Editing David Letterman (section)

== Early life and career ==
Letterman was born in [[Indianapolis]], Indiana, on April 12, 1947, and he has two sisters, one older and one younger.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wtfpod.com/podcast/episode-1023-david-letterman|title=Episode 1023 - David Letterman|website=WTF with Marc Maron Podcast|date=May 30, 2019 |language=en-US|access-date=2019-06-07}}</ref> His father, Harry Joseph Letterman (April 15, 1915 – February 13, 1973),<ref>Record of Harry Letterman, [[Social Security Death Index]]</ref> was a florist.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://playboysfw.kinja.com/david-lettermans-1984-playboy-interview-a-candid-conv-1557838143|title=David Letterman's 1984 Playboy Interview. A Candid Conversation with the Comedy Genius In His Youth|author=Sam Merrill|work=Playboy|access-date=April 10, 2014|archive-date=May 1, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150501112140/http://playboysfw.kinja.com/david-lettermans-1984-playboy-interview-a-candid-conv-1557838143}}</ref> His mother, [[Dorothy Mengering|Dorothy Marie Letterman Mengering]] (née Hofert; July 18, 1921 – April 11, 2017),<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/obit-dorothy-mengering-dead-795160/|title=Dorothy Mengering, David Letterman's Mom and ''Late Show'' Personality, Dies at 95|work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|access-date=May 30, 2022|date=April 11, 2017|author=Mike Barnes}}</ref> a church secretary for the [[Second Presbyterian Church (Indianapolis, Indiana)|Second Presbyterian Church of Indianapolis]], was an occasional figure on Letterman's show, usually at holidays and birthdays.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://carmel-indiana.funcityfinder.com/2010/03/14/dorothy-mengering-daves-mom/|title=Dorothy Mengering, Dave's Mom – FunCityFinder|work=Carmel Indiana}}</ref>

Letterman grew up on the north side of Indianapolis, in the [[Broad Ripple]] area, about {{convert|12|mi}} from the [[Indianapolis Motor Speedway]]. He enjoyed collecting model cars, including racers.<ref>Gary Graves. "Letterman Gets Moment in Hot Seat." ''[[USA Today]]'', May 23, 2005, p. 1C.</ref> In 2000, he told an interviewer for ''[[Esquire (magazine)|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 the age of 36 when David was a young boy. The fear of losing his father was constantly with Letterman as he grew up.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.esquire.com/features/daveheart-letterman-0500 |title=Dave Letterman Profile&nbsp;— Interview with David Letterman |magazine=Esquire |date=October 2, 2009 |access-date=November 23, 2013}}</ref> The elder Letterman died of a second heart attack in 1973<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/letterman-reveals-set-undergo-heart-tests-2000-article-1.864842|title=David Letterman reveals he may need heart surgery in 2000|author1=Mitchell Fink|author2=Eric Mink|author3=Leo Standora|author4=Richard Huff|author5=Bill Hutchinson|work=[[Daily News (New York)|Daily News]]|location=New York City|date=January 14, 2000|access-date=May 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120730104857/http://articles.nydailynews.com/2000-01-14/news/18138686_1_angioplasty-family-history-high-cholesterol|archive-date=July 30, 2012}}</ref> at the age of 57.

Letterman attended his hometown's [[Broad Ripple High School]] and worked as a stock boy at the local Atlas Supermarket.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://lostindiana.net/2004/11/30/atlas-supermarket-broad-ripple/ |title= Atlas Supermarket |date= November 30, 2004 |publisher=Lost Indiana |access-date=April 18, 2014}}</ref> According to the ''Ball State Daily News'', he originally wanted to attend [[Indiana University]], but his [[Academic grading in the United States|grades]] were not good enough, so he instead attended [[Ball State University]] in [[Muncie, Indiana]].<ref>Gail Koch. "After Two Decades, Letterman Wit Shows No Signs of Stopping." ''Ball State Daily News'', February 23, 2002.</ref> He is a member of the [[Sigma Chi]] fraternity, and graduated in 1969 from what was then the Department of Radio and Television. A self-described average student, Letterman later endowed a scholarship for what he called "C students" at Ball State.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.finaid.org/scholarships/average.phtml |title=Scholarships &#124; Scholarships for Average Students |publisher=FinAid |date=January 22, 1999 |access-date=November 7, 2010}}</ref> Though he registered for the draft and passed his physical after graduating from college, he was not drafted for service in [[Vietnam War|Vietnam]] because he received a [[draft lottery (1969)|draft lottery]] number of 346 (out of 366).<ref>Revealed on air during January 7, 2011, ''Late Show with David Letterman'' during an interview with Regis Philbin.</ref>

