on-air friendship with Letterman that sets them apart from the more typical interview subjects.^{[citation needed]} Perhaps most prominent among these are Charles Grodin and Regis Philbin, who will often bicker with Letterman about their respective personal relationships. Philbin has made more appearances on the Late Show than any other guest in the show's history.^{[citation needed]}

Other notable guests include Bonnie Hunt (with whom Letterman co-produced two short-lived sitcoms), Bill Murray (who has the distinction of appearing on the first episodes of both Late Night and the Late Show), Marv Albert (who had the most Late Night appearances), musical group Foo Fighters (whom Letterman had personally requested to perform during his first show after heart bypass surgery in 2000), and Warren Zevon (who was featured as the only guest in his final appearance prior to his death in 2003).

Some guests, particularly Murray, Tom Hanks, Steve Martin, and Bruce Willis, will often take the effort to accompany their appearances on the show with a pre-arranged routine or bit (such as when Willis put dots on his face to satirize Dick Cheney's recent hunting incident and Hanks' wearing one of Letterman's sport jackets and a pair of his loafers, claiming his wife was to blame for the accidental clash of fashions), or will appear elsewhere in the show in a skit. Martin Short will often conclude his interviews with a comedic musical number on stage.

Other favorite guests who have frequently appeared include Drew Barrymore, Matthew Broderick, Tom Brokaw, Harry Connick, Jr., Penn & Teller, Elvis Costello, Billy Crystal, Jack Hanna, Jennifer Lopez, Paul Newman, Sarah Jessica Parker, Tony Randall, Julia Roberts, Ray Romano, Isabella Rossellini, Amy Sedaris, Jerry Seinfeld, Martha Stewart, Howard Stern and Robin Williams.^{[citation needed]}

Some of Letterman's personal comedian friends who have often appeared on the show include Jeff Altman, Tom Dreesen, George Miller, Bob Sarlatte, Jimmie Walker and John Witherspoon.^{[citation needed]}

R.E.M., who were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in March 2007, made their international television debut on Late Night on October 6, 1983, just three years into their career. To date, they have appeared on Letterman's show six times.^{[citation needed]}

For Halloween, Letterman stands in a house-like set on stage, where he answers a door and greets a series of trick-or-treaters dressed in elaborate, humorous costumes (a recent example being a giant Bluetooth headset). The children are then given "treats" which have consisted of unusual items such as Lipitor, useless Yankees World Series tickets, and a Tonight Show with Jay Leno tote bag.

Every Thanksgiving, Letterman visits his mother (Dorothy Mengering) at her Indiana home via satellite, and tries to guess the two pies she has baked for her family dinner. Letterman will also show footage of that year's company Thanksgiving party, which often includes a particular clip from a previous party in which Letterman serves food while dressed in a pilgrim costume.

Since 1986, Letterman has invited musician Darlene Love to perform "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" on the final new episode of the Late Show with David Letterman before Christmas. The song is always performed with Paul Shaffer and the CBS Orchestra, with the band being augmented by additional strings and other instruments, as well as a full choir. Love first performed the song on Late Night with David Letterman in 1986. Letterman has stated that the annual performance is his favorite part of Christmas, and that Love's rendition is " the only Christmas song anyone needs." Letterman will often dedicate a segment to toy expert Shannon Eis, who demonstrates many of the newer toys that will be available during the upcoming season. The main appeal of the segment is Letterman's tendency to engage in horseplay with the various toys on display.

Paul Shaffer will often perform a brief rendition of Cher singing "O Holy Night" from an episode of her 1970s variety show. Shaffer sets up the bit with a straight-faced introduction before breaking into a humorous impersonation. This has been performed on-and-off since the Late Night years.

Letterman will also have local pizza-maker Joe G, gift shop proprietors Mujibur & Sirajul, and Hello Deli proprietor Rupert Jee top the Late Show Christmas tree with a pizza, Statue of Liberty miniature, and meatball, respectively.

On a later episode, Letterman and comedian Jay Thomas will then throw footballs at the tree from across the stage, attempting to knock down its top. This tradition began in 1998 when Letterman and NFL quarterback Vinny Testaverde threw footballs at a pastrami sandwich from the top of a tree but failed repeatedly. This prompted Thomas - who had been a guest earlier - to run out and take a shot, succeeding on his first try.

