Posted Nov 16th 2009 7:00AM by TMZ Staff
David Letterman's people made a bold statement this weekend -- not every supermarket tabloid story about Dave's marriage is true.
One of Dave's reps flatly denied a recent report in the National Enquirer, which explained how Dave's wife threw him out of their Westchester mansion -- over that whole affair/extortion thing -- and is now living in a loft in Manhattan.
Letterman's rep tells the Daily News, "The National Enquirer has it wrong."
Whatever. That alien is totally pregnant with Elvis' love child.
Filed under: Gossip/Rumors, David Letterman
Tags: daily news, DailyNews, david letterman, DavidLetterman, extortion, national enquirer, NationalEnquirer, plot, wife
Posted Nov 11th 2009 9:20AM by TMZ Staff
David Letterman was offered $2 million for the "screenplay" of accused extortionist Robert Halderman, and all the stuff about sexual impropriety is the reason the treatment went at a premium price -- this according to a new interview by Halderman's lawyer.
Attorney Gerald Shargel was on "The Early Show" this AM, saying he was giving Dave the right of first refusal for the proposal. Shargel says it's a business transaction -- the way Hollywood works.
So the question ....
Filed under: Celebrity Justice, TV, David Letterman
Tags: david letterman, DavidLetterman, gerald shargel, GeraldShargel, robert halderman, RobertHalderman, the early show, TheEarlyShow
Posted Nov 10th 2009 1:37PM by TMZ Staff
David Letterman was having an affair with his former personal assistant way more recently than David's rep had us believing -- according to documents filed by the alleged extortionist's lawyer.
According to legal papers filed today by the defense, Robert Halderman confronted Stephanie Birkitt in December 2008 with evidence of the affair and she promised to end it. But Gerald Shargel, Halderman's lawyer, claims the relationship continued "unabated" into this past summer.
Letterman's rep has said the affair ended before Letterman's marriage in March. Dave blew the whistle on the alleged extortion plot in early September.
Today Letterman's lawyer refused to say when the talk show host broke off his affair with Birkitt. Halderman's lawyer was coy outside court about the Letterman/Birkitt relationship and said we'll be hearing a lot more about this.
In court papers filed today, Halderman's lawyer asked the judge to dismiss the extortion case, on grounds authorities were swept up in "the sensationalism surrounding the indictment" and the grand jury didn't have enough evidence to target Halderman.
The lawyer claims the $2 million demand was "a pure commercial transaction" over a screenplay.
Filed under: Celebrity Justice, David Letterman
Posted Nov 10th 2009 10:03AM by TMZ Staff
David Letterman's accused extortionist, Robert Halderman, is asking the judge to dismiss the extortion case against him.
In papers filed with the court, Halderman's lawyer wrote, "The sensationalism surrounding this indictment, fueled by the celebrity of the purported victim and the deference paid to that celebrity by the District Attorney's Office, has swallowed the only pertinent issue ...."
The issue: Whether the grand jury had sufficient facts to support the extortion case.
The lawyer, Gerald Shargel, also states Halderman "discovered evidence that Letterman had created and fostered an environment of workplace sexual misconduct that under any definition, amounted to actionable sexual harassment."
The lawyer says this was not extortion, calling it "a pure commercial transaction." The lawyer says Halderman was merely trying to sell the exclusive screenplay rights to Letterman.
The lawyer says Halderman even insisted on getting a written agreement -- something extortionists generally don't do.
In addition to the motion for dismissal, Halderman's lawyer is asking to inspect the grand jury minutes. And, he wants the items seized from Halderman to be suppressed as evidence.
And there's this ... Attorney Shargel claims the relationship between Letterman and Stephanie Birkitt continued through at least last summer.
Filed under: Exclusives, David Letterman
Tags: case, court, david letterman, DavidLetterman, dismiss, extortion, grand larceny, GrandLarceny, late show, LateShow, robert halderman, RobertHalderman
Posted Nov 10th 2009 12:50AM by TMZ Staff
Robert Halderman -- the guy accused of trying to extort $2 million from David Letterman -- is getting the ultimate vote of sympathy from his friends ... we're told they've chipped in to pay over a quarter of his mega legal bill.
Sources inside CBS tell TMZ friends and co-workers are raising money to help pay Halderman's $200,000 legal bill ... so far they've anted up around $50,000.
We're told some of the staff at "48 Hours" refuse to believe their colleague is guilty of extortion ... and if he is guilty, it's because he cracked over money issues surrounding his divorce.
For Halderman, friends in need are friends indeed. But the jury's out on whether Letterman has any left.
Filed under: Celebrity Justice, Exclusives, David Letterman
Tags: 48 hours, 48Hours, david letterman, DavidLetterman, extortion, joe halderman, JoeHalderman, robert halderman, RobertHalderman
Posted Oct 27th 2009 12:01PM by TMZ Staff
A former Letterman writer claims Dave's show was a "hostile, sexually charged atmosphere" -- and "sexual politics" played a role in why she eventually quit the job.
The woman making the claim is Nell Scovell, who spent roughly 5 months working for Dave back in 1990.
In an article for Vanity Fair, Scovell claims during her employment, she was well aware that Dave and other high-level male employees were having sexual relations with female staffers.
Scovell also claims those female staffers were "benefiting professionally from their personal relationships."
She adds, "Did that make me feel demeaned? Completely. Did I say anything at the time? Sadly, no."
But she's talkin' now.
In the article, Scovell claims she's not looking to take any legal action against Dave or the show -- and she never identifies any of the alleged staffer-bangers by name.
