David Letterman is more optimistic about the United States after feeling melancholy over the pandemic

The New York Times

Letterman says he has particularly felt the impact of coronavirus from friends and colleagues. His son's teacher died of COVID-19 complications, and so did the husband of a former Late Show staffer. His bandleader Paul Shaffer and his wife both had it, as well as his longtime executive producer Barbara Gaines and her wife. Letterman said he felt "very sad" that so many people weren't taking coronavirus seriously. But Letterman says he's starting to feel optimistic. "Now I am confident — or more confident than I’ve been in the last four years — that we’re changing presidents in a couple of weeks. And it will be a huge victory," Letterman tells The New York Times. "Not just for our culture and our government, but the simple act of voting will have been the reason that the rest of our country is put back together and, in many ways, saved from what appears to be tyranny, certainly jeopardy. I think it will be a huge victory on many fronts, not the least of which is calling attention to the valuable freedom of voting." When the pandemic shutdown started, Letterman had only taped two episodes of My Next Guest Needs No Introduction. So he and his producers ended up proceeding with two episodes: one taped with an audience at Dave Chappelle's social-distancing friendly "camp" in Yellow Springs, Ohio and the first episode without an audience at Lizzos studio home. When it was pointed out to Letterman that he had Lizzo on The Late Show in 2014 years before her breakout success, he responded sarcastically: "Chronologically, you can make the case that I’m the reason for her success. And I think we — I think I, screw everybody else — I put her on the map. And I stand by that." ALSO: Watch Letterman talk to Chappelle about George Floyd.