David Letterman

David Letterman, born April 12, 1947, brought a new style of comedy to late night variety shows. Johnny Carson’s version of “The Tonight Show” used humor of all types but was typically cushioned by Carson’s presentation of a steady, amiable personality that would chaperone guests and audiences alike through all the comic mayhem. David Letterman opted to remove the safety net, and the result was a brand of humor that verged into the surreal, kept guests on their toes, and forced audiences to think fast to get the whole joke.

Incorporating elements of the surreal performances and routines of comedians like Andy Kauffman, it is often difficult to tell when a David Letterman joke has ended and when a new one has begun. While the comedy style that has made David Letterman famous is the culmination of years of standup and writing experience, as a child Letterman already showed signs of a likely future in comedy. In high school in Indianapolis, David Letterman was voted Class Smart Aleck, a rather prescient and personalized variation on “Class Clown.”

David Letterman has adopted a complex comic persona that is part kindly uncle, part dirty old man and partly off the wall. The content of his humor is frequently political, but he avoids going down party lines in favor of the more fair, and generally more funny, strategy of attacking authority in whatever form it presents itself. As a counterpoint to this aspect of his comic writing, his “Late Show” targets the absurdity of everyday life and conversation. His designates take to the street, turning delis and pizza parlors upside down as he puts the tourists near the studio on the spot.

Like Paul Reuben and his Pee-Wee Herman character, Letterman takes pains to protect his image, granting television guest appearances and film cameos very sparingly. He is very guarded about his personal life, although his mother has frequently surfaced as a comic foil. With the exceptions of a frightening and serious bypass surgery and the birth of his child, his private life never makes the headlines.