Viewer Mail Collection on Letterman, 1982: Part 1 of 2

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2 жыл бұрын

To commemorate the 40th anniversary of Late Night with David Letterman's debut on February 1, 1982, I'm launching a compilation series of all of the Viewer Mails that aired on the show.
First up is 1982, which is in two parts. The first covers the first half of the year; the second covers the second. 1983 and on will follow in due time.
(Note: The April 1, 1982, video clip that Andy Kaufman airs has been deleted here due to copyright caution; it had been blocked in my Kaufman compilation.)
This is a video companion to my new blog post that offers a brief history of Viewer Mail. It also catalogues every letter writer and location on both Dave's morning show (1980) and Late Night (1982-93). It's a definitive reference for locating the name of any writer and matching it with the specific show that that person's letter was selected for air. Also included are some trivia details scattered within the data.
The blog post can be found here: donzblog.home.blog/2022/01/12...
My now-obligatory ask: I have a Patreon account that helps me pay the bills. It'd be wonderful if anyone is so inclined to donate.
www.patreon.com/user?u=26278592

Пікірлер: 138

@siggylloyd3566 2 жыл бұрын

There's literally no way. Is this happening?? A viewer mail series? I couldn't be happier :)

@Vejur9000 2 жыл бұрын

That’s right. Back in the day when people actually hand wrote actual letters. What a world we’ve become.

@DVincentW Жыл бұрын

If you think of how many people who were alone and disabled, that didn't have 1st alert (I've fallen, and can't get up), were saved by postal service carriers..

@davechambers7598 2 жыл бұрын

YES! Much appreciated, Don!

@mrkemrk 2 жыл бұрын

Don Giller, you deserve a Nobel Peace Prize.

@dongiller 2 жыл бұрын

I’ll be content with just a MacArthur grant. :)

@antlerking69 2 жыл бұрын

Or Knighted

@arionsalazar4939 2 жыл бұрын

I second that emotion

@qthelost 2 жыл бұрын

Viewers who got their letter read on the show belong to a special club. I can't believe while I was growing up watching these shows that it never occurred to me to actually send in a letter.

@KennethWrites Жыл бұрын

The Sid Jacobson call was the most wholesome thing.

@matbelli 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the ad-free bliss

@dongiller 2 жыл бұрын

I believe the ads turn up when a content owner monetizes the video.

@joetodaro5733 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks Don, I can't wait to watch it tonight!

@donnyleong5298 Жыл бұрын

Thanks from a life long viewer - Victoria BC Canada

@RobinJWheeler 2 жыл бұрын

Pulling out the big guns for 2022? Thanks Don!

@artworks2144 2 жыл бұрын

1982!! Woohoooooo!!!! Thank u sm Don

@_PrimetimePranks 2 жыл бұрын

I looooooove viewer mail !!

@jedblaugrund597 2 жыл бұрын

HOLY COW! This is amazing, and I will look forward to each and every entry. Thank you so much!

@DOMICO55555 Ай бұрын

This 80s Late Night with David Letterman stuff brings such warm memories of my early childhood I can't help but wax nostalgic so every chance I get, I watch and Don Giller's work is among the best put together that I've seen on KZfaq.. Excellent work Don!!!.

@dongiller Ай бұрын

Thanks!

@thegrimyeaper 2 жыл бұрын

Now this is just beautiful.

@wecontrolthevideo 2 жыл бұрын

The plane “crash” behind Dave is probably the first comedy bit done for viewer mail.

@RebeccaLynnMusic 2 жыл бұрын

Thank you for your channel. Honestly. Really helps me out.

@WostryFerenc 2 жыл бұрын

thank you Don! my fav segment!

@squinkque 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks, for all you do. Oh, for the days when Andy Kaufman and Slim Whitman were just hanging out in the green room.

@rayrayfad3654 2 жыл бұрын

Yes! Been hoping for this collection

@rafaelfernandeslopesdeoliv1700 2 жыл бұрын

You're the best, Don!

@billbillings913 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks to you Don, I can now easily locate the exact viewer mail which featured my favorite all-time viewer mail name -- "Schnibby" Kupsh! 👍

@dongiller 2 жыл бұрын

You got the point of this project. Thank you. :)

@joannasunday 2 жыл бұрын

These compilations are gold! And i love watching how the band evolved and expanded over the years. Thanks, Don!

@djdon60 2 жыл бұрын

Thank-you, Don Giller; this is gold!(nice, to see Ms. Markoe!, @ 1:02:00).

