Late Show with David Letterman: Season 2
Late Show with David Letterman Season 2 continues the overarching saga across 220 episodes. David Letterman uses mature humor to appeal to his audience in this weeknight series. The sixty-minute comedy talk show is broadcast at night on the American station CBS from the Ed Sullivan Theater. The series features David Letterman hosting his comedic talk show after moving to a new television network. He retains largely t
Season 2 Lore Primer
Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.
- David Letterman established his comedic talk show career hosting Late Night with David Letterman.
- The host and format transitioned from a previous network to a new television network, CBS.
- The program is established as a sixty-minute comedy talk show broadcast at night from the Ed Sullivan Theater.
- The host utilizes mature humor to appeal to his audience during the weeknight series.
Season overview
Late Show with David Letterman Season 2 continues the overarching saga across 220 episodes. David Letterman uses mature humor to appeal to his audience in this weeknight series. The sixty-minute comedy talk show is broadcast at night on the American station CBS from the Ed Sullivan Theater. The series features David Letterman hosting his comedic talk show after moving to a new television network. He retains largely the same format as his previous program, Late Night with David Letterman, continuing his work as a comedian and talk show host on the CBS television network.
Episode Guide
Season 2 Progress Shield
Show #0226
Sep 6, 1994
Throughout the night, an audience woman from Brooklyn kicks footballs.
Show #0233
Sep 15, 1994
""Dropping Stuff Off the 8th Floor Window"" includes: champagne bottles, confetti, a TV monitor, presidential plates, fluorescent tubes, and bowling balls into a bathtub of pudding
Show #0234
Sep 16, 1994
Dave comments on Robbie Kondor; a car alarm goes off outside the theater, so Dave goes outside and bombs the offending car; Chuck Berry sings ""Johnny B. Goode""; Zsa Zsa Gabor lam
Show #0235
Sep 19, 1994
Hal Gurnee harasses taxi drivers by posting their images on the Times Square jumbotron.
Show #0237
Sep 21, 1994
An audience member gives Dave a tiny pair of pants; Gavin MacLeod pops in several times, interrupting the monologue and presenting the Top Ten.
Show #0238
Sep 22, 1994
John Popper sits in with the band; Bill Murray tours Broadway; Macaulay Culkin promotes ""Richie Rich.""
Show #0249
Oct 7, 1994
Tim Allen promotes his bestselling book, Don't Stand Too Close to a Naked Man.
Show #0257
Oct 26, 1994
Two standby audience folks named Jenya and Gary are sent to take food to Dan Rather, courtesy of Rupert. Later, Mike Judge discusses his hit MTV show ""Beavis & Butt-head.""
Show #0260
Oct 31, 1994
Calvert goes trick-or-treating in Nutley, New Jersey (Martha Stewart's hometown); Lauren Bacall plugs ""Pret-a-Porter"" (Ready to Wear).
Show #0261
Nov 1, 1994
John Popper sits in; throughout the night, Mujibur and Sirajul appear as correspondents on Court TV; Elijah Wood plugs North.
Show #0263
Nov 3, 1994
Dave gets freshened up by a street sweeper; Rupert serves ""Bill Clinton Soup.""
Show #0268
Nov 11, 1994
Live via telephone, Jerry Lewis pronounces the new governor's name ""Puh-tack-ee;"" ""Picket Fences"" star Fyvush Finkel sings ""If I Were a Rich Man;"" The Cranberries perform ""Z
Show #0269
Nov 14, 1994
Dave selects a woman from outside named Laurie Byrd to be his co-host tonight; Biff and George Clarke recreate a scene from the hit CBS miniseries ""Scarlett.""
Show #0279
Nov 28, 1994
The outside cam reveals that Dave's picture in the window of Joe G's Pizza. Dave calls and distracts Joe while Paul steals the unflattering portrait; Jon Lovitz plugs North.
Show #0280
Nov 29, 1994
Roseanne makes a rare political statement; Dave's accountant Fred Nigro takes a bow.
Show #0281
Nov 30, 1994
Mujibur, Sirajul and Tony Randall take a photo together; tonight's celebrities in the audience: Mia Farrow, Eddie Murphy and Sharon Stone.
