David Letterman to Announce Retirement Tonight

[Nickdfresh]

David Letterman is reportedly announcing his retirement tonight
By Sean O'Neal
Apr 3, 2014 3:28 PM

Numerous sources have reported that David Letterman announced during the taping of tonight’s Late Show that he will be retiring in 2015, ending the months of speculation that he would do exactly that after his contract with CBS expires. (Not to mention all those preceding years of speculation.) The announcement is apparently part of Letterman’s broadcast, a special TV moment of the kind we are no longer allowed to have anymore because of Twitter. Tonight’s musical guest, Mike Mills of R.E.M. (sitting in with Joseph Arthur), tweeted that he’d just heard Letterman’s announcement, and this was soon followed by confirmations from CBS News anchor Jeff Glor, CNN media correspondent Brian Stelter, and Variety. So when you hear it from Letterman himself tonight, try to act surprised.

LINK (http://www.avclub.com/article/david-letterman-reportedly-announcing-his-retireme-203049?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=SocialMarketing&utm_campaign=LinkPreview:1:Default)

I find this a bit sad as a lifelong fan, but glad he lasted longer than that cock Leno... :)

[FORD]

Sad to see him go. Hope he turns over the keys to somebody more worthy than Jimmy Fail-on.

[ZahZoo]

That's a real shame...

Far too many eras passing within my own lifetime!!

[ELVIS]

Maybe Leno can take over for Letterman and really stick it to Falloff and NBC...

[FORD]

Jay's retired twice now, so I suspect this time he actually meant it.

I wouldn't be surprised though if he took over Piss Morgan's time slot on CNN.

True, he's not a "news" guy but neither was Piss Morgan. Or Larry King. Or pretty much anybody else on CNN these days.

[ELVIS]

Jay didn't retire...

[Kristy]

Sad to see him go. Hope he turns over the keys to somebody more worthy than Jimmy Fail-on.

He's a boring bag of shit. Letterman is a AARP member with a dementia-suffering twat Jew as a sidekick. Unfunny as fuck. Painful to watch. He's tanking in the ratings next to Fallon and knows it. Love to see Ferguson take over but most likely the suits at CBS will fuck him over.

[Va Beach VH Fan]

Rumor is that Colbert (without the schtick) is the frontrunner at CBS....

And his contract expires at the end of this year....

[ELVIS]

And he's boring...

[Kristy]

Rumor is that Colbert (without the schtick) is the frontrunner at CBS....

Just...no.

[FORD]

It's hard to imagine Colbert without his "schtick", actually. He would probably still be more entertaining than Jimmy Fail-on though.

[FORD]

Actually, CBS News is running a poll right now (http://www.cbsnews.com/news/david-letterman-to-retire-who-should-replace-him/?vote%5BanswerId%5D=a7bdabf3-d328-4848-80b3-ecd1fe8b7c03), and currently more people seem to think Craig Ferguson deserves the promotion....

12% Jon Stewart
23% Craig Ferguson
5% Chelsea Handler
5% Jimmy Kimmel
19% Conan O'Brien
7% Jerry Seinfeld
5% Louis C.K.
10% Stephen Colbert
13% Someone else

It's common place for the 12:30 host to get the promotion when the other guy leaves (though Letterman himself failed to get the NBC gig when he was up for it) and Letterman's production company "Worldwide Pants" produces Ferguson's show, so he seems a logical successor on those fronts. The question there is whether he could make the transition to the type of show that Letterman does, or alternatively whether his current show could cut it in the 11:30 time slot. Admittedly, I've only seen Ferguson's show about half a dozen times during fits of insomnia. I still haven't seen Seth Meyers in his Fallon replacement gig.

I actually voted for Jerry Seinfeld, because I think he would be a natural for the format. I'm frankly surprised NBC didn't call him when Leno quit again. That network certainly owes him a lot more than they do Fail-on, for carrying their Thursday night lineup for a decade.

[FORD]

Oddly missing from that poll is Arsenio Hall. True, he's currently back on the air in syndication, but Conan is on TBS, Kimmel is on ABC, and Stewart & Colbert are on Comedy Central, so being on competing networks isn't a barrier to the poll.

I got the impression when Arsenio was trying to get his name back in the spotlight by appearing on Trump's reality trainwreck "The Apprentice" that he was really auditioning for the CBS gig, but then Dave extended his contract by 2 years (it was originally set to expire in 2013).

[twonabomber]

I don't think Arsenio is doing that well. He's on the local FOX station and they already moved his show from 11 to 11:30. I've watched a few times and he's nowhere as funny as the first time around. He's already had Magic Johnson on twice. Booking his friends all the time makes it look like he can't get real guests with something to promote.