@peterdolan7739 2 жыл бұрын

Love this and love the old Letterman shows. His show inspired me to study communications and video/television production in college.

@benjaminabercrombie6807 2 жыл бұрын

This is pure gold. Todd Barry!

@randall-king Жыл бұрын

Is that the same Todd Barry who is a stand-up? He went to school in Florida.

@benjaminabercrombie6807 Жыл бұрын

@@randall-king The one and only.

@NP-ip3nj 2 жыл бұрын

Nice to have something up that isn't related to someone dying.

@Vejur9000 2 жыл бұрын

God yes. I think we all look for that here nowadays. Comfort food.

@bodyslamhimjeff 2 жыл бұрын

Oh no, did Viewer Mail die???

@hobbygamer6220 2 жыл бұрын

@@bodyslamhimjeff haha yea

@hobbygamer6220 2 жыл бұрын

IKR ! DANG !!

@allendracabal0819 5 ай бұрын

This post is not coming from the Letterman channel.

@zenpaganwarrior 2 жыл бұрын

No other TV personality could touch Dave in the 80s for quick-witted repartee and anarchic fun!

@jrpipik 2 жыл бұрын

ASTORIA is 14 strokes. Good job, Sol!

@eddieloius4592 5 ай бұрын

My fav segment of all LNwDL segments. Thank You Dan!

@dongiller 5 ай бұрын

Don. :)

@joannasunday 2 жыл бұрын

Don, you are a visionary. These complications are gold! Thank you SO much. I live on your channel.

@dongiller 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks!!

@mknight96 2 жыл бұрын

This is amazing! Thank you, Don!

@jsrecords2023 2 жыл бұрын

Very impressive, Don!

@muckrak3r 2 жыл бұрын

Awesome. Have been waiting on these collections, thanks Mr Giller

@RebeccaLynnMusic 2 жыл бұрын

Definitely one of the most valuable channels on KZfaq!

@JackSilbert 2 жыл бұрын

Watching the slow development of the bit into its more familiar format is really eye-opening! Thanks as always, Don.

@CinemaDemocratica Жыл бұрын

I've binge watched big swathes of this channel's content, always fastidiously avoiding the first 1-2 years of the program, since in my memory it got so much better in the mid- to late 80s. I was completely wrong: These hyper-early shows are glorious. So earthy, so much raw humour, so much soul. I feel like I've been needlessly cheating myself out of some of the best recollections from the show's run.

@amy792 2 жыл бұрын

Fortune smiled on me when my sister moved from Oregon to attend art school in Chicago leaving behind her glorious Sony color TV with remote (I say color because black & white was still an option in the early 80's ). This coincided with the premier of the Late Show with David Letterman which like so many others, immediately caught my attention and kept me up weeknights despite my being in 8th grade at the time. Like so many others have mentioned before me, tuning in felt like getting enter into a secret club . There was nothing else like it and it ideally suited the sense of humor of so many of us from GenX

@dongiller 2 жыл бұрын

Do you mean Late Show or Late Night? Many accidentally write “Show” when they mean “Night.”

@ghmus7 Жыл бұрын

I think the little documentary of the "process" was the best!

@whiskeycitydiggers 2 жыл бұрын

I feel proud that the first of three Viewer Mails from a viewer in my town of Peoria is one of the all time greats (1:26:30), what with Bill Murray's involvement and that ending. Great stuff. This series of viewer mail is a dream come true. Thank you so much, Don.

@andyrose5616 2 жыл бұрын

I had always wondered why they switched from the 60 Minutes-style typed letters to mounting the real letters on art cards. On the first night of the change at 59:22, Dave implies that it’s because people thought that the uniformly typed letters were not legitimate letters from viewers.

@jonahp03 2 жыл бұрын

This is the good stuff Don. You’re the GOAT

@GrantTarredus Жыл бұрын

Don Giller, THANK YOU! The letter at 1:24:09 from my friend Glenn Carson amazed us and our buddies the night it was read on the air 40 years ago, and having it is unbelievable. I sent this to him immediately and he’s thrilled. We appreciate you!

@dongiller Жыл бұрын

Thanks! I love stuff like this.

@v8vrooooom 2 жыл бұрын

This is big!!!

