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UPFRONTS 2013: The Overachievers 
EXCLUSIVE: I’ve just learned that one of the longtime writers and producers of Late Show With David Letterman, Matt Roberts, is becoming the new head writer effective immediately. The previous head writers Justin and Eric Stangel will remain as writers and producers with the show 
but also get a fat new multiyear development deal with Worldwide Pants, the production company run by Letterman and Rob Burnett. ”The Stangel brothers are going to remain with the show as part of the deal because we need them,” Rob Burnett just told me. ”These guys are as good as it gets.” The twosome have had an unusally long and successful 14-year run as Letterman’s head writers and now will turn a lot of their attention to coming up with TV shows in any format for Worldwide Pants. “For people like this super valuable to the show, this deal keeps these guys from walking,” Burnett said. He especially wanted to ensure the pair were signed to a deal in order not to repeat what happened when Letterman writers Carter Bays and Craig Thomas, who walked out the door of Worldwide Pants and created the long-running and profitable franchise How I Met Your Mother. I happen to think the Stangel Brothers are hilarious (remember their online antics with Bill Scheft during the writers strike?) and look forward to their scripted and unscripted pitches. “Whatever they want to do,” Burnett told me.
Meanwhile, Roberts will fly solo as head writer after working his way up from an intern to the talent department as a guest wrangler, then a segment producer, and also a writer. ”Great writer. He’s super funny and talented,” Burnett told me. The changing of the guard comes just as Jimmy Kimmel has entered the 11:35 late-night talk wars with Leno and Letterman. ”I don’t think it really does affect us,” Burnett told me. “Every day you do the best you can do and put on the funniest show you believe is good.” As far as ratings with the new troika during the week that Kimmel premiered in the earlier time slo, it presumably sparked more curiosity than usual. Leno was still ahead last week with 2.4/6, while Letterman and Kimmel tied with 2.2/5.
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The move Jimmy Kimmel to the earlier slot is having an effect with The David Letterman Show already.
I think this is an offense move by Letterman.
If these guys are as valuable to him as Burnett says, they may have something ready for pilot season. And, as was mentioned in the article, the last time he lost senior writers to free-lance, it turned into an 8-year sitcom of which Dave isn’t getting a cut.
Letterman: Arrogant, elitist, smug, cranky, self-absorbed, hypocritical and less funny by the minute.
I agree 100%. Dave is no longer funny and to make things worse he does his best to embarrass his guests in an effort to make himself seem funny. I try to watch the show each year when he has the nice young lady show some of the new toys that will be available for the Christmas season. Each year he manages to destroy each one of them laughing the entire time. I always feel sorry for the lady. She doesn’t deserve the treatmant she gets from him.
And every year she returns. You think she has no idea what’s going on? Doesn’t say much for her then. Granted, Dave’s nightly monologue isn’t as funny as what he would do in a club act. None of the night time talk show comedians pull that off. Dave’s worst night is still way better than Leno’s best night. Letterman is better with his guests also.
Conan is the best by far!
David Letterman is a legend and has a loyal following. I will be with him until he chooses to retire. ? I love ya, Dave.
ya baby
I’ve watched Letterman since he was a weatherman at Indianapolis, IN. Watching the weather was fun and informative. I couldn’t miss it, not nowing what zany comments David Letterman would have. He is a natural for making me laugh and it looks like many others like his humor too.
Yah,that’s why he got passed up for the late night show?
Clearly you know absolutely nothing about the “Late Night Wars.” Letterman, or Leno, being funny — or not — have had VERY LITTLE to do with the decisions made for those posts. It’s all been far more complex than that.
Please don’t comment on subjects about which you’ve clearly no knowledge.
@Bob Licoski
I totally agree with Kplan. Bob Licoski, sir, you should really try to restrain yourself from posting comments that prove conclusively to EVERYONE that you are a dumba$$ and have absolutely ZERO knowledge (and, thus, NOTHING of value to contribute) about the topic of discussion. Clearly, you are either a troll or one of those people whose low self-esteem requires him to seek attention by “throwing in his two cents” even though he hasn’t got a friggin’ clue what he is talking about.
