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Leno: Ambitious; Letterman: Funny
July 16, 1997 New Yorkers have been treated to a couple of billboards that graphically illustrate the difference between NBC's Jay Leno and CBS's David Letterman. NBC placed a billboard atop a building on Broadway featuring a straight-faced Jay Leno and a huge "#1 in Late Night!" plastered beside him. Letterman, whose Late Show is taped at the Ed Sullivan Theater on Broadway, has posted a response up the street that perfectly captures the host's self-deprecating style. The CBS billboard is exactly like NBC's, except Letterman bears a goofy grin and the text reads "#3 in Late Night!" Letterman's show has lately been falling behind Leno and ABC's Nightline. Late Show producer Rob Burnett says their reasoning behind the billboard was simple: "We put it up there for the same reason we do everything else--it made us laugh." |