‘Oprah’ Welcomes David Letterman For Special NY Premiere

Midtown Manhattan was swarming with “Oprah” fans early this morning, as thousands of women (and a few men) lined up in droves for the taping of “The Oprah Winfrey Show’s” 22nd season premiere.

Oprah left behind her usual setting of Chicago for the special taping at Madison Square Garden, welcoming New York native David Letterman as the premiere’s special guest.

Access Hollywood’s Billy Bush chatted with Oprah just hours before Letterman made his first-ever appearance on her show.

“I’m surprised [Letterman] said yes,” Oprah told Billy. “And that he actually — you know, we were were trying to think of things that would make him comfortable, like bringing Paul Shaffer.”

Winfrey’s effort to make Letterman feel comfortable most likely stems from the “rift” the two talk show titans had for a ten-year span, when Oprah had reportedly felt “uncomfortable” by the frequent on-air jokes he would make about her. The pair fostered a reconciliation when Winfrey agreed to appear on Letterman’s “Late Show” in 2005.

Billy jokingly suggested that bringing some men to the estrogen-heavy taping of Oprah’s premiere may help Dave relax.

“Bringing men!” Oprah echoed. “Having, you know, his audience. And [Letterman] said no, he didn’t want that, he wanted the regular ‘Oprah’ deal — he wanted to sit down and have a conversation.”

“There are some reports that he’s in his dressing room now, throwing up,” Billy teased to a laughing Oprah. “Is that possible?”

“No need to be, no need to be,” Oprah replied.

Once on stage, Winfrey and Letterman joked about Dave’s 2001 quest to be an “Oprah” guest.

“Your people know my people, you know how to pick up the phone, I thought you’d just pick up the phone,” Oprah remarked.

“I wanted to be asked, Oprah. Don’t you understand that?” Letterman replied, opening his famous “Oprah Log” from his show. “`Day number 20. 11/27/01. Oprah. Noprah.‘ It was humiliating.”