"Stupid Pet Tricks", and, subsequently, "Stupid Human Tricks", are well-known segments on Late Night with David Letterman

Late Night with David Letterman

Late Night with David Letterman is a nightly hour-long comedy talk show on NBC that was created and hosted by David Letterman. It premiered in 1982 as the first incarnation of the Late Night franchise and went off the air in 1993, after Letterman left NBC and moved to Late Show on CBS. Late Night...

, and, later, The Late Show with David Letterman.

Created by Merrill Markoe

Merrill Markoe

Merrill Markoe is an author, an Emmy Award-winning television writer and a sometime standup comedienne.-Career:Markoe attended the University of California, Berkeley, receiving a B.A. in Art in 1970 and an M.A. in 1972...

 for David Letterman

David Letterman

David Michael Letterman is an American television host and comedian. He hosts the late night television talk show, Late Show with David Letterman, broadcast on CBS. Letterman has been a fixture on late night television since the 1982 debut of Late Night with David Letterman on NBC...

's short-lived NBC

NBC

The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...

 morning show, The David Letterman Show

The David Letterman Show

The David Letterman Show was a live morning NBC talk show hosted by David Letterman from June 23 to October 24, 1980. The show originally ran for 90 minutes, then 60 minutes from August 4 onward.-Background:...

, the concept was carried over to Letterman's Late Night, and debuted on that series in 1982. The show originally solicited pets to appear using this simple ad in the New York Times classifieds:

HAVE YOU TAUGHT YOUR PET TO DO SOMETHING ODD?

Late Night with David Letterman on

NBC will feature pets who have been

trained to do unusual things. Pets

must be amateur & owners must be

willing to appear w/ them at auditions

& on the show.

The inaugural segment featured a dog named "Muggsy" who would sneeze

Sneeze

A sneeze is a semi-autonomous, convulsive expulsion of air from the lungs through the nose and mouth, usually caused by foreign particles irritating the nasal mucosa...

 on command, and another dog that would answer the phone.

Based on the instant success of "Stupid Pet Tricks", Letterman devised a similar off-shoot: "Stupid Human Tricks", which was identical in nature to the Pet Tricks, except that people were now doing the wacky stunts.

The rights to both "Stupid Pet Tricks" and "Stupid Human Tricks" were retained by Worldwide Pants

Worldwide Pants

Worldwide Pants Incorporated is an American television and film production company owned by comedian and talk show host David Letterman. Its ongoing productions are Late Show with David Letterman and The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson...

, Inc., and were not lost when Letterman moved to the Late Show on CBS

CBS

CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...

in 1993. As a result, they are still performed to this day on the Late Show.

Trademark lines

• About Stupid Pet Tricks: "Remember, this is not a competition, it is only an exhibition — please, no wagering."
• About Stupid Human Tricks: "Remember, this is not an exhibition, it is a competition — wagering is encouraged."