New York City Council urges CBS to keep ‘Late Show’ in Manhattan

Production rivals New York and Los Angeles are engaged in a tug of war over the “Late Show.”

A day after L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti urged CBS to move “Late Show” to L.A., the New York City Council followed up with its own charm offensive.

“For 32 years, ‘The Late Show’ with David Letterman has been a proud part of New York City’s amazing entertainment culture,” New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito wrote in a letter to CBS Chief Executive Les Moonves. “That is why I’m writing to urge you to keep future production and filming of ‘The Late Show’ right here in New York City, where the program began and where David Letterman found such great success.”

Mark-Viverito’s letter followed an appeal Garcetti made Thursday to Moonves, hours after Letterman announced his plans to retire next year.

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But Mark-Viverito said New York City has always been the rightful home of “Late Show,” calling it an “iconic presence,” and touted the city’s film-friendly policies.

“While popular programs are leaving other cities, they’re flocking to New York in record numbers,” she said, perhaps alluding to NBC’s decision to move “The Tonight Show” this year to New York after more than four decades in Burbank.

“In fact, between the 2011 and 2014, the number of TV series produced in New York City shot up from 18 to 27. We also greatly appreciate and understand the industry’s ability to create good jobs and support small businesses.”

The speaker added: “The history between this city and ‘The Late Show’ is a defining characteristic which viewers all over America recognize and appreciate. What better place for ‘The Late Show’ than The City That Never Sleeps?”

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