Overview (4)

Born April 12, 1947 in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA Birth Name David Michael Letterman Nicknames The Big Man

Dave Height 6' 2" (1.88 m)

Mini Bio (1)

Spouse (2)

Trade Mark (7)

Gap-toothed grin



Repeats a phrase of a joke immediately over and over again



Top Ten lists



Often makes jokes in his monologue involving himself



White socks with black shoes



His spinning pencil trick



Self-deprecating humour



Trivia (63)



Began a relationship with his second wife, Regina Lasko , in February of 1986; they did not marry until March 19th, 2009.



Allegedly, he will not stay for longer than five minutes for an on-location cameo appearance in any given film, which may be why Letterman doesn't really "appear" on stage with Jim Carrey and Jerry Lawler in Der Mondmann (1999), but rather is a special-effects image, like a cut-and-paste.



Is part owner of Team Rahal auto racing team (majority owner Bobby Rahal , 1986 Indianapolis 500 champion).

Attended Broad Ripple High School. Was voted Class Smart Alec.





Had a relationship with Merrill Markoe

His production company is called Worldwide Pants.



His previous production companies include 'Space Age Meat' and 'Cardboard Shoe Productions'.



Born at 6:00am-CST.



Has an older sister named Janice and a younger sister named Gretchen.



While working as a weatherman in Indianapolis, he once congratulated a tropical storm for being upgraded to a hurricane.



Says he never uses the same tie twice in his show.



Underwent quintuple bypass surgery on 14 January 2000.



Before his heart bypass surgery, he had not missed a day due to illness in his 18 years of late-night.



Multi-purpose names he uses for any man: "Larry," "Kenny," and "Rodney". Multi-purpose names for women: "Linda".





Nicknames for Paul Shaffer include "Johnny Carwash", "Wayne 'Fatboy' Ewing" and "Paul W. Shaffer."



His father, Joe Letterman, was a florist who died of a heart attack in 1973. Mother Dorothy Mengering remarried in 1983 to Hans Mengering.

Funds a scholarship at Ball State University (his alma mater, class of 1969).



Worked as a grocery bagger in Indianapolis in high school.



Was a resident of New Canaan, Connecticut, but moved to Westchester County, New York, around 2001.



Named one of People Magazine's "25 Most Intriguing People of 2001".





He went to college with Jim Davis , another Indiana native who created and still writes the world famous comic strip "Garfield."

Sister Gretchen is journalist, editor of St. Petersburg Times (FL) Lifestyles section.



Owns vacation home on St. Bart's.



Once petitioned to get a highway in his hometown named "the Dave Letterman Bypass" as a reference to his heart bypass surgery. Businesses in Indianapolis referred to the highway as "The Dave" for a short time.



Life Loyal Member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity.





On 3 November 2003, Letterman's then-girlfriend (now his wife), Regina Lasko , gave birth to their son, Harry Joseph Letterman , named after Letterman's father, who passed away at the age of 57.

Enthusiast of Coen Brothers' films.





2003 was the 19th year in a row that his show, be it Late Show with David Letterman (1993) (CBS) or [error] (NBC) received an Emmy nomination for writing on a variety series.



Just won as a car owner in the Indy 500 (5-30-04) with co-owner Bobby Rahal and winner Buddy Rice

He often does an in-joke that only his studio audience will understand. This is done by speaking with the audience before taping begins and finding out where people are from, what they do, etc. During the opening monologue, he will then make a reference to one of the audience members.





Was a writer on the 1970s comedy series Good Times (1974), as was his current late night talk show competitor Jay Leno

Owns a ranch just outside of Choteau, Montana.





Auditioned for the role of Ted Stryker in Die unglaubliche Reise in einem verrückten Flugzeug (1980).

At one time was a part owner of the Seattle Mariners, courtesy of then-owner, Jeff Smulyan, as he gave Letterman shares of his company, Emmis Communications, which included the Mariners (Letterman was given about 1%).





In February 2003, an emergency group of guest hosts had to be called to fill in on the Late Show with David Letterman (1993), when Letterman was suddenly debilitated with a bout of shingles.

Had a running gag with Indianapolis radio station WNAP during the 1970s. He would telephone in comedic "reports", allegedly from the Indiana State Fair, using the name Moferd Pardo.





Early in his television career, Dave did some ring announcing work for an Indianapolis wrestling promotion run by Dick the Bruiser ( Dick Afflis ). Years later on NBC, Dave nicknamed his band "The World's Most Dangerous Band", based on Dick the Bruiser's nickname of "The World's Most Dangerous Wrestler".

