Dave Letterman, Sexual God

[HVC]

I'm still not sure I understand who he said he was protecting

Anywho, totally aside from this, Dave just ain't what he used to be

All the late night guys are slipping, except for Craig Ferguson. I actually like his show.

[Valmy]

Anywho, totally aside from this, Dave just ain't what he used to be

I loved his show in the 80s/early 90s then lost interest.  There is only so many decades the 'Top 10' can stay fresh.

[Capetan Mihali]

I'm still not sure I understand who he said he was protecting

Anywho, totally aside from this, Dave just ain't what he used to be

All the late night guys are slipping, except for Craig Ferguson. I actually like his show.

I'm sure Carlos Mencia can save late-night TV.   

[Agelastus]

Normal people are in bed at 11 pm.

I note that all of the Languish crazies are happily posting away at 3am each day.

The timestamps of many of my recent posts make for slightly disturbing reading...

[Razgovory]

Normal people are in bed at 11 pm.

I note that all of the Languish crazies are happily posting away at 3am each day.

When I'm up at 3, I'll watch Red Eye rather than posting on Languish.

What the fuck is wrong with you?

[The Brain]

I'm not crazy.

[Savonarola]

More on the story:

CBS producer arrested in Letterman extortion plot
By DAVID BAUDER
Associated Press

NEW YORK — A CBS News employee has been indicted in an extortion plot against David Letterman, who was forced to acknowledge sexual relationships with female staffers on his show after the man tried to blackmail him for $2 million, the Manhattan district attorney said today.


Robert J. (Joe) Halderman, a producer for the true-crime show "48 Hours," was arrested Thursday and indicted on one count of attempted first-degree grand larceny, punishable by five to 15 years upon conviction, District Attorney Robert Morgenthau said.

"Our concern here is extortion, and that's what we're focusing on," Morgenthau said.

The district attorney's office said Halderman left a letter and other material for Letterman early Sept. 9. He wrote that he needed "to make a large chunk of money" by selling Letterman a screenplay treatment.

The letter told Letterman that his world would "collapse around him" when information about his private life was disclosed. He said it would lead to "a ruined reputation" and severe damage to his professional and family life.

Letterman immediately contacted his lawyer, who arranged a meeting with Halderman. At the meeting, Halderman demanded $2 million to keep the material secret, the district attorney's office said. After the meeting, Letterman and his lawyer contacted the DA's office and the investigation began.


In an extraordinary monologue before millions of viewers, the late-night host admitted that he had sexual relationships with female employees. Letterman said that "this whole thing has been quite scary," but he mixed in jokes while outlining what had happened to him.

It was a shock because the 62-year-old Letterman had married longtime girlfriend Regina Lasko in March. The couple began dating in 1986 and have a son, Harry, born in November 2003. It was not immediately clear when the relationships to which Letterman admitted took place, or how long they lasted.

Fatherhood and his heart surgery in 2000 had seemed to mellow Letterman, who took over as the most popular late-night comedy host this summer after NBC replaced Jay Leno with Conan O'Brien on the "Tonight" show.

Letterman sat behind his desk to outline the scheme after a monologue that targeted some frequent foils like Sarah Palin and Dick Cheney.

Three weeks ago, Letterman said, he got in his car early in the morning and found a package with a letter saying, "I know that you do some terrible, terrible things and that I can prove that you do some terrible things." He acknowledged the letter contained proof.

He said it was terrifying "because there's something insidious about (it). Is he standing down there? Is he hiding under the car? Am I going to get a tap on the shoulder?"

A law enforcement official told the Associated Press that the district attorney's office set up the undercover sting operation at the swank Jumeirah Essex House hotel in Manhattan. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation continues.

Police detectives were in an adjoining room with recording equipment and surveillance as Letterman's attorney met with Halderman and discussed terms of the extortion, the official said.


"At one point he told the attorney that he didn't want to have to work for the rest of his life, and the number he came up with was $2 million," the law enforcement official said.

There were two subsequent meetings, with the man given a phony $2-million check at the last one. Letterman joked on his show it was like the giant ceremonial check given to winners of golf tournaments.

He told the audience that he had to testify before a grand jury on Thursday.

"I was worried for myself; I was worried for my family," he said. "I felt menaced by this, and I had to tell them all of the creepy things that I had done."

He said, "The creepy stuff was that I have had sex with women who work for me on this show. My response to that is yes, I have. Would it be embarrassing if it were made public? Yes, it would, especially for the women."

Whether they wanted to make the relationships public was up to them, he said.

