David Letterman

American comedian and television host

Photo by: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from Washington D.C, United States DoD photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley / Released · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Born:April 12, 1947

Age:79

Zodiac Sign:Aries

Born in:Indianapolis, United States

Languages:English, Italian, Japanese, Spanish

Comedian Weather Presenter Writer Journalist Actor Television Producer Television Presenter

Signature

Links

Wikipedia Official Website IMDb Facebook X (Twitter)Instagram YouTube TikTok

Famous For

Movies & TV

SullyMan on the MoonSpin CityAmyMiss Americana

Books

Late Show Fun FactsDavid Letterman's Book of Top Ten ListsDavid Letterman's New Book of Top Ten ListsLate Show Fun Facts

Awards

Mark Twain Prize for American Humor (2017)Sagamore of the Wabash (2007)Daytime Emmy AwardPrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety SeriesKennedy Center Honors

David Letterman

American comedian and television host

Biography

David Michael Letterman (born April 12, 1947) is an American comedian, television host, writer, and producer. He hosted late-night television talk shows for 33 years, beginning with the February 1, 1982, debut of Late Night with David Letterman on NBC and ending with the May 20, 2015, broadcast of Late Show with David Letterman on CBS. In total, Letterman hosted 6,080 episodes of Late Night and Late Show, surpassing his friend and mentor Johnny Carson as the longest-serving late-night talk show host in American television history. Letterman is also a television and film producer. His company, Worldwide Pants, produced his shows as well as The Late Late Show and several primetime comedies, the most successful of which was the CBS sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond. Several late-night hosts have cited Letterman's influence, including Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers (each of whom succeeded Letterman on Late Night), Stephen Colbert (his successor on The Late Show), Jimmy Kimmel, and Jon Stewart. Since 2018, he has hosted the Netflix series My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman.

This biography uses content from the Wikipedia article “David Letterman”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License.

Quotes

“Nothing—believe me—nothing is more satisfying to me personally than getting a great idea and then beatin' it to death.”

— Late Night with David Letterman (5 March 1993).

“We're told that they were zealots fueled by religious fervour…religious fervour and if you live to be a thousand years old will that make any sense to you? Will that make any goddamn sense?”

— During his first show after the September 11th attacks (17 September 2001).

“What is this, Vassar?!”

— The Wahoo Gazette (30 October 2002).

Quotes sourced from the Wikiquote article "David Letterman", available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License.

Photos

David Letterman during an interview on the Late Show in New York City.

Comedian, author, actor and former late night television host David Letterman gives remarks during a USO celebration of its 75th birthday, Military Appreciation Month and the 5th Anniversary of Joining Forces in a hangar on Joint Base Andrews May 5. The special event, called a “Celebration of Service,” featured special guest speakers President and First Lady Obama, Vice President and Second Lady Biden and comedic performances by Jon Stewart, David Letterman, Judd Apatow, Mike Birbiglia, Kristen Schaal, Hasan Minhaj, John Mulaney and Jeff Ross. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Kat Justen)

Title: David Letterman [CBS talkshow host, New York] Creator(s): Gotfryd, Bernard, photographer Date Created/Published: 1982. Medium: 1 photograph : color transparency ; 35mm (slide format) Reproduction Number: LC-DIG-gtfy-02265 (digital file from original) Rights Advisory: No known restrictions on publication. For information see "Bernard Gotfryd," (https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/res.592.gotf) Access Advisory: Please use digital image: original slide is kept in cold storage for preservation. Call Number: LC-GB05- 2265 [P&P] Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA Notes: Title based on information from slide mount or other caption information provided by the photographer. Photo agency: Newsweek; NW/FILE. Date on slide mount: 6/82. Gift; Bernard Gotfryd; 2004; (DLC/PP-2004:032). Subjects: United States--New York (State)--New York. Television hosts Format: Slides--Color--1980-1990. Part of: Bernard Gotfryd photograph collection (Library of Congress) Bookmark This Record: https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2020731806/

Title: David Letterman [CBS talkshow host, New York] Creator(s): Gotfryd, Bernard, photographer Date Created/Published: 1982. Medium: 1 photograph : color transparency ; 35mm (slide format) Reproduction Number: LC-DIG-gtfy-02267 (digital file from original) Rights Advisory: No known restrictions on publication. For information see "Bernard Gotfryd," (https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/res.592.gotf) Access Advisory: Please use digital image: original slide is kept in cold storage for preservation. Call Number: LC-GB05- 2267 [P&P] Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA Notes: Title based on information from slide mount or other caption information provided by the photographer. Photo agency: Newsweek; NW/FILE. Date on slide mount: 10/82. Gift; Bernard Gotfryd; 2004; (DLC/PP-2004:032). Subjects: United States--New York (State)--New York. Television hosts Format: Slides--Color--1980-1990. Part of: Bernard Gotfryd photograph collection (Library of Congress) Bookmark This Record: https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2020731808/

Title: David Letterman [CBS talkshow host, New York] Creator(s): Gotfryd, Bernard, photographer Date Created/Published: 1982. Medium: 1 photograph : color transparency ; 35mm (slide format) Reproduction Number: LC-DIG-gtfy-02266 (digital file from original) Rights Advisory: No known restrictions on publication. For information see "Bernard Gotfryd," (https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/res.592.gotf) Access Advisory: Please use digital image: original slide is kept in cold storage for preservation. Call Number: LC-GB05- 2266 [P&P] Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA Notes: Title based on information from slide mount or other caption information provided by the photographer. Photo agency: Newsweek; NW/FILE. Date on slide mount: 10/82. Gift; Bernard Gotfryd; 2004; (DLC/PP-2004:032). Subjects: United States--New York (State)--New York. Television hosts Format: Slides--Color--1980-1990. Part of: Bernard Gotfryd photograph collection (Library of Congress) Bookmark This Record: https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2020731807/

This is an alternately cropped version of File:David Letterman 2.jpg. This version has been edited to provide appropriate visual context to make this picture of Dave both nicer to look at, and more historically important. (The following is the original image's description as of the time of this writing: David Letterman during an interview on the Late Show in New York City.

First Lady Michelle Obama surprises David Letterman with a performance by the United States Marine Band for “The Late Show with David Letterman” in New York, N.Y., April 30, 2015. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)

David Letterman accepting his Individual Peabody Award. (Photo/Sarah E. Freeman/Grady College, freemans@uga.edu in New York City, Georgia, on Saturday, May 21, 2016)

David Letterman on The Blocks Podcast with Neal Brennan

David Letterman accepting his Individual Peabody Award. (Photo/Sarah E. Freeman/Grady College, freemans@uga.edu in New York City, Georgia, on Saturday, May 21, 2016)