David Letterman Talks LATE SHOW Exit: 'I Know I Can't Do What Jimmy Fallon's Doing'

In a rare interview with The New York Times, outgoing host of CBS's LATE SHOW, David Letterman, reflects on his years on the show and what's ahead.

The long-time late night host shares that he understands it is now time to turn over the hosting duties to a younger generation of comedians. "When I was watching those interim shows they did on The Late Late Show, and I saw John Mayer hosting one night, I thought, "Ohhhh, now I see exactly what the problem is,' " he explains. "Because he's young. He's handsome. He's trim. He's witty. He was comfortable. So then I realized, I got nothing to worry about. I know I can't do what Jimmy Fallon's doing. I know I can't do what Jimmy Kimmel is doing. There's nothing left to be worried about."

Letterman also reveals he had not been consulted on the choice for his successor, and admits he may have gone for a more diverse choice. "I always thought Jon Stewart would have been a good choice. And then Stephen. And then I thought, well, maybe this will be a good opportunity to put a black person on, and it would be a good opportunity to put a woman on," he says. "Because there are certainly a lot of very funny women that have television shows everywhere. So that would have made sense to me as well."

Asked about what's ahead, the comic notes that even Jane Pauley has stuck around as a CBS contributor. "So maybe one day, something of that level will happen to me," he jokes.

Read the interview in full here

Photo courtesy of CBS