Show #0283
Dec 2, 1994
One of tonight's cue cards goes to a garbage truck outside; in the latest edition of ""Rupert and Me,"" Dave radios strange comments to Rupert, which are then repeated out loud to
Show #0284
Dec 12, 1994
Cold Opening: Jim Carrey and an unshaven Dave goof around. Later in the show, Mickey, the barber at the Wellington Hotel, shaves off Dave's beard.
Show #0287
Dec 15, 1994
Siskel and Ebert throw snowballs; Michael J. Fox walks onstage with a cow.
Show #0296
Dec 28, 1994
During ""Charts and Graphs,"" Dave sends an audience member down the street for copies of a chart. Also, Dave calls the mother of a different audience member, but he ends up leavi
Show #0297
Dec 29, 1994
A customer at Hello Deli shows Dave her holiday photos. Later, Dave checks his temperature (99.5 F).
Show #0298
Dec 30, 1994
Dave ends the show early yet again, and Paul finds him sobbing on the Ricki Lake show; Biff has champagne coming out of his ears; Dick Clark presents the Top Ten; Dave and Richard
Show #0301
Jan 4, 1995
Michael Buffer announces Phil Hartman's entry onstage; a comely postal carrier distracts Dave.
Show #0303
Jan 6, 1995
Dave autographs a ham; Calvert (dressed as Newt Gingrich's mother) presents the Top Ten.
Show #0307
Jan 12, 1995
An audience member hangs out in the band section; Mujibur and Sirajul become the latest witnesses to testify for O.J. Simpson.
Show #0315
Jan 31, 1995
Dave shows a (bogus) Super Bowl ad starring himself; Gerard presents ""Top Ten Signs You're Not the Sexiest Man Alive.""
Show #0327
Feb 16, 1995
Dave introduces the brand new ""Late Show Dancers,"" who prance around throughout the show. Also, 83-year-old Empire State Building employee Chico Chimone plays the piano.
Show #0329
Feb 20, 1995
Dave sends three members from the audience to go to a nearby movie theater to videotape some clips from Pulp Fiction. They return in time to show the footage during John Travolta's
Show #0331
Feb 22, 1995
Cybill Shepherd promotes her new sitcom; Gary Sinise brags about the perks of being an Academy Award Nominee.
Show #0332
Feb 23, 1995
Wayne Newton (live via satellite) presents the Top Ten; Michael McKean comments on the recent troubles on the set of ""Saturday Night Live;"" David Byrne and the CBS Orchestra perf
Show #0337
Mar 2, 1995
Bernie Worrell sits in; Al Roker does a weather forecast; Dave retrieves a blue card from ""Forrest Gump"" (Calvert); Jeff Goldblum tap dances.
Show #0339
Mar 6, 1995
Dave sends the standby audience to The Gap to purchase and wear matching outfits before they're allowed to return to the theater. By the end of the show, they are all wearing ident
Show #0340
Mar 7, 1995
On the first Letterman show ever aired on this date, Bill Cosby, Tito Puente, and Dave climb a ladder up to the balcony, and Luke Perry does a science experiment in place of bumped
Show #0343
Mar 10, 1995
Dave sends the standby audience to The Gap to purchase and wear matching outfits before they're allowed to return to the theater. By the end of the show, they are all wearing ide
Show #0347
Mar 20, 1995
Dave gives a girl in the audience named Amy money to buy spring flowers, and later her boyfriend (also in the audience) sings karaoke with Will Smith.
Show #0348
Mar 21, 1995
A woman in the audience bakes cookies for everyone; Conan O'Brien appears in Dave's latest Oscar-related dream; Dave gets his toupee dry-cleaned.
Show #0349
Mar 22, 1995
Throughout the night, Dave practices giving out Oscars, awarding achievements by Tony Randall, Doc Severinson (who's sitting in), Tony Mendez, a hi-ho girl, and Sirajul Islam (Muji
Show #0350
Apr 3, 1995
John Mayall sits in; Dave comments on his much-scrutinized performance as host of last week's Academy Awards.
Show #0351
Apr 4, 1995
Throughout the night, the legendary Ashton Family acrobats perform their greatest stunts outside on 53rd Street.
