On June 23, 1980, Letterman was given his own morning comedy show on NBC, The David Letterman Show. It was originally 90 minutes long, but was shortened to 60 minutes in August 1980.[44] The show was a critical success, winning two Emmy Awards, but was a ratings disappointment and was canceled in October 1980. This show, however was a One-off gag not aired in the morning, but returning to the Morning Show format, three years after Late Night with David Letterman had begun in 1982. This occurred on 2-27-1985. Its the "Morning Show" special, as Dave and his co-host "Tawny Harper Reynolds" simulate a typically vapid network morning program. Larry Bud gives the traffic report, while Dr. Henry gives the weather. Also, while exercising on the floor, Carol Channing repeatedly exposes her underpants to the camera.

Does anyone know of any collectors who may have any of these old David Letterman Morning shows from 1980 in their collection? I would love to obtain any and all and would even be willing to transfer to DVD at no cost to the owner if interested. This was by far the funniest show on TV up to 1980, though it didn't find an audience at that time slot. I was in college and watched faithfully everyday and was so blown away by content and the deadpan deliveries.It is a shame, given that it was on TV only a few months that these didn't make it to DVD commercially.

I too have fond memories of this show from my childhood, which few people my age or of any age seem to remember. In fact, when he got the nighttime show my reaction was, "Hey, that's the guy who was on that cool morning show that got canceled." I was 9 years old the summer that Letterman had this morning show, and the absurdist humor and out-of-ordinary guests were fascinating to me. It was unlike any other "talkshow" on TV at that time. I remember one show in particular where Dave admitted the show's ratings weren't high and so he took a studio TV monitor and surfed through the channels and begin describing what was currently airing on all the other stations in case viewers at home would rather watch something else.

Although this program did not remain on the air past the first season, it is interesting to note that Dave has won Emmy's at each of the three shows he has hosted. A winner then, a winner now.By contrast, Leno has only won one non-technical Emmy in six years on the air - Dave has won best series two years in a row.