As David Letterman leaves the airwaves, people have been lining to say goodbye. Whether it’s at the iconic Ed Sullivan Theater which has been the home to the Late Show since 1993 or online or in articles, people have been showing their support to Letterman who has been on the air hosting a show in one form or another since 1980.
When I was 17 years old, NBC put on a 90-minute morning program, the David Letterman Show, to replace a block of three game shows. When it aired, it was nothing I had ever seen before. And as a 17-year old teen, it was perfect to my tastes. It wasn’t your normal talk show with a host kissing up to guests. It was Letterman in a suit being surrounded by crazies. Whether he was making fun of guests in a backhanded way or commenting on the news segments anchored by Edwin Newsman, this was a different show. It was only on for four months, but this was something new.
While Dave was devastated by the cancellation, NBC had faith in him. By this time, he was pegged to replace Johnny Carson on the Tonight Show. The network paid him to do nothing until it found the right vehicle for him. And finally that came with Late Night With David Letterman. The David Letterman Show was basically a late night show disguised as a morning show, but having Dave on at 12:30 a.m. was perfect.
Having restrictions placed on the show like no extended monologue and no horn section in his band (both imposed by Carson, not NBC), Dave and his staff including the innovative Merrill Markoe were free to do what they wanted.
So instead of the regular tired guests that Johnny brought in every night, Dave found his own cast of characters like Father Timothy or Harvey Pekar. And he had his set of regulars like Terri Garr, Richard Lewis, Jerry Seinfeld, Marv Albert and others who normally would not be on the Tonight Show.
For my generation, the one that had grown up in the 1970’s and early 1980’s, The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson was our parents’ show. Late Night With David Letterman was our show. And staying up for 12:30 a.m. was an absolute joy. There was the Late Night Monkey Cam, the Late Night Thrill Cam, Stupid Pet Tricks which beget Stupid Human Tricks, the suits of Alka Seltzer, Magnets, Rice Krispies and Velcro, Dave’s Man on the Street features included his trips into various shops, and going to a viewer’s house after she asked why Dave only wore sneakers.
It was fantastic.
Dave was also loyal to his own set of regulars. Jay Leno wasn’t well-liked by Johnny Carson’s staff at first, but it was Dave who helped him get back to Tonight with some cutting edge sets and some hilarious back-and-forths. Dave almost did them too well.
Then when General Electric bought NBC, it was the beginning of the end of Dave’s time there. The infamous GE Handshake with the subsequent bringing down of the corporation and various NBC executives basically handed Tonight to Leno.
But as he got tired of hosting at 12:30 a.m, Dave knew he could redefine himself and host a show at 11:30 p.m. He got that chance when CBS came calling and Dave established a new late night franchise for the network. You may not be aware that CBS had once courted Jay Leno for a late night show. Had NBC given Tonight to Dave, I’m not sure that Jay could have established a late night franchise for CBS.
And in the 22 years that Dave has spent at CBS, he did the show he wanted to do. He never answered to the CBS bigwigs. Dave owned his show and the hour after his just like his idol Johnny did before him at NBC.
There were so many great moments at CBS including his first show, his mother covering the 1994 and 1998 Olympics, his return after open heart surgery, his first show after the 9/11 attacks telling us it was ok to laugh again, his admission that he was being blackmailed and he had carried on several affairs with staffers, and finally his retirement announcement last year.
Through it all, Dave has been himself and didn’t compromise. And while Leno was willing to do what his NBC bosses wanted, Dave was just Dave.
In his last years, yes, Letterman wasn’t as funny and he wasn’t willing to go out and do remotes like the early years, but there were signs of brilliance especially when there were guests he liked such as Julia Roberts, Jerry Seinfeld, Bill Murray and others. And when he wanted to make fun of guests like Joaquin Phoenix, Lindsay Lohan or Paris Hilton, Dave could be as cutting like he was on Late Night.
So Dave leaves on his terms, not others. But as he does, he leaves us with a huge legacy that probably won’t be matched again. As late night gets splintered with Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, Stephen Colbert, James Corden, Conan O’Brien, Chelsea Handler and the 90-minute block on Comedy Central, it’s pretty safe to say that no one will have the impact that David Letterman did.
Hopefully, he’ll find a way to return either on a podcast or in various guest appearances, but it won’t be the same. Late night has changed and it has changed forever.
