Comedians don’t often start crying at the end of a stand-up set but that’s exactly what happened last night as Norm Macdonald took to the stage to perform on the Late Show with David Letterman one last time. Letterman, 68, is set to retire next week and he will be leaving the show he has hosted for more than thirty years.
For many comedians, Letterman has been a source of inspiration; and that’s why, for Norm Macdonald, last night was not only an opportunity to do his stand-up routine one final time on the Late Show but also an opportunity to thank and pay tribute to a man who he has looked up to for years.
Macdonald’s set began like any other. After a lengthy interview with Oprah Winfrey, Letterman introduced the 51-year-old Canadian-born comic, who appeared on the stage and began joking about everything from LSD to cell phones and even Germany. Finally, Macdonald started talking about Letterman.
“Listen, folks, this will be my last time on the David Letterman show, I understand,” said Mcdonald. The audience sighed, which caused Norm to chuckle a little. He then continued by saying, “We all know that David Letterman was the greatest talk show host who ever lived.” The audience began applauding and cheering. Norm then started telling a story about the first time he saw David Letterman performing stand-up comedy. This is where things got emotional.
Macdonald was only able to utter a few words of the story before his voice started to crack and he was forced to take a pause. After he choked up a bit, Macdonald continued the story, saying that one of the jokes Letterman told during his stand-up set was still one of his favorite jokes. He the proceeded to tell the joke.
When the joke was finished, Norm began his heartfelt tribute. He mentioned that Letterman doesn’t care much for anything sentimental but he continued by saying, “if something is true it isn’t sentimental.” He then looked over at Letterman and, with another crack in his voice, said, “I say in truth, I love you.”
As the music began to play and the audience began to applaud, Letterman walked over to a very emotional Norm. The two embraced and Letterman ended the show.
Letterman’s final show will be on Wednesday, May 20.