Letterman began his broadcasting career as an announcer and newscaster at the college's student-run radio station—[[WBST]]—a 10-watt campus station that is now part of [[Indiana Public Radio]].<ref name="BSU-PR">{{cite web|url=http://indianapublicradio.org/about/stationhistory/|title=Indiana Public Radio – Station History|work=indianapublicradio.org}}</ref> He was fired for treating classical music with irreverence.<ref name="BSU-PR" /> He then became involved with the founding of another campus station—WAGO-AM 570 (now [[WCRD]], 91.3).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.reelradio.com/tc/index.html#dlwago69|title=David Letterman, WAGO Muncie Indiana|date=April 1, 1969|publisher=ReelRadio|quote=Dave Letterman is heard in this segment edited from the 11PM–12 midnight hour on April 1, 1969. WAGO was a carrier-current station at [[Pennsylvania State University]]. The voice of Lyla Whip is Letterman's former wife, Michelle, whom he calls at their apartment.|access-date=January 14, 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050204010321/http://www.reelradio.com/tc/index.html#dlwago69|archive-date=February 4, 2005}}</ref>

He credits [[Paul Dixon (entertainer)|Paul Dixon]], host of the ''[[Paul Dixon Show]]'', a Cincinnati-based talk show also shown in Indianapolis while he was growing up, for inspiring his choice of career:<ref name="dixon">{{cite news|url=http://www.enquirer.com/editions/1997/02/24/loc_letterman.html|title=Local show inspired young Letterman|author=Kiesewetter, John |newspaper=[[The Cincinnati Enquirer]]| date=February 24, 1997| access-date=May 23, 2007}}</ref>
<blockquote>I was just out of college [in 1969], and I really didn't know what I wanted to do. And then all of a sudden I saw him doing it [on TV]. And I thought: That's really what I want to do!</blockquote>

=== Weatherman ===
Soon after graduating from Ball State in 1969, Letterman began his career as a radio talk show host on [[WNTS]] and on Indianapolis television station WLWI (which changed its call sign to [[WTHR]] in 1976) as an anchor and [[Weather presenter|weatherman]]. He received some attention for his novel on-air delivery, which included congratulating a [[tropical storm]] for being upgraded to a [[Tropical cyclone|hurricane]], as well as for predicting [[hailstones]] "the size of canned hams".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.playboy.com/articles/david-letterman-interview/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090415130808/http://www.playboy.com/articles/david-letterman-interview/index.html |title=Playboy Interview – David Letterman – Late Show Host |archive-date=2009-04-15 |work=Playboy |date=1994-01-01 }}</ref>

Letterman also occasionally reported the weather and the day's very high and low temps for fictitious cities ("Eight inches of snow in Bingree and surrounding areas"). On another occasion, he riffed that the state border between Indiana and Ohio had been erased, when a satellite map accidentally omitted it, jokingly attributing it to dirty political dealings: "The higher-ups have removed the border between Indiana and Ohio, making it one giant state. Personally, I'm against it. I don't know what to do about it."<ref>{{cite news |last1=Samenow |first1=Jason |title=David Letterman's early career as a weatherman |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/wp/2015/05/20/video-david-lettermans-early-career-as-a-weatherman/ |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=2015-05-20 |access-date=2015-06-03 }}</ref>

Letterman also starred in a local kiddie show, hosted a late-night TV show called "Freeze-Dried Movies" (a show in which he once acted out a scene from ''[[Godzilla (1954 film)|Godzilla]]'' (1954) using plastic dinosaurs), and hosted a talk show that aired early on Saturday mornings called ''Clover Power'',<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Bzbq8X8qZE#t32s |title=Letterman morning show clips and & Jon Stewart cancellation -Jun1995 |publisher=YouTube |date=2010-01-22 |access-date=2011-11-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130203052315/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Bzbq8X8qZE |archive-date=2013-02-03 }}</ref> in which he interviewed [[4-H]] members about their projects.<ref>{{cite web |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20010620022309/http://www.indystar.com/library/factfiles/people/l/letterman_david/letterman.html |archivedate=2001-06-20 |url=http://www.indystar.com/library/factfiles/people/l/letterman_david/letterman.html |title=David Letterman |work=Indianapolis Star |date=2001-06-01 }}</ref>