@YourTVFriend 2 жыл бұрын

Letters I enjoyed or found interesting: 00:00 The Viewer Mail Story 16:10 Flashing lights 19:05 Meta 24:40 Stick-up 43:30 Viewer requests fewer visual jokes. Next letter is from Andy Kaufman 54:30 If Paul hosted the show (segment starts 53:17 for context) 56:47 episode of My Dog Bob 1:00:18 NBC commissary 1:05:21 Why are viewers always home when you call them 1:08:06 Ed Newman 1:14:18 what is in Dave’s mug 1:25:25 Why are lights on in background 1:26:30 Bill Murray 1:30:35 Handwriting 1:37:30 Todd Barry 1:40:00 Viewer missed a show 1:43:55 Theme played backwards 1:46:23 Dave rude at end of show 1:49:57 Air Blaster 1:51:44 Why circle viewer mail text in red 2:00:37 Why viewers never surprised when Dave calls them

@rayrayfad3654 2 жыл бұрын

The Todd Barry call! I think of it often

@aquariusrizing Жыл бұрын

Amazing. Thank you!

@royalsfan 2 жыл бұрын

I still can't believe Todd Barry and Robbie Fulks wrote letters that made it to air.

@randall-king Жыл бұрын

Do you know if that’s the same Todd Barry who’s a stand-up comedian? It seems like you’re implying that. I read that he went to college in Florida, and Dave mentions this letter writer being from Florida.

@royalsfan Жыл бұрын

@@randall-king yes, one and the same. Todd bragged about it on Twitter around 2014.

@wiedep 2 жыл бұрын

Dear Don, Dave stopped wearing sweaters instead of the suits by April '82, the look did fit the show informal format and timeslot. Have any insights to why this happened and who made it happen - Peter Lassally, Barry Sand, Jack Rollins, Dave or an NBC suit? Waiting with bated breath for the answer (aka - no life) - PJ ex-NBC'er undisclosed location... PS - Never had 'theme' lunches at the commissary during the GE dayz.

@DVincentW Жыл бұрын

I found that Henry Mancini wrote the viewer mail theme. Source: Wikipedia. And of course the great Don Giller has a 2 hour+ video! (I really enjoy the internet sometimes.)

@dougie0109 Жыл бұрын

"All it takes is a lamp, and a twenty cent stamp"

@dianewinters8628 2 жыл бұрын

I'm so happy

@DVincentW Жыл бұрын

6:49 🤯The Greek term for lunch! I ve wondered what that woman was saying in the movie Golden Child. On the airplane she offers something to Eddie Murphy. .. after all these years. "Lunch".

@ArchernAce 2 жыл бұрын

Thank God for u Don.

@chrisrobinson679 Жыл бұрын

This is a lot of funny stuff right here. Dave and Paul sound the same but look 50 years younger ... worlds most sarcastic band LOL

@urabusxrw04 Жыл бұрын

This is busting peoples balls on a whole other level

@sdne1959 2 жыл бұрын

. April 22, 1982 (58:55 mark).......the FIRST appearance of the "Viewer Mail" format (with the ACTUAL letters being shown on-air for the first time) we ALL came to know and love !! Anybody here ever had a letter of theirs on the air, and if so, when was it and what did you ask ?? .

@r.h.0101 2 ай бұрын

I used to sneak in the living room and stay up late to watch this garbage :). Thank you for the video.

@teejay1824 2 жыл бұрын

Is that Todd Barry the comedian imitating Paul at 1:39:00? Sure sounds like him. Sounds like Todd Barry that is. I'll let the reader decide if he sounds like Paul.

@cerealheroes 2 жыл бұрын

It is indeed! Todd posted the same clip on his KZfaq channel back in 2015. (Google told me all this stuff - I couldn't have remembered it had I seen it last week)

@teejay1824 2 жыл бұрын

@@cerealheroes "Yeah that's how it works" 😂

@royalsfan 2 жыл бұрын

Also, a bloodied and battered Jim Downey at 3:00

@redshiftexperiment 2 жыл бұрын

48:55 probably at the time this guy was just concidered an average comic industry shlub... no doubt he is considered a legend now. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sid_Jacobson as someone who loves the old school comics, and is saddened that the glory days of comics are over, this is fascinating to me. Interestingly I found out Syd is still alive.

@alcabane3125 2 жыл бұрын

had this video been posted before.

@dongiller 2 жыл бұрын

This compilation? No. Most of these Viewer Mail segments have never been seen since they first aired nearly 39-40 years ago.

@RebeccaLynnMusic 2 жыл бұрын

@@dongiller YOU'RE A HERO!

@tonysnark1530 2 жыл бұрын

"Helluva man. Helluva black guy."lolol

@t0mcat23 2 жыл бұрын

1:26:28 This one is the very best.

@jimwilkins7209 Жыл бұрын

I'm looking for the viewer mail skit where someone sends a letter with a photo of a bowl of cereal with the cereal bits spelling out "contact dave". Ring any bells?