Part of Letterman's deal was producing the 12:30 show, just like the first Late Night was a Carson production. They do the Ferguson show on the cheap, with no band and the robot sidekicks. I think Ferguson is funny but I don't know if he'd be good at 11:30. Can he go mainstream enough to get ratings? Would he welcome a move to NYC? Would Drew Carey campaign for his friend Ferguson, or would they offer the show to Carey?

FOX is still rumored to be working on a late night show of their own but are there enough viewers to make it profitable? Their advantage: an 11 pm time slot, since most local FOX news runs 10 to 11.

Haven't really heard talk of Howard Stern replacing Letterman yet. The Sirius contract is up in 2016 I think. His AGT gig seems to be a way to show America that he's "normal" and not the polarizing figure he once was, but he's not that much younger than Letterman so if CBS is looking for a long-term replacement he may not be a good choice. Besides, Stern doesn't do a full week of radio shows any more, would he be up for five TV shows a week, even if they shot two in one day like Letterman does?

[Zing!]

I couldn't give too shits about this. Sorry, late night folk.

[FORD]

I don't seen Stern doing it. He moved his radio show to satellite so he wouldn't have to comply with the ridiculous FCC censorship rules, so the only way I see him doing a late night talk show would be if he could talk HBO or Showtime into it, because after several years on Sirius, it would be even harder to revert to FCC compliant censor friendly content.

[twonabomber]

But Stern's FCC friendly on America's Got Talent...or so I'm told, I don't watch it. He's doing another season of AGT so he can't be pissing NBC off too much.

[Nickdfresh]

Rumor is that Colbert (without the schtick) is the frontrunner at CBS....

And his contract expires at the end of this year....

Colbert actually structured his contracts to parallel Letterman's...

[Nickdfresh]

Tina Fey was mentioned in an article I read, but the speculation is that she doesn't want to be tied down in a slot and wants to be free to do films and stuff. I think it's a battle between Ferguson and Colbert, but Colbert will get it. I wouldn't mind seeing Conan O'Brien get a shot either. But not sure if he has the non-compete clause still active...

[Kristy]

Oddly missing from that poll is Arsenio Hall. True, he's currently back on the air in syndication, but Conan is on TBS, Kimmel is on ABC, and Stewart & Colbert are on Comedy Central, so being on competing networks isn't a barrier to the poll.

The only advantage Stewart & Colboring have is that they work for the same company (Viacom) that Lettermen does. Ferguson should be the frontrunner although that doesn't means he deserves the gig. Problem with Ferguson is that he may be too eccentric for Lettermen's audience although he could pull it off if he toned down his rhetoric and I'm not sure he's willing to revamp his show. Fallon on the other hand is still a ponce. He tries way too hard to be irreverent and funny only failing to do both to the point where he just becomes an embarrassment to watch. The only thing he can do right is take himself way too seriously. Fallon, if anything, is the emperor's new clothes for late night.

[Zing!]

The only advantage Stewart & Colboring have is that they work for the same company (Viacom) that Lettermen does. Ferguson should be the frontrunner although that doesn't means he deserves the gig. Problem with Ferguson is that he may be too eccentric for Lettermen's audience although he could pull it off if he toned down his rhetoric and I'm not sure he's willing to revamp his show. Fallon on the other hand is still a ponce. He tries way too hard to be irreverent and funny only failing to do both to the point where he just becomes an embarrassment to watch. The only thing he can do right is take himself way too seriously. Fallon, if anything, is the emperor's new clothes for late night.

This is way too informed about pop culture for someone who claims to not give a shit, no?

[Kristy]

Go fuck a rhinoceros.

[Nitro Express]

Letterman has been a late show host for many moons. I enjoyed watching him on NBC in the 80's. I remember watching this show when Ed sat in with the band. His 5150 Kramer through his trusty Marshall Superlead 100 sounded better than his frankenstrat did. It got that great crunchy warm sound.

[Nitro Express]

The old chevy truck is the actual one Dave drove from Indianapolis to LA in hopes of making a career in show business. Jimmy Walker gave Dave his first break hiring him to be a comedy writer after seeing him perform a standup comedy routine. Another stand up comedian still has the car he drove to LA from Boston hoping to make it big. He still has his car as well. Of course that person is Jay Leno.

[Va Beach VH Fan]

Apparently official, it's Colbert....

Stephen Colbert to be next host of "The Late Show"...press release coming— CBS Tweet (@CBSTweet) April 10, 2014

[FORD]

ByLauren Moraski
CBS News
April 10, 2014, 12:06 PM


CBS didn't waste too much time finding a new host for the "Late Show." Exactly a week after David Letterman announced his plans to retire, his replacement has been named.

