One Interview Letterman Would Like Over

In an interview with Indianapolis Monthly, David Letterman talks a bit about his old show, and one of the more interesting snippets comes when he's asked whether he ever got "particularly anxious" before an interview. Surprisingly, the first one that comes to mind is one of his more memorable ones—a 2002 interview with Warren Zevon after the singer (a regular on the show) learned he had terminal lung cancer:

• "I was at a loss because I couldn’t think of an entry point for a conversation with a dying man on a television show that’s supposed to be silly. 'How are you doing? You look great!' doesn’t exactly work. I was really dissatisfied with my part of that conversation. I was ill-equipped to connect with a friend who was going through something like that."

In the show, Letterman opens the interview by observing to Zevon that the public had recently learned that his "life had changed radically" and asked him to talk about it. Zevon was funny, charming, and offered the wise advice to "enjoy every sandwich." Click to read the full Indianapolis Monthly interview, which is conducted by a college friend of Letterman's. (More David Letterman stories.)