Evil Dave Letterman
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Dave Van Dam (more well known as Evil Dave Letterman or simply Evil Dave) is a semi-regular guest on the Howard Stern Show. With only a minor adjustment, Dave has the ability to accurately impersonate the voice of late night talk show host David Letterman, which is used to comedic effect on the Stern show. Dave is also a member of the Wack Pack.
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[edit] Howard Stern Show
[edit] First Appearance and Reaction
Dave's first appearance on the Stern show was on 8th December, 1999 whilst Stern was working on terrestrial radio. Dave used his Letterman impersonation to call in the studio, and made jokes about the real Letterman's rival host Jay Leno, as well as lines that the real Letterman would not normally say. Following his first appearance, Howard was so impressed with Dave's impression that he made him call back on the very next show and discussed future plans and scripts with him. Dave was also mentioned in the day's edition of New York Daily News.
[edit] Studio Visits
Dave would continue making studio calls every few months, until Dave was invited live in the studio on 27th July, 2001 where Dave took part in The Gossip Game, a weekly show segment, under the identity of "David E. Letterman". To this date, Dave would continue to make occasional studio visits every few months, his first under the "Evil Dave" identity on 19th September, 2001 just a week after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
When visiting the Stern show, Dave is given lines by the show's staff to use his Letterman impersonation for all the 'wrong' reasons. It is these lines that are often, if not always of a rude, pornographic, paedophillic, racist, homophobic or anti-Semite nature. Each time Dave appears in the studio, he has had an assistant by him to direct when and what he should say. On Sirius, this job is taken by show staffer Will Murray.
Dave is usually given time to practice reading the lines given before his scheduled visit, but due to Dave's tendency to mispronounce words on-air as a result of a reading difficulty (in 2001 Dave was given reading lessons to improve his delivery) this as a result ruins the punchline. Although this is well received and all adds to the humorous act, particularly to show member Artie Lange.
Dave's impersonation has been used in various prank calls to fool those for the real Letterman, including George Takei and Riley Martin.
[edit] Show Segments
As well as his studio visits, Dave is usually used to record voice overs, sound clips and prank calls, which are then used by staff members Richard Christy and Sal Governale to create funny clips and segments with the recordings.
Dave has also been used for various spoof public service announcements on the Stern show, where it seems that Dave takes the matter seriously. For example, Dave was asked to send a message to all Stern fans that had survived the Holocaust, or to parents who have a retarded child.
After his 12th September 2007 studio visit, staff member Richard Christy wrote and had Dave perform a list called "Top Five Reasons why I'm voting for Hillary Clinton." Unbeknownst to Dave, each item on the list featured one word that was completely made up by typing random keys on a computer, explained to him as slang terms used by Stern Fans. His attempts to pronounce these nonsensical words combined with his general problems with pronunciation made this a classic bit. The clip was first played on the 19th September, 2007 show.
- 5. Her husband Bill is a Flryongeavcerxwsa.
- 4. I love the smell of her Cooczjiniskimw
- 3. Because Barack Obama doesn't know Vrwondzska from Cucumbers.
- 2. Have you ever tried to drive a Mazklugerzzwq?
- 1. I can't stand when she Urethramskatizes!
[edit] The Newly-weird Game
On 1st April, 2008 Dave took part in a Stern show segment called "The Newly-weird Game", a parody off the TV show The Newlywed Game and competed with show announcer George Takei and his partner Brad and Blue Iris, and her ex-husband Ron. Dave brought along his girlfriend Angie, who to everyone's surprise in the studio, didn't think she was his real girlfriend.
At the end of the game, Dave and Angie actually won with a total of 3 points, and also $5,000, to everyone's surprise. To prove that they were actually a couple, they both kissed twice and also talked about their relationship further on the The Wrap-Up Show.
During the post-game wrap-up, Dave was asked about their age difference. He replied "I'm 49 and she's 28".
Throughout his appearance, Dave was not putting on his Letterman voice, thus showing further his true personality.
[edit] Trivia
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- In February 2008, Dave used his Letterman impersonation and starred in Family Guy episode "Back to the Woods".
- Dave won $5,000 after winning "The Newly-weird Game" with his girlfriend Angie.
- On 16th October, 2002 Dave won a Lifetime Achievement Award as part of Stern's "F-Emmy" Awards
- Dave has never actually met the real David Letterman, although he once became close whilst Stern appeared on the Late Show and Dave was being held on the phone.
- Away from the Stern show, Dave has had a previous job of working as a receptionist at a blood bank
- Dave has two daughters, and is currently in a new relationship with his girlfriend Angie following his divorce.
- Dave has described his physical appearance as like Edgar Winter.
- Dave was featured in Day 2 of "Dracula Gottfried Meets the Wack Pack", a special show broadcast on Howard 100 whilst the crew were away on vacation. It was a clip from the Stern show on 19th January, 2000 when Dave had just begun calling into the show as the real David Letterman.
