The Best of Bill Murray Vs. David Letterman: One Comedy Legend Says Goodbye to Another
David Letterman’s very first guest—Bill Murray—was also one of his last. Watch a hilarious montage of Murray’s 43 (now 44) Letterman appearances over the years.
CBS
Bill Murray really knows how to make an entrance.
On Tuesday night’s penultimate episode of CBS’s Late Show with David Letterman, the celebrated comedian exploded out of a giant cake sporting the message “Good Bye Dave,” before giving his pal a big ol’ bear hug—smothering him in cake frosting in the process.
Thirty-three years ago, Murray was the very first guest on Letterman’s then-NBC late-night show (you can watch video of his appearance here). “I am going to make every second of your life, from this moment on, a living hell,” Murray joked on the first show.
He’s appeared on Letterman’s program a total of 44 times over the last 33 years, and to commemorate his good pal’s late-night retirement, the two took a look back at Murray’s litany of memorable Letterman appearances, from tagging Dave’s desk with graffiti and showing up dressed as a sideshow clown to swan-diving into an NYC dumpster filled with water.
“There’s only a small handful of people that can have a conversation with Dave on a certain level, who are really his equal,” said Rob Burnett, executive producer of Late Show. “To see Dave and Bill Murray, two comedy icons who share a mutual respect and genuinely like each other… hang back and have a conversation is in some ways better than anything we can prepare.”
Check out a fantastic montage of all of Murray’s Letterman gigs here: