Yet another one of David Letterman's wacky "suits"... Here is the "Alka Seltzer" suit originally aired on NBC's "Late Night w/ David Letterman" on Sept. 6, 1984
The people calling that lame don't realize that he was charting new territory. People have been borrowing from and improving on Dave's type of bits for decades. He completely changed Late Night.
This is actually really similar to Steve Allen's bit, when he was wearing a suit of tea bags and jumped into water. In case you don't know who Steve Allen is, he was the first host of late night.
That and the fact that the head writer almost died trying it out in rehearsal. All the Alka seltzer reacting with the water pumped the top of the tank where his head was full of CO², and he almost suffocated. That's why Dave's wearing an Oxygen mask in this clip when they did it on the show.
Same here. And I was just remember it and decided to look it up on UA-cam. I'm glad somebody uploaded this so I could watch it again and share with younger friends.
The head writer almost died trying this stunt out in rehearsal. All the Alka seltzer reacting with the water pumped the top of the tank where his head was full of CO², and he almost suffocated. That's why Dave's wearing an Oxygen mask in this clip when they did it on the show.
We didn't have internet or home video games (Atari, sure, but most people didn't have that), just three local channels, and this was on one of them, later than most people stayed up. To those of us who did stay up that late, this kind of thing was what you talked about the next day to entertain your classmates/coworkers when you talked to them face to face (as opposed to texting or calling them on your mobile device). This was the UA-cam of our time ... and there was no thumbs-down button.
ohhhh soo profound so emotional it's true we never talk face to face with co workers we just beep booop bop now wow it was so amazing back then do wax more poetic please daddy please
@@rickpaul2531 Yeh.. that's probably right... I thought they did a week of them while they were on break, in reruns. I could be wrong though.. I'm old and mentally decrepit.
I wonder what would’ve happened if Dave were lowered in his Alka-Seltzer suit into a tank of vinegar. I’m guessing they wouldn’t have needed wires and a harness to pull him out because the bubbles created would just carry him away.
Funny thing about this stunt: they actually showed a preview of it during the "Office" episode where it was unusually hot and humid in November. They had a little doll with alka seltzer attached to it.
Yep. It was funny and very innovative. Much better than the late night tv you have now. Do yourself a favor and watch as much Letterman from NBC as you can find. If you end up not digging it, I sincerely feel sorry for you.
That was nowhere near as impressive as I'd hoped it would have been. Somehow I missed this when it was on TV the first time. I was probably out on some hot date knowing me in 1984- I was fifteen and a half when this aired so..... I'm imagining I was probably not near a TV
at1212 b Amen to that, at1212! The show had a "produced in someone's basement" kind of vibe. And, boy, was Dave quick-witted with just a touch of wiseass smarminess to make both him and the show VERY entertaining. Guests like Brother Theodore and those remote shots like "Just Shades" and Larry "Bud" Melman at Port Authority bus terminal were the greatest. The 12:30 AM time-slot was perfect for this kind of humor. As the years rolled on, and Dave switched to CBS, the show was never the same.
Steve Sam N Yes. It's like a good bad nightmare... especially with Melman. Dave was also so much smoother in his delivery. Never off beat. And how messy the set was was also awesome. The CBS one especially later on just became too slick for me (first few years set was good). The other thing that made the NBC show stand out was the Band and intro. Just had that extra beat, vibe and base to it. That really held it together and made the show pop.
Dave brought a dry, almost British humor to his shows. I enjoyed it, although some people just thought it was stupid. He was on the air for 30 years, so apparently i was not the only one.
Dude he invented this shit. This was 1984 and a hell of a lot of what he did had not been done before. And btw, alka-seltzer IS MEDICINE. Why do you think they put that mask on so damn tight and gave him oxygen? It's not worth risking illness or injury just to make dudebros like YOU happy. Dave changed and shaped the entire face of late-night tv with shit like THIS absolute classic piece, and those of us who got to watch it in the beginning are lucky as hell.
The people calling that lame don't realize that he was charting new territory. People have been borrowing from and improving on Dave's type of bits for decades. He completely changed Late Night.
This is actually really similar to Steve Allen's bit, when he was wearing a suit of tea bags and jumped into water. In case you don't know who Steve Allen is, he was the first host of late night.
@@LuisContreras-fr6mf Steve Allen also took a dive into a pool of gelatin.
@@LuisContreras-fr6mf Steve Allen was original host of The Tonight Show. David Letterman created Late Night.
