After almost 17 years and thousands of broadcasts in the late night business, David Letterman remains one of the most durable and influential personalities in the history of television. With the exception of Johnny Carson, who hosted The Tonight Show for 30 years, Letterman has had the longest run in late-night television.

On Aug. 30, 1993, The Late Show with David Letterman made its debut, and quickly went on to become one of the most talked-about and critically acclaimed programs of the year. Five years later, The Late Show continues to deliver inventive and imaginative comedy night after night. In 1998, the program earned its second Emmy Award as Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Program. Letterman's first network break was in 1978 on the CBS variety series Mary, starring Mary Tyler Moore. In November of that year, he made the first of his 22 appearances on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. He also guest hosted Tonight numerous times.

In 1980, Letterman began hosting an Emmy-winning morning comedy-variety program, The David Letterman Show, which ran for three months on NBC. Late Night with David Letterman premiered in February 1982. Throughout its 11½ years, Late Night was critically acclaimed and won many awards, including five Emmys, and was nominated for scores more.

Both Late Night with David Letterman and CBS’s the Late Show with David Letterman have earned countless awards, including eight Emmy Awards and 56 Emmy nominations (The Late Show alone has received 20 nominations and won three Emmy Awards, including two Emmy's in 1994 and 1998 as Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Program). In 1992, Letterman was honored with a George Foster Peabody Award for taking one of TV’s most conventional and least inventive forms -the talk show- and infusing it with freshness and imagination. In addition, Letterman's morning program, The David Letterman Show, won two Emmys and was honored with five nominations.