David Letterman and his influence on comedy and the late-night talk show still looms large since he stepped down from The Late Show in 2015. Letterman has since moved on to various endeavors, including his Netflix show My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman.

However, past Letterman highlights have resurfaced as of late thanks to his revamped YouTube channel. Since being relaunched in February 2022, the channel has seen near-daily uploads of classic moments from both The Late Show and its predecessor Late Night. (Seriously, you could spend hours watching this channel!)

What better way to pay tribute to Letterman than by taking a look at the top ten videos on his YouTube channel with the most views. Enjoy!

What’s New With David Letterman?

Since leaving the late-night talk show world, Letterman remains very busy. Most notably, he’s partnered with Netflix on the series My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman. So far, the series has four seasons and five specials to make up 26 total episodes.

Letterman talks to a very diverse selection of people in this series, which centers around long-form interviews. The premiere episode was with former President Barack Obama. Letterman has also had sit-downs with Malala Yousafzai, Jay-Z, Kanye West, Dave Chappelle, Cardi B, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and more. He’s even had an intimate sit-down with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

In addition to his Netflix series, Letterman has also showed up on Disney+. He took part in a unique special titled Bono & the Edge: A Sort of Homecoming With Dave Letterman, which premiered in March 2023. The special has the U2 frontman and guitarist taking Letterman around their hometown of Dublin, Ireland. dditionally, the Disney+ special also features the U2 singer and guitarist in an intimate in-the-round setting for a performance.

In a press release statement, Letterman quips, “Recently, I won a radio contest. Winner gets to visit Dublin with Bono and The Edge (radio contest part not true, but I feel like a winner). They showed me around, introduced me to their musician friends, and performed some of their greatest songs in a small theater. It’s a great tour. Get in touch with them ― I’m told there are still availabilities. I’m the luckiest man on the planet. (There are no availabilities).”

“We wanted to strip away the artifice that inevitably emerges when you’ve been around this long,” says Bono in the trailer. The Edge adds, “We seem to thrive doing something that’s never been done before.”

• 10. Bill Hader Really Cracks Tom Cruise Up - 2.77 million views

  If you couldn’t tell by Bill Hader’s haircut alone, this clip is from October 2008. In the clip, Hader talks about being in the film Tropic Thunder and interacting with Tom Cruise. As expected, Hader’s stories about Cruise are hilarious. But then we get a story about him being a production assistant on an Arnold Schwarzenegger movie, and then the funny goes into overdrive.

• 9. Conan O'Brien Talks About Jay Leno - 2.82 million views

  Conan and Dave have a common foe in Jay Leno. The interview kicked off with an awkward moment of silence. Dave broke the silence saying, “I think the longer we just sit here, the more uncomfortable it will make Jay.” Conan replied, “You know Jay’s watching right now. He’s getting a live feed in a satellite truck right now.”

• 8. Stupid Pet Tricks: Dog Plays Dead - 3.16 million views

  It’s “Stupid Pet Tricks”! What more do you need to know?! Plus, now with the Stupid Pet Tricks show on TBS, the silly fun continues! What a time to be alive!

• 7. Dave Walks Out On Joan Rivers - 3.24 million views

  This interview from July 8, 2014 aired shortly after an interview Joan Rivers did with CNN that she ended up walking out of. After one of Joan’s “blue” jokes, Dave feigned disgust and walked off his set. Joan then began interviewing herself to much laughter from the studio audience. What a great moment between two comedy icons.

• 6. Jim Carrey On How Rich People Laugh - 3.27 million views

  In this clip, Jim Carrey was on The Late Show to promote The Mask. As with most Jim Carrey interviews, it doesn’t take long for things to go off the rails. Some of the best interviews are when you can tell Letterman is having a good time. And there’s no doubt he’s having a blast!

• 5. Mr. Rogers Talks About Meeting Eddie Murphy - 3.53 million views

  In this utterly charming clip that first aired on February 17, 1982, Mr. Rogers recalls meeting Eddie Murphy. At the time, Murphy was satirizing Mr. Rogers’s show on Saturday Night Live with the sketch “Mister Robinson’s Neighborhood.” To prove the two met, Mr. Rogers brought a Polaroid photo. Truth be told, it’s hard imagining Mr. Rogers lying, but you can appreciate his willingness to bring proof.

• 4. Joe Pesci Is Not Here To Amuse You - 3.54 million views

  This interview with Joe Pesci originally aired on April 29, 1994. It was a moment that proved Joe Pesci is exactly who you think he is. The fact that he accidentally dropped an F-bomb was icing on the cake. What a unique character! There aren’t enough like him in entertainment.

• 3. When Led Zeppelin Met Elvis Presley - 4.37 million views

  The surviving members of Led Zeppelin appeared on The Late Show on December 3, 2012. They were there to promote their live album Celebration Day and in the lead-up to them receiving the Kennedy Center Honors. Even Letterman seemed starstruck to see Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones on his set. When you make Letterman starstruck, you know you must be someone special.

• 2. Edward Norton Impersonates Marlon Brando & Robert DeNiro - 4.62 million views

  The clip of Edward Norton on The Late Show is from July 11, 2001. Norton was there to promote The Score, which also starred Marlon Brando and Robert DeNiro. The actor recalled working with the two film giants and even had solid impressions of both. Who knew Norton could do impressions?!

• 1. David Letterman Remembers Robin Williams - 4.92 million views

  The most-viewed video on his YouTube channel is Letterman paying respect to Robin Williams after the actor’s sudden death in 2014. Letterman and Williams went way back to their days as stand-ups at the Comedy Story in Los Angeles. The host shared some of his favorite memories of those early days when they were trying to make it in the stand-up world. The beautiful tribute is punctuated with a supercut of Williams’ funniest moments on The Late Show.

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