Late Night with David Letterman

1982

Seasons & Episodes

  • 12
  • 11
  • 10
  • 9
  • 8
  • 7
  • 6
  • 5
  • 4
  • 3
  • 2
  • 1
  • 0

7.5| 0h30m| en
Synopsis

Late Night with David Letterman is a nightly hour-long comedy talk show on NBC that was created and hosted by David Letterman. It premiered in 1982 as the first incarnation of the Late Night franchise and went off the air in 1993, after Letterman left NBC and moved to Late Show on CBS. Late Night with Conan O'Brien then filled the time slot. As of March 2, 2009, the slot has been filled by Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. It will be filled by Seth Meyers in the spring of 2014, after Fallon becomes host of The Tonight Show.

Director

Producted By

NBC Productions

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Trailers & Clips

Reviews

SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped
Actuakers One of my all time favorites.
Teringer An Exercise In Nonsense
Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.
hnt_dnl Many younger viewers don't realize it, but the current CBS version of David Letterman is not the REAL David Letterman! The Late Show is nice and Letterman still has remnants of his funny persona left, but the REAL David Letterman is when he was NBC's LATE NIGHT WITH David LETTERMAN from 1982 to 1993.LNWDL was cutting edge and in reality is a huge reason that talk shows of the modern era do some of the crazy, interesting, fun things that they can do. Personally, I'm glad that Dave never got the Johnny Carson show because I felt that show was too uppity for him. Better than it go to that overrated, boring Jay Leno. I never could get into that show after Carson left. Carson had a perfect blend of wisdom, class, and humor that made that show work. Leno was dullness personified! But even in the waning years of Carson, LNWDL was a great-follow up to the more dignified, classy Carson show. While Carson had big movie stars, past and present, and up-and-coming comedians, Dave had more of B-listers (and sometimes C and D listers!) as his guests. But they rarely disappointed. Dave would have these off-the-wall skits with Larry "Bud" Melman, Chris Elliott, with regular assists from Dave's hip right-hand man, bandleader Paul Schaeffer, who stayed with Dave when he went over to CBS. Then his "B-list" guests would include the likes of Andy Kaufman, Sandra Bernhard, Teri Garr, Richard Simmons, all of whom were in on the joke during the no-holds-barred interviews, in which Dave (nor his guests) would pull any punches. And when Dave did have A-listers, like Cher or Madonna or some other big name, he and/or his audience would more often than not antagonize them, mainly as a way of bringing them down to the level of his show, which to me is a good thing! Dave for an eternity tried to get Oprah on his NBC show, but ironically she never appeared until CBS. Safer, milder atmosphere! And even Cher and Madonna seem to have buried the hatchet and regularly appear on his CBS show. In retrospect, I think a lot of people see the genius of Dave when he was on NBC. Back then, Dave was fresh, young, energetic, enthusiastic, sarcastic, and witty. He still holds those last 2 qualities, but he's much more laid back and picks his spots more. On NBC, he was uninhibited and we're all the better for it! Whether or not Dave or Carson is the best is debatable, but they are #1 and #2. Leno, Conan, Ferguson, Fallon, Kimmel, and the up-and-coming Colbert (who is to take over Dave's CBS show) are all competing for a distant 3rd!
TheyCallMeMrGibbs Setting: An overpriced studio set overlooking New York City.Time: Present Day, though if anyone had common sense it wouldn't be.Tone: Deaf DRAMATIS PERSONAE David Letterman: The gap-toothed Host of Late Night. A cynical man who is jealous of Jay Leno because Jay's funny and he's not.Paul Shaffer: A rare breed of shaved parrot. Serves to repeat everything that Dave says and act as what I'm guessing is a bandleader.Alan Kalter: Announcer for the show. Not his fault.Dave: Alright Ladies and Gentlemen, here's tonight's top 10 list.(Music enters) Dave: Tonight's top 10 list: Top 10 Reasons I'm Not Funny.(Applause sign lights up, people forced to clap, dually regretting an evening wasted) Dave: Number 10:I'm a cynic Paul: Oh, a cynic, huh?Dave: Number 9: I'm whiny-Carson retired twenty years ago and I treat Jay Leno like he's Moby Dick.Paul: Moby Dick.Dave: Number 8: I think it's funny if I repeat words I say like "political pundit." Paul: Political Pundit.Dave: Number 7: I'm crotchety.Paul: Crotchety.Dave: Number 6: I actually have to use laugh signs.Paul: Oh, laugh signs huh? Dave: Number 5: I don't ask guests real questions that stimulate their minds-instead I'll interview Hugh Laurie and ask him if his name is Hugh Laurie.Paul: Ah, Hugh Laurie.Dave: Number 4: If a guest says something awkward, I'll just look at the audience and furrow my brow.Paul: Furrow your brow, huh? Dave: Number 3: I won't appear even mildly interested in what my guests are saying.Paul: What your guests are saying Dave.Dave: Number 2: I meanly pounce on celebrity scandals like a Tiger-Speaking of Tiger, did you know that his wife is threatening to wedge his nine-iron? (Laughter sign blinks, fake laughter) Paul:Nine-iron, wedge, golf.Dave: And the number 1 reason I'm not funny: I actually have to make out a list.(Applause sign blinks, fake applause ,or it could be real, the show end in seconds) Paul: You have to make a list! Alan: This is Alan Kalter speaking: Good night everybody, better than mine anyway.
culwin This is hands down the most cool, funny, entertaining talk show that has ever been on television!! Most TV shows only wish they were half this good. If the greedy execs at NBC ever decide to release these episodes, be sure and check it out! That's all that needs to be said really.
OdeLute Thank God David left for CBS (Crud Broadcasted Seasonally) and took that joke of a band leader with him. I'll grant that Dave had his moments in the 80's, but Paul alone makes his show completely unwatchable. He's often rude to his guests, slow on his jokes, and most of his "good" material consists of stumbling over punchlines and waiting for his audience to respond to the "Applause" sign when it lights up. Can there be anything worse than a comedian who gets his laughs merely as a courtesy, not due to any actual talent?The temper tantrum he threw over not getting Carson's gig was ridiculous, and given his mediocre performances, he should have seen it coming. Oh well, his decision to jump ship gave the world Conan and Andy, so I guess he deserves indirect praise for that.