"It's been a very bizarre experience," he said. "I felt like I needed to protect these people. I need to protect my family. I need to protect myself. Hope to protect my job."

CBS said in a statement that "we believe his comments speak for themselves."

Letterman's "Late Show" has been on the air since 1993. Before that, "Late Night with David Letterman" aired on NBC from 1982 to 1993.

Letterman won't be taping a show today. Tonight's show was taped Thursday.


Letterman was also the victim of a 2005 plot by a former painter on his Montana ranch to kidnap his nanny and son for a $5 million ransom. The former painter, Kelly A. Frank, briefly escaped from prison in 2007 before being recaptured.

Associated Press writers Colleen Long and Jennifer Peltz and AP Television Writer Lynn Elber contributed to this report

[KRonn]

He said, "The creepy stuff was that I have had sex with women who work for me on this show. My response to that is yes, I have. Would it be embarrassing if it were made public? Yes, it would, especially for the women."

I don't look forward to the bash-athon that will likely hit Letterman over this. But I have to think that in addition there will be workplace legal issues over having sex with his subordinates, maybe lawsuits, or troubles with CBS which contracts his show, that will now flow out of this.

[dps]

I think the wierdest twist in all this is the identity of the blackmailer.

[The Brain]

Isn't the term blackmail racist?

[Strix]

Isn't the term blackmail racist?

Only if you're ignorant.

[CountDeMoney]

I'm still not sure I understand who he said he was protecting

Anywho, totally aside from this, Dave just ain't what he used to be

All the late night guys are slipping, except for Craig Ferguson. I actually like his show.

Yeah, Craig is the most consistent.  He's just a funny guy, and not all of it is the accent.

[DisturbedPervert]

Dude should have just sold the story to the tabloids.  Not as much money, but a lot less prison rape.

[citizen k]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/02/stephanie-birkitt-letterm_n_307558.html

[merithyn]

Lawtalkers, how effective will this defense be??

Halderman's lawyer says he has evidence that David Letterman committed sexual harassment
October 6, 2009 |  1:53 pm

Gerald Shargel, a veteran criminal defense attorney who is representing the CBS producer accused of trying to blackmail David Letterman, confirmed in an interview today that he plans to argue that the late-night host committed sexual harassment if the case goes to trial.

"I have evidence of it and I intend to share that in a courtroom," said Shargel, who is representing "48 Hours Mystery" producer Robert Joel Halderman, who prosecutors say demanded $2 million from Letterman to keep quiet about relationships the comic had with female staffers. "I think it's relevant because it's actually part of the evidence that I think the district attorney will be admitting at the trial."

The line of defense was first reported by the New York Times.

Shargel said he has not yet received any discovery from the Manhattan District Attorney's Office. "I'm doing my own independent investigation," he said.

A spokesman for Letterman declined to comment. A spokeswoman from the district attorney's office also declined to comment.

Shargel would not say whether the evidence he has relates to Stephanie Birkitt, a longtime assistant to the comic. But the lawyer said that it's "absolutely clear" that Birkitt -- who until recently was sharing a Connecticut home with Halderman -- had a relationship with Letterman.

Birkitt, 34, got her start on the "Late Show" as an intern in 1996 and went on to work as Letterman's assistant after a stint at "48 Hours." She is still with the show, according to a spokesman for Worldwide Pants, Letterman's production company, who declined to specify her current role.

Shargel admitted that arguing that Letterman committed sexual harassment could bolster the prosecution's case that Halderman had embarrassing information that the late-night host would have wanted to keep secret. But he said it also would support his defense.

"This is all about what Mr. Halderman's intent was, and I think this has some relevance to his state of mind," he said. "It's part of a larger story that I'm not going to get into now."

It remains to be seen whether a judge would allow Shargel to introduce such evidence. Jeremy Saland, a criminal defense attorney and former Manhattan assistant district attorney, said the issue was potentially relevant, but only if the defense could establish that Halderman was seeking the money on behalf of a victim of sexual  harassment and not for his own gain. "A Manhattan Supreme Court judge will certainly distinguish between an attempt to dirty up Mr. Letterman by accusations of harassment and an attempt to establish the harassment as a basis for a valid legal defense," Saland said.

Shargel maintains that while Halderman deposited a $2-million check from Letterman, he did not have criminal intent and is innocent of extortion. "I'm not a big fan of trying cases in the public, but I'm dealing with a situation with someone who has an unusual degree of access to the public," Shargel said of Letterman. "He made a decision to get out ahead of the story, he made a decision to put a certain spin on the facts. All I wanted to do is get out there on behalf of my client and say, don't rush to judgment."