David Letterman, the iconic television host who stepped away from “Late Night” in 2015 after 22 years, recently shared insights about his journey in the entertainment industry and its impact on his life. Speaking candidly in an interview with GQ, the 77-year-old revealed how the pressures of show business shaped him and why he believes it made him a “worse person.”
“In show business, I find that I have pretended to be someone I’m truly not,” Letterman admitted. “In my life here in Indiana and at my home with my family, I am probably the person I actually am. And I regret that they don’t kind of cross at any point.”
When asked directly whether showbiz made him worse, Letterman agreed. “Yes. You’re exactly right,” he said. “And I don’t know, maybe it’s only because I went through show business. I got that out of my system eventually that I can concentrate on being a better person and probably couldn’t have reached this point if I had not gone through the exercise of trying to succeed at show business.”
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Letterman reflected on the high-pressure environment of Hollywood, acknowledging how it led him to focus narrowly on his career while neglecting broader aspects of life. “I just feel like personally, I have greater humanity than I did when I was in show business. It was all single-minded and great pressure, real unimagined, and I felt like it’s all on me, and it’s all nonsense,” he shared.
Known for his sharp wit, Letterman admitted he often appeared “miserable” during his interviews in the ‘80s and ‘90s. He attributed this to heavy drinking and self-doubt about living up to the legacy of his idol, Johnny Carson. “I guess not achieving what I imagined to be…you take Johnny Carson. There’s never going to be anybody as good at that kind of show as Johnny. Nobody better. So here I am thinking: ‘Oh crap, I am not going to be as good as Johnny. What am I doing here?’”
Toward the end of his hosting career, Letterman found more joy in simply talking to guests than in the nightly grind of comedy. “For the last handful of years, my favorite part of the show was just talking to people,” he said. “Because doing comedy each and every night, each and every night, that’s meaningful and not just laughable, that’s tough.”
Now living a quieter life in Indiana, Letterman finds solace in a broader perspective on life. “All I cared about was television…for 30 years. Everything fell apart, went away. I didn’t even know if it was falling apart or not. And now I have the energy and the broader focus to recognize humanity has other fulfilling pursuits,” he said.
Although retired from nightly television, Letterman continues to explore creative outlets, including his Netflix series My Next Guest Needs No Introduction. “Retirement is a myth. Retirement is nonsense,” he declared. “As long as you are healthy, you still want to produce.”
