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David Letterman donates TV memorabilia to Ball State

Emmy Awards, talk-show set headed to comedian's alma mater

David Lindquist
IndyStar
David Letterman returned Monday to Ball State University.

MUNCIE — David Letterman marveled at the filmmaking skills of Spike Jonze and Bennett Miller on Monday night at Ball State University, and the retired talk-show host poked fun at his own "acting career."

But Letterman's latest visit to his alma mater will be remembered for what he plans to leave behind: Emmy Awards, a talk-show set and other memorabilia from a career in television, according to an announcement by Ball State president Paul Ferguson.

Ferguson talked about donations that will become "The David Letterman Experience" before Letterman chatted with "Being John Malkovich" director Jonze and "Moneyball" director Miller in front of a capacity crowd at Emens Auditorium.

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Ferguson didn't go into specifics about the talk-show furniture — whether it comes from "Late Night with David Letterman" (which aired on NBC from 1982 to 1993) or "Late Show with David Letterman" (which aired on CBS from 1993 to 2015) — but he said the exhibit will reside at the David Letterman Communication and Media Building.

Once Letterman arrived onstage, sporting a voluminous white beard he's been growing since the final "Late Show" telecast on May 20, he joked about how meaningful something titled "The David Letterman Experience" might be: "So you can sit at a desk and pretend to talk to an actor?"

The Indianapolis native found plenty of topics to address with Jonze and Miller.

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The directors talked about times they struggled to compromise with major studios: "Where the Wild Things Are" for Jonze, "Moneyball" for Miller.

Letterman heaped praise on two movies that he said represented the zenith of filmmaking: "Her" from Jonze, "Capote" from Miller.

And it was relatively clear Letterman didn't warn the directors that he planned to bring up the topic of women being under-represented in the Hollywood jobs of producer and director.

Neither guest pounced on the chance to discuss the topic.

Jonze declared that it's "ridiculous" that women don't have more prominent roles, and he applied the same adjective of "ridiculous" when mentioning that no African-American is a chief executive at a studio.

Offering no solutions, Jonze said he's personally motivated to work with anyone who excites and inspires him.

Miller said the "women in film" topic has "land mines all over it," and added, "I feel frustrated that I don't have an answer."

On a personal note, he mentioned that Rachael Horowitz served as a producer on "Moneyball;" Caroline Baron served as a producer on "Capote;" and Megan Ellison served as a producer on "Foxcatcher."

Letterman shifted toward a comedic conclusion to the program by screening a clip from "Cabin Boy," the 1994 film that gave Letterman his lone acting credit.

The scene — infamous for Letterman's line of "Would you like to buy a monkey?" — pits Letterman's "Old Salt in Fishing Village" against lead actor Chris Elliott, who Letterman mocks for being a "fancy lad."

Twenty-one years later, Letterman gave Jonze and Miller a green light to critique his performance. "It looked like you weren't prepared," Jonze said.

Letterman said he flew to the West Coast to make the cameo, and he was eager to fly back as soon as filming began.

Perhaps correcting a cinematic disaster, Jonze and Miller coached two Ball State students to act the scene on the Emens stage. With the "Old Salt" playing a bit of sexual tension for laughs, this revised snippet of "Cabin Boy" became a winner that Letterman described as "perfection."

Monday wasn't the first time Letterman brought celebrities to Ball State. He chatted with Twitter co-founder Biz Stone in 2010, with MSNBC personality Rachel Maddow in 2011 and with Oprah Winfrey in 2012.

On the topic of his beard, Letterman made one joke about a fake on-campus encounter with a student earlier in the day: "You look familiar ... Charles Darwin?"

Call Star reporter David Lindquist at (317) 444-6404. Follow him on Twitter: @317Lindquist.