Alan Kalter, David Letterman’s longtime ‘Late Show’ announcer, dead at 78

STAMFORD, Ct. — Alan Kalter, who kept audiences chuckling for two decades as comic David Letterman’s announcer and sometimes celebrity interviewer, died Monday at the age of 78, his wife confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter.

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A cause of death was not provided.

Kalter took over the “Late Night with David Letterman” announcing reins from retiring Bill Wendell in 1995, injecting his own brand of hilarity into the show until its final episode in May 2015, the entertainment news outlet reported.

“I’ve had such a great 20 years. It’s been a blessing every single day,” Kalter told THR in an interview as the “Letterman” finale approached.

“Every one of us goes through a terrible time once in a while, before 3 o’clock or before 4 o’clock. But no matter what my day is like, from 4:30 to 5:30 [when the “Late Show” taped], I laugh, I smile, every day,” he added.

Born Alan Robert Kalter in Brooklyn, New York, on March 21, 1943, Kalter graduated from Hobart College in 1964, before attending New York University Law School, teaching high school briefly and then launching an enduring career in broadcasting.

If “Big Red’s” voice ever sounded familiar while he was conducting his tongue-in-cheek “Alan Kalter’s Celebrity Interview” on “Letterman,” that could be because, over the years, he also lent his announcing talents to such game shows as “To Tell the Truth,” “The $25,000 Pyramid” and “The Money Maze.” Kalter was also an industry mainstay of voiceover work for TV commercials, most notably as the voice of the Michelin Man, and also regularly voiced promotional spots for USA Network, THR reported.

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