In 1971, Letterman appeared as a pit road reporter for [[ABC Sports]]' tape-delayed coverage of the [[1971 Indianapolis 500|Indianapolis 500]], which was his first nationally telecast appearance (WLWI was the local ABC affiliate at the time).<ref name="indy">{{YouTube|8sMnBmHzAg0|Letterman's Network Debut}}</ref> He was initially introduced as [[Chris Economaki]], but this was corrected at the end of the interview ([[Jim McKay]] announced his name as Dave Letterman). Letterman interviewed [[Mario Andretti]], who had just crashed out of the race.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-05-27 |title=Relive the moment David Letterman asked Mario Andretti a weird question at the Indy 500 |url=https://ftw.usatoday.com/2016/05/indy-500-david-letterman-sideline-reporter-mario-andretti-video |access-date=2024-06-12 |website=For The Win |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Move to Los Angeles ===
[[File:The Comedy Store.jpg|alt=|thumb|Letterman's comedic career took hold in the 1970s at [[The Comedy Store]] in [[Los Angeles]]]]
In 1975, encouraged by his then-wife Michelle and several of his [[Sigma Chi]] fraternity brothers, Letterman moved to [[Los Angeles]], California, with the hope of becoming a comedy writer.<ref>Gail Koch. "Letterman Evolved from Struggling Radio Host to Star", ''Ball State Daily News'', February 1, 2002.</ref> He and Michelle packed their belongings in his pickup truck and headed west.<ref>{{cite news|title=Piers Morgan Tonight: Regis Talks to David Letterman|url=https://transcripts.cnn.com/show/pmt/date/2012-06-02/segment/01| access-date=August 22, 2012|publisher=CNN}} Airdate June 2, 2012, Regis Philbin, guest host. Letterman: "In 1975 I did that. My wife and I did that, put everything in the truck and went to California."</ref> As of 2012, he still owned the truck.<ref>{{cite magazine|date=August–September 2012|title=Top 10 Things Fans Don't Know About David Letterman|magazine=AARP The Magazine|location=Washington, DC|publisher=AARP|page=13|quote=9. Still has the pickup he drove to Hollywood as a young comedy writer}}</ref> In Los Angeles, he began performing comedy at [[The Comedy Store]].<ref name="walker2012">{{cite web|title=How I Discovered Jay Leno and David Letterman|first1=Jimmie|last1= Walker|author-link1=Jimmie Walker|first2=Sal| last2= Manna|date= July 12, 2012 |url=https://slate.com/culture/2012/07/jimmie-walker-how-i-discovered-jay-leno-and-david-letterman.html | work= [[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]| access-date=May 30, 2022| quote= Sitting on the couch would be David Letterman next to Jay Leno next to Paul Mooney. Snacking on the food might be Robert Schimmel, Richard Jeni, Louie Anderson, and Elayne Boosler. Young Byron Allen would be trying to ignore the fact that his mother was in the kitchen waiting to drive him home. There were others whose names would never be recognizable to the public because they were not star performers, such as Wayne Kline, Marty Nadler, Jeff Stein, Jack Handey, Steve Oedekerk, and Larry Jacobson, but who would soon write for some of the most popular sitcoms and late-night talk shows in television history. All of them—all then unknowns—would gather at my home from one to five times a week because they were on my writing staff, commissioned to pen jokes for my stand-up act.}}</ref> [[Jimmie Walker]] saw him on stage; with an endorsement from [[George Miller (comedian)|George Miller]], Letterman joined a group of comedians whom Walker hired to write jokes for his stand-up act, a group that at various times also included [[Jay Leno]], [[Paul Mooney (comedian)|Paul Mooney]], [[Robert Schimmel]], [[Richard Jeni]], [[Louie Anderson]], [[Elayne Boosler]], [[Byron Allen]], [[Jack Handey]], and [[Steve Oedekerk]].<ref name="walker2012"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2010/03/the-late-night-hosts-before-they-were-big.html|title=The Early David Letterman 1967–1980 Beware the Blog|publisher=wfmu.org|first=Kliph|last=Nesteroff|date=2010-03-07|access-date=November 6, 2011}}</ref>