For starters, if you are talking about the television show on NBC named “Late Night”, David Letterman was the original host, serving from the show’s premiere in 1982 until he left for CBS in 1993. So, clearly, he was not “passed up for the ‘Late Night’ show”. However, IF, as I suspect, you are referring to the events leading up to Letterman leaving NBC in 1993, the fact remains that your comment is still ill-informed and, actually, quite juvenile.
You see, Bobby, “the late night show” which David Letterman “got passed up for” [sic] was a little show called “The Tonight Show”, which had been hosted for thirty years by a man named Johnny Carson. As a young comedian, David Letterman appeared on “The Tonight Show” and impressed Mr. Carson so much he soon became the permanent guest host of the show. Then, in 1982, Carson selected Dave to host a new late-night talk show, “Late Night with David Letterman” immediately following “The Tonight Show”.
While it is true that when Carson retired in 1992, Letterman “got passed up for” [sic] host of “The Tonight Show” in favor of Jay Lame-o, your insinuation that it was because Dave wasn’t good enough or that Jay Chin-o was better is completely and utterly FALSE. In fact, the TRUE King of Late Night himself, Johnny Carson, wanted Dave (NOT Jay, who was his permanent guest host at the time) to succeed him as host of TTS. I won’t take the time or space to get into the specifics of how Jay got the job over Dave, but suffice it to say that Letterman didn’t take over “Tonight” due to shady, dishonest, and manipulative actions taken by Leno’s manager at the time, Helen Kushnick. If you would like the full details of how Dave was screwed out of getting “The Tonight Show”, may I suggest Bill Carter’s excellent book, “The Late Shift”. Or, since I suspect you probably either don’t or CAN’T read, you should watch the HBO movie of the same name which is based on the book.
Finally, Bob, a bit of friendly advice — as the old saying goes, “It is better to be silent and presumed a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.”
And you just proved what a pompass fool you are
if you believe that all the sneakiness was due to Jay’s manager Helen Kushnick, then you did not read the part of “The Late Shift” that had Jay Leno hiding in a janitor’s closet and listening in on internal NBC conference calls. That’s pretty sneaky.
But noooooooo. You’ll blame his deceased manager because she’s not around to defend herself!
What an arrogant response. Maturity brings the ability to disagree without being condescending and childish…something YOU know nothing about, apparently. Try again after you grow up.
congrats all
Let me get this straight. The current head writers get an overall deal, but remain with the how. Another writer gets promoted to head writer. So… what exactly is the shakeup?
Still a sausage fest. That’s why I don’t watch.
iambic, there must be some eggs around, along with that sausage – just ask Dave. Unless you’re implying…
Letterman hasn’t earned a solid laugh from anyone but lame-brains for at least 15 years.
gravytop; It’s interesting that you say “Letterman hasn’t earned a solid laugh from anyone but lame-brains for at least 15 years.” Are you saying you’ve been watching all this time and you know this for a fact?
Call me Mrs. Lame Brain. I’ve watched Letterman forever; since he was a funny weatherman in Indianpolis, In. I like Kimmel but being nearly 77 and being really choosy about how to spend my later years; and the old man is still funny and fun, I’m sticking with the tried and true. Although… I might consider taping Kimmel for the doldrum voids in TV scheduling. I’ve learned how to do that Yay The old gal isn’t totally out-of-it.
Who Cares he is a has been and a stupid bore. Jimmy Kimmel with take out Hartman and Leno!
Of the three, I far prefer Dave. But I have to agree with the “sausage fest” post. It would be nice to see a woman in Late Night. Someone like Tina Fey could give those guys a run for their money.
Tina Fey is a really interesting idea, but I don’t think she’d ever do it.
It’ll be a frigid day in hell when Letterman puts on a better show than Leno!Even Kimmel is better than that angry old man!
Yah,I’m with Jo M. KID!
Letterman isn’t even close to entertaining, he still uses George Bush jokes. An angry old man is an apt description.