That and the fact that the head writer almost died trying it out in rehearsal. All the Alka seltzer reacting with the water pumped the top of the tank where his head was full of CO², and he almost suffocated. That's why Dave's wearing an Oxygen mask in this clip when they did it on the show.
@@RyanConnell5150 his time in the tank was short and i was wondering if he signaled or the time was set as just enough
He didn't say it here, but one of his favorite lines was "Don't try this at home. Go to a friend's house and try it."
I remember watching this when it aired. I was 13 and knew I'd found a new hero.
i was 13 also. we are the same age.
Same here. And I was just remember it and decided to look it up on UA-cam. I'm glad somebody uploaded this so I could watch it again and share with younger friends.
@@maximusareilius2262 Damn, i was 2 hehe.
Well, I saw this when it aired too, and I was 14! ...and a *HALF*!! 😉 Boom! 🤘😆😂🤣
Remember watching this when it aired and really just enjoyed him being so refreshingly different from other late-night people
The head writer almost died trying this stunt out in rehearsal. All the Alka seltzer reacting with the water pumped the top of the tank where his head was full of CO², and he almost suffocated. That's why Dave's wearing an Oxygen mask in this clip when they did it on the show.
Well that whole segment fizzled at the end.
Letterman invented UA-cam 20 years before it showed up on the internet.
youre like that guy that goes "wow its just like in the movies!" because he watches movies too much
You mean it took 20 years for UA-cam to catch up with David Letterman.
We didn't have internet or home video games (Atari, sure, but most people didn't have that), just three local channels, and this was on one of them, later than most people stayed up. To those of us who did stay up that late, this kind of thing was what you talked about the next day to entertain your classmates/coworkers when you talked to them face to face (as opposed to texting or calling them on your mobile device). This was the UA-cam of our time ... and there was no thumbs-down button.
ohhhh soo profound so emotional it's true we never talk face to face with co workers we just beep booop bop now wow it was so amazing back then do wax more poetic please daddy please
I wish they had let the tabs dissolve all the way.
The best there's ever been and ever will be
For how short of time he spent in the container this was so funny, although the whole concept helped the humor along.
I was in high school in the ’80s, and I would tape Letterman then watch the episode as I was getting ready for school.
People don't know how uncharacteristic this was of dave.. he was not one to " go along with it" This week of the "suits" was great!
Wait, there was a week? I don't remember that part... I remember the Velcro, but What were the other suits?
@@GR_BackingTracks refriderator magnets, a fire suit where they roasted marshmallows on him, and the human sponge.. the sponge one was hysterical
The 'suits' were done over the course of several months. They didn't all appear in a one week timeline.
@@rickpaul2531 Yeh.. that's probably right... I thought they did a week of them while they were on break, in reruns. I could be wrong though.. I'm old and mentally decrepit.
@@ACoustaDC Yeah, I can relate to that. LOL.
I wonder what would’ve happened if Dave were lowered in his Alka-Seltzer suit into a tank of vinegar. I’m guessing they wouldn’t have needed wires and a harness to pull him out because the bubbles created would just carry him away.
Oh, what a relief that was.
I think the velcro suit was the funniest thing ever!
BEATAX I agree. That's my favorite of them all.
What he should have said as soon as he got out of the tank? "Oh, what a relief it is."
All of a sudden I have a tummy ache and could really go for some Alka-Seltzer! 🤣🤣
This is the dumbest idea ever. I love it
I'm just here getting party ideas.
Now that's entertainment. Intelligent thought provoking, topical and yes even controversial. But that's just the kind of man Dave has always been.
Funny thing about this stunt: they actually showed a preview of it during the "Office" episode where it was unusually hot and humid in November. They had a little doll with alka seltzer attached to it.
"My EYES!! Dah goggles do nozzin!!"
“My proudest moment”
😂
i read that 300 miliseconds before he said it
Next we need a Mentos suit while he jumps into a pool of Diet Coke!
I'm sure someone will mention, Steve Allen did the same thing 25 years prior with a suit made of teabags.
Yea bags do not effervesce and aren't medicine.
@@GuamGrrl True!
This is ENTERTAINING TV BaBy
I remember this. I recall reading that when they tested it with a stagehand, the dude passed out. They added the oxygen tank.
That makes sense. The carbonation that would be released would be enough to cause hypoxia.
They should do that NOW, but with a Mentos suit, and being lowered into a tank of Diet Coke.
And this is where we have the origins of the post credit segment of Rick and Morty's Vat of Acid episode.
I remember this
I'd like to see Dave try this with a vat of Coke and a Mentos suit.
