Shannen Doherty made quite the first impression on Dave Letterman recently…an impression that started before she had even entered the building. Prior to her actual appearance on the show, Dave and Paul watched video of Doherty exiting her car and crossing to sign autographs for fans. Cameras captured her every move, from her short, shiny dress glinting in the sun to her high heels with the red soles, as wolfishly commented on by Dave and Paul in the slow-mo replay. Unfortunately, first impressions don’t always lead to good second impressions or good interviews.  Doherty wasn’t as “put together” this night as is necessary for a successful appearance on the Late Show.  The look and prep that guests put into hair, make-up and fashion goes a long way on Dave’s turf.  Perhaps, a long day of promotion in New York may have taken its toll.

(Note to publicist: I know schedules are tight and big apple hotel rooms mid-week prices are high, but isn’t a good appearance on Letterman worth one more night in town? – she must at least be getting a decent per diem from the CW based on the money they’re saving on Tori!)

Dave and Doherty did chat about her new show, redux 90210, so she achieved that goal. However, while she did have a few funny stories and retorts (several revolving around shoes), overall she was trying too way hard to be provocative.  You got the feeling she had planned the “spontaneous” moments and even though Dave helped when he could, she couldn’t quite pull it off.  Maybe that’s why she hasn’t been on the show in 13 years.

Doherty needs to learn to lighten up, get a little more rest, and be herself. That would leave the right kind of lasting impression.

Robert Downey, Jr. was a crack up from the moment he came out to greet Craig Ferguson. Playing to the audience, posing and eliciting massive amounts of cheer, Downey immediately established as strong rapport with everyone including the host. His casual, gum-chewing, jeans & jacket wearing persona is much more relaxed and much less cocky than previous talk show appearances and lends itself to accessibility, even while his intellect and quick wit kept Ferguson on his toes.
The discussion of his new film, Tropic Thunder, was interestingly handled in that it was talked about for several minutes without actually saying anything substantive other than Ferguson saying, about Downey’s character, “You can’t do that!”  Then there much discussion about Downey’s new mustache (is it more “Star 80 porn” or “Super Mario Bros?”) but he further showed his non-stop entertaining qualities by easily slipping in and out of accents, winning much praise from the lucky studio audience.

Guest and host were so in sync that Downey even commented on it “…we have a spark going between us.”  From “Googling” masquerading as “masturbation,” to thinly veiled allusions to Downey’s drug years, much ground was covered here – all of it with energy and style. I actually laughed out loud…twice! Not an easy feat at that ungodly hour.
You can’t buy good chemistry, but you can learn to play off the audience and your host by listening intently and drawing retorts from your arsenal well rehearsed anecdotes. For Downey, it just comes naturally. Probably just another reason why he’s such a good actor.

One of the Guest Whisperer guidelines for talk show appearances is to keep stories and pitches in the 30-to-60 second range.  This is partly because audiences are conditioned by the fast pace of shows to expect bite-sized nuggets.  Another reason is that short anecdotes keep the guest on track and moving forward.

Rules are made to be broken, of course and Luke Wilson has a Jimmy-Stewart-aw-shucks kind of persona that would feel straitjacketed in a rushed approach to guesting.  Yet I was still worried at first when he launched into a wandering story about shooting a movie at a girl’s college.  You could feel the natives in the bleachers getting restless.

But his laid back approach began paying off, though, as he pulled the audience into his ordinary-guy-in-a-star’s-world life with stories like the teamster driver who picked him up for an early morning shoot.  Wilson was dragging his feet, prompting the driver to admonish him with, “Look, I’ve driven Oliver Stone and Val Kilmer and I’m not in the mood for any of your B.S.!”  When he related how fans often accosted him with “Hey, you’re one of the Owens brothers, right?”, we know the universe is keeping his ego in check.

Promoting his new movie, Henry Poole Is Here, was a tough task, since it is a quirky little, low-key comedy-drama.  As Letterman noted: “A nice simple story – no explosions, no lasers, no Martians…”  At which point Wilson interrupted with “A lotta nudity, though!”  It broke Dave and the audience up, letting us know that the movie, like Luke Wilson, might have some surprises up its sleeve.

What is with Kevin Costner?  He seemed so out of sorts on a recent episode of The Late Show with David Letterman. The words spacey, preoccupied, out of sync, on another planet come to mind. Aside from the fact that his hand was in front of his mouth playing with his beard most of the time, Costner just looked uncomfortable.

Costner and Letterman spent the first segment discussing wildlife as Costner elaborated on his penchant for killing fish (with a spear gun), “I’m a menace under the ocean.” They went on to talk about horses, rodeos, cats, bears and his recent wedding, which was more of an Outward Bound event than nuptial. There were a few laughs along the way, mostly provided by Dave.