It has been suggested that this section be split into a new article. (Discuss)

On October 1, 1993, Bill Hicks was to appear on the Late Show for the first time (he had appeared on "Late Night" 11 times), but his appearance at the live taping was somewhat controversially edited out of the show that went on the air. At the time, Hicks was doing a routine about pro-life organizations, where he encouraged them to "lock arms and block cemeteries" instead of medical clinics, which was part of his set that was cut from the show. In its place, a stand-up segment performed by staff writer Bill Scheft from a previously unaired show was edited in. Both the show's producers and CBS denied responsibility for the cut, but the reason appeared obvious to many during the following week's Letterman show when a commercial for a pro-life organization was aired. Hicks felt betrayed, and wrote a 32-page letter of complaint. Less than five months later, Hicks died of pancreatic cancer. After his death, a somewhat somber Letterman expressed regret at the way Hicks had been handled, when interviewed for the special It's Just A Ride: A Tribute to Bill Hicks. The episode that Hicks' appearance was removed from was the only episode ever to feature David Letterman doing the voice-over for the show introduction. Regular announcer Bill Wendell had gone home for the day before the decision was made to remove Hicks' appearance, so Letterman filled in when the introduction was edited.

Main article: Madonna on Letterman

On March 31, 1994, pop star Madonna appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman. The unofficial 'Queen of Pop', who is known for controversy, infamously swore thirteen times throughout the interview and refused to leave at the end. Letterman, who asked her questions on various topics including her nose ring, music and love life was soon branded a 'sick fuck', after he suggested Madonna kiss a member of the audience. Madonna went on to ask if Letterman was wearing a 'rug', whether he wanted to smell a pair of underwear she brought on the show, or whether he thought the microphone was sexually big. In between this, Madonna often swore and referred to sexual themes including her vagina, saying: 'Did you know it's good to pee in the shower?' Eventually, she swore so much that the producers went to commercials and showed comedic monologues of Madonna. At the end of the interview, when Madonna refused to leave, Letterman cut to a break, and when they returned, Madonna was gone. Letterman has since stated, in USA Today: 'I'm not pleased with the way I handled it. I should have said, "You say that word one more time and you're gone. That's it. Adios." And I didn't.' Madonna appeared days later on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Although she appeared briefly at the stroke of midnight on Valentine's Day, 1995 to present Dave with a bouquet of roses, her return to the show as a guest was not until 2000, while promoting her album Music. During that interview, and other subsequent interviews on the show, Dave joked that he still had the panties that she gave him.

During the September 1994 MTV Video Music Awards, Madonna was a presenter and was escorted onstage by Letterman who kissed her hand and stated, "I'll be in the car. Just... watch your language.", and walked off stage to applause.

On May 13, 1994, Johnny Carson was lured out of his retirement to make a rare television appearance on the Late Show during a week of episodes taped in Los Angeles. That week, as a running gag, Calvert DeForest brought out each night's Top Ten list after being introduced as a random A-list star. The final night, he was introduced as Carson. After DeForest delivered his usual insult to the audience and left, Letterman announced he was given the wrong card and asked "Johnny" to bring the right one. The real Carson then came out to a thunderous and prolonged standing ovation from the audience. During the ovation, Letterman gleefully insisted Carson take his seat behind the desk while Letterman sat in the guest's chair. Carson was apparently supposed to deliver a joke when the crowd finally settled down, but perhaps feeling he couldn't top that moment, said "no" and left the stage to another ovation. Carson later blamed laryngitis for his lack of a joke. Carson had not appeared on TV since his departure from The Tonight Show in 1992 and was rarely seen in public afterwards.

In the April 12, 1995 Late Show episode, as a birthday present, actress Drew Barrymore stood on Letterman's desk and flashed her breasts, as part of an erotic dance. (The cameras only showed her from the back, during the flash.) The dance shocked the usually unflappable Letterman; it was reportedly a gift from Barrymore, for his birthday. Letterman later said, 'I couldn't have been more pleased.' A later skit on The Late Show entitled "The David Letterman Story" referenced the incident where Letterman claimed his most memorable and favorite moment on the show was "when Drew Barrymore got on the desk and took her shirt off."

