Dave Letterman

David Letterman has never been late night TV's most affable host, but during Justin Bieber's visit to “The Late Show” Thursday night, the host was in an especially cantankerous mood. Why the cranky demeanor? Blame it on the Beeb's new body art. The teen heartthrob commemorated the release of his new album, “Believe,” earlier this week with a new tattoo on the inside of his forearm. After spotting the fresh ink, Letterman wondered, “Oh God, how many do you have?

One of the most effective weapons in Dave Letterman's arsenal is his faux-naïve act. Unlike his rival Jay Leno, “The Late Show” host can be a relentless interrogator, but he often disguises his grilling with feigned obliviousness. Case in point: Wednesday's sit-down with Kim and Kourtney Kardashian, who were in town to promote their latest reality show, or maybe their new line of diet supplements, but really just themselves. Letterman dove right into the subject of Kim's messy personal life by pretending not to know much about it at all. “Now, you're still married to the former husband, Kris Humphries?

"Forrest Gump" may extol the virtues of a box of chocolates, but some critics and viewers of the Academy Awards ceremony Monday reacted as if they wished they had a box of rotten tomatoes for host David Letterman. The much-touted appearance of CBS' late-night ratings champion drew a bevy of thumbs down from critics who felt his jokes and antics were stupid host tricks that failed to pump much life into the 3 1/2-hour proceedings on ABC. But that view was not unanimous.

David Letterman has never been late night TV's most affable host, but during Justin Bieber's visit to “The Late Show” Thursday night, the host was in an especially cantankerous mood. Why the cranky demeanor? Blame it on the Beeb's new body art. The teen heartthrob commemorated the release of his new album, “Believe,” earlier this week with a new tattoo on the inside of his forearm. After spotting the fresh ink, Letterman wondered, “Oh God, how many do you have?

One of the most effective weapons in Dave Letterman's arsenal is his faux-naïve act. Unlike his rival Jay Leno, “The Late Show” host can be a relentless interrogator, but he often disguises his grilling with feigned obliviousness. Case in point: Wednesday's sit-down with Kim and Kourtney Kardashian, who were in town to promote their latest reality show, or maybe their new line of diet supplements, but really just themselves. Letterman dove right into the subject of Kim's messy personal life by pretending not to know much about it at all. “Now, you're still married to the former husband, Kris Humphries?

She survived Dave Letterman, unscathed and with dignity intact. Next up: Al Sharpton. Hillary Rodham Clinton, continuing the gantlet of New York celebrity politics, swapped one-liners with Letterman on Wednesday and seemed very much at ease before a loudly supportive audience. After weeks of playing cat and mouse with the host of CBS's "Late Show," she finally agreed to appear--and it was clear that Letterman was on his best behavior with the first lady, who is running for a U.S.

David Letterman's production company brokered an independent deal Friday with the Writers Guild of America that will allow "Late Show With David Letterman" and its sister program, "The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson," to return to the air Wednesday with their writing staffs. Under the interim agreement, Worldwide Pants Inc., which produces and owns both programs, signed on to terms sought by the union, the guild said.

Selena Gomez made Justin Bieber cry and bonded over it with David Letterman.  Gomez stopped by "The Late Show" Monday night to promote her upcoming film "Spring Breakers," which costars "genuinely creepy" James Franco as a rapper/drug dealer accosting spring breakers Gomez, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Benson and Heather Morris. But after the late-night host did his due diligence discussing the "cautionary tale" coming-of-age flick, he moved on to the onetime Disney star's love life.   "Do you date?

I See: Atty. Gen. Janet Reno appointed an independent investigator to look into the FBI's conduct in Waco. "Now I know what criminals mean when they say they got burned by the Feds." (Jay Leno) Look, Up in the Air: On an Air New Zealand flight, a passenger felt something crawling up her leg and discovered it was a rat. "Apparently, whenever this happens on Air Force One, people hope it's a rat."

When Dennis Miller goes up against Jay Leno and Arsenio Hall with his own entry into the oft-fatal late-night talk show sweepstakes, starting Jan. 20, he'll bring along a weapon that his more established, better-armed competitors lack: an edge. Miller's multiyear stint as the "Weekend Update" anchor on "Saturday Night Live" and his experience as a stand-up comic have established a niche for his hip sardonicism among the post-collegiate set. The nightly monologue in the post-"Nightline" slot promises to be both political and pointed.

David Letterman's production company brokered an independent deal Friday with the Writers Guild of America that will allow "Late Show With David Letterman" and its sister program, "The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson," to return to the air Wednesday with their writing staffs. Under the interim agreement, Worldwide Pants Inc., which produces and owns both programs, signed on to terms sought by the union, the guild said.

She survived Dave Letterman, unscathed and with dignity intact. Next up: Al Sharpton. Hillary Rodham Clinton, continuing the gantlet of New York celebrity politics, swapped one-liners with Letterman on Wednesday and seemed very much at ease before a loudly supportive audience. After weeks of playing cat and mouse with the host of CBS's "Late Show," she finally agreed to appear--and it was clear that Letterman was on his best behavior with the first lady, who is running for a U.S.

"Forrest Gump" may extol the virtues of a box of chocolates, but some critics and viewers of the Academy Awards ceremony Monday reacted as if they wished they had a box of rotten tomatoes for host David Letterman. The much-touted appearance of CBS' late-night ratings champion drew a bevy of thumbs down from critics who felt his jokes and antics were stupid host tricks that failed to pump much life into the 3 1/2-hour proceedings on ABC. But that view was not unanimous.