Filed under: Celebrity Justice, TV, David Letterman
Tags: david letterman, DavidLetterman, neil scoveil, NeilScoveil, sexual relations, SexualRelations
Posted Oct 21st 2009 10:55AM by TMZ Staff
Joe Halderman -- the man accused of trying to extort $2 million from David Letterman -- was spotted at a Connecticut train station this morning, allegedly heading to NYC.
The camera guy asks Halderman how he's doing -- we can't tell if he says "Hey," "Great" or something else.
FYI -- Halderman has pled not guilty to the felony charge of attempted grand larceny in the first degree.
Filed under: Paparazzi Video, David Letterman
Tags: david letterman, DavidLetterman, extortion, extortionist, joe halderman, JoeHalderman, the late show, TheLateShow, video
Posted Oct 19th 2009 12:35AM by TMZ Staff
Much like he did with Stephanie Birkitt, David Letterman also used Holly Hester in sketches on his old "Late Night with David Letterman."
Here's a bit Dave did with Hester, who claims to have had a relationship with Letterman, all the way back in 1988. In this scene, Hester went by the name Phoebe.
Filed under: TV, David Letterman
Tags: david letterman, DavidLetterman, holly hester, HollyHester
Posted Oct 15th 2009 1:21PM by TMZ Staff
TMZ has obtained the search warrants in the David Letterman extortion case ... and the alleged extortion meeting between the suspect and Letterman's lawyer was recorded.
According to the affidavit, signed by Detective Terrence Blake and Detective Anthony Pasquarielao from the NYPD, they were seeking to search and seize "any and all computers and loose media, floppy disks, hard disks, cassette tapes, magnetic tapes, removable media, tape and/or data cartridges."
Cops were looking for correspondence, screenplays, treatments ... "regarding the demand for money in exchange for the non-disclosure of information pertaining to the personal and private lives of public figures."
According to the warrant, Letterman's lawyer received a package from Robert Halderman on Sept. 9, 2009, containing a demand letter and treatment for a screenplay and supporting materials including copies of a portion of a diary...
In the letter, Halderman states he needs to "make a large chunk of money" by selling Client #1 "a screenplay treatment."
Click here... it's not over yet
Filed under: Celebrity Justice, Exclusives, David Letterman
Tags: david letterman, DavidLetterman, search warrant, SearchWarrant
Posted Oct 15th 2009 9:20AM by TMZ Staff
The "other" other intern David Letterman allegedly got down with certainly made herself comfy in Dave's office back in the day.
As we first reported, Holly Hester -- an intern for Dave 2 decades ago -- says she also had a secret relationship with the late night host when she was a student at NYU and fell head over heels for him. She says they dated for a year.
The pics, taken when Dave was still at NBC, are totally innocent -- Holly is goofing around in his office ... Dave nowhere in sight. But Holly was a bold intern -- daring to puff on one of Dave's beloved cigars.
Filed under: Photo Galleries, Exclusives, David Letterman
Tags: david letterman, DavidLetterman, holly hester, HollyHester, intern, nbc, office, photos, pictures, stephanie birkitt, StephanieBirkitt
Posted Oct 14th 2009 1:30PM by TMZ Staff
When David Letterman's company drew up the rules and regs for interns, who knew a double entendre of epic proportions would eventually surface?
TMZ has obtained the "Late Show" Intern Packet from 2002. In the "Welcome" packet, Worldwide Pants explains, "Things might seem overwhelming at first. There are many names, faces and departments you'll need to know. If you get confused, ask questions, no one here bites."
"...no one here bites."
And this is a little cheesy: "LATE SHOW t-shirts, sweatshirts and caps are not easily accessible. Please don't assume that because you are part of the show, you are entitled to them. Things will come to you in time; be patient."
By the way, in 2002, Stephanie Birkitt was already Dave's assistant.
Filed under: TV, Exclusives, David Letterman
Tags: dave, david letterman, DavidLetterman, interns, internship, internship program, InternshipProgram, late show, LateShow, stephanie birkitt, StephanieBirkitt, the late show, TheLateShow, worldwide pants, WorldwidePants, WWP
Posted Oct 14th 2009 12:57AM by TMZ Staff
TMZ has obtained the sexual harassment policy statement for David Letterman's production company, Worldwide Pants -- and what's NOT in the document is more interesting than what is.
Nothing in the document prohibits an employee from gettin' down with the host. In fact, the document -- which we're told was first distributed approximately five years ago -- does not prohibit sexual liaisons in the office, provided they're not "unsolicited and unwelcome."
The policy does make it clear it's inappropriate for a supervisor to offer a promotion, salary increase or any other type of bonus in exchange for "providing any form of sexual favor to or dating a supervisor."
If Letterman were held to CBS policies, he would have been required to notify a member of the CBS brass and declare his affair. But Letterman is not a CBS employee so that rule doesn't apply.
So ... as long as Letterman didn't reward his office "partners" with perks ... WWP would have no issues with him.
Filed under: Celebrity Justice, Exclusives, David Letterman
Tags: david letterman, DavidLetterman, document, policty, sexual harassment, SexualHarassment
Posted Oct 13th 2009 1:15AM by TMZ Staff
A Connecticut college has initiated a new program to keep David Letterman interns at arms length from the host.
A rep from Quinnipiac University tells TMZ:
"Due to recent circumstances we will have a discussion with those in charge of placing our interns at the David Letterman show in the future.
We will diligently oversee this internship program to ensure that our interns are out of harm's way."
David might be happy to know the college has no plans to end the program.
Filed under: Exclusives, David Letterman
Tags: college, david letterman, DavidLetterman, interns, quinnipiac, university
