Person Biography:
David Letterman was born on April 12, 1947, in Broad Ripple, a neighborhood in Indianapolis, Indiana. He is the son of Dorothy Marie (Hofert) and Harry Joseph Letterman, a florist. Letterman's childhood was relatively unremarkable, but he exhibited tendencies of the class clown and showed a strong independent streak.
Letterman graduated from Ball State University in the late 1960s and married Michelle Cook in 1969. He worked as a weatherman and TV announcer from 1970 to 1974 and as a radio talk show host from 1974 to 1975.
In the late 1970s, Letterman began working as a stand-up comic at The Comedy Store and started writing for television shows. He wrote for the summer series "The Peeping Times" and for shows such as "Good Times" (1974). Letterman became a minor celebrity by 1978, having appeared on various TV shows, including "The Gong Show" (1976),"Mary" (1978),"Liar's Club" (1976),"The $10,000 Pyramid" (1973),"Password Plus" (1979),and "The Starland Vocal Band Show" (1977).
Letterman's exposure on these shows prompted many appearances on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" (1962). He became a permanent substitute host by the end of the 1970s. NBC gave Letterman his own daytime talk show, "The David Letterman Show" (1980),which was a disaster and aired for only a few months.
In 1992, Johnny Carson announced his retirement, and Letterman was expected to take over as host of "The Tonight Show." However, NBC chose Jay Leno instead, and Letterman left NBC for a lucrative contract with CBS to star in "Late Show with David Letterman" (1993). Letterman has continued to host his show, now known as "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," since 2015.
Letterman has been an active producer, with his production company, Worldwide Pants, producing shows such as "Everybody Loves Raymond" (1996),"The Building" (1993),"Bonnie" (1995),"The High Life" (1996),"The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn" (1999),and "Ed" (2000).