By the summer of 1977, Letterman was a writer and regular on the six-week summer series ''The [[Starland Vocal Band]] Show'', broadcast on CBS.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUabP1JDCZA|title=1977 'Afternoon Delight' clip from The Starland Vocal Band show|publisher=YouTube|author=mickstadium|date=July 15, 2011|access-date=November 6, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130908113731/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUabP1JDCZA|archive-date=September 8, 2013}}</ref> He hosted a 1977 pilot for a game show called ''The Riddlers''<ref>{{cite web|title=The Riddlers with David Letterman (1977)|url=http://classicshowbiz.blogspot.com/2007/04/riddlers-1977-with-host-david-letterman.html|publisher=classictelevisionshowbiz|date=April 8, 2007|access-date=November 6, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bk6zFrTYMk|title=David Letterman on "PASSWORD PLUS+ 1979"|publisher=YouTube|date=June 29, 2010|access-date=November 6, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130908103557/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bk6zFrTYMk |archive-date=September 8, 2013 }}</ref> (which was never picked up), and co-starred in the [[Barry Levinson]]-produced comedy special ''[[Peeping Times]]'', which aired in January 1978. Later that year, Letterman was a cast member on [[Mary Tyler Moore]]'s variety show, ''[[Mary (1978 TV series)|Mary]]''.<ref>{{YouTube|zoAHLaNMWMo| Mary Open (1978)}}</ref> He made a guest appearance on ''[[Mork & Mindy]]'' (as a parody of [[Erhard Seminars Training|EST]] leader [[Werner Erhard]])<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFavsfq3wjo |title=Mork & Letterman |publisher=YouTube |date=November 14, 2007 |access-date=November 6, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130203052258/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFavsfq3wjo |archive-date=February 3, 2013 }}</ref> and appearances on game shows such as ''[[The $20,000 Pyramid]]'',<ref>{{YouTube| title=The $20,000 pyramid| id=kSlWxg-WJQo}}</ref> ''[[The Gong Show]]'', ''[[Hollywood Squares]]'', ''[[Password Plus]]'',<ref>{{cite web|title=David Letterman plays Alphabetics 1979 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTkTdZx1haA |publisher=YouTube |date=June 30, 2010 |access-date=November 6, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130908113619/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTkTdZx1haA |archive-date=September 8, 2013 }}</ref> and ''[[Liar's Club]]'', as well as the Canadian cooking show ''[[Celebrity Cooks]]'' (November 1977), talk shows such as ''[[90 Minutes Live]]'' (February 24<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/archives/entry/david-lettermans-sharp-humour |title=David Letterman's sharp humour – CBC Archives}}</ref> and April 14, 1978),<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/player/play/2667189809|title=From the archives: David Letterman 1978 |date=May 14, 2015}}</ref> and ''[[The Mike Douglas Show]]'' (April 3, 1979 and February 7, 1980). He was also [[screen test]]ed for the lead role in the 1980 film ''[[Airplane!]]'', a role that eventually went to [[Robert Hays]].<ref>{{cite AV media|people=[[Jon Davison]], [[Jim Abrahams]], [[Jerry Zucker]], [[David Zucker (filmmaker)|David Zucker]]|title=Airplane! audio commentary|medium=DVD|publisher=Paramount Pictures|time=9:50–10:00|isbn=0-7921-6688-4}}</ref>

Letterman's brand of dry, sarcastic humor caught the attention of scouts for ''[[The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson]]'', and he was soon a regular guest on the show. He became a favorite of Carson and was a regular guest host for the show beginning in 1978. Letterman credits Carson as the person who influenced his career the most.<ref name="rose">{{cite AV media|url=http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/6364 |title=An interview with David Letterman |medium=TV-series |publisher=[[Charlie Rose (TV series)|Charlie Rose]], [[WNET]] |date=February 26, 1996 |access-date=November 14, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090218144132/http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/6364 |archive-date=February 18, 2009 }}</ref>