You do know it’s a well-known fact that first several years of Leno’s tonight show was nothing more than Jay copying old Letterman bits, right?
And, since then, I personally haven’t seen much of an improvement. Letterman’s monologue has DEFINITELY gone down hill since the early “Dubya” years, that I don’t argue at all, but his bit has ALWAYS been that he’s “the angry old man” (as Daxid says), that’s the fun of Dave. Unlike Jay, he actually emotions OTHER than happy.
And his desk pieces, remote pieces (too rare these days), and interviews are FAR superior than either of the other shows running in the same late night period. Unless, of course, you’re a fan of Jay Walking. If that’s the case, there’ll be no getting through to you.
Letterman is a joke. Must be kin to the Anointed One.
Letterman has been coasting for a few years. He’s just raking in the paycheck and the show hasn’t done anything innovative in a while. I don’t know how they can have Kimmel, Leno and Letterman all on at the same time.
I watch Jimmy Kimmel…I don’t care what time he is on…because he lets people talk…that’s the bottom line…and he has a good show..and great guests. That’s it. Letterman is cranky..I stopped watching him a long time ago. Leno doesn’t let people talk…he spends too much time trying to get the next laugh.
Did you ever give a thought to the fact that it might be Letterman and not the writers? You can only go through so many writers until you figure it out that the person delivering the words, not the written page is the one at fault for the poor ratings. Look at the Obamas, frequent guests for Letterman. If they didn’t have a telepromter they couldn’t talk. Maybe it will dawn on you that Letterman is not as bright and funny as you have thought all these years.
I like the Letterman show. I love his stand up to start, then depending who he has on if I watch him any longer. He is a great and honest gentleman. I admire his wife also.
Gotta agree. The Top Ten is my favorite, but the whole show is good although the guests vary in interest and laughs.
I have enjoyed the Letterman show for many years. None of these gentelmen are as entertaining as David Garraway. He was the original morning host. Mr. Leno is much to snarky for me to enjoy and Jimmy Kimmel to disorganized.
JRD
Has something to do with generation. Letterman is incredibly
intelligent, has an acerbic wit and edge, yet is goofy as hell.
Dustin Hoffman called him a “satirist” like Will Rogers, as contrasted to a comic. Different strokes for different folks.
Letter man is ‘incredibly intelligent’? Uh, I don’t think so. He barly made it through that scholarly place known as ‘Ball State’.
At first, I wondered why your comments were so angry. Then, I realized that it must be a b**** when you go to insult someone for having a differing opinion and come off looking uneducated.
Maybe a new approach is needed.
Kimdi01: Your ignorance is profound. Letterman is still funny, the Obamas don’t need a teleprompter and you should try not to let your politics get in the way of your analysis.
I love Dave’s delivery over Leno but as far as being funny. If you pay attention it’s the SAME OLD JOKES over and over. How many times did he do “Oh that’s Jetters house” ? What about the snezzing monkey?
What about the “smoking asian kid”.. he has done those jokes “WAY TO MANY TIMES”. There have been many times I wanted to write to him and tell him “ENOUGH WITH THE JETTER JOKES”. Maybe I miss Carson too much but he needs a different staff… PERIOD
You left out the Screaming Balcony girls fan club. I don’t know how may times I’ve seen that {many times 3 or 4 times in a row}
God I hope Kimmel will start regularly beating out Leno and Letterman.He really is better than both of them. Out with the old and in with the new I say.
Letterman not funny anymore. He is out of touch and too far left.
I disagree. Letterman’s monologue, taped pieces, AND interviews are FAR funnier than ANY other late night host. I would, however, admit that Dave isn’t as innovative as he once was. But the same could be said of Johnny Carson in his later years. In contrast, Leno’s voice is irritating, his monologues are repetitive and rather juvenile, and his interviews are painfully horrendous. Perhaps Letterman isn’t AS FUNNY as he was thirty years ago, but as the old saying goes, “Better to have laughed and lost (Letterman), than never to have laughed at all (Lame-o, I mean Chin-o, I mean LENO)!
