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View Full Version : David Letterman and his amazing 'little story



ELVIS
10-02-2009, 03:54 PM
by Ken Tucker (http://watching-tv.ew.com/2009/10/02/david-letterman-extortion-sex/)


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“Do you feel like a little story?” David Letterman asked the studio audience last night. He was sitting at his desk. He’d already done his monologue, which included a joking aside about “takin’ a ride on the Appalachian trail.”
And then for ten minutes, he told the story that had broken only a couple of hours before: that he’d been the object of an extortion attempt, and that “I have had sex with women who work on the show.” But before he said that he put it in the context of an odd, often humorously phrased anecdote, almost a folksy shaggy-dog story.

He told us about the “little package in the back of my car” that he found, which contained a threat from a man who wrote that he knew “some terrible, terrible things” about Letterman. The audience laughed heartily. He said “the guy said [he was] going to write a screenplay about me,” and that Dave’s first thought was, “that’s a little hinky” — “hinky” being a favorite bit of Letterman-language for odd things. The demand was for two million dollars.

He said it was a “terrifying moment,” “quite scary,” and that “I felt menaced.” He said he decided to take the threat to the authorities and “I had to tell them all the creepy things I had done.” Again, he got laughs from this.

“Now of course we get to, what was all the creepy stuff?… The creepy stuff was, I have had sex with women who work on the show.” There was silence mingled with gasps — for the first time, no laughs then. “My answer to that was, yes, I have.” He got applause and laughter from this, but it seemed a bit more nervous. “Would [this news] prove embarrassing?” he asked rhetorically. “Yes it would — especially for the women.” And the audience laughed quite loudly.

Here’s the thing about that reaction: If you’ve ever been in a studio audience before, you know you’re almost hypnotized into giddy good humor. You’ve been standing on a line for hours, you’ve had a warm-up guy come out and joke and tell you what to expect (Letterman usually comes out and does his own warm-up bit, to the best of my knowledge). And we no longer live in a culture where, upon hearing something disturbing, people feel comfortable saying (not shouting), “For shame!” or quietly walking out. In any case, I’m sure everyone was just pretty stunned, and that some of the laughter was of the nervous sort.

In a sense, Letterman had a captive audience with which to frame his admission. But that said, this was an extraordinary piece of television. He took what could be a damaging scandal, a tale of blackmail and workplace relationships, and turned it into a story that was at least in part about what he termed his “towering, Midwestern mass of guilt.”

Letterman even managed to get in a few more mild jokes about it. “I know what you’re sayin’: ‘Oh, Dave had sex!’” — a reference to his age (62). And though he said he would not have more to say about it, when he came back from a commercial, he said he’d taken questions from the audience during the break and “a guy said, ‘I’d like to see that movie.’” More laughs. On with the show.

This is going to play out in ways that you or I or Letterman cannot predict.

There are going to be a lot of talks about consensual versus coerced sexual relationships, about Letterman’s history of making jokes about straying politicians. We’ll hear debates and conjectures about his long-term relationship and marriage since March to Regina Lasko, the mother of his son, Harry. Letterman will be mocked and he’ll be defended.

As it stands right now, though, what Letterman did last night was a striking, unique, and — for all the laughter it provoked — dramatic example of how a celebrity deals with both a threat and a scandal.


:elvis:

Dan
10-02-2009, 07:40 PM
Dont Fuck The Crew.:D

sadaist
10-02-2009, 07:48 PM
I hope it was with those two ladies that would always deliver the plate of deli meats & such. I liked them.

Hey, and what the fuck ever happened to Sarijul & Mujiber?

Nickdfresh
10-02-2009, 07:50 PM
I hope it was with those two ladies that would always deliver the plate of deli meats & such. I liked them.

Hey, and what the fuck ever happened to Sarijul & Mujiber?

They showed a clip of her on some bullshit show I was watching, sort of a ratty looking but slightly sexy blonde...

http://image3.examiner.com/images/blog/EXID23871/images/lsbiogs_stephanie.jpg

Diamondjimi
10-02-2009, 07:52 PM
Well, I give Letterman credit for dealing with this shit directly, rather than try to sweep it under the carpet like other celebs have, only to backfire on them once the media puts their spin on it trying to make it scandalous.

"Yeah, I fucked alot of Pussy at the network, I'm David Fucking Letterman, you Dumbasses!"

But, why get married if you wanna bang all kinds of "strange"?

chefcraig
10-02-2009, 08:15 PM
I commend Dave for getting out in front of this, and not bullshitting about it. The guy comes clean about what happened, unlike so many in the media spotlight that try to subvert the sordid details of wrongdoing.

If you have not seen the entire clip, I recommend watching it, as it is about the most compelling 10 minutes of tv you are likely to see. It truly borders on the surreal at points, as the audience laughs nervously while Letterman spills what is obviously an unsettling story.


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thome
10-02-2009, 08:34 PM
I posted some pics of grinder girl around here I wish it was me instead of him the bastaD!

Mmmmmmmmmmm...side show girls....

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n189/thome_2006/EatitUp.jpg

I doubt we will ever know the details, but Dave has only been married for 6 years or so: I think his kid is 5..? and he was divorced for like 20....I would suspect he was getting laid over those 20 years...who cares ...?