Classic Dave!
"Don't try this at home" No sh*t! LOL:)
I bet he felt a big relief. And what a relief it is.
lol, they definitely didnt want all that CO2 to get to him so they yanked him out quickly
How the hell did they even make that? Just glue each individual one on? That must have taken weeks.
What a let down! They just dipped him!
None of these suits were ever quite as funny as the sponge suit
Yep. It was funny and very innovative. Much better than the late night tv you have now. Do yourself a favor and watch as much Letterman from NBC as you can find. If you end up not digging it, I sincerely feel sorry for you.
They could have easily left him in the tank for another 20-30 seconds.
They were running out of air time you dunce
OMG he's so young!
Soupy Sales and Steve Allen paved the way for Dave. Kids can use the Google machine if need be.
love dave always funny
that was back when he still enjoyed doing it before he finished out the last years sullen and hating every minute of it
he quit when he wanted to quit
you're thinking about the eric andre show
Alka-Seltzer the rescue! Um, wait a minute...
You can od from Alka Seltzer.
The suit that almost killed him.
@nrrork THAT is a BRILLIANT idea...haha
io9.com/man-wearing-a-suit-of-mentos-falls-into-a-tub-of-diet-c-1593267695?
(can no longer respond to the user nrrork, but here it is...)
The original, stupid human tricks
Is this happening in a theatre or in Area 51??
So funny
Should have left him in a bit longer.
So what were the shoes for again?
I'll tell ya later
He should do this again but with menots and diet coke
*Mentos
2:29
Down down down the stomach through,
Round round the system too.
W/ alka seltzer they always say;
"Relef is just a swallow away!"
That was nowhere near as impressive as I'd hoped it would have been. Somehow I missed this when it was on TV the first time. I was probably out on some hot date knowing me in 1984- I was fifteen and a half when this aired so..... I'm imagining I was probably not near a TV
It's prolly hard to see the TV while on your back huh ?
because she made stuff up.
Christ alive, I'm laughing so much I can't breathe. Not good for my asthma lol
Someone call an ambulance ASAP 🚑
His oxygen line is connected to nothing..
@oOoACFREEMANoOo Just CO2. Actually, this stunt raised the temperature of the Earth by 0.2 degrees though.
@BeAStarEnt
Yeah. All those tablets fizzing produces quite a bit of carbon dioxide.
Talk about anti-climactic.
What? The?
Ahhh, the 80's. Back when Dave used to be entertaining.
Ace Lynch Not just Dave.. the whole production. Music, how 'cheesy' everything felt, the producers, everything!
at1212 b Amen to that, at1212! The show had a "produced in someone's basement" kind of vibe. And, boy, was Dave quick-witted with just a touch of wiseass smarminess to make both him and the show VERY entertaining. Guests like Brother Theodore and those remote shots like "Just Shades" and Larry "Bud" Melman at Port Authority bus terminal were the greatest. The 12:30 AM time-slot was perfect for this kind of humor. As the years rolled on, and Dave switched to CBS, the show was never the same.
Steve Sam N Yes. It's like a good bad nightmare... especially with Melman. Dave was also so much smoother in his delivery. Never off beat. And how messy the set was was also awesome. The CBS one especially later on just became too slick for me (first few years set was good). The other thing that made the NBC show stand out was the Band and intro. Just had that extra beat, vibe and base to it. That really held it together and made the show pop.
at1212 b Agreed. It was like the NBC days were an underground club with lots of character, versus the CBS days which were like a fancy restaurant.
Before he turned into a liberal pussy
to anyone around in 84...was this funny then?
Dave brought a dry, almost British humor to his shows. I enjoyed it, although some people just thought it was stupid. He was on the air for 30 years, so apparently i was not the only one.
I remember this well. HAD to watch Dave every night, no matter that I had work at 9 a.m. I loved it, found it refreshing and new.
what a let down...I wanted to see him under the water and in there for more then 5 seconds...lol...chicken.
God that was lame.
YOURE lame
Your mother.
Your mothers lame !
Dude he invented this shit. This was 1984 and a hell of a lot of what he did had not been done before. And btw, alka-seltzer IS MEDICINE. Why do you think they put that mask on so damn tight and gave him oxygen? It's not worth risking illness or injury just to make dudebros like YOU happy. Dave changed and shaped the entire face of late-night tv with shit like THIS absolute classic piece, and those of us who got to watch it in the beginning are lucky as hell.
That was considered entertainment? No wonder why the 90's kids enjoyed Nirvana.
Epic Lame
that was so lame.