In 1996, an appearance by then-13-year-old actress Anna Paquin made headlines due to an apparent misunderstanding. Earlier in the episode, a man was given a chance to win $10,000 by making a three-point shot but he missed. After a tense interview with an "uncommunicative" Paquin, Letterman offered her a chance to make a shot from up close.^[3] She made the shot and Letterman jokingly handed her the $10,000. When the producers took the money away from Paquin backstage, her parents told the local newspapers that their daughter should be allowed to keep it. The local press referred to the incident as "Paquin-gate".^[3] Two nights later, Paquin returned to the show and a visibly bothered Letterman gave her the $10,000 as a donation to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. He later looked in the camera and said "Get over it! Alright?" Letterman recalled in an interview:

“

I just thought 'This is the epitome of hypocrisy'. Here's this little girl, just dumb luck, hits the shot; I as a joke hand her the money - it's show business. It wasn't like 'gimme that 10 grand, you little'... It would be different if we were dealing with a Bosnian orphan. We're dealing with an Academy Award-winning movie star, who's in big-budget movies.[3]

”

The former model and 1970s sex icon Farrah Fawcett made headlines on June 5, 1997 when she notoriously appeared on Letterman's show appearing confused and disoriented. At the end of the show, Letterman thanked Fawcett for "almost being here."

Warren Zevon was a frequent guest and occasional substitute bandleader on Letterman's television shows since Late Night first aired in 1982. In 2002, he was diagnosed with lung cancer. On October 30, 2002, Zevon was featured on the show as the only guest for the entire hour. Appearing very underweight and weakened, Zevon performed and spoke at length about his illness. It was this show where Zevon offered his insight on facing death: "enjoy every sandwich." He performed three songs (his last ever before an audience): "Genius", "Mutineer" and "Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner." Zevon regarded Letterman as "the best friend my music ever had." He died on September 7, 2003.

In March 2004, rock singer Courtney Love flashed Letterman six times — once while standing on his desk.

Letterman and daytime talk show host Oprah Winfrey have had a peculiar public relationship. Although Winfrey appeared twice on Letterman's Late Night show in the 1980s, she had never appeared on the Late Show, and Letterman had never appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show. Winfrey had described her visits to Late Night as difficult, adding that "I felt like his whole mission [in earlier appearances] was to make me the joke."^[4] In the ensuing years, Letterman would often speak of his praise and reverence for Winfrey, in addition to making many jocular attempts to woo her back onto his show.

In 1996, in hopes of booking her for a Late Show taping in Chicago, Letterman contacted Winfrey by phone, but she declined to accept because - according to Letterman - she had claimed she would be "totally out of town." (Weeks later, she appeared on a subsequent Chicago Tonight Show taping.)

On November 8th, 2001, Dave started a daily journal called the "Oprah Log," in which he documented his trials and tribulations of trying to get invited to appear on Winfrey's show. Each entry would often consist only of brief updates such as "Did not hear from Oprah." Shaffer and the band accompanied each installment with a song entitled "It ain't Oprah till it's Oprah" (a play on the line "It ain't over till it's over"). Eventually Dave grew tired of the routine and declared in its last entry after 82 days: "I don't want to be on your damn show," adding that he had given up hope. For a period of time, the journal (which was simply a Mead Five-Star notebook with a piece of paper that said "OPRAH LOG" taped to the front cover) was displayed in a glass case in the lobby.

Shaffer's last version of the song, which also referred to various infamous incidents from the show's past, went like this:

"Well, Dave, I guess it's finally Oprah, And your beating heart has lost all shred of hope-rah. You kissed a duck, And you were bitten by a dingo, Then you said 'F you, Richard Simmons' In your lingo. So Dave, I'm sorry, but it's Oprah."

Their relationship seemed to warm following the birth of Letterman's son in late 2003, when Letterman used his show to express his gratitude for Winfrey's gift: a basket containing an assortment of children's books.

