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Late Show ending May 2026

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michael hagerty said:
I've suspected that Jon Batiste's departure from the show three years ago (at the beginning of this contract cycle) was an economy move, and it's very possible that the "hand" CBS thought it had---politics aside---might have asked Stephen to give up more than he would have been willing to.
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I hadn't thought of it that way before. It now seems like the pieces are coming together, pointing to some longer-term financial issues. In the case of Batiste, it could be another situation where one action accomplishes multiple objectives. Batiste seemed somewhat confined by the conventions of the late-night talk show. He also had many side projects going. My guess is that Batiste took the job to become better known. When the gig accomplished that purpose, he may have felt it was time to move on.

I can't dispute that Batiste and Colbert had a real chemistry going. You could even have seen it in Batiste's first appearance with Colbert, on the Colbert Report as a guest. It just isn't the same with Louis Cato. Cato's a great musician but doesn't have a foreground personality. I've also noticed that the role of the band has been cut back in the past few months. Except for a brief introduction at the start of the second segment, interaction with the band now happens only occasionally. They seem to be there solely to get the audience pumped up.

michael hagerty said:
Until Bill Carter writes the book, we may not know.
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First, though, there'll be a 20-page article in the New Yorker, probably within the next few issues.
 
michael hagerty said:
Glen was the Smothers Brothers' summer replacement. His show was already slated and in production when CBS blew up Tom and Dick in April of '69. The fall season replacement for the brothers was...Hee Haw.



Of course, and not just because of politics. If your $100 million show is losing $40 million even with $30 million in tax credits, you know you're on thin ice.

CBS renewed his contract in 2023 to go through the 2025-2026 season. In May, CBS' George Cheeks told advertisers and press at the upfront that they were negotiating with Stephen, but there were hazard lights flashing in what he said.



That doesn't sound like "we're thrilled and we're sure we'll be able to reward him commensurately. What it sounds like is "we think we can grind him", and now, with word that the show was losing $40 million a year, that makes a whole lotta sense.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

CBS Execs Unveil New Plans, Talk Grammys Exit and Colbert Negotiations

When asked about 60 Minutes' ongoing legal battle with the president, CEO George Cheeks kindly replied, "I appreciate the try, but I’ve had no tequila today."
www.hollywoodreporter.com www.hollywoodreporter.com

I've suspected that Jon Batiste's departure from the show three years ago (at the beginning of this contract cycle) was an economy move, and it's very possible that the "hand" CBS thought it had---politics aside---might have asked Stephen to give up more than he would have been willing to.

Until Bill Carter writes the book, we may not know.
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How much was Letterman’s Late Show to produce. Yes he owned his show but CBS was licensing it.
 
Don CT said:
How much was Letterman’s Late Show to produce. Yes he owned his show but CBS was licensing it.
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The closest I can find is 2002, when ABC tried to get Letterman to jump over to them. They offered Dave $31.5 million plus the $40 million production budget (CBS was paying the production budget and giving Dave $29 million). CBS sorta matched ABC at $31 million even:


Adjusted for inflation over 23 years, that's $133 million.

Today's $100 million figure includes Stephen's salary, estimated to be $15 million (they signed him comparatively cheap, at $6 million on his first contract), so if you take inflation, the salary savings between Dave and Stephen and the licensing fees they no longer have to pay, it's probably pretty close.

Also, the 30% New York State tax credit began in 2016, after Letteman ended, so CBS didn't have that offset.

And ten years ago, Yahoo Finance had a piece on declining revenues for Dave and for the late night category. It cites an Ad Age piece in 2009 that said Late Show with David Letterman took in $271 million in ad revenues, beating Leno by $100 million.


Now the entire ad pool for four shows is $220 million.
 
michael hagerty said:
The closest I can find is 2002, when ABC tried to get Letterman to jump over to them. They offered Dave $31.5 million plus the $40 million production budget (CBS was paying the production budget and giving Dave $29 million). CBS sorta matched ABC at $31 million even:


Adjusted for inflation over 23 years, that's $133 million.

Today's $100 million figure includes Stephen's salary, estimated to be $15 million (they signed him comparatively cheap, at $6 million on his first contract), so if you take inflation, the salary savings between Dave and Stephen and the licensing fees they no longer have to pay, it's probably pretty close.

Also, the 30% New York State tax credit began in 2016, after Letteman ended, so CBS didn't have that offset.
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The theater for Letterman was also more stripped down and not as high tech as it is now. Letterman had most of the place blocked off as it was more of a TV Studio. Colbert is using it as a fully functioning theatre.
 
Don CT said:
The theater for Letterman was also more stripped down and not as high tech as it is now. Letterman had most of the place blocked off as it was more of a TV Studio. Colbert is using it as a fully functioning theatre.
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Yeah, but I figure the renovations were 10+ years ago, and the costs have been amortized.
 
Mark Roberts said:
I hadn't thought of it that way before. It now seems like the pieces are coming together, pointing to some longer-term financial issues. In the case of Batiste, it could be another situation where one action accomplishes multiple objectives. Batiste seemed somewhat confined by the conventions of the late-night talk show. He also had many side projects going. My guess is that Batiste took the job to become better known. When the gig accomplished that purpose, he may have felt it was time to move on.

I can't dispute that Batiste and Colbert had a real chemistry going. You could even have seen it in Batiste's first appearance with Colbert, on the Colbert Report as a guest. It just isn't the same with Louis Cato. Cato's a great musician but doesn't have a foreground personality. I've also noticed that the role of the band has been cut back in the past few months. Except for a brief introduction at the start of the second segment, interaction with the band now happens only occasionally. They seem to be there solely to get the audience pumped up.


First, though, there'll be a 20-page article in the New Yorker, probably within the next few issues.
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And a side interview with David Remnick on The New Yorker Radio Hour, probably by Labor Day, definitely in segment A.
 
michael hagerty said:
Because Dave’s comment was personal, not political.

Then there were the times he was political and didn’t apologize:

thehill.com

10 times Letterman made impact on politics

Letterman’s absurdist humor frequently took a political bent.
thehill.com

If Dave ever had much of a conservative audience, he was not forgiven for those.
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Looking at the article, Dave at least had President Bush as a guest. I haven’t watched closely, but how many times have Kimmel, Fallon, or Colbert allowed conservative guests on their shows? No matter how Letterman voted, he seemed to at least have fun with guests who were representing the opposing party.
 
Loverofradio said:
Looking at the article, Dave at least had President Bush as a guest. I haven’t watched closely, but how many times have Kimmel, Fallon, or Colbert allowed conservative guests on their shows? No matter how Letterman voted, he seemed to at least have fun with guests who were representing the opposing party.
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Yeah, Bill O’Rielly loved being called a “goon”.
 
davideduardo said:
Beverly Hillbillies in many ways ridiculed country people, while Hee Haw glorified or celebrated them.
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When I had the opportunity to see the early episode of "Hillbillies" I didn't see them as hicks. I saw quality programming and these people had dignity but were different and felt out of place in the city.

And I just enjoyed "Hee Haw" regardless. When they tried to fix it in the final new season, I didn't enjoy it.
 
In the storage unit this morning, I found a flashback to 39 years ago. These covers are from September 1986. You also get to see my left foot.

20250721_113208-resized.jpg
 
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