On Thursday evening on The Late Show, Dave Letterman turned the glare of the spotlight on his own personal life, and fessed up to a stunned in-house audience that he engaged in extramarital afairs with staff members at his production company.
On the heels of that startlng revelation, the toothy talk show host confided to all within earshot that as a result of his indiscretions, there was also an attempt by a work associate to extort "hush money" to the tune of $2 million or thereabouts.
I am inclined to agree with one journalist, who reported in a morning daily on the weekend, that Letterman handled the matter with as much candor as possible, given the circumstances.
He was honest, self-effacing, and straightforward about the facts.
During the unprecedented segment, the sixty-something comic described the whole sordid turn of events as a scary episode in his life, which shook him up to the very timber of his soul.
"I was worried for myself. I was worried for my family. I felt menaced by this and that I had to them all of the creepy things that I had done," he confided to the stunned audience on hand that day for the taping of the highly-rated night-time talk show.
But, there was no apology, which irked some.
Erin Matson, an executive at the "National Organization for Women" - for example - labelled Letterman's so-called "jocularity" offensive.
"That plays into the same old sex stereotypes that men can do whatever but a woman should be ashamed of their sexuality," she lamented.
"We're just disgusted that all these Hollywood men think they can do whatever they want."
A spokesperson for Letterman's production company - Worldwide Pants (yes, the irony has not escaped me) - emphatically noted for the record in a terse press statement that the company's sexual harassment policy did not prohibit sexual relationships between managers and employees.
But, in view of the fact Letterman probably owns the company - and likewise - was iundoubtedly involved in setting-up policy for the production outlet - that defense doesn't hold much water in my estimation.
The fact that no female employee (or male worker, for that matter) has ever come forward and accused Letterman of sexual harassment or inappropriate conduct bodes well for the late-night court jester until the current swirl of controversy dies down.
So, what's the big deal?
Some argue that discussing the incident on air (making jokes about the drama, for starters) was not only off-putting but outrageous.
On the contrary, Letterman effected damage control by "coming clean" the other night.
"I have had sex with women who worked on the show. And it would be embarrassing if it were made public. Perhaps it would. Especially for the women," he noted without batting an eye.
Curiously, it was a jealous boyfriend by the name of Robert Halderman, who ended up trying to put the screws to the wealthy entertainer.
Halderman, a producer for a true crime show (48 Hours) entered a plea of not guilty on Friday for allegedly trying to blackmail Letterman for $2 million - in what amounted to a bizarre shake-down- which still has the Nation reeling by virtue of the magnitude of its stupidity alone.
Initially, Halderman left a money-demand (in the form of a letter addressed to Dave) in the talk-show host's unguarded vehicle at the CBS parking facillity. After accepting, and attempting to cash a "fake" $2 million check (duh!), the disgruntled business associate was arrested a scant few hours later outside the CBS News offices on West 57th Street in New York City.
A spokesperson for the law enforcement agency which manipulated events behind-the-scenes under the full extent of the law - to establish grounds for an arrest on legitimate legal grounds - noted for the record that the extortion attempt was quite real in their minds.
A package that was handed off to Letterman, for example, underscored there were "clear, explicit and actual threats that indicated the defendant intended to destroy the reputation of Mr. Letterman and submit his and his family to humiliation and ridicule."
Meanwhile, industry-insiders have called attention to the fact that the sh** hits the old fan at a most inopportune time for Letterman.
In recent weeks, the Late Show has been trouncing rivals at the witching hour, and CBS was hoping the trend would continue on through the next ratings period.
Understandably, the suits at the network are wringing their hands in dismay.
Although Dave may have fallen from Grace - and disappointed a handful of fans, friends, and business associates in the process - it is doubtful, in my mind's eye, anyway - that the comic's poplularity will take a tumble.
In fact, it was reported on the news just this morning, that lines have been forming outside of CBS for tickets for tonight's show (Dave's first-day back to taping after his announcement on Thursday of last week).
Maybe that old axiom is true: there is no such thing as bad publicity.
If anything, the whole scandalous episode in his life has humanized the entertainer in the eyes of the public.
The once insightful social slash political commentator fell off his horse because of a problem with sexual addiction.
Not difficult to fathom when you consider that a stiff di** has no conscience.
Welcome to the club, Dave!
In closing, I am bestowing the flying fu** finger Award to Jeraldo Rivera for his skewered take on the issues on a segment of his show broadcast last night.
If you recall, Jeraldo's claims to fame are (1) he climbed between the sheets with Bette Midler many moons ago (2) uncovered an "empty vault" once owned by Al Capone (3) suffers persistent credibility problems in respect to his reporting skills.
Last night he did not disappoint; in fact, he pulled the biggest boner of all time.
In a nutshell, the ditzy has-been not only attempted to cast doubt on Letterman's actions - but actually inferred wrongdoing - on the aging Lothario's part.
"There must be something there," he mused to his invited on-air guests.
The experts, in question (emphasis), included one gentleman who worked alongside the perpetrator of the extortion attempt for a dozen-or-so years (who vowed that the TV producer was upstanding and forthright) and an attorney in the defendant's corner (he's preparing to lodge a defense on behalf of the accused in the upcoming legal proceedings) who not only sought to justify Halderman's actions - but also had the audacity - to try to wash away the notion of any criminal intent.
It was not until about two-thirds of the way through the irratating fiasco that one guest was finally inclined to remind everyone that Letterman was the actual "victim".
Yes, the press is always crying foul when a "victim" is blamed and/or accused of inviting the wrongful illegal conduct of another.
Why the full-frontal attack on Letterman in the wake of the disturbing revelations, then?
Letterman's only crime, if that, was that he poked fun at the indiscretions of others.
Now, he has "egg on the face", and is suffering from a heady dose of instant "bad karma".
However, it is important to note - that rather than shy away or hide from the truth - Letterman has faced the controversy head on.
That's the first step in the right direction.
I surmise that Dave's fans - a cynical lot - will stick by the "dude" nonetheless.
And, in the near future - compassionate intelligent TV viewers - will find it in their hearts to forgive, too.
A quote springs to mind which is highly appropriate:
"To err is human
To forgive Divine"
Amen!
No comments:
Post a Comment