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Show Thursday, February 12, 2009 Page 12 DAILY HERALD David Letterman doesn't only play it for David Bauder FHf. ASr0( 'A II D PRC; S t t(X)k all of seven seconds for David Letterman to cut Rod Blagojevich off at the knees during the disgraced politician's "Late Show" appearance ap-pearance last week. The episode was a reminder of Letterman's least appreciated appreci-ated skill. The monologue is fun, the "Top Ten" list an inspired in-spired creation, but often the best work on the "Late Show" comes when Letterman interviews inter-views the people invited to sit across from him. Letterman rarely avoids or glosses over difficult subjects, drilling in with a journalist's tenacity that he sometimes masks with a self-effacing at We have been Utah County UCarea faeomPmen- ,ary no-onngauv Best Value Pricing & Largest Selection in Utah On-site ft Mtmm IT M Iw SUw &m U 1 'ft m& Basememt? DOORS & MOULDING Phone 801-489-1111 - www.crdoors.net -Tt UT" v- T 1 ffij 1 JAPANESE SUSE titude, and sometimes not. Me uses rumor to lighten a mood or make a specific point. His personality rarely allows him to conceal what he's really thinking, setting him apart from most journalists. Many of those qualities were in evidence when the former Illinois governor stopped by on his impeachment media tour. "Why exactly are you here?" Letterman opened, summing up popular bewilderment about the impeached governor's appearance ap-pearance schedule. Blagojevich unwittingly served up a straight line, telling tell-ing Letterman that he had been wanting to be on his show in the worst way for a long time. "Well, you're on in the worst way, believe me," Letterman js f their SOT,e- Director of AudW & Hearing erv"- Building? responded. That was it. Blagojevich was impossible to take seriously from that moment. But they did settle into a serious conversation, conver-sation, and for an entertainment entertain-ment show, the "Late Show" came well prepared, playing a tape of Blagojevich and his brother talking about a payment. pay-ment. His administration is accused ac-cused of trying to shake down seekers of state contracts for campaign contributions. Blagojevich suggested many of the details used against him were taken out of context. "So, now, as I recall, there were 13 articles of impeachment impeach-ment leveled against you," Letterman said. "So you're telling tell-ing me each one of those was a misunderstanding?" David W. Swenson M.S. CCC-A Director of Audiology We offer a comparative evaluation of hearing aids in our Virtual Reality Suite. This enables you to compare different technologies and price points in our ofice. The most expensive hearing aid may not be what you need! 801-375-4146 1975 N. State Street (on Provo-Orem Hill) Provo mieresi nee Repair Financing Interest Free Later, Letterman used a laugh line to deflate another Blagojevich assertion that he had done nothing wrong. "Do you use shampoo or conditioner?" con-ditioner?" Letterman asked the helmet -haired politician. Letterman's show hearkens back to talk shows of old hosted by Jack Paar, Johnny Carson and Dick Cavett, where discussions often were more than just entertainers hawking hawk-ing their latest projects, said Neal Gabler, author and cultural cul-tural critic. As an interviewer, Letterman can cut through the thickets, he said. "He does to a limited extent with political interviews what he did earlier to a talk show in general, " Gabler said, "which is deconstruct it." Letterman rode John McCain McCa-in hard in last year's campaign, even after the GOP candidate acknowledged his error in canceling can-celing an earlier appearance. He confronted McCain directly about people in the candidate's past when the Republican talked about Barack Obama's associations. The talk show host also took a personal approach by asking McCain if he really thought Sarah Palin was the best person to be vice president. presi-dent. "In your gut, in your stomach you're a smart, tough, savvy guy if I were to run upstairs and wake you up in the middle of the night and say is this really the woman wom-an to lead us?" McCain said that she was. Letterman is equal in stature, or higher, to most everyone who comes on the show and this gives him a certain amount of freedom to break through convention, said Rob Burnett, one of the "Late Show" executive execu-tive producers. "He has an ability to take things in an odder and sillier direction than a journalist," Burnett said. "He can make points in very powerful ways by being funny." Probably the most enjoyable times are when Letterman has Most Awarded Rehabilitation Center In Utah County 5 i l'U Uvl t,U W f x- per visit WW for a JEFFREY R. STAABCBS Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich shares a laugh with host David Letterman on the set of "The Late Show with David Letterman" on Feb. 3 in New York. as guests celebrities who are better known for their names than for their talent. When Paris Par-is Hilton came on shortly after a jail stint, Letterman peppered her with questions about the food, her treatment, whether she got any exercise. He knew exactly what he was doing. "I've moved on with my life so I don't want to talk about it anymore," said an exasperated Hilton. "This is where you and I differ," dif-fer," Letterman said. "Because this is all I want to talk about." He skewered Spencer Pratt of "The Hills," particularly when Pratt talked about people paying him thousands of dollars dol-lars just to appear at their nightclubs. "Does he bring a pony?" Letterman said. "Have kids take a picture with it?" For a comic, Letterman; seems to have a greater seriousness seri-ousness of purpose after the past few years, since he had a son and major heart surgery. You can see it, Burnett said, . Department cf Health for 2003! Voted 1 in Utah 5 Years in a V All INCLUDED Sore Throat Cough Fever Labs X-Ray . Splinting "added fee for certain procedures. Call (801) 545-0606 for more information. limited time laughs in his greater interest in environmental envi-ronmental subjects or in bookings book-ings of guests such as Thomas Friedman, columnist at The New York Times. You can also sense it in Letterman's lack of patience with guests with whom he disagrees politically, when his pricklish personality emerges. It was most pointed in discussions discus-sions with Fox News Channel's Bill O'Reilly as they faced off over peace activist Cindy Shee-han; Shee-han; Letterman believed that O'Reilly was wrong in criticizing criticiz-ing a woman who lost a son in the war. "I have the feeling about 60 percent of what you have to say is crap," Letterman said. Such moments make for great TV but have a built-in risk. "There are times when you are going to lose the battle with particular viewers," Burnett Bur-nett said. "But, ultimately, I believe ... that you win the war. I think people respect someone who sticks to his guns." County Row! "OUR GOAL IS TO j RRIVATEROdMSi 'mm -Tl " Q ATOlHOimS MEDICAL "l" 7DaysaWeek.9am-9pm URGENT CARE 7; ilr.-.. . ..win n 4 |