NEWS JUNKIE POST
Oct 7, 2009 at 3:46 pmLate Night Shakedown
Why is everyone talking about the sex-ploits of late night lothario David Letterman and not his sleazy would-be extortionist Joe Halderman, who to borrow a word from Dave’s lexicon bears a “creepy” resemblance to the infamous BTK killer? I’m guessing it has something to do with both celebrity and the fact that most people may have experienced or fear (or maybe wish) they could engage in work place romance. On the other hand, most of us aren’t in the lofty position to worry about potential blackmailers.
As a note of disclosure: I count myself among the 58% of women who supposedly comprise Letterman’s audience. Recently, I’ve been more of a casual viewer than an avid one (though my viewership, along with everyone else’s has been up since last Thursday). I’ve been a Letterman fan since I was a kid and my sister and I would send in letters replete with shocking Polaroids of a Paul Schaffer look-a-like teddy bear we were sure would garner us a spot on the old “Viewer Mail” segment. Never happened. But I’ve long transferred all that bitterness and resentment to disappointing old boyfriends and bosses.
Ah, the “B” word. It’s Dave’s status as a boss that has him in hot water with the women who are mad at him (my unscientific survey of e-mailers and radio callers shows about a 50-50 split between Dave dumpers and supporters) and national media scolds. Even though none of his conquests –all interns or assistants many years his junior—ever filed a sexual harassment complaint against him, the mere fact that he was the boss put all those relationships in an tawdry light. A snarky columnist for the New York Post has called on CBS to immediately axe him. Facebook friends of Sarah Palin are chirping similar sentiments.
The cable TV pundits are weighing in nightly on his motivations and fate. National scold Jane Velez Mitchell offered her arm-chair diagnosis. “I see a pattern here,” the inexplicably loud (don’t have to shout, Jane, they’ve invented a nifty thing called the microphone) self- promoter said on her HLN show. “Here’s a man who has the most beautiful and glamorous women in the world come on his show and he goes after young women on his staff…. I have a theory… he has low self-esteem.” Maybe. Or maybe he really connected with these young women, many of whom are average looking plain Janes. Makes sense as I’ve always found Dave’s sex appeal to lie somewhere between that of Pee Wee Herman’s and Michael Moore’s (just which side of that spectrum is sexier is in the eye of the beholder).
His old girlfriend, Merrill Markoe—who was the head writer of his old NBC show—wrote on her blog: “I’m disappointed because Dave promised me I’d be the only woman he’d ever cheat on.” A funny quip, from a funny woman. Say what you will about Letterman and this whole mess, but his shows have always featured a greater number of women writers and producers than most other late night and comedy shows. And many of them stay with the show for years. So the environment Letterman fosters—insiders have said—is a positive one for women.
Even the venerable National Organization of Women has chimed in. Though NOW falls short of calling for Dave’s dismissal, it would like to see CBS provide “some kind of action.” Don’t hold your breath. For one thing, Letterman isn’t a CBS employee. He works for his own company—the aptly named Worldwide Pants—and according to a statement he hasn’t violated any of their policies. And CBS president Les Moonves had an affair with Julie Chen while he was married, eventually divorcing his wife and marrying the much younger anchor. So unless some truly creepy developments emerge, don’t expect any action from the Tiffany network.
Here’s the thing to keep in mind: Letterman admitted to engaging in multiple relationships with employees. But they were all consensual relationships with consenting adults. That the women were all subordinates and most were twenty plus years younger than Dave ( his wife Regina Lasko, a former Late Show assistant is twelve years younger) may offend some sensibilities but the actions are not illegal.
But Joe Halderman—the desperado 48 Hours producer—allegedly did commit a crime. For its part, CBS has suspended him. And his lawyer Gerald Shargel has made the rounds of the morning news shows offering veiled threats hurled towards Letterman. We don’t, he contends have the whole truth. More to come. He can’t wait to cross-examine Letterman.
I wonder if Dave’s sorry he didn’t pay the thug off. TV legal eagles have offered a mixed mélange of advice. Some say Dave was right to expose Halderman through the Manhattan D.A.’s sting operation. Others like celeb attorney Mark Geragos thinks it would have been wiser to “make the thing go away.” Not pay the slime off, but “educate him,” Gergagos offered on Larry King Live. “I’ve had over a dozen such cases, and you make it clear to these people and their lawyers that they don’t want to commit a crime. You don’t pay them a cent, and they do go away.”
Too late for that now. Still, there’s an upside to every scandal. This one has earned Dave ratings gold. His ratings—already higher than they’ve been in years thanks to that Sarah Palin joke and NBC’s misguided late night switcharoo which left Conan O’Brien at the helm of The Tonight Show—continue to spike. Keep apologizing, Dave. Not sure if it’s working at home. But it’s winning points with the home audience.
I actually was thinking about this last night and wondering – who did it best serve for this to happen? They were comparing Letterman and Bill Clinton – Halderman and Linda Tripp on Chris Matthews last night and I had to think – is there more in common here than meets the eye? Would getting Dave to pay hush money have really given the Sarah Palin fans something to nail him with later? Maybe setting him up to pay the blackmail was the real goal. I’m not a conspiracy theorist (usually) but just a few weeks ago women were protesting outside of Dave’s offices crying into the cameras and saying he “rapes children with his words” (garbage) so, what got Halderman to make this move now? Why the emphasis on the age of his girlfriends? hmmm….