Former weatherman and veteran Crispin Glover wrangler David Letterman says in a new interview with The New York Times that he had no input on who would replace him. When CBS announced that Stephen Colbert would be taking over the mantle of The Late Show, Letterman initially said that “Stephen has always been a real friend to me. I’m very excited for him, and I’m flattered that CBS chose him.” But apparently Dave had no influence over the decision—his first choice would have been Jon Stewart.
According to Rolling Stone, Letterman also said, “I think it will be very interesting to see what he will do. I always thought Jon Stewart would have been a good choice, and then Stephen. And then I thought, well maybe this will be a good opportunity to put a black person on, and it would be a good opportunity to put a woman on.” (Presumably, network execs could not fathom the concept of a black person, a woman, or a black person who is also a woman hosting a late-night talk show.)
Letterman’s pretty much over it, though. “Just as a courtesy, maybe somebody would say, ‘You know, we’re kicking around some names. Do you have any thoughts here?’” Letterman said, adding, “[It’s] not my show…When we’re off, we’re out of business with CBS.”At least Jay Leno isn’t coming out of retirement to take Letterman’s rightful spot…again.