Show #0352
Apr 5, 1995
Dave spells Uma and Oprah with hot dog wieners, while Creepy Dave lurks in the backdrop during his interview with Bryant Gumbel.
Show #0353
Apr 6, 1995
At the end of tonight's ""New Books"" segment, Dave gives one of the phony manuscripts to a girl in the audience. Also, for no apparent reason, Gerard dances around onstage in a s
Show #0354
Apr 7, 1995
Two babes in the audience are observed with ""Marry Us Dave"" T-shirts; Dave, Calvert, and Biff sit around and do nothing for three minutes; Dave asks cab drivers what they thought
Show #0355
Apr 10, 1995
Dave invites the stand-by audience to his office and watch the show from there. Later, they're joined by Faye Dunaway and chef Wolfgang Puck.
Show #0356
Apr 11, 1995
Throughout the night, various staffers walk onstage to give Dave ""dramatic tension,"" while Robert Pastorelli explains his departure from the hit comedy Murphy Brown.
Show #0357
Apr 12, 1995
Mayor Guiliani and Dave agree to disagree on the new slogan for the New York Tourism Board; Drew Barrymore gives Dave a birthday surprise.
Show #0358
Apr 13, 1995
The New York Daily News, having headlined their paper with last night's Guiliani-chosen slogan, distributes miniature buttons to the audience reading ""We Can Kick Your City's Ass"
Show #0359
Apr 14, 1995
Two days after NYC's new slogan, ""We Can Kick Your City's Ass,"" reaches beyond the Hudson, Dave hears from mayors of other cities; Slash of Guns n' Roses fame sits in; a skit inv
Show #0360
Apr 17, 1995
Live Remote: Dave annoys both an H&R Block tax accountant and his mortified customer, who prefers to hide her face.
Show #0361
Apr 18, 1995
Dave selects five guys from the audience to compete in a basketball match outside on 53rd Street with five (alleged) New York Knicks. By the end of the show, the final score is Au
Show #0362
Apr 19, 1995
Dave complains that the cue-card Tony is holding is too small, so Inky replaces it with a giant banner; ten mayors of other cities present the Top Ten; a blue card is missing and s
Show #0363
Apr 20, 1995
An audience talent show is interrupted by Helen Reddy, who pops up several times throughout the show; later, she teams up with Blues Traveler to perform ""Hook.""
Show #0364
Apr 21, 1995
Tony Randall drops by to announce who tomorrow's guests will be, and Dave squirts him with a fire extinguisher. Later, Biff Henderson and Pat Farmer carry Tony outside and into a t
Show #0365
Apr 24, 1995
After word spreads to the media that he's losing his ratings edge over Leno, Dave wants to find out if people are still watching the show, so he displays his desk phone number on t
Show #0366
Apr 25, 1995
In tonight's live remote, Dave annoys customers down the street at the Sam Ash music store and invites Marcia to sit in with the band on alto sax.
Show #0367
Apr 26, 1995
David Sanborn sits in yet again; various New York Yankees present the Top Ten; Dave loses a blue card, then finds it at McDonald's.
Show #0368
Apr 27, 1995
The Flying Rat is introduced on the show during a segment called ""What's New for Spring""; in the same segment a small army of clowns attack Mujibur and Sirajul, then storm the La
Show #0369
Apr 28, 1995
Dave and Paul leave the show early to go over to Madison Square Garden for the circus, where they run into an acrobat bearing a strong resemblance to Calvert; the flying rat attack
Show #0370
May 1, 1995
All of tonight's guests (Marilu Henner, Kris Kristofferson, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, and Mario Van Peebles) are at Rupert's playing spin the bottle. Also, the f
Show #0371
May 2, 1995
The Giant Flying Rat is introduced via lasers and special effects just after being interviewed by Tom Snyder.
Show #0372
May 3, 1995
(Supposed) Audience requests are fulfilled in tonight's ""Who Asked For It?"" while Harry Connick Jr. promotes his new album.
Show #0373
May 4, 1995
Pete Fatovich attempts to kiss Paul again; the giant flying rat delivers the Top Ten list; Jake Johanssen discusses a recent trip to the supermarket.
