LOL

Letterman might be a semi big deal. However he ain"t shut when compared with the Alliance.

CBS won't break ranks with Letterman, period!

this is no big deal.....letterman has been repeating the same shit for about 3 years now......why not just keep bringing that back?

I don't think David Letterman will solve the issue about the unionization of reality shows, and animation, plus downloads from the net. I know David Letterman wants to get back to work really badly, and doing it before the strike is over would make him look good.

That should be ...Bring back JON Stewart!

Crap.

A thousand apologies to Spud's favorite "decrepit" comedian.

Hey that's Jon's term not Spuds.

Well him and Dennis Leary ...but that guys an admitted asshole!

Funny though, so ya gotta fergive him.

Be Well.

Maybe these funnymen should write their own material for a change. It might make them appreciate their support staff a little more...


I'm just say'n...

All due respect, Unbiased...

Regardless of how funny or how prolific, NO ONE PERSON can write 20 jokes + sketches + top ten lists four nights a week.

And keep in mind, for every joke that makes it, three or more don't.

This may be bigger than folks expect. This is about the next generation of revenue, from things like DVDs, downloading, and internet streaming. Everything from movies to mobisodes.

If Letterman is "agreeing" to something, it's the proposed contract by the WGA, which is a huge difference vs. the position held by the producers at large. This could be a blip on the radar, or it could be the first crack in the collapsing dam.

It's just a crying shame David Letterman's chief writer is dead and gone. I am refering to Johnny Carson. The question I have that has been plaguing Me is why Johnny Carson would write jokes for David Letterman and not for Jay Leno who took over the Tonight Show. I wonder if they had a fued or what?? Any clues Danforth???

Larry Mohr

carson wanted letterman to take over the tonite show upon retiring though the network wanted to go in a different direction... hence leno.
letterman would occasionally receive a joke from carson... years after the retirement and from time to time would use one of johnnys' as an homage. they were extremely good friends and carson did everything he could to help letterman.
letterman and leno do indeed write some of their own material though have stayed off of the tube in support of their respective staffs. no one does shows such as these without a staff of writers.
letterman was the first to continue to pay the staff throughout the strike. leno followed suit ( with a bit more fanfare than what letterman had ).

all of the latenight comedians are also on the writing team and of course have yes/no power, but you are right........5 nights a week and they are supposed to have 4 or 5 mons of material every night? I dont think so.........but they could have a show with guests, I think.....of course remember that no matter how they are supposed to be, most of those interviews are scripted out pretty full.

As a WGA member who is being crushed by this strike, I think Letterman is a stinking Scab-Loving Ink-well fucking Picket-line crossing Loser who should be fed to the MGM Lion.

I expect the Republo-christo right-wing nut-sack licking whack-jobs here at DR to approve of Letterman's picket-line crossing, as you are all in favor of breaking strikes and unions.

That said, as a writer, who in his early days of his career was RAPED by producers over Residuals Payment, I favor anything that can ensure my yearly Residual check isn't 35 cents for playing 18 times in Croatia!

Hey cupcake Dumpling--

The reason why Letterman is like asking permission is so he does not cross the picket line..

He can't write his own material--even if he could--because it would be crossing the line.

He wants to carve out his writers from the rest--now who is acting like your so called Repubs?

I don't understand how these mediations can't figure out a way for the writers to get a piece of the action when the material is on Ipods and the internet?

The management says the Internet and Ipods are TOO NEW! Give me a break!

Give them a piece of the pie so the unemployed writers can get some moola.

That's the liberal side talking--sorry--but it's true.

Murphy

Dumpling,

I don't know if the Unions are exact regarding this, but all my experience with SAG, AFTRA, and AEA (25+ years) has been a little different:

In every case, anyone could hire striking workers, and the workers could return, provided the producer agreed with the most recent terms offered by the Union.

It doesn't seem Letterman is Union-busting as much as Producer-busting. He probably realized 99.4% of the gross is enough, rather than the 99.7% the rest of the producers are insisting on.

Maybe Dave could use some old jokes from the past...Maybe, just maybe he could write a few of his own till the writers comeback...lol