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Letterman's Top Ten Gag Endures After 500 Shows

Steve O'Donnell, the head writer for Late Night with David Letterman, writes many of the program's top ten lists. A new book compiles the best of these, called, simply, The Late Night with David Letterman Book of Top Ten Lists.

10:52
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Other segments from the episode on October 9, 1990

Fresh Air with Terry Gross, October 9, 1990: Interview with Blaine Harden; Commentary on John Lennon's musical influences; Interview with Steve O'Donnell; Review of John Updike's novel "Rabbit at…
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06:07

John Lennon's Early Influences

On the occasion of what would have been the Beatle's 50th birthday, rock historian Ed Ward considers what bands and song may have influenced Lennon before he started his legendary group with Paul McCartney.

Commentary
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03:56

John Updike Brings Rabbit to Rest

Book critic John Leonard reviews the fourth, and final installment in John Updike's Rabbit novels, Rabbit at Rest. Leonard says the first book was nearly perfect; this one is too concerned with capturing every aspect of the 1980s -- whether or not those references serve the story.

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Transcripts are created on a rush deadline, and accuracy and availability may vary. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Please be aware that the authoritative record of Fresh Air interviews and reviews are the audio recordings of each segment.

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20:54

TV 2009: David Bianculli On The Best ... And The Rest.

The economy may have hit the broadcast business hard, but TV critic David Bianculli says the future is looking bright — for cable, anyway. He joins Terry Gross to talk about the best and the worst television of '09 and what we can look forward to in '10.

Interview
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10:10

Veteran Television Announcer Bill Wendell.

Veteran television announcer Bill Wendell retires this week after 37 years at NBC. Wendell is currently the announcer for "Late Night with David Letterman." He's famous for adding the long "A" in his introduction "Here's...Daaay-vid Letterman" Wendell also emceed several games shows and was the Tonight Show announcer in 1956 and 1957.

Interview

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