Show #0374
May 5, 1995
The giant flying rat dons a sombrero; Dave leaves the show early to marry Drew Barrymore; a man gets kicked in the face by a racehorse; Dave and Paul go supermarket shopping.
Show #0375
May 8, 1995
Dave sends audience members Nico and Ingrid Van Eenennaan to London (to promote the show's visit next week) with a camcorder, root beer, and the Giant Flying Rat. Neither are seen
Show #0376
May 9, 1995
Jimmy Smits, a guest the night before, is seen in his hotel room naked, doing push-ups and watching TV in bed. Also, Paul quits to become a professional boxer, but he gives up and
Show #0377
May 10, 1995
The Dutch husband and wife from last night resurface for a brief moment; Paul wears a top hat and a tuxedo; Bruce Willis gets his head scrubbed.
Show #0378
May 11, 1995
Paul decides to have plastic surgery, then wakes up from the procedure with a conehead; Dave shows a clip of Pakistan's #1 sitcom, ""Seinjibur""; Hugh Grant promotes Nine Months.
Show #0379
May 12, 1995
Calvert mimics the Giant Flying Rat; Dave comments on preparations for next week's trip to London; Julianna Marguiles promotes the much-hyped season finale of ER.
Show #0380
May 15, 1995
The Late Show starts its week broadcasting from London. Ten London Guards bring Dave out onstage; Dave and Paul wreck havoc in the city; Elton John reacts to William Shatner's vide
Show #0381
May 16, 1995
London, Day 2: The new James Bond, Remington Steele star Pierce Brosnan, enters backstage with models and martinis; Little Richard and Chuck Berry sit in; Dave's mom reports from a
Show #0382
May 17, 1995
London, Day 3: ""London Souvenirs"" include a Prince Charles Ketchup Dispenser, a Bobby Helmet Bra, and a Tea Cannon, brought out by fake London guards. Also, Peter O'Toole enters
Show #0383
May 18, 1995
London, Day 4: Dave and Paul play soccer (or should I say football?) at Wembley Stadium; live via satellite from New York, Tony Randall trashes the theater; John Cleese presents th
Show #0384
May 19, 1995
London, Day 5: Dave repeats a monologue joke in a British accent; Salman Rushdie hands the Top Ten to Dave, and is presented by ten bobbies; Dorothy drops by to comment on her week
Show #0385
May 22, 1995
Cold opening: Dave belatedly thanks Drew Barrymore for her birthday ""gift"" last month. Also, Dave pays Mujibur and Sirajul to pummel Paul.
Show #0386
May 23, 1995
It's the debut of ""May We Turn Your Pants Into Shorts?"" Dave cuts up his own slacks before shredding the pants of Paul and Mel Gibson.
Show #0388
May 25, 1995
Clint Black sits in; candy is thrown at the audience; the Top Ten Office is relocated to an audience member's hometown of Glenn's Falls, New York; in honor of Ringo Starr, Paul, Da
Show #0389
May 26, 1995
Dave takes a bunch of sailors to a local watering hole; Mujibur and Sirajul visit Dorothy in Indianapolis; Dave bids farewell to longtime director Hal Gurnee by placing a plaque on
Show #0390
Jun 5, 1995
Cold Opening: Nicole Kidman asks Dave if he's drunk. Also, displayed by the window of an advertising agency across the street from the Ed Sullivan Theater is a giant toothbrush an
Show #0391
Jun 6, 1995
Indianapolis 500 champion Jacque Vileneuve races a NYC cab around the theater block in competition with NYC cabbie Buke Kadikiran; Dave shows (doctored) footage of Dan Rather repla
Show #0392
Jun 7, 1995
Biff delivers Dave in a golf cart; Dave and an audience member named Hal help choose the network's new slogan; a pyrotechnic exhibition is held in the backdrop.
Show #0393
Jun 8, 1995
It's time for a studio audience talent show, with friends and relatives of the performers swamping the backdrop. Shortly after his interview, Mike Myers joins the crowd.
Show #0394
Jun 9, 1995
Dave tells Rupert to bother people at a local bistro with his hidden mic; Dave chats with a woman that recently won $87,000,000 in the state lottery; head CBS executives ""Les Moon
Show #0395
Jun 12, 1995
Dave chooses a person off the street to tell their life story; the Top Ten Home Office moves to Grand Rapids, Michigan; Chris O'Donnell plugs Batman Forever.
