Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman
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Late Show with David Letterman

6.4
Yr 1993
Rt 63m
Status Ended
Talk Comedy
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Series Brief

Overview

David Letterman uses mature humor to appeal to his audience in this weeknight series, which gets its music from a house band led by Paul Shaffer. Among the show's most-famous segments are the Top Ten List and Stupid Pet Tricks, the latter of which subsequently led to an additional recurring segment called Stupid Human Tricks.

Why fans love it

Since 1993, this late-night program built a reputation on an irreverent approach to the traditional talk show format. The humor leans into a mature, dry sensibility that separates it from standard broadcasts of the era. The presence of Paul Shaffer at the helm of the house band provides a steady rhythm to the chaotic segments that define the nightly routine.

The legacy of the show rests on recurring sketches that turn mundane concepts into comedic centerpieces. Viewers return for the predictability of the Top Ten List combined with the unpredictable physical comedy found in Stupid Pet Tricks and its human-focused counterpart. It remains a distinct example of how a nightly routine can rely on consistency and absurdity to maintain an audience.

Featured Players

Cast

Credited 75
Regulars 3
Longest run 4252 eps
David Letterman
David Letterman
as Self - Host
4252 episodes
Paul Shaffer
Paul Shaffer
as Self - Musical Director
4252 episodes
Bill Wendell
as Self - Announcer
439 episodes
Alan Kalter
as Self - Announcer
3813 episodes
Scarlett Johansson
Scarlett Johansson
as Self
4 episodes
Edd Hall
as Voiceover Announcer (voice)
13 episodes
Regis Philbin
Regis Philbin
as Self
5 episodes
Jay Thomas
Jay Thomas
as Self - Guest
3 episodes
Show 67 more
Darlene Love as Self - Musical Guest 5 episodes Sharon Jones as Self - Musical Guest 3 episodes Bill Murray as Self - Guest 4 episodes Drew Barrymore as Self - Guest 18 episodes Rupert Jee as Self 15 episodes Jack Hanna as Self - Guest 5 episodes Jennifer Love Hewitt as Self - Guest 3 episodes Al Franken as Self - Guest 3 episodes Sirajul Islam as Self 4 episodes Mujibur Rahman as Self 4 episodes Dolly Parton as Self - Guest 9 episodes Faith Hill as Self - Musical Guest 3 episodes Donald Trump as Self - Guest 3 episodes Rickie Lee Jones as Self - Musical Guest 3 episodes Jim Carrey as Self - Guest 3 episodes Peter Fonda as Self - Guest 3 episodes David Brenner as Self - Guest 3 episodes Biff Henderson as Self 38 episodes Norm Macdonald as Self - Guest 3 episodes Martin Short as Self - Guest 3 episodes Calvert DeForest as Self 6 episodes John Popper as Self - Musical Guest 3 episodes Tom Brokaw as Self - Guest 3 episodes Martha Stewart as Self - Guest 3 episodes Melissa McCarthy as Self - Guest 3 episodes Lou Reed as Self - Musical Guest 8 episodes Don Rickles as Self - Guest 3 episodes Elvis Costello as Self - Musical Guest 4 episodes Josh Brolin as Self - Guest 3 episodes Jeff Altman as Self - Guest 3 episodes Tony Randall as Self 3 episodes Rachel Weisz as Self - Guest 5 episodes Sharon Stone as Self - Guest 6 episodes Bruce Willis as Self - Guest 26 episodes Eva Longoria as Self - Guest 4 episodes Kurt Russell as Self - Guest 6 episodes Jake Johannsen as Self - Guest 4 episodes Dave Grohl as Self - Musical Guest 4 episodes Sarah Michelle Gellar as Self - Guest 6 episodes Kim Gordon as Self - Musical Guest 5 episodes Thurston Moore as Self - Musical Guest 6 episodes Steve Shelley as Self - Musical Guest 5 episodes Lee Ranaldo as Self - Musical Guest 5 episodes Spike Lee as Self - Guest 4 episodes Bill Clinton as Self - Guest 5 episodes William Shatner as Self - Guest 4 episodes Tony Mendez as Self 14 episodes Reese Witherspoon as Self - Guest 8 episodes Jim Parsons as Self - Guest 8 episodes Aretha Franklin as Self - Musical Guest 5 episodes Pauley Perrette as Self - Guest 4 episodes Mariah Carey as Self - Guest 7 episodes Julia Stiles as Self - Guest 5 episodes Christopher Walken as Self - Guest 5 episodes Alec Baldwin as Self - Guest 32 episodes Bruno Kirby as Self - Guest 4 episodes Ringo Starr as Self - Guest 5 episodes Eddie Murphy as Self - Guest 6 episodes Robert Downey Jr. as Self - Guest 12 episodes Paul Rudd as Self - Guest 14 episodes Emma Watson as Self - Guest 5 episodes Jennifer Garner as Self - Guest 7 episodes Renée Zellweger as Self - Guest 10 episodes Dwayne Johnson as Self - Guest 7 episodes Britney Spears as Self - Top Ten Presenter 5 episodes Bradley Cooper as Self - Guest 4 episodes Pamela Anderson as Self - Guest 4 episodes
Production Board

Crew

Musician
Félim Gormley
Executive Producer
Eric Stangel
Writer
David Letterman
Signal Match

Similarity

Where Late Show with David Letterman overlaps with other shows, and exactly what they have in common.

Keyword Cloud

Keywords

late-night show irreverent hilarious
Technical Sheet

Details

First Aired
August 30, 1993
Status
Ended
Episode Runtime
63 minutes
Origin
US
TMDB Votes
169