Stephen Colbert, the host, writer and executive producer of "The Colbert Report," will succeed Letterman.

"Stephen Colbert is one of the most inventive and respected forces on television," CBS Chairman and CEO Les Moonves said in a statement Thursday. "David Letterman's legacy and accomplishments are an incredible source of pride for all of us here, and today's announcement speaks to our commitment of upholding what he established for CBS in late night."

[FORD]

Well... at least he will be on at the same time.... just a different channel. Colbert can actually be a good interviewer when he wants to be, but my question is can he make the transition to an hour format.

Gotta wonder how Jon Stewart feels about all of this.........

[Va Beach VH Fan]

Well... at least he will be on at the same time.... just a different channel. Colbert can actually be a good interviewer when he wants to be, but my question is can he make the transition to an hour format.

Gotta wonder how Jon Stewart feels about all of this.........


Personally, I think Jon Stewart is a much better interviewer, although its understood that Colbert does his interviews "in character".....

I don't know, I think Colbert "out of character" is pretty much an unknown quantity....

[VAiN]

Well... at least he will be on at the same time.... just a different channel. Colbert can actually be a good interviewer when he wants to be, but my question is can he make the transition to an hour format.

Gotta wonder how Jon Stewart feels about all of this.........

I think it's a win for Stewart.. the Daily Show isn't going anywhere. It's super popular and has a strong following. I think this will only strengthen his show especially since he won't be head to head with Colbert. The pressure will be on Colbert to transition to a 60-minute format and most likely drop the mock-conservative format of the Colbert Report.

[DrMaddVibe]

Well... at least he will be on at the same time.... just a different channel. Colbert can actually be a good interviewer when he wants to be, but my question is can he make the transition to an hour format.

Gotta wonder how Jon Stewart feels about all of this.........

Hmmmm...does he still win a Grammy if Colbert does?

LOL!!!

I see the Daily Show as a dead fish now. It's a shell of what it once was and Colbert and now John Oliver have eclipsed him in really being funny. When Oliver hosted the show it was a LOL funfest. The Colbert Report is one of my faves and for him to do Letterman's gig when he already has the platform is a downgrade to me. The only upside is he's getting a BOATLOAD of cash and if the ratings tank...he can ALWAYS go back and do his thing.

[Kristy]

So the suits at CBS decided to go with one of their Viacom drones. Pathetic. Colbert will make good company for Fallon as they blow each other in the employment line.

Terrible, terrible choice.

[PETE'S BROTHER]

So the suits at CBS decided to go with one of their Viacom drones. Pathetic. Colbert will make good company for Fallon as they blow each other in the employment line.

Terrible, terrible choice.

you don't like colbert's sense of humor?

[Kristy]

What sense of humor?

[ZahZoo]

Exactly... There's a sense of of something but I hadn't found the humor component.

[PETE'S BROTHER]

huh? he makes me laugh

[DLR Bridge]

Outside of about fifteen seconds on an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, I don't think I've ever seen the guy in non-schtick mode. His actual human character is a bit of a question mark. Seems like a decent enough guy. I think his father and one of his brothers died in a plane crash when he was young, like ten. He's turned out alright for someone who's endured a miserable childhood experience.

[FORD]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfkd4i9Hlsc

Maybe CBS should have given Keith the gig?

[FORD]

And since Keith brought up this classic Letterman moment, I gotta throw this in.....


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOOBF0GB508

[DrMaddVibe]

I think the idea is to keep the "Late Show" some sort of viable entity...putting that guy in there would only make sure they were running a spear into it's side!

[Kristy]

huh? he makes me laugh

The intelligence of a Green Packers fan personified.

http://purplejesus.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/mnfpackfans011.jpg

[Kristy]

Maybe CBS should have given Keith the gig?

That would be distasteful. Slobberman is too much of a whiner for so-called late night entertainment. Look at him. His tie alone screams "I'm a pussy!"

[DrMaddVibe]

The intelligence of a Green Packers fan personified.

http://purplejesus.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/mnfpackfans011.jpg

Alec Baldwin is a Packer fan?

Hmmm...learn something new every day.

[FORD]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYDGGInfykA


Of course, what Mush fails to mention here is that when CBS first attempted a late night talk show in the late 80's, they chose Pat Sajak (yeah, the Wheel of Fortune guy) as their host, and Pat was a little more vocal about his own politics on that show then he was on his daytime gig.

[FORD]

So much so, in fact, that when Pat took some vacation time, his choice as a guest host for his talk show was........


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNK4byQkn7w

....yeah... no politics in that rant, huh Mush?? :rolleyes:

At least he got his ass kicked........

[twonabomber]

lolz...

[FORD]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJKmrxZ2WuI