Show #0396
Jun 13, 1995
Stephen Stills sits in; Dave ""attends"" a recent President Clinton press conference; basketball star/party animal Dennis Rodman comments on his recent antics.
Show #0397
Jun 14, 1995
Travis, a five-year-old golden retriever, has the ""Dog Cam"" attached to his head; John Turturro dresses up as Batman, then hands Dave the Top Ten list; Dan Rather talks about Con
Show #0398
Jun 15, 1995
Dave arrives at the theater in a police car; throughout the night, spelling bee winner Justin Carroll comes out to spell various ten-cent words; Dave chats with Robert Horry of the
Show #0399
Jun 16, 1995
Travis and the Dog Cam return; Englebert Humperdinck serenades Rupert; ten kindergarteners write and present the Top Ten.
Show #0400
Jun 19, 1995
Dave announces that this is show number 4000, but later admits he's off by a zero; John Denver performs the theme song to ""Supermarket Finds""; Alan King gloats over his grandkids
Show #0401
Jun 20, 1995
Dave invites both a cabbie and an audience member to jump into a rooftop swimming pool. They're later joined by two NYC cops and Bob Saget.
Show #0402
Jun 21, 1995
Shortly after a ""What's New for Summer"" segment, Dave hands hamsicles (or, if you will, cold ham on a stick) to the audience. Also, ""Batman"" (Calvert) hands Dave the Top Ten l
Show #0403
Jun 22, 1995
Cold Opening: ""ER"" star Anthony Edwards refuses to give Dave a physical. Also, Jonathan Katz does standup and promotes Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist.
Show #0404
Jun 23, 1995
Dave celebrates the fifteenth anniversary of the debut of The David Letterman Show by showing clips of the first broadcast; Biff interrupts Dave so that Corey Pavin (winner of the
Show #0405
Jun 26, 1995
Bernie Kopell storms out of the theater after ""The Love Boat"" is somehow mentioned twice in a Top Ten List about Hockey. Later, Dave chats with ""Coach"" star Jerry Van Dyke, wh
Show #0406
Jun 27, 1995
Dave invites a standby audience member to play ""Will You Eat the Meatloaf?"" Later in the show, Dave chats with Pete, the dishwasher at Hello Deli.
Show #0407
Jun 28, 1995
In an experimental comedy bit called ""Letters to the Editor,"" Dave reads a (bogus) note from Al Gore telling The New Yorker that he loves their cartoons.
Show #0408
Jun 29, 1995
Dave shows the audience an old photo of Morty with an afro, and then later shows a doctored photo of himself with a head-bush. Also, Dave helps Tom Hanks shave a beard he grew on
Show #0409
Jun 30, 1995
In a remote, Dave asks apartment dwellers, ""What's the Coolest Thing In Your Apartment?""
Show #0410
Jul 10, 1995
Jim Carrey, Andre Agassi, and Tom and Roseanne Arnold miraculously appear in the audience, Tom being both on stage and in the audience simultaneously. Also, Dave orders pancakes f
Show #0411
Jul 11, 1995
Dave says hello to viewers in France and Italy in their respective native tongues; during ""May We See Your Photos, Please?"" Dave demands to see photos of meat or nudity; Penn and
Show #0413
Jul 13, 1995
A small army of cyclists rush across the stage, while Dave and Pete Sampras play a pickup round of tennis out on 53rd Street.
Show #0414
Jul 14, 1995
After an admittedly lame remote on a ""Day In The Life"" of producer Robert Morton, he jumps into a giant bowl of pudding, followed by Dave. Later in the show, Paul, Laurie Diamon
Show #0415
Jul 17, 1995
Dave flashes back to how he stayed cool over the weekend by stuffing popsicles in his pants; a woman who picks up one of the pay phones at the kiosk outside the theater is chosen a
Show #0416
Jul 18, 1995
Dan Rather presents the Top Ten; Chevy Chase plugs Man of the House and talks tennis.