Soon afterwards, Letterman started another, more elaborate running gag centering around his hopes for her to appear on his show in what he billed "The Super Bowl of Love." Letterman proposed that this "hour of healing" would be mediated by Winfrey's friend, Dr. Phil McGraw, who had recently appeared on the Late Show (after being the butt of many Letterman jabs himself). In one instance he also promised that once she appeared on stage, "The love will explode. And at the end of the show, Oprah and I will go downstage, the audience will have flowers for us. Oprah and I will embrace. Oprah and I will kiss." While she never accepted the invitation, Winfrey did put out an invitation for him to appear on her show. Although he excitedly declared that Winfrey "no longer hates me," he never accepted either, claiming that he would "sob like a little girl," and that it would interfere with his "Super Bowl of Love."

Winfrey finally paid a much-publicized visit to Letterman on December 1, 2005 (her first since May 2, 1989). Explaining at the top of the show how Winfrey had finally been convinced to appear, Letterman quipped, "She thinks she's seeing Spamalot." Winfrey had been scheduled to be in New York that night because of the red-carpet premiere of the nearby Broadway adaptation of The Color Purple, which she produced.

During the interview, Winfrey expressed surprise by Letterman's serious nature when they discussed more solemn topics, such as her philanthropic efforts in Africa. Later she said, "I want you to know, it's really over, whatever you thought was happening... There is no feud," and then presented Letterman with a picture of herself and actress Uma Thurman, signed by both, to commemorate his "Uma... Oprah..." debacle at the 1995 Academy Awards. At the end of the show, Letterman on camera personally escorted Oprah out the front door of the Ed Sullivan Theater and down the street on foot to the Broadway theater's "Color Purple" premiere. About 13.4 million people, according to preliminary Nielsen Ratings, tuned in to watch. The Late Show last attracted as large an audience in February 1994, when it had the 1994 Winter Olympics face-off between figure skaters Nancy Kerrigan and Tonya Harding as a lead-in. It drew its best adults 18-49 rating (4.4) since Letterman's return to the show following heart surgery in February 2000.

In 2007, Letterman and Winfrey appeared together on a couch for a Late Show promo during CBS's telecast of Super Bowl XLI (between the Colts from Letterman's home town of Indianapolis and the Bears from Chicago, where the Oprah Winfrey Show is based). The season premiere of the Oprah Winfrey Show from New York City aired on September 10, 2007, featuring Letterman as a guest, marking his debut on that program.

On January 4, 2006, Bill O'Reilly appeared on the Late Show, a forum he previously claimed to be one of the toughest interviews on TV. When O'Reilly began a discussion on the alleged "War on Christmas", Letterman replied, "I think that this is something that happened here, and it happened there, and so people like you are trying to make us think that it's a threat." Letterman accused O'Reilly of making up some of his claims on particular points on the supposed war, and O'Reilly replied with, "Then I could write for your show." According to Media Matters for America one example O'Reilly used was blatantly false.^[5]

When O'Reilly criticized the views of Cindy Sheehan, Letterman said O'Reilly had never lost a family member in a war, and therefore O'Reilly should have nothing but sympathy for Sheehan. When asked if Letterman agreed with Sheehan's comparison of insurgents in Iraq to "freedom fighters" and how other parents of fallen soldiers feel about such an assertion, Letterman responded, "Well, what about why are we there in the first place?" Letterman continued, "I'm not smart enough to debate you point-for-point, but I have the feeling that about 60 percent of what you say is crap," to which O’Reilly replied, "Listen, I respect your opinion. You should respect mine." Under questioning by O' Reilly, Letterman admitted that he did not watch O'Reilly's show, but had "read about it."

On November 20, 2006, Michael Richards appeared with former Seinfeld co-star Jerry Seinfeld on the Late Show, just three days after Richards' racist remarks at a Los Angeles comedy club after hecklers interrupted his show. Seinfeld, who was previously scheduled to appear, encouraged Richards to appear on the show via satellite transmission. Late Show executive producer Jude Brennan explained that it "was all Jerry's doing. He came to us and said: 'I'd like to be able to do this for my friend. I know he's just shattered by this, and if he could he would help.'"^[6] During a six-minute unscripted segment, Richards offered his apology to all who were offended, and expressed regret about the entire incident, saying that he was not a racist. "For me to be in a comedy club and flip out and say this crap, I'm deeply, deeply sorry," Richards said. At first, some audience members laughed, thinking the apology was part of a comedy bit, until Seinfeld chastised them.^[6] The show won Letterman his highest ratings in almost a year.

