Late Show Top Ten List
| Author | David Letterman and the writers of the Late Show with David Letterman |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Comedy |
| Publisher | Bantam Books |
|
Publication date
|
1995 |
| Media type |
Hardcover Paperback |
| Pages | 165 |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 32894022 |
| 818/.540208 20 | |
| LC Class | PN6162 .L377 1995 |
The Top Ten List was a regular segment of the television programs Late Night with David Letterman and the Late Show with David Letterman. Each night, host David Letterman would present a list of ten items, compiled by his writing staff, that circulated around a common theme.
The lists were usually given humorous topics such as, Top Ten Signs Your Kid Had A Bad First Day At School or, Top Ten Rejected James Bond Gadgets or based on current events. Letterman would also occasionally give an intentionally absurd and mundane category, such as Top Ten Numbers Between One and Ten, drawing humor from the silliness of ranking such mundane items.
Letterman's top ten skit was thought of when Steve O'Donnell was head writer of the "Late Night With David Letterman" show. According to O'Donnell, the Top Ten List was an "almost simultaneous inspiration arriving from staffers Jim Downey, Randy Cohen and Robert “Morty” Morton — largely prompted by the ridiculous 'eligible bachelor' lists in a local New York paper that included the 84-year-old Bill Paley. 'Why, we can put such nonsense together ourselves!' we exclaimed. And we did."
On September 18, 1985, the very first list, "The Top Ten Things That Almost Rhyme With Peas" was broadcast.
Before Letterman's departure for CBS, NBC had insisted that the "Top Ten List" was the intellectual property of the network, and demanded that it not be used on his new show; Letterman rebutted that the list was not NBC's property or even his own, since he had stolen the concept from elsewhere. A loose compromise was reached where it would be renamed the "Late Show Top Ten," although Letterman would soon simply refer to it once again as the "Top Ten List," with no repercussions.
The only significant modifications in the Late Show years have been the elimination of mentioning a "home office" (such as Wahoo, Nebraska), and the addition of a computer-animated introduction and closing as well as background graphics.
The entries are read by Letterman in reverse countdown order, and are accompanied by a drum roll performed by CBS Orchestra drummer Anton Fig. There are six montages: the pyramids, the athletes (usually used for a sports-themed top ten list), the taxi cabs, the water towers, the sewer covers, and, in time for the 2012 presidential campaign, the campaign trail. The conclusion of the list is then followed by a brief performance by the band, usually a pop song relating to the topic of the list in some way.
...
Wikipedia