Well, it was last night. I saw some of it, DVR'd the rest. (Yes, I understand it went 18 minutes over, though; so I will have to go to www.cbs.com to catch the rest of it.) I also heard some of it on the radio this morning. I liked that he had his family there.
But what I saw I enjoyed. He seemed genuinely gracious. Another changing of the guard. Just like Johnny Carson, he did not have official "guests" on his final show, but Bill Murray (his first guest ever on both his NBC show and his CBS show) was his final guest on the penultimate show, and was the last one to read a "Top Ten" item on last night's show. Nice of Bill Murray.
Speaking of Carson, I laughed last night when Dave started the show by saying, "Well, I guess it's becoming apparent that I didn't get 'The Tonight Show'." That was funny, and good jab at NBC who passed him over for Leno so many years ago.
Speaking also of the late-night wars, I can say that Jimmy Kimmel and Conan O'Brien gained respect from me this week. Jimmy announce on Tuesday that he would not be on with a new show on Wednesday, that he would run a re-run; and he actually got choked up as he suggested that you watch David Letterman on Wednesday. He said, especially if you are a young person who has never seen him, go watch his show. I thought that was a class act. I had flipped over to see his monologue on Tuesday, and I was really impressed when I saw that. Similarly, Conan told people last night to press "record" on their DVR and "go watch David Letterman." Very classy. Event The Today Show mentioned these today.
And I have to say, as much as I like Jimmy Fallon, I was a little surprised that he didn't do something similar. He is usually a nice guy. Especially since Dave started his show at NBC in the Rockefeller Center, where Jimmy Fallon broadcasts today, I was surprised that he went ahead with a live show last night and didn't mention anything.
One very good memory that I have of David Letterman is when he came back as the first live show back after 9/11. Jay Leno waited an extra day, to give David (broadcasting from New York, unlike Leno in L.A.) the chance to bring the country back. David started without any music or show opener. He said, "I just need to hear myself talk for a minute," and went on to thank the police and firemen and mayor -- and to say how it just made no sense. He was clearly still in shock; and he talked about doing his little show while other people who also were "just going to work" were murdered in such an heinous manner. He was humble, and it showed. He talked about the courage of those who ran in to the buildings to fight the fire. And ultimately he talked about being convinced by the mayor and the president to get the show back on, to "get back to business." (Remember that George Bush had even said at the time to, "Go to Disney World," to get us all back to business and keep our lives going.) Dan Rather was his guest that night. Dan read the third verse to "America the Beautiful," which talks about about a "city undimmed by human tears." An amazing and memorable night of television, led by David Letterman, who had the good sense and character to help lead us back.
So, last night I think was a fitting tribute. I never always like David Letterman's comedy, but he was worth watching. "Stupid human tricks," "Top Ten," and on and on...
But what I saw I enjoyed. He seemed genuinely gracious. Another changing of the guard. Just like Johnny Carson, he did not have official "guests" on his final show, but Bill Murray (his first guest ever on both his NBC show and his CBS show) was his final guest on the penultimate show, and was the last one to read a "Top Ten" item on last night's show. Nice of Bill Murray.
Speaking of Carson, I laughed last night when Dave started the show by saying, "Well, I guess it's becoming apparent that I didn't get 'The Tonight Show'." That was funny, and good jab at NBC who passed him over for Leno so many years ago.
Speaking also of the late-night wars, I can say that Jimmy Kimmel and Conan O'Brien gained respect from me this week. Jimmy announce on Tuesday that he would not be on with a new show on Wednesday, that he would run a re-run; and he actually got choked up as he suggested that you watch David Letterman on Wednesday. He said, especially if you are a young person who has never seen him, go watch his show. I thought that was a class act. I had flipped over to see his monologue on Tuesday, and I was really impressed when I saw that. Similarly, Conan told people last night to press "record" on their DVR and "go watch David Letterman." Very classy. Event The Today Show mentioned these today.
And I have to say, as much as I like Jimmy Fallon, I was a little surprised that he didn't do something similar. He is usually a nice guy. Especially since Dave started his show at NBC in the Rockefeller Center, where Jimmy Fallon broadcasts today, I was surprised that he went ahead with a live show last night and didn't mention anything.
One very good memory that I have of David Letterman is when he came back as the first live show back after 9/11. Jay Leno waited an extra day, to give David (broadcasting from New York, unlike Leno in L.A.) the chance to bring the country back. David started without any music or show opener. He said, "I just need to hear myself talk for a minute," and went on to thank the police and firemen and mayor -- and to say how it just made no sense. He was clearly still in shock; and he talked about doing his little show while other people who also were "just going to work" were murdered in such an heinous manner. He was humble, and it showed. He talked about the courage of those who ran in to the buildings to fight the fire. And ultimately he talked about being convinced by the mayor and the president to get the show back on, to "get back to business." (Remember that George Bush had even said at the time to, "Go to Disney World," to get us all back to business and keep our lives going.) Dan Rather was his guest that night. Dan read the third verse to "America the Beautiful," which talks about about a "city undimmed by human tears." An amazing and memorable night of television, led by David Letterman, who had the good sense and character to help lead us back.
So, last night I think was a fitting tribute. I never always like David Letterman's comedy, but he was worth watching. "Stupid human tricks," "Top Ten," and on and on...