David Letterman will appear on Late Night to celebrate show's 40th anniversary

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Is it too early to make our Top 10 Moments of 2022 list?

Because we're pretty sure this is going to be on it. Original Late Night host David Letterman will be dropping by as a guest Feb. 1 to celebrate the show's 40th anniversary. Letterman launched the NBC after-hours franchise in 1982, before eventually moving over to the Late Show on CBS.

Current Late Night host Seth Meyers announced the Letterman news in a video posted Tuesday. "The 40th anniversary is next Tuesday," he said, "and to celebrate, my guest that evening will be the man who started it all, David Letterman."

Meyers added, "Now that is a show that would make college-age Seth Meyers very happy. Also, current Seth Meyers."

Letterman went to CBS in 1993 following NBC's selection of Jay Leno to host The Tonight Show, and since then the Late Night host spot has been filled by several notable comedians. Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Fallon, and Meyers have all taken turns behind the desk in the show's 40-year history.

Meyers paid tribute to Letterman's crucial role in Late Night's genesis back in 2014, when news broke of Letterman's plans to retire.

"There are a lot of things I can't believe about the fact that I get to do this job, but the thing I truly can't believe above all of the others is that this show, Late Night, this is David Letterman's show," Meyers said in his monologue. "And if it wasn't for David Letterman, this show wouldn't exist. And if it wasn't for David Letterman, I wouldn't be here. And if I wasn't here, you'd just be an audience of people in an empty studio… it's incredible to be part of that legacy."

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