Show #0417
Jul 19, 1995
Ed Sullivan Theater Building Engineer George Clarke begins his ""Quest for Corn"" throughout the Midwest. He's off to Illinois.
Show #0418
Jul 20, 1995
Dave demonstrates a triple pencil flip; Rupert finds one of Dave's blue cards attached to Mary Tyler Moore's backside; Dave shows old footage of Andy Kaufman dancing with a giant s
Show #0419
Jul 21, 1995
Clarence Clemons of the E Street Band sits in; Dave offers an audience guy with an unruly beard $300 to shave it; Talent Assistant Zoe Friedham gets a tattoo; Dave gives the newly-
Show #0420
Jul 24, 1995
A ""Dumb Ads"" segment introduces Canadian filling station attendent Dick Assman. The entire North American audience immediately catches ""Dick Assmania."" Later, a monkey in the
Show #0421
Jul 25, 1995
Dave calls up Dick Assman; Ray Liotta arrives onstage riding a baby elephant, and later he makes a (bogus) appearance with Paul in the controversial new movie Kids.
Show #0422
Jul 26, 1995
Dave and Tony switch places for a few minutes; David Schwimmer is reunited with the monkey who played Marcel on Friends; Dave announces that ""Dick Assmania"" has officially swept
Show #0423
Jul 27, 1995
During a segment called ""Ask the Mayor,"" someone from the audience asks Rudy Guiliani, ""Is that a real hair piece?"" Also, a half-awake audience member opens himself to the fem
Show #0424
Jul 28, 1995
George Clarke's ""Quest for Corn"" finds him in Indianapolis with Dave's mom: 5 ears. Later, Nick Turturro and Dennis Franz stand in the green room with their pants down, while Pa
Show #0425
Jul 31, 1995
Dave gives $100 to an audience member after a monologue joke bombs; the show is interrupted for a ""Dick Assman Update""; father and son audience members Jim and JJ McMichael wave
Show #0426
Aug 1, 1995
Dave announces that CBS has just been bought by Westinghouse, then spends the rest of the show joking about it.
Show #0427
Aug 2, 1995
Dave chats with Mary Ann Dennis, whose dog stopped a man that tried to mug her.
Show #0428
Aug 3, 1995
During ""Stupid Pet Tricks,"" a small fish eats a worm whole. Meanwhile, Dave goes into a Westinghouse washer in spin cycle.
Show #0429
Aug 4, 1995
The final installment of ""George Clarke's Quest for Corn"" finds our hero at Hello Deli (five ears). Afterwards, George distributes an ear of corn to everyone in the audience.
Show #0430
Aug 7, 1995
Dave announces it's ""Christmas in August,"" with Glen Campbell singing a medley of holiday standards at Hello Deli.
Show #0431
Aug 8, 1995
Junior Brown sits in with the band; baseball star John Kruk talks about his recent retirement; Dave hectors a man on the street in a game called ""May I Taste Your Dinner, Please?"
Show #0432
Aug 9, 1995
The ""Dick Assman Update"" reveals that his popularity has hit fever pitch. Later, Christopher Walken promotes three new movies that are coming out within a month of each other.
Show #0433
Aug 10, 1995
Dave shows a ""highlight"" of last night's show: Dan Rather fondling Dave's butt.
Show #0434
Aug 11, 1995
In honor of an incident that resulted in a forfeit in the previous night's Dodgers-Cardinals game, audience members throw baseballs at Dave.
Show #0435
Aug 14, 1995
All night long, Rupert touches meat and is joined later by Kelsey Grammer, his then-fiancee, and a priest from the audience.
Show #0436
Aug 15, 1995
Dave claims that the chairman of Westinghouse has agreed to fight him. Later, Sonny Bono signs to Calvert's upstart record company.
Show #0437
Aug 16, 1995
During an interview with Isabella Rosselini, a guy on fire runs around the stage. Later, Bjork and the CBS Orchestra performs ""It's Oh So Quiet.""
Show #0438
Aug 17, 1995
Paul is introduced as ""Johnny Lavaggi;"" Dave shows a (doctored) clip of Monica Seles grunting; David Brenner does stand up.
Show #0439
Aug 18, 1995
Dave bids a fond farewell to his announcer, while Dick Assman also makes one last appearance.