On March 20, 2007, Adam Sandler was scheduled to be a guest on the Late Show. However, with just hours to go before the day's taping, Letterman took ill and left the theater with a stomach virus that, at the time, was taking New York City by storm. That left Sandler to step in as a substitute host. Sandler had to find a new lead guest for the show. On such short notice, he was able to get Don Cheadle, who was starring in the same movie that Sandler had gone on the show to promote. The show went over very well to the viewers, seeing as Sandler had little experience in hosting talk shows. ^[7]

During his interview on the Late Show's on February 28, 2007 episode, US Senator John McCain officially declared his intent to enter the race to be the Republican candidate for the presidency in 2008. McCain told Letterman that his formal announcement would be made in April of 2007. "You know, you drag this out as long as you can. You don't just have one rendition," he told Letterman. Pressed by Letterman, the Arizona senator joked: "This is the announcement preceding the formal announcement!" Paul Shaffer soon followed up by adding tongue-in-cheek that the "formal announcement" would be made on Jay Leno's Tonight Show, which consistently boasts higher ratings than the Late Show. (In fact, another 2008 Republican contender, Fred Thompson, would indeed announce on Leno.)

During his interview on the Late Show's on July 23, 2007 episode promoting his new game show Power of 10 he also announced that 15 minutes previously he had gotten a call saying he was the new host of The Price is Right whose previous host, Bob Barker had retired in June.

On September 28, 2007, Paris Hilton made an appearance on to promote her new fragrance Can Can. It was Hilton's first appearance since her highly publicized stint in prison. Letterman began the interview by making small talk with the guest. But he rapidly changed subjects asking, "How did you like being in jail?" Letterman proceeded to ask several questions about her time in jail, such as "Did you make any friends while you were in jail?" Hilton answered uncomfortably, later refusing to answer any more questions about her time in jail.^[8][9]

Charles Grodin is known for making several appearances, during which Letterman and Grodin usually spend the majority of time making mock-antagonistic comments to each other regarding appearance, success in show business, and other marks of success. Off-camera, Grodin and Letterman are close friends.

Richard Simmons has made numerous appearances on the show. Letterman usually spends the majority of the time antagonizing Simmons, often to the point of sabotaging or boobytrapping Simmons' product presentations. In the past, Letterman has sprayed Simmons with a fire extinguisher and set fire to a computerized steamer as part of his stunts.

On January 14, Letterman made on The Late Show the announcement that he was undergoing an angiogram the following day, after doctors had recently been concerned about his high cholesterol and family history (his father died of a heart attack at 52). Soon it was discovered that he had blocked arteries and had to undergo a quintuple bypass. During his hiatus, the show had been off the air for a few weeks after which, while he was still recovering the show was being hosted by guests for the following weeks. On his first show after recovering, Dave brought out all the doctors and nurses on the show who had helped him during his surgery and recovery. Despite nearly breaking out in tears during the show, Dave seemed to find humor in his situation; while referring to one of his nurses, Dave said: "This woman saw me naked!". He continued to joke about the event for weeks after his return.

See also David Letterman's heart surgery.

On September 17, 2001, David Letterman was the first major American comedy performer to return to the television airwaves after the September 11, 2001 attacks. In his opening monologue, absent the usual musical opening credits and cheering audience, an uncharacteristically serious and very emotional Letterman struggled with the reality of the attacks and the role of comedy in a post-9/11 world, saying:

“

The reason we were attacked, the reason these people are dead, these people are missing and dead … They weren't doing anything wrong, they were living their lives, they were going to work, they were traveling, they were doing what they normally do. Uh, as I understand it—and my understanding of this is vague, at best—another smaller group of people stole some airplanes and crashed them into buildings. And we're told that they were zealots fueled by religious fervor, religious fervor. And if you live to be a thousand years old, will that make any sense to you? Will that make any goddamned sense?