After the break, Costner’s film Swing Vote was the topic of discussion. Being that Costner co- financed and produced the film (reportedly to the tune of $20 million), he obviously thinks quite highly of it.   “At the end of the day,” he proclaimed, “you know, it does exactly what I always hope a movie will do, you go out with a feeling you didn’t anticipate [having] going in.” He even compared it to his modern day classic, Field of Dreams.

Granted it’s not an easy transition from heartthrob to disheveled leading man/character actor, but Costner continues to work on it. I wish he would find that comfort level on the talk-show circuit (although, interesting enough, he was on Regis and Kelly the next morning and appeared much more at ease, with none of the relentless nervous habits.)

The twitchy, ill-at-east persona like the one Costner displayed on The Late Show will do little to protect his investment.

If John McCain doesn’t make it to President, he may have a future in comedy. On a recent Letterman show, in the monologue, Dave served up several McCain jokes:
“John McCain looks like the guy at the hardware store who makes the keys.”
“John McCain looks like the guy who’s always got wiry hair growing out of new places.”
You get the picture. Then, surprising the audience, out walks McCain, who proceeds to volley back several Letterman jokes:
“You look like the guy who smuggles reptiles in his pants.”
“You look like the guy whose neighbors later say ‘he mostly kept to himself.’” Etc.
Not only were his comedic timing and delivery spot on, but he did a great impression of Letterman, hands in pockets, to boot!. “Maybe a little too funny,” was Letterman’s comment.

When he made his official guest appearance on the show a few minutes later, he continued his comfortable, casual, comedic style. He used prepared jokes to deflect a few questions, something he’s clearly mastered after appearing on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart more than 20 times – he actually holds the record. He even admitted that “candidates are a little repetitious from time to time,” but he still delivered the humorous lines in a fresh, first-time-you’ve-heard-them manner. Even when the conversation turned serious, he remained confident and calm, thoughtfully offering his take on the future.

Whoever wins the election, it will be refreshing to know that he or she is in on the joke, not the butt of it. John McCain can laugh with the best of them.

George Clooney exuded star quality the moment he walked onto the Late Show set, looking like he had just stepped out of Ocean’s 14.  And while being George Clooney is something none of us can ever hope to achieve, there’s a lot to be learned by observing his high-wire balancing act as a talk show guest, striking the perfect balance between being A-list and accessible.

Clooney has the self-deprecating act down to a science, blending the “I wish I was a star like him” and a viewer’s desire to see the all too human side of the high-and-mighty.  Watching George and Dave pal around and share celeb stories, we think “Oh, I want to belong to THAT club!”

Clooney knows the trick to spinning a great story is to have it so well rehearsed that it never seems rehearsed.  He made it look like he just remembered the hilarious incident that happened when police helicopters swarmed neighbor Britney Spears’ house.  And he got plenty of plugs in for his new movie, Leatherheads, by telling funny stories that generously showcased the other actors, at his own expense.  His guest stint was a textbook example of how to look ridiculously cool while telling stories about appearing ridiculous.  Not so easy when you come to think about it.

Clooney secured the Perfect Guest title by giving Dave what ever talk show host craves: a bankable celebrity who not only charms the audience, but hangs around to do a comedy skit as well.  Dave said it best, “If everyone were like George Clooney, show business would be a much better place.”

When Demi Moore strode onto the Letterman stage in a very flattering bright red dress, she was every bit the consummate actress and star (even perfectly raising her foot when Letterman hugged her). Through the course of the interview, she was flirty and fun and filled with just the right kind of racy stories for late night TV. And other than her annoying nervous habit of keeping her hands clasped together almost the entire time, which transmitted a palpable tension, she was a great interview for a fawning Dave.

Letterman showed pictures of her with her three daughters in Bazaar magazine and when he asked how she keeps them on the straight and narrow, she said “I beat them with a belt…” PAUSE…then she cracked up laughing.

She then spent a good deal of time discussing her recent trip to Austria for leech therapy, “but with highly trained medical leeches!” She got very graphic when describing the first leech crawling in her bellybutton and biting down. “You bastard!” she said. She also informed everyone that the leeches don’t like hair, so a “proper Brazilian” was necessary. Dave and the audience broke up. She mentioned that she even brought photos, which were deemed too explicit for even late night, much to Dave and Paul’s disappointment.

Moore then talked about her new film with Michael Caine, Flawless and discussed their first film together, Blame It On Rio, some twenty years ago. Moore confessed that she was certain such a comedy could never be made today as Caine, her father in the film, has an affair with her 17-year old best friend.

Moore handled herself with poise and playful charm…now if she could just pry open those hands and let us all relax she’ll get a 5 Whisper score next time.