Inspired by this thread, anyone else been to a David Letterman show, not just talking about Late Show with David Letterman, but also any of his others? I used to be a huge fan, dating back to The David Letterman Show but kind of tired of his prickliness the past few years and tuned out. I kind of assumed it was sort of a put on, but judging from the posts in the above-mentioned link, he apparently is a huge prick. Anyone else get this impression from attending his shows?
Hard to tell if he’s a prick; I think the poster in the previous thread was a little more observant than I am, but I’ve been in the audience a few times as well, and my experiences were a little different.
The first time was in February of 2000, the night he returned following open-heart surgery. He seemed genuinely ecstatic to be back (if a little pale) and interacted with the audience a bit both before and after the show.
The second time, a few months later, would probably qualify as a more normal show. In the brief preshow conversation, he showed more amusement than contempt for the audience’s questions. He also went into the audience for “Know Your Current Events,” where he seemed loose and comfortable.
Oddly, I remember even less about my 2004 visit, but there was nothing negative that stood out. No re-shoots or pow-wows in any of the shows I saw. One thing I’d agree with is that the show is done for the TV audience and not the studio audience, as is the case with every other TV show I’ve seen live. It’s something I’d recommend only if you’re a fan.
Oh, and although Letterman usually seems in a hurry to get from his car into the theater, I’ve seen several people (more pushy than me) run up to him and recieve a smile and a handshake in return. So, if he’s a prick, he at least occasionally makes an effort not to seem like one.
You might ask your question in alt.fan.letterman on Usenet; collectively the folks in there have probably been to hundreds of tapings.
Try and find a copy of The Late Shift by Bill Carter. It’s the story of the battle of the fight to replace Johnny Carson and how Letterman wound up on CBS.
Carter points up a number of times that one of the things that helped swing the decision to Leno was that he had built up a reservoir of good will among NBC executives and affiliates while Letterman was considered moody, temperamental, arrogant, hypersensitive – you know, kind of a prick.
Yep, the consensus view is that Letterman is exceptionally “difficulty” to work with. We’re talking moody, angry, sullen, abrasive, obnoxious, sometimes demeaning and frequently egotistical–far from the aw shucks Indiana farm boy persona that he traded on lo these many years. Psychological portraits depict Letterman as driven by demons no one can quite understand, given his family Rockwelian upbringing.
Leno has a behind-scenes reputation as being rather kind, generous and laid back with his staff, notwithstanding the fact that he has the sleep and work habits of a classic bipolar.
Conan has gained a reputation for treating his interns badly. He also frequently mocks Leno behind his back and is openly hostile that Leno is still clinging to the Tonight Show. Conan believes it’s time he inherit the show, while he’s still relatively young.
Letterman used to be funny, but he got an “edge” about him somewhere along the line and he sometimes seems to be uninterested in his own show while he is doing it. Other than his “Top Ten”…I seldom find his show interesting.
Leno is the guy everybody likes to hate…yet he is the same guy everyone quotes jokes from the next day. I like Jay…all reports are that he is genuinely a nice guy, generous to his staff and people he knows, his wife is very politically active and he supports her financially and backs her up politically. I think he is 1000% better than Johnny Carson ever was. Yes, Jay’s interviews are usually nothing more than fluff, but that is what most people want at that time of night. Once Jay leaves, people will realize what they are missing.
Conan is good, very good in fact…but I am not all that sure he will translate to an earlier time-slot. I don’t think he has said if he intends to keep the show in NYC or move to LA. If he tries to do the show in NYC when he takes over The Tonight Show, I think he will be in trouble…but I am not sure Conan and LA are a good fit…so I do see problems there.
My bet is that Conan might not last long once he takes over The Tonight Show, and they will either drag Jay back, or have to search for someone else to take over the show.
Regarding Letterman being “a prick”…a friend of mine used to do celebrity bookings in NYC for talk shows and he said a lot of celebrities didn’t want to do Letterman because he had a reputation of mood swings and would promise not to mention the divorce/DUI/scandal, whatever…and then would bring up the subject anyway. He said Letterman’s office was constantly calling him for bookings when a celebrity was in NYC and he was always having to make excuses, “they have to get back to LA for a film” when they really didn’t. I won’t mention the name, but one big celebrity was in town and Letterman personally called my friend and practically begged to get them on the show. My friend had to lie through his teeth because the celebrity had said, “I’ll do any show, except Letterman, while I am in NY.”
This was the same thing said about Letterman 15 or so years ago, but he’s obviously been successful in the earlier time slot. I don’t know… maybe Conan won’t work in the more traditional, conservative 11:30 slot, but the same college dorks who dug Letterman in 1984 grew up with him, and moved to an earlier time slot. Same with the Conan college dorks.
I think Conan will do fine at 11:30 eventually, and someone younger and edgier will take over the 12:30 slot. I agree with you about hoping he stays in New York.
Actually, the consensus is that Carson was better than Leno at interviewing people, while Leno probably has the edge at standup. Like Carson in his last few years, Leno has definitely lost his edge and should outsource his joke writing more, rather than relying on his own hand.
Leno also has a sophomoric streak that surfaces again and again in interviews, which then takes these interviews absolutely nowhere. I’ve seen hundreds of potentially good interviews ruined by Leno’s weird asides, dumb distractions, goofy jokes and a focus on really uninteresting things. Leno is too quick to go for the laugh, rather than really listen to his hosts–even if the topic is fluff.
