logo
episode-header-image
Jun 2012
43m 24s

David Letterman

iHeartPodcasts
About this episode

This week on Here's The Thing, Alec talks with late-night legend David Letterman. Letterman describes his early years on TV in Indiana; his decision to try radio despite a boss who said “You will never be heard of again”; and his eventual journey to LA where after 3 years at comedy clubs he found himself on The Tonight Show. As Letterman says, "that's not supposed to happen."

Letterman’s been doing the Late Show for 30 years and he says for a long time he “just didn’t do anything else.” Things have changed now, he tells Alec; he has “no patience for meetings” and he avoids making decisions on the show. Dave is also taking time to explore the world with his 8-year old son: “when you have a child you do things you never thought you would do, and it’s fun.”

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Up next
Yesterday
From the Archives: Paavo Järvi Conducts Beautiful Music
<p>Estonian conductor Paavo J&auml;rvi is one of the most in-demand maestros in the world, and one of Alec&rsquo;s favorite conductors. J&auml;rvi is currently the chief conductor of the NHK symphony orchestra in Tokyo and the Tonhalle Orchester-Z&uuml;rich. Over his career, he&r ... Show More
44m 36s
Nov 18
Mallory McMorrow Wants Your Vote
<p dir="ltr">Mallory McMorrow is a state senator representing Michigan&rsquo;s 8th district and also a candidate for the United States Senate in the 2026 election. Mallory McMorrow currently serves as the Michigan Senate Majority Whip and is the first woman in state history to ho ... Show More
37m 4s
Nov 11
From the Archives: Steve Jones: From Sex Pistol to Lonely Boy
Coming from a challenging, working class upbringing in the United Kingdom, Steve Jones discovered his outlet in music - as founding guitarist of the groundbreaking punk rock band the Sex Pistols. Despite the release of only one album,”Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pisto ... Show More
38m 21s
Recommended Episodes
May 2023
From The Archive: David Letterman
This week, Krista takes a look back at her 2020 interview with David Letterman. This conversation was recorded at Canter's (a famous 24-hour Deli in Los Angeles) right before the world shut down. It’s a spot which is particularly sentimental to Letterman, and you’ll soon hear why ... Show More
47m 32s
May 2019
David Letterman
<p>Almost exactly four years ago, David Letterman signed off his show for the last time, after 33 years that revolutionized late-night television. In this week’s “Sunday Sitdown,” Willie Geist chats with the iconic TV host about his relatively quiet lifestyle since leaving that r ... Show More
49m 3s
Oct 2022
Jason Zinoman Talks About David Letterman
<p><i>For the next few months, we’re sharing some of our favorite conversations from the podcast’s archives. This week’s segments first appeared in 2017 and 2018, respectively.</i></p><p>The longtime New York Times comedy critic Jason Zinoman is the first person ever to hold that ... Show More
43m 12s
Feb 2022
David Koechner
Today Brian sits down to talk with the hilarious David Koechner who played Michael’s inappropriate friend, the Pacman - Todd Packer. David explains how it was like to grow up in a little town in Missouri, how he manifested his SNL days at age 13, his iconic role as Champ Kind on ... Show More
1h 2m
Oct 2019
David Letterman
<p>Legendary television host David Letterman has endless admiration for Conan O’Brien.</p><p><br /></p><p>David joins Conan to kick off season two with a conversation about David’s unmatchable career in late night, interactions with Johnny Carson and Bob Hope, what they see for t ... Show More
1h 16m
Jun 2019
David Letterman - 'My Next Guest Needs No Introduction'
The standup and late night comedy legend, who rarely grants interviews, opens up about why he pursued a public life despite immense shyness, why he adored Johnny Carson and has mixed feelings about Jay Leno, why he retired from 'Late Show' only to return two years later with a lo ... Show More
1h 13m
Sep 2020
David Letterman
<p>In 2013, Oprah Winfrey spoke with legendary late-night talk show host David Letterman at his alma mater, Ball State University, in Muncie, Indiana. No question is off-limits in this rare interview: David is candid about the public sex scandal that rocked his marriage; he speak ... Show More
30m 48s
Sep 2019
David Spade
David Spade explains what makes stand-up more difficult today, chats about steering clear of political jokes and considers how his childhood influenced his comedy. Watch the full David Spade episode on the Comedy Central app and on cc.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit ... Show More
21m 55s
Feb 2022
TODD Farewell
Brian pulls back the curtain to talk about his journey into podcasting and what it has been like to make The Office Deep Dive. Then, he sits down for one last interview with his co-author and Executive Producer Ben Silverman to talk about their last year revisiting The Office - a ... Show More
40m 59s
Nov 2021
David Rogers
On this week’s episode, Brian brings in The Encyclopedia AKA the incredible editor David Rogers. David tells Brian all about his early days on The Office, from the 25 attempts it took to get the theme song right to his role in getting Meredith hit by a car - and landing her a spo ... Show More
1h 3m