One popular belief was that the same sense of confidence and invincibility that made Mr. Halderman a great war producer had also allowed him to try and allegedly blackmail the late-night star of his own network, despite the seemingly horrendous odds of pulling off such a crime.
Here and there, people talked of the problematic archetypes of the business. One source who has worked at all three network news divisions said that the cocky, swashbuckling hard-news producer who is a genius out in the field and something of a menace back in the office is a common type in TV news. Daring bravado can be a huge asset in a war zone and a major headache when applied to a less volatile atmosphere. Like, say, an office Christmas party. The professional upside tends to justify whatever messes get created along the way.
“Network news divisions have a high tolerance for assholes,” said the source. “They can be incredibly useful. But also creepy. And everyone knows exactly who they are.”
In years past, the demand was particularly strong at the networks for gung-ho, fearless producers to work in the overseas bureaus. Who better to drop into a war zone on a moment’s notice? But as news budgets have diminished and overseas bureaus have atrophied, more and more of the cowboys have been coming home from the front. Give them too much downtime, goes the theory, and problems inevitably materialize. Golf, which Mr. Halderman enjoyed playing, is an imperfect sedative.
There was also a lot of chatter among the CBS diaspora about the fake check. On Sept. 30, a lawyer for Mr. Letterman, working in conjunction with the Manhattan district attorney’s office, met with Mr. Halderman and handed over a fake check for $2 million—a check that Mr. Halderman promptly deposited in his bank account. Afterward, he was arrested. Who ever heard of someone conducting blackmail by check?
The district attorney’s office was of little help in clearing up the mystery. Whose idea was the fake check? A spokesperson for the DA’s office declined to comment to The Observer. Had the DA’s office ever issued a fake check to a suspect in the past? Again, no comment.
Mr. Halderman’s lawyer was similarly opaque. On Monday morning, Gerald Shargel appeared on NBC’s Today, where he indicated their legal strategy would be to put Mr. Letterman’s behavior under the microscope. “It’s not only the motive, intent and conduct of Joe Halderman, it’s the motive, intent and conduct of David Letterman,” said Mr. Shargel. “I look forward to cross-examining David Letterman.
“David Letterman didn’t give his side of the story,” he added. “David Letterman gave what he wanted the public to know. … He’s a master at manipulating audiences. That’s what he does for a living.”
So what was Mr. Halderman’s version of the events? Was it possible that Mr. Letterman’s affair with Ms. Birkitt had continued through her relationship with Mr. Halderman (as the New York Post reported on the morning of Oct. 6)? Was it possible that Mr. Halderman had found out about the affair and confronted Mr. Letterman? Was it possible that Mr. Letterman had led Mr. Halderman to water? During his media blitz, Mr. Shargel, the lawyer, played coy. He offered few details. His protestations of innocence seemed foggy at best.
In the meantime, Mr. Halderman was out on bail, ducking the ravenous media. And likewise, Mr. Letterman was back in the Ed Sullivan Theater, defending his staff from the vulturous press. On Monday night’s show, Mr. Letterman said that it was the newspaper and radio and television reporters who were now “pounding his staff”—not him. Those days, he suggested, were behind him.
“Right now,” said Mr. Letterman, “I’d give anything to be hiking on the Appalachian Trail.”
fgillette@observer.com
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