11:42 PM EDT 11/24/2009
David Letterman
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David Letterman Suspect Seeks Dismissal of Case
Originally posted 11/10/2009 02:55PM
Suspended CBS producer Robert Joel "Joe" Halderman – accused of attempting to extort $2 million from David Letterman – appeared in a Manhattan courtroom Tuesday, where his attorney sought to have the indictment against him dismissed.
Defense attorney Gerald Shargel told reporters outside the courtroom, "There was no extortion. This was a commercial transaction, nothing more. [Letterman's] celebrity is why we are here today."
Also speaking with reporters, Letterman's attorney, Daniel Horowitz, said he rejects the notion of a "transaction," terming this a case of "classic blackmail … Dave Letterman is not on trial," he said. "He is the victim in this case."
Horowitz added, "Mr. Letterman is fully prepared to see this through to the end – including testifying at trial."
Permalink | Filed Under: Crime & Courts, David Letterman
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Ex-Staffer: Letterman Show a Hostile Work Environment
Originally posted 10/27/2009 07:00PM
A former female writer for David Letterman has provided a behind-the-scenes portrait of the show that is anything but funny.
In an essay published on the Vanity Fair Web site, Nell Scovell, who worked for Late Night with David Letterman for five months in 1990, says that, though she wasn't personally hit on by Letterman, the sexual shenanigans at the show eventually caused her to leave.
"I walked away from my dream job," she says. "I'd seen enough to know that I was not going to thrive professionally in that workplace. And although there were various reasons for that, sexual politics did play a major part."
Permalink | Filed Under: David Letterman
Kate Gosselin Wigs Selling Out for Halloween
Originally posted 10/21/2009 09:00AM
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If you feel compelled to snatch the hair off of Kate Gosselin's head, better act fast: Kate blonde wigs for Halloween are selling out in New York stores, according to Wednesday's Today show.
One of the replicas of the Gosselin 'do – described as "a reverse mullet" – made it onto the morning program's set, and then on to the crown of guest anchor Erin Burnett's head.
Also on display were two other best-sellers in the costume department: a mask of David Letterman, currently embroiled in an alleged extortion plot against him, and a mask of imprisoned Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff.
Permalink | Filed Under: David Letterman, Falcon Heene, Kate Gosselin
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Inside David Letterman's Love Life
Originally posted 10/15/2009 02:00PM
Nearly two weeks after David Letterman first revealed that he was the victim of an alleged $2 million blackmail plot – and shocked fans with his on-air confession that he had had sex with women who work for him – the veil over the Late Show host's previously super-private love life has lifted.
And, as friends and other sources reveal, that love life has always been both idiosyncratic – and messy.
While one source close to Letterman tells PEOPLE that Letterman's affairs – including an alleged liaison with his longtime assistant, Stephanie Birkitt – "pre-existed his marriage" to Regina Lasko last March, it is his marriage that Letterman will be working to shore up as he heads on vacation in the coming week.
Permalink | Filed Under: David Letterman
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University to Letterman: Hands Off Our Interns!
Originally posted 10/13/2009 08:10AM
David Letterman's days of frolicking with interns are over – at least as far as one Connecticut university is concerned.
Quinnipiac University says it will tell staff in charge of placing interns to be extra careful when sending students to the studio to work for Letterman, 62, who is currently at the center of a blackmail scandal over his alleged affair with one of his former interns.
"Due to recent circumstances we will have a discussion with those in charge of placing our interns at the David Letterman show in the future," the Hamden, Conn., school tells TMZ. "We will diligently oversee this internship program to ensure that our interns are out of harm's way."
So far, there has been no comment from the Letterman camp.
– Michael Y. Park
Permalink | Filed Under: TV News, Late Show With David Letterman, David Letterman
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Alleged David Letterman Blackmailer Spurred on by Jealousy
Originally posted 10/08/2009 12:00PM
It wasn't the $2 million he allegedly sought that prompted Joe Halderman to try to blackmail David Letterman – it was jealousy, according to a source.
In August, Halderman, 51, caught the talk-show host and his then-girlfriend, Letterman's onetime assistant Stephanie Birkitt, passionately kissing in a car in the driveway of the Norwalk, Conn., home Halderman shared with her, a source tells PEOPLE.
Letterman and Birkitt "were seen making out in the driveway in August," the source says. "He drove her home once a week. The interesting thing was he lives in North Salem, N.Y. Driving her home to Norwalk wasn't exactly the next town."
Permalink | Filed Under: Scandals & Feuds, David Letterman
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Stars Stand by David Letterman
Originally posted 10/06/2009 12:00PM
Now David Letterman knows who his friends are – and there are plenty of them.
At Monday night's New York City screening of the HBO documentary Good Hair, its star and co-director Chris Rock had nothing but the best to say about Letterman, blackmail scandal or no.
"He's the greatest host in the world," said Rock, 44, at the Cinema Society event sponsored by Target. "I would never make a disparaging comment about David Letterman."
Permalink | Filed Under: Chris Rock, David Letterman
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Report: Letterman's Alleged Lover Cheated on Boyfriend with Dave
Originally posted 10/06/2009 08:50AM
Though David Letterman said Thursday that his on-air comments would be all he was going to say about the alleged $2 million extortion plot against him, the topic permeated his CBS Late Show Monday night.
Now, the New York Post is offering further details of his behavior allegedly contained in the diary of former Late Show staff member Stephanie Birkitt – identified as the woman at the center of the Letterman scandal. According to the newspaper, Birkitt, Letterman's former personal assistant, wrote that she continued her affair with Letterman even after moving in with Robert "Joe" Halderman, the CBS producer now charged with attempting to blackmail the late-night host.
Permalink | Filed Under: David Letterman
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David Letterman Publicly Apologizes to His Wife
Originally posted 10/05/2009 05:40PM
David Letterman apologized to his wife Regina Lasko during a taping of his talk show Monday afternoon – his first appearance since revealing the alleged extortion plot against him last week.
"She has been horribly hurt by my behavior, and when something happens like that, if you hurt a person and it's your responsibility, you try to fix it," he said during his opening monologue. "At that point, there's only two things that can happen: Either you're going to make some progress and get it fixed, or you're going to fall short and perhaps not get it fixed, so let me tell you folks, I got my work cut out for me."
Letterman also noted what a tough time this has been for both current and past staff members of his production company, Worldwide Pants.
Permalink | Filed Under: David Letterman
Alleged Letterman Extortionist's Lawyer Clams Up on TV
Originally posted 10/05/2009 08:05AM
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While by now nearly everyone has heard David Letterman's side of the story – delivered in a 10-minute serio-comic Late Show monologue Thursday that seemed to come out of nowhere – not much has come from alleged extortionist Robert "Joe" Halderman, until now.
Not that much was made of the opportunity.
Appearing with Ann Curry on Monday's Today show, Halderman's attorney, Gerald L. Shargel, repeatedly promised that evidence would come out at trial that will exonerate his client, who is accused by New York prosecutors of trying to extort $2 million from the CBS host. But pressed for any information that might clear Halderman, Shargel offered nothing beyond further promises.
Permalink | Filed Under: Crime & Courts, David Letterman
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