ALL-NEW FEAR OF THE VELVET CURTAIN: TALKIN' ABOUT EARL HOFERT

 

In anticipation of the great late-night sinkhole that's about to form come 12:37 a.m. Wednesday, May 20 (or, more precisely, Thursday, May 21) when David Letterman signs off of the Late Show for the last time, my Fear of the Velvet Curtain column this week is devoted to a personal remembrance of Dave's influence, a whole bunch of links to other, much better articles considering Dave's legacy, and my own little tribute to one aspect of his mighty career that has gone overlooked among all the pieces written so far:

"Okay, show of hands. How many of you saw Cabin Boy when it was released theatrically in January 1994? (Crickets…) I thought so.... There were about six people in the auditorium when my wife and I saw it on its very brief run at a theater in Westwood, and I remember stumbling out of the theater thinking that this movie could seriously be in the running for Strangest Movie Ever Made...About 10 minutes into the action, Elliot, still dressed in the powdered wig and lace jacket uniform of his exclusive fancy lad prep school, saunters through a coastal village looking for directions to the dock where he will board the Filthy Whore. And who should he encounter but a bum in a wool cap, smoking a cigar, who looks and sounds a lot like David Letterman. A quick check of the credits afterward reveals that the actor’s actual name is Earl Hofert… but I’d almost swear…"

Check in behind the velvet curtain this week and find out What We Talk About When We Talk About Earl Hofert (and David Letterman), now playing at Trailers from Hell!

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