David Letterman

David Michael Letterman (born April 12, 1947) is an American television host and comedian. He currently hosts My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman on Netflix.
He hosted the late night television talk show Late Show with David Letterman on CBS. Letterman also hosted Late Night with David Letterman on NBC. In 2013, Letterman surpassed friend and mentor Johnny Carson as the longest-serving late-night talk show host in TV history, at 35 years.

Letterman's ironic comedy is similar to comedians such as Andy Kaufman, Ernie Kovacs, and Tonight Show hosts Johnny Carson and Steve Allen.

Early life and career
Letterman was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. His father, Harry Joseph Letterman,Record of Harry Letterman, Social Security Death Index was a florist of English ancestry; his mother Dorothy Letterman, a church secretary of German ancestry, has been an occasional figure on the show, usually at holidays and birthdays.

He lived on the north side of Indianapolis, not far from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He enjoyed collecting model cars, including racers.Gary Graves. "Letterman Gets Moment in Hot Seat." USA Today, May 23, 2005, p. 1C. In 2000, he told an interviewer for Esquire that, while growing up, he admired his father's ability to tell jokes and be the life of the party. Harry Joseph Letterman survived a heart attack at age 36, when David was a young boy. The fear of losing his father was constantly with Letterman as he grew up. The elder Letterman died of a second heart attack at age 57.

References

Other websites

David Letterman's Feb. 24, 1978 appearance on 90 Minutes Live
Official Late Show biography
1999 article on Letterman  from Salon.com

Category:Kennedy Center honorees
Category:Comedians from Indiana
Category:American television talk show hosts
Category:1947 births
Category:Living people
Category:American Emmy Award winners