Letterman is the one whose monologues are repetitive. Same punchlines over and over. While Leno may make multiple jokes about the same subject, the punchlines are different. By the way, giving insulting nicknames to people is childish. Grow up.
Letterman needs to retire. He is no longer funny. I quit watching him and so have my friends.
Comedy needs new young blood. And I’m not young. I’m an old man tired of the tripe we get on Letterman and Leoo today.
Sorry, Im wth Kimmel. Letterman just hasnt done anything for me in some years. In my opinion, hes gotten a bit, well, off. Just cant find the right word so that works. His jokes have gotten way to politial, and I dont want to hear him complain about the Republicans when it is time to relax – and he just isnt funny anymore. Maybe this new head writer will do better for him. hmmmm
So…you’re a Republican and his jokes are hitting to close to home. Could it be that that’s why you don’t think he’s funny? If they were about President Obama I bet you’d be fine with it which is what’s lousy about your remarks and attitude. Why can’t he do political jokes? Humorists have made fun of presidents and Congress since this country was founded. I love how you declare that he isn’t funny instead of saying that YOU don’t find him funny which is closer to the truth because comedy is subjective. He doesn’t have to be funny to you, just funny to enough other people. Do you have an inability to see anything Republicans do as ridiculous? You should realize that regardless of party, politicians do ridiculous things all the time. If you only find making fun of liberals to be amusing, you’re missing out on so much of the political humor out there, all across the spectrum of beliefs. The way conservatives are behaving right now, it’s as if whoever is being made fun of is the emperor and you’re getting mad that the comedian in question is pointing out that said emperor has no clothes. ‘Mustn’t say something against the person I agree with! Since I agree with them, YOU must be wrong!’ Sometimes they deserve to be mocked and late night shows have room for edgier humor. If political humor should be anywhere, it’s there. Want softballs? Watch SpongeBob Squarepants.
You are absolutely correct, Letterman is the best of the 11:30 PM shows. He has the intilligence that Leno and Kimmel do not have. He has a smart delivery of humor and genuine feelings. I have watched in from the beginning. I hope he stays on the air for a long, long time.
hmm…couldn’t have said it better myself. Thanks….also thank you for actually using proper grammar and spelling.
So you’re a Democrat? Could it be that’s why you think he’s funny?
The problem is the jokes are NOT about Obama. Of course, Letterman can do political jokes, no one said he couldn’t. Other humorists, though, make fun of both sides. If he only attacked Democrats, would you be fine with that? Yes, comedy is subjective. And since Dave obviously shares your political views, you think he’s funny. See how it works now? Do you have an inability to see how one-sided and mean-spirited Dave is? If “politicians do ridiculous things all the time,” will we ever see a mean-spirited daily montage of Democrats? Of course not.
You obviously find making fun of conservatives to be amusing. It’s not Dave’s making political jokes that’s the problem, it’s his one-sidedness. Of course, since you agree with his politics, you can’t or refuse to understand this. You seem to be missing out on so much of the political humor out there as well. Watch other “humorists” to see how it’s done. ‘Mustn’t say something against the person I agree with! Since I agree with them, YOU must be wrong!’ also describes your attitude. If late night shows have room for edgier humor, where’s the edgier humor against Democrats? Not on Dave’s show. And that suits you just fine.
Letterman is ‘way past his prime. He needs to retire. Jimmy Kimmel’s time change won’t have an affect on anyone. He’s obnoxious and can’t even open his eyes during his show. It’s Leno and Fallen for me!!!
I watched Letterman for years, I felt he got the short end of the stick @ NBC, but 4 or 5 years ago he humor became to RUDE for me, if was as if he became fill of anger making fun of people, not trying to be funny, but instead hurtful & rude. I think Mr. Letterman has forgotten where he came from & those of us who truly enjoyed his former style of humor. I still like Mr. Letterman but, I just do not like it when people make fun of others just for laughs. That’s not funny to me.
Still think that Dave is the greatest out of the three. Leno is too loud and Kimmel has a lot to know