Letterman Will Stay Up Later with His 'Late Show'

David Leno, Letterman's biggest competitor for late night audiences, will say goodbye to NBC in 2009, when his place will be taken by comedian Conan O'Brien. But his arch-rival in terms of competition is likely to stay for another four years on the small screen, at the rival network.

Letterman is currently in talks to CBS Corps. Executives to extend his deal for another four years, but both the network representatives and David refused to make any comment, as not all the details have been settled yet.

Until now, the star has been granted an extension that will keep him on the 'Late Show' through the 2009-2010 television season. It seems that all the health problems that the 59-year-old funnyman has been suffering from lately will not prevent him from making America laugh, at least for the moment.

Since 1993 - when Letterman moved to CBS - his show always competed with Leno's 'Tonight Show'. Last year's ratings indicate that Letterman came behind Leno, with 4.16 million viewers per night, as opposed to Jay's 5.71 million. The decrease in audience was somehow accounted by the fact that David has had heart surgery, a serious case of shingles and has been enjoying poor health lately.

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