Pencils used at his talk show desk have erasers at both ends. This is so no one is injured when he throws them.



In 2007, Forbes Magazine estimated his earnings for the year at $40 million.





Married his second wife Regina Lasko in a courthouse ceremony near their ranch home in Montana.

Appeared on the cover of GQ magazine three times: July '84, June '90 and August '93.



Stopped smoking cigars in 2004.



Hasn't had any alcoholic beverages since 1983.



Is a fan of the cartoon "Beavis and Butthead" (1993).





In August, Dave will celebrate 10 years as host of the 6 time consecutive Emmy Award winning CBS show Late Show with David Letterman (1993). [February 2003]



Announced his retirement on April 3, 2014, with guest star Johnny Depp

His father had English, Scots-Irish, and German ancestry. His mother's family was of German descent.



On the last show, David Letterman held a pencil with an eraser on each end. This was a reference to his hero, Johnny Carson, who also had used such a pencil as a prop on the Tonight Show.



Turned down numerous offers to host "Saturday Night Live" because he felt he was terrible at sketch comedy. His time on Mary Tyler Moore's variety show convinced him of that.





Like fellow talk show host Johnny Carson , Letterman is also known to be a very private man.

David Letterman's Mother Dorothy Mengering died at the age of 95 on April 11, 2017 just one day before David Letterman's 70th birthday.



Inducted Pearl Jam into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame April 7, 2017. Neil Young was originally supposed to induct the band, but Young was forced to back out due to illness. The induction ceremony was held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.



Ring Announcer for World Wrestling Association.



Personal Quotes (27)

I wouldn't give your troubles to a monkey on a rock.



Anything worth doing is worth overdoing.



In Hollywood, Oscar is king.



There is no off position on the genius switch.



You know, they don't give these shows to chimps!



Show me squid!





We can all sleep easy at night knowing that somewhere at any given time, the Foo Fighters are out there fighting Foo.



Jay Leno on Letterman] "Dave is one of the few performers who can say something real vicious and have it come across as a cute aside."



"Each and every Thursday night, we like to go out in the audience of the Ed Sullivan Theater to play America's fastest growing quiz sensation, Know Your Current Events".

If it wasn't for the coffee, I'd have no identifiable personality whatsover.



I'm a wiseass and a smartass, and I always have been.



I got my lips chewed off by a dingo!



The weather's so cold in New York right now. And when I walked through Central Park this morning, I saw a squirrel warming up his nuts!



There's not a man, woman or child on the face of the earth who doesn't enjoy a tasty beverage.



[on his move to the Westinghouse-owned CBS television network[] "I now have a lifetime's supply of light bulbs."



[on being called a non-voting Republican] "I believe I have voted for both Democrats and Republicans. Am I either one? Absolutely not. Ladies and gentlemen, I am an American."





If it weren't for Johnny [ Johnny Carson ], I'd have no career.

The worst tempered people I have ever met were those who knew that they were wrong.



It's very simple. There's only one requirement of any of us, and that is to be courageous. Because courage, as you might know, defines all other human behavior. And, I believe - because I've done a little of this myself - pretending to be courageous is just as good as the real thing.



[on becoming a father for the first time at 56] "By the time the child has trouble in life, you know, I'll be dead. I'll be long gone. By the time the kid's out stealing cars, you know, Dad will be dead a few years."





[on his close friend Jay Leno in 1986] "'Jay's a master at getting the audience on his side. He's able to communicate the idea that 'Shouldn't we, as a group, think this is absurd?' You immediately feel like he's your ally".

[on his first show after the September 11th terrorist attacks] "It's said they were motivated by religious fervor. And if you live to be a thousand, will that make any sense to you? Will that make any goddamn sense?"



[about the type of guests he likes] "I don't care who you are, I don't care what you do. If you have four funny stories, you can be a guest on this show. That's what we're looking for."



[on dealing with cold winters] Here's a tip: take your boxer shorts and put them in the microwave. It's a tip I learned from Rosie O'Donnell.



[following an Islamist threat against his life] Tonight, you people are more than an audience. You're more like a human shield.





[to Lady Gaga ] When I was your age, I had a paper route.

[on interviewing Donald Trump]He'd sit down, and I would just start making fun of him. He never had any retort. He was big and doughy, and you could beat him up. He seemed to have a good time, and the audience loved it, and that was him beyond that, I remember a friend in the PR business told me that he knew for a fact that he would never run for president; he was just monkeying around for the publicity. So I assumed that was the story and now it turns out he's the president.



Salary (3)