It was once said Letterman was the better of the two at interviewing. Not sure I agree anymore, but agree with your assessment on Letterman’s today seeming almost completely disconnected from his work. At this point, he’s just phoning it in. He’s been there, done that, has the Big Ass t-shirt, and doesn’t seem the least interested in reinventing or refreshing his tired, predictable show. Some insiders say Letterman has a deep-seated feeling of unworthiness, but it’s hard to say how accurate that is and the real impression I get is that Letterman is bored.
Carnac the Magnificent! writes:
> Yep, the consensus view is that Letterman is exceptionally “difficulty” to work
> with. We’re talking moody, angry, sullen, abrasive, obnoxious, sometimes
> demeaning and frequently egotistical–far from the aw shucks Indiana farm boy
> persona that he traded on lo these many years. Psychological portraits depict
> Letterman as driven by demons no one can quite understand, given his family
> Rockwelian upbringing.
Sorry for being picky, but I get really tired of hearing someone described as being a Midwestern “farm boy” when they were no such thing. Letterman grew up in Indianapolis. He’s not remotely a farm boy. I’m not even sure that the farm boy image has any validity. I grew up on a farm in Ohio, and in many ways I’m a rather cynical, snide person. Even when I was a kid, our family would make fun of the TV commercials as we watched them. Even as a kid, I would make bizarre, complicated jokes. Even then, I would be picky and willing to tell people that they got the details all wrong about something they were talking about.
Sigh, another stereotype bites the dust.
I sincerely doubt that people who hate Leno watch his show. I don’t hate Leno, and I don’t watch his show. I find his standup routine sophomoric and unfunny. Those few times I do happen to see his routine I don’t quote his jokes the next day because I don’t think they’re funny (by and large). I don’t deny that the guy has a broad appeal, but please don’t try to say that his show is somehow objectively superior to Dave’s in its humour. Dave may be going through the motions these days, but somehow he still makes me laugh. (Note: I’m not saying Dave is objectively superior either, just that his show appeals to me and Jay’s doesn’t.) I really don’t care that Jay would be more pleasant to hang out with. I’m just watching the show.
But frankly, far and away the best late night television these days is Craig Ferguson.
Yeah, but your a midwestern farm boy Doper.
Doper trumps farm boy and midwestern.
If you were a Doper Pope, you would “make fun of the TV commercials as we watched them. Even as a kid, I would make bizarre, complicated jokes. Even then, I would be picky and willing to tell people that they got the details all wrong about something they were talking about.”
The floor is now open for nominations for “The Top 10 Reasons David Letterman Is a Huge Prick.” Start your engines! 
The farm boy persona to which I referred isn’t my perception of Letterman. Letterman long ago cultivated and traded on that image.
Even bizarre, cynical, snide, picky farm boys such as you should have inferred that, unless my sardonic poke was just too complicated for you. 
Leno is regarded as a OCD jerk by many people. E.g., he once had a friend who helped him get his career back on track and then stole away the friend’s dream job. His politics are also disgusting to the extreme. He is your typical smilin’ buddy to your face who screws you over behind your back.
Letterman is a reclusive person with a lot of self-loathing. Many people misinterpret this as being rude and smug. He has a low opinion of show business and its trappings, which many of his fans (including me) find hilarious. But those people who take The Business too seriously are unhappy with that attitude.
Look at the Oprah thing. (I think) she takes herself waaaay too seriously. Dave didn’t agree. So she stayed off the show for a while until she needed a plug. Who was the jerk there?
Many of the standard guests who just want to plug their movie/album/etc. are not very bright and don’t prepare well for the interview. He will sometimes make their life miserable in return. This makes a great interview for the audience. So what if the guest is unhappy? Who’s fault is that?
Stephanie Birkitt/Vicki/Smitty/Monty etc. is an office assistant to Dave. While he teases her and such, remember, that for each appearance on the show she picks up a few hundred extra bucks. (Dave has been known to put backstage people on the show specifically so they can earn the extra cash.) Plus she has been to cool places like the Olympics.
Sure, he’s a prick to TV executives. But how does he treat normal people?
And that’s not new. Back on the old NBC show, he had a staff member who was getting married, but couldn’t afford a nice honeymoon, so Dave had her on each night for a week. Each night she would do something extra (sing, ventriliquism, etc) so that NBC had to pay her more money each time. IIRC, she ended up with 2-3 grand.
Shhh, **Wendell **- you’re letting all our secrets out! Everyone “knows” that the Midwest is full of hicks and farms and yokels. It’s our shield - it’s what keeps the riff-raff out! If you let everyone know that we’ve got cities and culture and great stuff, they’ll all want to come.
I’m good friends with a real Kansas farm boy (grandfather born in their house in 1900), and while his brother is pretty much interested in only crops and machines, my buddy got 2 music degrees and now works as a database admin.
When I visited their farm, I was very surprised to find out how informed they were. When you’re driving tractors, there’s not much else to do but listen to talk radio. They also had a conversation about estimating math in your head, which I’ve found very few people can do. My buddy can also fix half the things in the world with some wire and a pair of pliers, because of all the emergencies in the middle of a field.
My impression was that Dave needed the boost the Oprah would bring so he kissed her ass until she came on.
Actually, that’s sort of true of me. I don’t hate the man, but I don’t find his standup funny. I find his monologue very pedestrian, and my hackles rise as the audience actually erupts into applause after every joke.
But I get a guilty pleasure from the on-the-street stuff, which I think he does very well. And although the “Headlines” segment is really “Leno reads typos,” it also makes me laugh.
Somebody upthread said Leno’s regarded as better than Carson at standup. I’ve never heard that, and I challenge anybody who believes Leno’s better to a duel.