The Late Show With David Letterman's VP: These Final Weeks Have Been 'Overwhelming Emotionally'
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Vinnie Favale, Vice President of Late Night Programming for CBS, told Talk Radio 1210 WPHT morning host Chris Stigall how difficult the recent weeks have been leading up to David Letterman's final show and the special that airs tonight, "David Letterman: A Life on Television," which looks back at his illustrious career.
"It's so hard to appreciate something that Dave has done, because only when it ends, can you really say, 'Oh my God' and take stock? I've been living it intensely for the past three weeks working on this special...It's been overwhelming emotionally. You get teary eyed, but this special is—I'm so proud of it, and it's really because of what Dave gave us to work with."
For the past 24 years, Letterman has partnered with CBS to produce both "The Late Show" and "The Late Late Show" as part of his production company, Worldwide Pants Incorporated.
"And it just shows you what an amazing, talented personality and how big he is, in that at such a young age was able to establish ownership of a day part, because not just his show, but when it was Craig Ferguson or Tom Snyder on CBS, those were Worldwide Pants productions."
While The Late Show has been airing similar "packages," or produced pieces, about the host's career as the final show on May 20th grows nearer, Favale made a point to differentiate those pieces from what will be seen in "A Life on Television."
"We could say how influential he's been. Some of our packages are more than just a collection of clips, but they're thought out, they're introspective."
According to Favale, Letterman and his production team have been very active in the process during his final days, and they even helped make this 90 minute special, making this ramp-up to the end that much more special.
"His input has been major in that he created it...Well, these guys, he and his production team, they're still doing the show. We have the biggest names in entertainment for the past two weeks, and it's only going to get bigger. So it's three weeks of very special programming. They were generous in lending us…their brains and access to their massive library. NBC's been great about letting us go through that footage, because don't forget, it's 33 years, nine of them were on NBC."
"David Letterman: A Life on Television" airs tonight, May 4th, at 9:30 PM EST on CBS and is hosted by comedian and actor Ray Romano, who was given his own TV show "Everybody Loves Raymond" after an appearance on "The Late Show."
