What the Hell is Wrong with Dave?

The current issue of Rolling Stone features a cover story on the continuing fall of the Late Show with David Letterman. The article chronicles the troubles at the show which include not only falling behind Jay Leno and the Tonight Show in the ratings, but also occasionally finishing third behind ABC's Nightline. Yet the article says to forget Leno and Koppel, that Dave is his own worst enemy. Things have gotten so bad at the Late Show that Letterman recently fired his long time producer, and friend, Robert Morton.

"The problem to many close observers, is that the pressure has created a kind of Creepy Dave who's increasingly frenetic, splenetic, self-flagellating, and squirrelly on the telecast," Rolling Stone says. The article goes on however to call Letterman far more talented than Leno, going so far as to call Dave the most talented man on television.

For those of us who have watched Letterman on a regular basis over the years, Dave's troubles are a bit demoralizing. It has been said that the only happy hour of Dave's life is the one hour he is taping his show. His self criticism has often been written about, how he'll tear apart his own performance shortly after the show is over. It isn't that he isn't trying these days, it's that he seems to be trying too hard, to in his own words, "entertain America."

I became a Letterman fan back in the late seventies when he would often guest host for Johnny Carson. His humor appealed to my own; it didn't depend on props, gimmicks, nor sexual innuendo. "Nowhere in the Bible will you find the name Bucky," Dave said. His short lived stint as a daytime host furthered my admiration for Letterman. Mrs. Marv, Rich Hall, the wedding that nearly burned down the studio, by making fun of day to day absurdities, Letterman turned traditional talk show conventions on their head. When Late Night debut in February 1982, I didn't miss an episode for six years (and then only because my VCR didn't go on). People who didn't know me immediately assumed I was a Letterman fan by my own sense of humor ("do you always have to be SO sarcastic?)

The early years of Late Night were manic genius, with gentle humor giving way to inspired chaos. Who could forget Larry Bud Melman teaching etiquette lessons, or greeting people at the New York City bus terminal? How about the night wrestler Jerry Lawler punched Andy Kaufman? Or when Mr. T. came on telling Dave to cut it out with the corny jokes, as he squeezed a rubber ball? Dave's demeanor back then was as a bemused observer to all the wackiness around him. His interviews always went for the laugh often at the expense of the guest's ego- someone trying to sell their latest project as the ultimate in art (what was the deal with Natasha Kinski's hair?).

Imitators soon popped up not only on television but other areas of pop culture. Watch Leno on any given night and he basically is doing Dave's schtick without Dave's great ability to ad lib. Jay, perhaps as talented a stand up comedian as anyone working, does not have Dave's ability to effortlessly mix silliness with biting, creative, observational wit. Over the years Dave has gotten more manic, sometimes destroying a night's show by repeating himself, becoming more and more disinterested with what is going on around him. His self-mocking has gotten more acidic, and some nights you can almost see his mood deteriorating as the show goes on. With the move to 10:30, and the pressure to compete with the only show he ever really wanted to host, Letterman fell into the trap of thinking he needed to put on a big show rather than rely on his unmatchable comedic talent to entertain in a way that no one else can. Can Dave turn himself and thus his show around? Only if he can see that what others think of Dave isn't the problem; it's what Dave thinks of Dave.