David Letterman
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Mostly Credited As: David Letterman Birth Name: David Michael Letterman Date Of Birth: April 12, 1947 (Age 68) Country Of Birth:  USABirth Place: Indianapolis, Indiana Height: 6' 1 ½" (1.86 m) |
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David Michael Letterman was born in Indianapolis, Indiana on April 12, 1947 to Harry and Dorothy Letterman. He graduated from Ball State University, where he a B.A. in telecommunications in 1969.
He started out as a weather man for local station WTHR in Indianapolis, Indiana. He moved to Los Angles in 1975 with a hope of being a comedy writer and started writing material for sitcoms. He also performed stand-up at LA's famous comedy club "The Comedy Store." His dry, sarcastic humor caught the attention of talk show host Johnny Carson. Letterman soon became a regular guest on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson and in 1978, became a regular guest host.
NBC gave him his own morning show, The David Letterman Show, which didn't last long. However, NBC kept the comic under contract and gave him his own talk show following the Tonight Show. Late Night with David Letterman soon grabbed a cult following with college students and young adults. Letterman became known for his verbal sparing matches with celebrities such as Cher and Madonna.
Letterman's show remained with NBC for eleven years. When Carson announced his retirement, he wanted Letterman to replace him. However, NBC had other ideas and had regular guest host Jay Leno replace Carson. Bitterly disappointed and angry at not getting the Tonight Show job, Letterman left to host The Late Show with David Letterman on CBS, opposite the Tonight Show. A year after Late Show began, Carson made a surprise appearance during a "Top 10 list" segment. The audience went wild as Carson sat at Letterman's desk.
Today, Letterman continues hosting The Late Show and is still popular among viewers. He recently ranked second to Oprah Winfrey in the annual Harris Poll of Nation's Favorite TV Personality.
He started out as a weather man for local station WTHR in Indianapolis, Indiana. He moved to Los Angles in 1975 with a hope of being a comedy writer and started writing material for sitcoms. He also performed stand-up at LA's famous comedy club "The Comedy Store." His dry, sarcastic humor caught the attention of talk show host Johnny Carson. Letterman soon became a regular guest on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson and in 1978, became a regular guest host.
NBC gave him his own morning show, The David Letterman Show, which didn't last long. However, NBC kept the comic under contract and gave him his own talk show following the Tonight Show. Late Night with David Letterman soon grabbed a cult following with college students and young adults. Letterman became known for his verbal sparing matches with celebrities such as Cher and Madonna.
Letterman's show remained with NBC for eleven years. When Carson announced his retirement, he wanted Letterman to replace him. However, NBC had other ideas and had regular guest host Jay Leno replace Carson. Bitterly disappointed and angry at not getting the Tonight Show job, Letterman left to host The Late Show with David Letterman on CBS, opposite the Tonight Show. A year after Late Show began, Carson made a surprise appearance during a "Top 10 list" segment. The audience went wild as Carson sat at Letterman's desk.
Today, Letterman continues hosting The Late Show and is still popular among viewers. He recently ranked second to Oprah Winfrey in the annual Harris Poll of Nation's Favorite TV Personality.
TV Appearances
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Crew Credits
Show Crew
| Ed (2000) | • Executive Producer |
| Late Night With David Letterman (1982) | • Executive Producer |
| The Late Show with David Letterman (1993) | • Executive Producer |
| The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson (2005) | • Executive Producer |
| The Knights of Prosperity (2007) | • Executive Producer |
| The Late Late Show With Tom Snyder (1995) | • Executive Producer |
Episode Crew
Latest news
All news
Trivia
Hasn't spoken to rival Jay Leno in 13 years.
Influenced by Johnny Carson
His son Harry Joseph Letterman, named after David's late father, was born on November 3, 2003.
Switched to CBS after he wasn't picked to host the Tonight Show
David was good friends with late singer/songwriter Warren Zevon. Letterman "sang" backup (in actuality, just saying the words "Hit somebody!" during the chorus) on the song "Hit Somebody! (The Hockey Song)" on Zevon's 2002 album My Ride's Here.
Hasn't spoken to rival Jay Leno in 13 years.
Influenced by Johnny Carson
His son Harry Joseph Letterman, named after David's late father, was born on November 3, 2003.
Switched to CBS after he wasn't picked to host the Tonight Show
David was good friends with late singer/songwriter Warren Zevon. Letterman "sang" backup (in actuality, just saying the words "Hit somebody!" during the chorus) on the song "Hit Somebody! (The Hockey Song)" on Zevon's 2002 album My Ride's Here.
David Letterman Quotes
David Letterman: I cannot sing, dance or act; what else would I be but a talk show host.
David Letterman: Everyone has a purpose in life. Perhaps yours is watching television.
David Letterman: There's no business like show business, but there are several businesses like accounting.
David Letterman: People say New Yorkers can't get along. Not true. I saw two New Yorkers, complete strangers, sharing a cab. One guy took the tires and the radio; the other guy took the engine.
David Letterman: Sometimes something worth doing is worth overdoing.
David Letterman: For the love of God, folks, don't try this at home.
David Letterman: Everyone has this sense of togetherness right now. For example, one guy on the subway today, he wanted to share my pants.
David Letterman: I cannot sing, dance or act; what else would I be but a talk show host.
David Letterman: Everyone has a purpose in life. Perhaps yours is watching television.
David Letterman: There's no business like show business, but there are several businesses like accounting.
David Letterman: People say New Yorkers can't get along. Not true. I saw two New Yorkers, complete strangers, sharing a cab. One guy took the tires and the radio; the other guy took the engine.
David Letterman: Sometimes something worth doing is worth overdoing.
David Letterman: For the love of God, folks, don't try this at home.
David Letterman: Everyone has this sense of togetherness right now. For example, one guy on the subway today, he wanted to share my pants.
