New York Times comedy critic Jason Zinoman delivers the definitive
story of the life and artistic legacy of David Letterman, the greatest
television talk show host of all time and the signature comedic voice of
a generation.
In a career spanning more than thirty years, David Letterman redefined
the modern talk show with an ironic comic style that transcended
traditional television. While he remains one of the most famous stars in
America, he is a remote, even reclusive, figure whose career is widely
misunderstood. In Letterman, Jason Zinoman, the first comedy critic in
the history of the New York Times, mixes groundbreaking reporting with
unprecedented access and probing critical analysis to explain the unique
entertainer's titanic legacy. Moving from his early days in Indiana to
his retirement, Zinoman goes behind the scenes of Letterman's television
career to illuminate the origins of his revolutionary comedy, its
overlooked influences, and how his work intersects with and reveals his
famously eccentric personality.
Zinoman argues that Letterman had three great artistic periods, each
distinct and part of his evolution. As he examines key broadcasting
moments--"Stupid Pet Tricks" and other captivating segments that defined
Late Night with David Letterman--he illuminates Letterman's
relationship to his writers, and in particular, the show's co-creator,
Merrill Markoe, with whom Letterman shared a long professional and
personal connection.
To understand popular culture today, it's necessary to understand David
Letterman. With this revealing biography, Zinoman offers a perceptive
analysis of the man and the artist whose ironic voice and caustic
meta-humor was critical to an entire generation of comedians and
viewers--and whose singular style ushered in new tropes that have become
clichés in comedy today.
