David Letterman Exits Late Night With A Heartfelt Goodbye (VIDEO)

david-letterman-goodbye

I shared a few months ago, when NBC aired a retrospective celebrating 40 years of SNL, that I literally grew up with the groundbreaking program. The same could be said about David Letterman and all of his talk show iterations, including a short lived morning show and Late Night with David Letterman, on NBC, and the later, when he was passed over for host of Tonight, the Late Show on CBS.

I was a depressed college graduate, back in my parents house, with no idea what my future would hold, when I discovered Letterman’s morning show on NBC. For one hour a day, I wasn’t unhappy, or obsessing about what the rest of my life looked life. The show made me laugh so hard, I was crying.  I couldn’t believe my eyes. What the hell was THIS on at 10 am in the morning? Wacky stunts, and stupid pet tricks. Ridiculous man-in-the-street interviews. Conversations with celebrities completely free of obsequious ass-kissing. When the show was cancelled a few months later, I was sad but not surprised.

I followed Dave from then on, staying up WAY too late to watch him when he finally was scheduled where he belonged–late at night. Believe it or not, young people. Dave’s snarky humor and take-no-prisoners style was the epitome of hip in those days. If there had been an internet in the 80’s he would have been the king of viral videos, there were so many memorable and groundbreaking bits. He influenced a generation of comics that came after him, too. Late night talk as we know it would look completely different if it weren’t for Dave. Jay Leno got the Tonight Show and the ratings, but David Letterman takes a rich legacy away from his 33+ year TV career as one of the medium’s great broadcasters.

Back in the late 80s, a friend of mine who worked for a big news organization scored us tickets to Late Night. It was a Friday and I was excited to see who the BIG NAME guests would be. I was disappointed to find out there was no musical guest and that Dave would be chatting up….get ready for it…OJ Simpson. This was years away from the Bronco chase and the Trial of the Century. In 1989, he was just a seemingly genial c list celebrity.In the end, I didn’t care about the guest list. Dave was the show. He had just lost his licence that week after too many speeding tickets from the Connecticut police. His riffing on the subject was hilarious.

I watched Dave’s final broadcast last night, along with almost 14 million other viewers. The mostly unsentimental sendoff was everything I could have expected. There was the last monologue, an all-star Top 10 list, and a moving tribute to his staff and family. The show ended with the Foo Fighters performing their hit, “Everlong,” a song that got Dave through some difficult and scary times–heart bypass surgery that saved his life. The 6+ minute performance was cut with stills from Dave’s career. It was like watching my own life flash before my eyes. I finally teared up.

One last note before I post a ton of video here.  Dave’s silly, snarky, sense of humor was always anchored by gravitas, a well of humanity and a sharp intelligence. That’s why he’s special–an innovator and influencer. It really is the end of an era. #ThanksDave.

Our Long National Nightmare is Over

This is how the show opened–featuring five presidents!

https://youtu.be/zQklH53Dc8c

Dave’s Last Monologue

Dave realizes he’s probably not going to get the Tonight Show. He’s hilariously sent off by The Simpsons and Wheel of Fortune. Also: Scientology jokes!

https://youtu.be/bw5tUhLpqxM

Celebrity Top Ten Things I’ve Always Wanted to Say To David Letterman

Bill Murray, Tina Fey, Peyton Manning, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Chris Rock, Jim Carrey, Jerry Seinfeld, Steve Martin, Barbara Walters and Alec Baldwin take part in the last Top Ten List.

https://youtu.be/BBf8MyGaEk4

David Letterman’s Final Thank You and Good Night

Dave thanks his staff, the CBS Orchestra and his family in his final sign off. His wife and son were in the audience. His son was adorable. And completely mortified. Heh. The last thank you had a perfect balance of humor and sentimentality.

https://youtu.be/aq2AZY-qaPY

Foo Fighters performing “Everlong”

Really well-done and moving retrospective. The performance was live, yet the shots and videos were timed perfectly with the performance.

https://youtu.be/yrVjOUIoo6Q

…And just to illustrate the impact Dave had on the current crop of late night hosts, here are tributes from Kimmel, Fallon, Conan and Seth Myers.

Jimmy Kimmel choked up several times during his tribute. He’s a bonafide stan from the time he was a teenager. Kimmel was a re-run last night. He encouraged everyone to tune into Dave’s farewell instead.

https://youtu.be/y29ELOsXSI0

Conan O’Brien promised to signal when Dave’s tribute began, so viewers can switch over. He straight up tells people to turn him off. When Conan took over Late Night from Dave, it was a disaster. The show was on the verge of being cancelled when Dave contacted Conan’s people, out of the blue, offering to be a guest. It was the beginning of a turn around for Conan, who ended up hosting Late Night for 13 years.

Jimmy Fallon of the Tonight Show thanks David Letterman

Seth Meyers filmed a shot by shot recreation of the original Late Night with David Letterman opening. And it’s awesome.

About mj santilli 34830 Articles
Founder and editor of mjsbigblog.com, home of the awesomest fan community on the net. I love cheesy singing shows of all kinds, whether reality or scripted. I adore American Idol, but also love The Voice, Glee, X Factor and more!