Nitro Express
10-02-2009, 09:53 PM
Don't we pretty much know this goes on? Remember Bob Barker of The Price is Right admitting he banged some of the girls on the show? It's called show business. Even if these guy like Letterman behaved themselves the pussy is constantly flying at them in hopes of getting a slice of their wealth or climbing the ladder. In the 1950's people pretended it was a big shock and the bible police would destroy these guys. Nowadays we just go tell us something we don't know motherfucker.

standin
10-02-2009, 11:24 PM
Good job.
Glad you helped fight corruption in the entertaiment industry.
Sorry no one taught you to not screw your help over or literally.
Court and criminal prosecution is nerve-wracking in the best of circumstances.
Glad he stood up to the the scum.
Robert J. "Joe" Halderman, a producer for the true-crime show "48 Hours."

What a douche to be a part of the crime investigating community and actively, knowingly, and for no reason other than greed commit crime.

http://wwwimage.cbsnews.com/images/2009/10/02/image5357958x.jpg

Photo: CBS News producer Robert Joe Halderman from Facebook.

NEW YORK (CBS/AP) Long-time CBS News producer Robert Joe Halderman has been named in a sex extortion plot against "Late Show" host David Letterman, according to the Associated Press.

The Emmy-nominated producer is accused of trying to extort $2 million from Letterman, forcing the late-night host to admit in an extraordinary monologue before millions of viewers that he had sexual relationships with female employees.

Letterman said that "this whole thing has been quite scary." But he mixed in jokes while outlining what had happened to him, seeming to confuse a laughing audience at Thursday's taping about whether the story was true.

The network said the person who was arrested works on the true-crime show "48 Hours" and has been suspended. A person with knowledge of the investigation said the suspect is Robert J. Halderman. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because authorities have not released the suspect's name.

Halderman was part of a team nominated for an Emmy for outstanding continuing coverage of a news story in a news magazine in 2008. Two numbers listed for Halderman were disconnected, and a message left at a third number was not immediately returned Thursday.

Letterman's "Late Show" audience was the first to hear the story, which came as a shock since the 62-year-old Letterman had married longtime girlfriend Regina Lasko in March. The couple began dating in 1986 and have a son, Harry, born in November 2003. Fatherhood and his heart surgery in 2000 had seemed to mellow Letterman, who took over as the most popular late-night comedy host this summer after NBC replaced Jay Leno with Conan O'Brien on the "Tonight" show.
Letterman sat behind his desk to outline the scheme after a monologue that targeted some frequent foils like Sarah Palin and Dick Cheney.

Three weeks ago, Letterman said, he got in his car early in the morning and found a package with a letter saying, "I know that you do some terrible, terrible things and that I can prove that you do some terrible things." He acknowledged the letter contained proof.

He said it was terrifying "because there's something insidious about (it). Is he standing down there? Is he hiding under the car? Am I going to get a tap on the shoulder?"

Letterman said he called his lawyer to set up a meeting with the man, who threatened to write a screenplay and a book about Letterman unless he was given money. He said there were two subsequent meetings, with the man given a phony $2 million check at the last one. Letterman joked it was like the giant ceremonial check given to winners of golf tournaments.

He told the audience that he had to testify before a grand jury on Thursday.

"I was worried for myself, I was worried for my family," he said. "I felt menaced by this, and I had to tell them all of the creepy things that I had done."

He said "the creepy stuff was that I have had sex with women who work for me on this show. My response to that is yes, I have. Would it be embarrassing if it were made public? Yes, it would, especially for the women."

Whether they wanted to make the relationships public was up to them, he said.

"It's been a very bizarre experience," he said. "I felt like I needed to protect these people. I need to protect my family. I need to protect myself. Hope to protect my job."

CBS said in a statement that "we believe his comments speak for themselves."

Perhaps as a defense mechanism, Letterman sprinkled his remarks with jokes: "I know what you're saying," he said. "I'll be darned, Dave had sex."

He said he wouldn't talk further about it, and recited a Top Ten list. But it wasn't far from his mind. During banter with actor guest Woody Harrelson, Letterman said, "I've got my own problems."

It was not immediately clear when the relationships took place or how long they lasted. Letterman's "Late Show" has been on the air since 1993. Before that, "Late Night with David Letterman" aired on NBC from 1982 to 1993.

Letterman won't be taping a show Friday. Friday night's show was taped Thursday.

Alicia Maxey Greene, a spokeswoman for the Manhattan District Attorney's office, declined to comment.

It's the second set of embarrassing headlines for Letterman in four months. In June, he apologized to Palin for making a crude joke about the former Republican vice presidential candidate's 14-year-old daughter. Although there was a small "fire Letterman" demonstration outside of his studio later, CBS stood by its late-night star.

Last fall Letterman sharply denounced Palin's running mate, John McCain, for abruptly canceling a "Late Show" appearance. Weeks of withering jokes by Letterman eventually forced McCain to come on the show and beg for forgiveness.

Letterman was also the victim of a 2005 plot by a former painter on his Montana ranch to kidnap his nanny and son for a $5 million ransom. The former painter, Kelly A. Frank, briefly escaped from prison in 2007 before being recaptured.

Another alleged extortion scandal surrounding a public figure, Louisville men's basketball coach Rick Pitino, similarly forced him this summer to acknowledge an affair.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Robert Joe Halderman, 48 Hours Producer, Named in David Letterman Sex Extortion Plot - Crimesider - CBS News (http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/10/02/crimesider/entry5357903.shtml?tag=cbsnewsCrimesiderArea.0)


No matter how they try to spin it. Blatant extortion and blackmail was attempted to be committed by their producer of their top crime investigation community. That is a stain on his team and he had a higher standard to uphold by his selection of work and subject choice.

I am glad they got that douche, wonder how many other extortions are derived out of that section of the production company? Is this normal operating procedure for CBS? What other kind of corruption do they have going on? Or was it just that one team? Is it so common a practice at CBS to use extortion as a motivating tool that no one recognized this as the crime it was and is?