@dongiller Жыл бұрын

May 4, 1990.

@productionf1lms 7 ай бұрын

These horribly penned letters were a precursor to internet comments.

@Donagh1979 10 ай бұрын

40 years later these letters are tweets

@aaronz7056 2 жыл бұрын

18:05: March 4, 1982, the night before John Belushi died....

@muckrak3r 2 жыл бұрын

1:37:42 - that's now famous comedian Todd Barry!

@randall-king Жыл бұрын

I thought it sounded like him.

@bodyslamhimjeff 2 жыл бұрын

Is the "very sick man" with the mattress after the last letter someone we should know? His voice is really familiar, in addition to being distinctive and terrific!

@dongiller 2 жыл бұрын

That’s Ed Subitzky. His collection here - kzfaq.info/get/bejne/hcWKatmKpriqj2g.html

@bodyslamhimjeff 2 жыл бұрын

@@dongiller Thanks, Don!

@red_ford23 2 жыл бұрын

Viewer Mail!

@RobertMoran215 Жыл бұрын

Hello, I'm trying to find a viewer mail segment that probably aired in the mid-1980s. The letter writer taped a bug to the letter and then Dave says the bug is still alive. The paper starts floating around and Larry "bud" Melman chases it with a can of bug spray. Does anyone remember that? Thanks!

@dongiller Жыл бұрын

I’ve searched a number of databases but have come up short so far.

@RobertMoran215 Жыл бұрын

@@dongiller Thanks for checking!

@cindykaywebster4643 2 жыл бұрын

Isn’t that the same desk that’s on the Craig Ferguson show?

@illygah 9 ай бұрын

Paul gets the effword on the broadcast at 56:45ish. Go Canada, Go!

@markmathewson6400 7 ай бұрын

Yes he did. It seemed like Dave picked up on it. Good call !

@vjstv0101 Жыл бұрын

I'm wondering if something interesting happened every time Dave's birthday was on a weekday. Would there be enough material to make a collection of "Dave's birthdays"?

@dongiller Жыл бұрын

There would, but I’m no longer able to share them.

@ericdoe2318 2 жыл бұрын

31:48 They last but this is the type of guy that later would be writing all Lizzie where are they now and Wikipedia articles about TV shows when the Internet is infected and he would be making all the big dollars

@Mglizzy 3 ай бұрын

Bet Kevin Wildes spends a ton of time watching this video.

@PixelNotesMusic Жыл бұрын

Was that Todd Barry the comic on the phone?

@dongiller Жыл бұрын

Time?

@PixelNotesMusic Жыл бұрын

@@dongiller 1:38:30 kind of sounds like him. :)

@dongiller Жыл бұрын

@@PixelNotesMusic Thanks. Yes, it does appear to be him. He posted it on his own YT channel.

@PixelNotesMusic Жыл бұрын

@@dongiller Oh, that's cool!

@otisdriftwood1697 Жыл бұрын

Doesn't sound like this is the first. Will you be uploading that/those ?

@dongiller Жыл бұрын

It begins with a prelude from 1983. Perhaps that’s all you bothered to watch.

@otisdriftwood1697 Жыл бұрын

@@dongiller oh so it'd on here then ?

@dongiller Жыл бұрын

@@otisdriftwood1697 Have you bothered to watch beyond the prelude? Or read the description?

@gunnercooper9405 11 ай бұрын

17:42 well that didn’t age well 😂

@larryboyle2786 2 жыл бұрын

Don: do you have any viewer mail from his morning show?

@dongiller 2 жыл бұрын

I do. You can read about them here - donzblog.home.blog/2022/01/12/viewer-mail/

@larryboyle2786 2 жыл бұрын

@@dongiller I remember I was in 7th grade and he read one of my letters. It pertained to a segment where dogs played the piano on the show. Trying to locate the video.

@dongiller 2 жыл бұрын

@@larryboyle2786 Did you go to that blog link? It included spreadsheets for every name read on Viewer Mail from both the morning show and Late Night.

@larryboyle2786 2 жыл бұрын

9/12/80. I remember there was a misspelling on my last name. What a great moment for a 7th grader. Thank you, Don. Hopefully there’s a clip somewhere.

@dongiller 2 жыл бұрын

@@larryboyle2786 Which one is you? I see a Stefan Miakich, Diana (no last name), L.J. & Associates Nelson, A. Jeffery, and Mrs. J. Harbin. Are you the “L.” In “L.J.?