”

His first guest that night was then-CBS Evening News anchor Dan Rather, who was also very emotional and spoke with feeling about the courage of firefighters as well as reading verses from the song, America the Beautiful. Dave got his first laugh when, at the end of his monologue, he said, "And thank God Regis is here so we have something to make fun of." Before September 11, various mocking and self important descriptions were affixed to New York City at the beginning of the show, but starting with the September 17, 2001 show and continuing to the present announcer Alan Kalter introduces the show as being "From New York, The Greatest City in the World, it's The Late Show with David Letterman!" (Whenever there is a guest host, Alan Kalter omits "The Greatest City in the World.") Also, the opening shot of the credits, a view of Battery Park and the World Trade Center, was changed to an aerial shot of the Empire State Building.

Letterman's first show after long-time friend and mentor Johnny Carson had died. The show had been on a one-week hiatus since his death. As a tribute, Letterman's opening monologue included jokes written by Carson (news reports in the weeks leading to Carson's death revealed that he had been regularly writing and sending Letterman some jokes) as well as clips shown from The Tonight Show. While describing how he felt about the news, Letterman stated: "There are so many things you miss about Johnny Carson... I was nearly this sad when the guy retired... Johnny Carson was like a public utility. At the end of the day, that's who you wanted to be there. The way that you know that Johnny was such a tremendous part of your life was when there was a guest host. You would be waiting all day to see Johnny and you'd tune in and there would be a guest host. And it would make you angry. And you'd be steaming mad, [though] not at Johnny, you would always take out your anger on the guest host."

Country	Broadcaster
Middle East	Showtime Arabia Show comedy
Australia	Network Ten (2007-) Nine Network (?-2007) Arena (2007-) Bio. (2007) W. Channel (2006-2007) The Comedy Channel (?-2006)
Brazil	GNT
Canada	OMNI.1 (Toronto) CJNT-TV (Montreal) Channel M (Vancouver) CHEX-TV (Peterborough, Ontario) NTV (St. John's, Newfoundland) CBS (available in many areas over broadcast, and on all cable and satellite providers)
Denmark	TV 2 Zulu
Hong Kong	ATV Channel World
Italy	RaiSat Extra
Israel	Xtra HOT
Latin America	American Network
Malaysia	NTV7
Mexico	American Network
New Zealand	Prime Television
The Philippines	Jack TV
Sweden	TV400 since January 2007, previously TV6
United Kingdom	Sky One (1993-1999) BBC Two (1995) for Letterman In London Paramount Comedy Channel (1999-2002) ITV-2 (1998-2005) ITV-4 (2005-2006) Diva TV (2007-)

On Monday 1st October 2007, The Late Show with David Letterman returned to British television screens on the newly launched Diva TV on Virgin Media channel 192 and Sky Digital channel 282. The show is broadcast Mondays to Fridays at 9:00pm until 10:00pm. The show is also broadcast on Saturdays and Sundays from 11:00pm until Midnight. The weekend editions are a pick of the two best episodes shown the previous week. The show is broadcast in a full uncut version as seen on US television. The episodes which are screened in the UK were shown in America around three weeks before. The delay is due to Diva TV's receiving of the tapes from America.

• 1993-94 Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series
• 1997-98 Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series
• 1998-99 Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series
• 1999-00 Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series
• 2000-01 Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series
• 2001-02 Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series

• List of late night network TV programs.

• Late Show with David Letterman

v • d • e Current Late night talk and comedy shows in the United States
Networks
ABC	Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Fox	MADtv  · Talkshow with Spike Feresten
CBS	Late Show with David Letterman  · The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
NBC	The Tonight Show with Jay Leno  · Late Night with Conan O'Brien  · Last Call with Carson Daly  · Saturday Night Live
Cable
Comedy Central	The Daily Show  · The Colbert Report
Fox News	Red Eye w/ Greg Gutfeld
HBO	Real Time with Bill Maher
E!	Chelsea Lately

Coordinates: 40°45′50″N 73°58′58″W / 40.76389, -73.98278