Bena Mae’s Kitchen: What will I do at 11:35 p.m. every night?

What will I do at 11:35 p.m. every night?

David Letterman is a national treasure. As his 33-year career starring in his own late night talk show comes to an end, I am sad to see him go. My feelings are not unlike those I had when Johnny Carson left The Tonight Show back in 1992. An era is over and there is nothing left to fill the void.

As an audience, we watched Dave as he threw watermelons off of buildings in New York, strapped a camera to a roller-skating monkey, hosted Jungle Jack Hanna with his menagerie of wild animals that he never seemed too sure of, and grilled politicians until they were slightly charred. And, Dave did all this while using his gap-toothed grin to hide his true feelings about anything. Yet, he always seemed genuine. His Midwestern sensibility, like Johnny Carson’s, seemed a perfect fit for late night television viewing. In time, his ,slightly skewed, erratic, unpredictable type of humor, and honest sensitivity grabbed us by the throat and never let go.

He seemed most at ease with the dogs that came on for Stupid Pet Tricks like the ones that could exercise on a treadmill, play dead, walk around with a paper bag on its head, or drink from a cup that it held. At other times, he seemed as if being in front of a television camera was the last place on earth he wanted to be. Always, however, he was authentic. Sometimes he seemed grumpy, sometimes he was happy. Just like real people.

The first time I ever saw David Letterman, he was doing a stand-up routine on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. After he finished, Johnny invited him over to sit down which apparently was a big deal. Letterman continued being hilarious and you could tell that Johnny Carson was delighted with this guy. Over the years, Carson had Letterman on his show countless times and had Dave guest-host many times. In the early 1980’s, Carson Productions gave Letterman his own show following the Tonight Show. David made a success of it for over 11 years only moving to CBS and The Late Show in 1993 after he was passed over by NBC for The Tonight Show hosting job.

When he moved to CBS, he continued what Carson had started. He showed a healthy regard for the actors of the generation before him like Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau, Paul Newman, Peter O’Toole and many others by having them on his show time after time, giving them a platform to tell their stories and introducing them to a new generation of fans. Old school comedians like Don Rickles also had a vaunted space on Dave’s show.

He respected these people and it showed.

For the last 22 years, I have watched Letterman night after night continuing to do what he does best: Skewer the powerful, deflate the pompous, ridicule the holier-than-thou………all while maintaining an air of “Oh, well, what are you gonna do about it?” Even the nights of his show that I missed, I was happy to know that he was still out there on the airwaves entertaining millions as they drifted off to sleep.

There is presently a collective pall over Late Night viewers as Letterman retires. The question on everybody’s mind is ‘what is he going to do now?’

But more importantly, “what are WE going to do now?”

Thank you David Letterman.

 Blueberry and Pear Cobbler

 An easy pear and blueberry cobbler recipe made in the microwave with a granola walnut topping 
 
Ingredients
1 can (15 oz each) sliced pears in juice,
    drained
1/2 cup fresh blueberries or frozen, rinsed
    and drained
2 tablespoons Parkay      
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup low-fat granola without fruit
3 tablespoons chopped walnuts
Reddi-wip® Original Dairy Whipped Topping

Directions
Combine pears, blueberries, Parkay and cinnamon in microwave-safe 2-1/2-cup dish or shallow casserole. Sprinkle with granola and walnuts.
Microwave on HIGH 3 to 4 minutes or until blueberries are tender and mixture is bubbly. Top each serving with Reddi-wip just before serving.