June 25, 1993 –
David Letterman’s series Late Night with David Letterman aired for the last time on NBC-TV on this date. Letterman began hosting Late Show with David Letterman on CBS in August 30, 1993.
Letterman left Late Night in 1993 for Late Show with David Letterman on CBS when NBC give the Tonight Show to Jay Leno following the departure of Johnny Carson in 1992. However, NBC refused to allow Letterman to use elements that made the show famous such as “Larry ‘Bud‘ Melman” or “The Top Ten List“. NBC claimed those bits were their “intellectual property“. “The Top Ten List” was renamed “Late Show Top Ten” and “Larry ‘Bud‘ Melman” used his real name, Calvert DeForest.
