For the first time since Robin Williams committed suicide last Monday, David Letterman hosted a new edition of The Late Show.
And the comedian took a full 10 minutes of air time to pay tribute to his late friend, who Letterman had known for 38 years at the time of Robin’s death.
"He was on our show, this show and the old show, a total of nearly 50 times," Letterman said. "Two things would happen because Robin was on the program. One, I didn’t have to do anything. All I had to do was sit here and watch the machine.
"Two, people would watch! If they knew Robin was on the show, the viewership would go up because they wanted to see Robin. Believe me, that wasn’t just true of television, I believe that was true of the kind of guy he was. People were drawn to him because of this electricity."
Letterman also included a montage of clips from Williams’ appearance on his program and choked up after they aired, telling the audience:
"Beyond being a very talented man, and a good friend, and a gentleman, I’m sorry, like everybody else, I had no idea that the man was in pain, that the man was suffering. What a guy, Robin Williams."
Earlier in the week, a one-minute Robin Williams tribute all made its way around the Internet.
We continue to send our condolence to his loved ones.
