The Late Show with David Letterman Guide, Meaning , Facts, Information and Description

The Late Show with David Letterman is an hour-long weeknight comedy and talk show broadcast by CBS from the Ed Sullivan Theater on Broadway in New York City. The show debuted on August 30, 1993 and is produced and hosted by David Letterman. The show's musical director and bandleader of the house band the CBS Orchestra is Paul Shaffer.

Letterman had previously been the host of Late Night on NBC. When Letterman moved to CBS and began the Late Show, several of Late Night's long-running comedy bits made the move with him, including the Top Ten List. Letterman renamed a few of them to avoid legal problems over trademark infringement. For example, "Viewer Mail" on NBC became the "CBS Mailbag," and Larry "Bud" Melman began to use his real name, Calvert DeForest.

One recurring sketch on both the NBC and CBS shows has been the destruction of household items by various methods including explosives, steamrollers, and - most frequently - throwing them off the roof of a building.

According to an August 2004 edition of the show's official newsletter, in eleven years there have been 2264 shows, 4082 guests, 1382 cameo appearances, 1668 musical performances, 473 guests and substitute musicians who have sat in with the CBS Orchestra, 275 stand-ups, and at least 130 demonstrations.

Table of contents

1 Ongoing sketches 1.1 Partial list 2 September 17, 2001 3 External links

Ongoing sketches

The show sometimes uses Shaffer and announcer Alan Kalter in comedy routines. Some crew members also make occasional appearances, such as stage manager Biff Henderson, stagehands Pat Farmer and Kenny Sheehan, handyman George Clarke, cue card boy Tony Mendez, producer Maria Pope, and assistant Stephanie Birkitt.

Some comedy bits also include Rupert Jee, owner of the Hello Deli, located next door to the Ed Sullivan theater. Dave's Mom, Dorothy Letterman, also makes appearances from time-to-time, including each Thanksgiving.

Former recurring players from the show include Sirajul and Mujibur (owners of a nearby gift store), Calvert DeForest, now-retired writer Gerard Mulligan, and the late scenic designer Kathleen Ankers.

Dozens of cameo appearances have been made by Tony Randall and Regis Philbin.

Letterman involves his audience in routines such as "Stump The Band" (a bit originated by Johnny Carson), "Know Your Current Events", and "Audience Show and Tell"; he brings Rupert Jee and outside bystanders into bits such as "May We See Your Photos, Please?"

At CBS Letterman has taken great delight in making fun of his employer, continuing a tradition established at NBC. Letterman took great delight in attacking Westinghouse when the company was in the process of acquiring CBS. For a while, a target of these attacks has been senior Viacom executive Les Moonves. On hearing that Moonves had met with Fidel Castro, Letterman asked his audience to:

"Imagine the lunch...on one side of the table you’ve got an egomaniacal dictator surrounded by sniveling yes-men, and, of course, on the other side of the table you’ve got Fidel Castro."

More recently, Letterman's relationship with Moonves seems to have improved; a segment titled "More with Les" features jocular phone calls between Letterman and Moonves.

Partial list

The following is a partial list of recurring or notable comedy bits:

• Top Ten List
• CBS Mail Bag
• Stupid Pet Tricks
• Stupid Human Tricks
• Dumb Ads
• Small Town News
• May We See Your Photos, Please?
• How Many Men in a Bear Suit (etc.) Will Fit in a Donut Shop (etc.)?
• Pat & Kenny Read Oprah Transcripts
• A variation on the classic Tonight Show "Stump the Band" bit; the band is given the name of an obscure song and plays a version that is completely incorrect
• Know Your Current Events
• Will It Float, with models Andrea Sande and Nadine Hennelly
• Is This Anything?, with the "Hula-Hoop Girl" and the "Grinder Girl"
• Celebrity X-Ray Challenge
• Fun with Rupert, a Candid Camera-style bit
• George W. Bush Joke That's Not Really a Joke
• More with Les
• A Moment With George W. Bush
• Dr. Phil's Words of Wisdom
• Trump or Monkey?
• Paul Shaffer does James Brown's cape routine
• Dick Assman, who made several appearances in 1995
• Dwight the Troubled Teen
• "Late Show Unfair Edit," later "Late Show Fun with Editing," later " Late Show Editing Fun"

September 17, 2001

On September 17, 2001, The Late Show with David Letterman returned to the television airwaves six days after the September 11th attacks, a high-profile appearance given the anxiety and grief still felt by many at the time, especially in New York City. In his opening monologue, an emotional David Letterman said:

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 goddamn sense?

External links

• The Official Late Show with David Letterman on CBS
• David Letterman/Late Show Usenet discussion group (Usenet news reader required)
• David Letterman/Late Show Usenet discussion group via Google Groups web interface
• At Home with Dave's Mom
• Letterman's September 17, 2001 Monologue, in RealVideo format from CBS

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